Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro and Department of Labor and Industry (LandI) Secretary Nancy A. Walker visited Steamfitters 420 Local in Philadelphia to highlight Governor Shapiro’s new Commonwealth Workforce Transformation Program (CWTP), a first in the nation job training program that provides workforce development grants to ensure companies, contractors, unions, and others who are working to build Pennsylvania’s infrastructure have the skilled workforce they need.
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The CWTP, created by Governor Shapiro’s executive order will create new opportunities for Pennsylvania workers and help expand the Commonwealth’s workforce by providing grants of up to $40,000 for each new employee hired and trained in Pennsylvania for critical infrastructure projects, up to a maximum of $400,000 per contract or award for organizations doing work funded by President Biden’s Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) or the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA).
Under the CWTP, the Commonwealth will reserve at least 3% of all funding it receives from the IIJA and IRA to fund workforce development and on the job training, meaning that as much as $400 million could be used for workforce training in Pennsylvania over the next five years – the largest investment in workforce training in Pennsylvania history, supporting as many as 10,000 new jobs.
This is especially important for workers like the steamfitters, who are working on federally funded energy efficiency projects across the Commonwealth and continue to train new apprentices, like those the Governor met today.
“My vision for Pennsylvania is one where everyone has the freedom to chart their own course and the opportunity to succeed – and thanks to the historic federal infrastructure funding championed by the Biden Administration, we have a tremendous opportunity to create good paying jobs and build big things in this nation,†said Governor Josh Shapiro.
“I’ve heard from contractors and union leaders all across Pennsylvania, who’ve all told me how they’re struggling to find enough workers for these kinds of projects.
"That’s why I created this program – the first of its kind in the country – to invest up to $400 million of that federal infrastructure funding in workforce training and create 10,000 new infrastructure jobs in Pennsylvania.
"We are going to continue to be a strong partner with our labor unions to bring forth creative, innovative solutions in Pennsylvania that help grow our ranks.â€
Under the leadership of Secretary Walker, LandI will manage the CWTP, which will support companies, contractors, unions, and others who want to do critical work on the Commonwealth’s infrastructure but need to find experienced workers or train new workers to get the projects done quickly, safely, and effectively.
Pennsylvania currently faces a shortage of workers to complete critical infrastructure projects.
The CWTP is also designed to empower and expand economic opportunities to Pennsylvanians who have too often been left out and left behind by encouraging new on the job training programs, supporting apprenticeships, promoting the hiring of unemployed people, the formerly incarcerated, and new entrants into the workforce, and rewarding those who maintain the highest workplace standards.
To help Pennsylvania repair roads and bridges and modernize energy, water, and sewer infrastructure across the Commonwealth, the Shapiro Administration created the CWTP in close collaboration with the Biden Administration, unions, and the private sector, and will continue working with stakeholders to invest federal infrastructure dollars in the Commonwealth’s workforce by providing on the job training to new employees. ■