HARRISBURG – Gov. Edward G. Rendell announced that Pennsylvania has been approved for a federal $1.5 million High Growth Job Training Initiative grant that will help prepare workers for careers in advanced manufacturing.
Pennsylvania’s application to the U.S. Department of Labor is one of 11 grants that were selected from nearly 200 applications. The money will fund the Biotechnology Human Capital Investment Project in a 13-county region that includes southeastern Pennsylvania, southwestern New Jersey and northern Delaware.
“Manufacturing remains a vital part of Pennsylvania’s economy,” Rendell said. “We are doing everything possible to help manufacturers adapt to changes in the economy that are forcing them to work smarter. In the bio-tech manufacturing sector, we need a pool of highly-skilled, advanced manufacturing workers who can help these companies compete in the global market.
“For nearly four years, we have worked directly with the manufacturing industry to make strategic investments in projects that are creating new opportunities for Pennsylvania’s hardworking men and women,” Rendell added. “Our efforts are paying off. We have more jobs in Pennsylvania now than ever before, and last month, IBM Business Consulting Services named us the number one destination for new projects and the top location for manufacturing projects in all of North America.”
The $1.5 million federal grant will be administered by the Philadelphia Workforce Investment Board in the tri-state region over the next three years to develop specialized training programs for workers in the bio-tech manufacturing sector. The grant leverages existing state worker training grants of $550,000 from the commonwealth and $200,000 from Delaware.
