WANTO Targets Apprenticeships for Women

(Courtesy of Finance & Commerce)

The U.S. Department of Labor will inject $1.9 million into efforts to recruit and train women for high-skill jobs in manufacturing, construction and other fields hungry for workers.

Through the program, four community-based organizations will get grants to create regional, multi-state resource centers. Those facilities will be geared toward increasing the number of women entering “nontraditional occupations,” in part through apprenticeship programs.

“Apprenticeships are a time-tested method for training workers with the skills needed to succeed in the jobs employers need most, but for too long, these earn-while-you-learn opportunities have been too scarce for women and other under-represented populations,” U.S. Labor Secretary Thomas Perez said in a statement.

Grant recipients will develop ways to prepare women for registered apprenticeship programs, conduct orientations for employers on integrating women into apprenticeships and seek out resources geared toward funneling women into certain jobs.