Good News for Job Skills Training Programs in Illinois

Through the efforts of the IWF Campaign, our endorsers, supporters and friends, two critically important and effective job training programs were restored to pre-veto levels in a supplemental appropriations bill that passed the General Assembly on January 13, 2009. These programs were cut in half by the Governor’s veto in July 2008.

The Job Training and Economic Development program makes grants to partnerships between community-based job training programs and local businesses to develop effective training to meet business needs. JTED was created to serve vulnerable populations such as TANF recipients, ex-offenders, the homeless, immigrants, and dislocated workers, many of whom face barriers such as illiteracy, a poor work history, and limited English proficiency. Under the program, unemployed adults are provided with skills training, case management, and job placement services, while low-skilled incumbent workers get skills training that improves the productivity of their employers.

The Employment Opportunity Grant Program (EOGP) makes grants to educational institutions and community-based organizations to prepare individuals for careers in building trades occupations. The goal of the EOGP is to expand the number of individuals in historically underrepresented populations (low-income people, people of color and women) who enter and complete building trades apprenticeship programs and achieve journey-level status within building trades unions.