The Center for Workforce Inclusion awarded $181.8 million grant from the U.S. Department of Labor to support workforce training for unemployed older workers
Silver Spring, Md (September 26, 2024) – Gary A. Officer, President and CEO, the Center for Workforce Inclusion, today announced a 4-year $181.8 million grant award from the U.S. Department of Labor, subject to annual renewal and appropriation. This award supports the organization’s efforts to provide critical workforce development training and job placement support for our nation’s older workers.
“To receive the largest national grant in this funding category is a testament to our years of hard work in delivering critical workforce development programming across so many communities in our nation. I am particularly pleased this grant will allow us to continue our important work in communities across the rural south, where we have enjoyed proximity to the residents and local institutions with whom we have partnered. I am equally delighted that this grant will support the continuation of our important work in resilient cities like Chicago, New York, and Baltimore.”
Our nation’s dependency on older workers will increase in the years to come. According to the U.S. Special Committee on Aging, older workers will become one of the largest segments of our nation’s workforce by 2028, when it is estimated that 25% of our workforce will be fifty and over. We need to prepare our nation for a truly inclusive workforce in which Americans of all ages are welcome. However, we must also ensure that an equitable distribution of workforce investment dollars will be deployed to better prepare our older workers for future success once employed.
Funding from the U.S. Department of Labor will also support the further expansion of our Digital Certification Program (DCP) and Careers Pathway Initiative. These programs were simultaneously launched last year, to provide unemployed older job seekers with the tools to succeed within a workforce now requiring higher levels of digital proficiency. More importantly, our approach to workforce development training will also be adapted in real time to meet the unprecedented changes anticipated across all occupations because of Artificial Intelligence (AI). This grant will allow us to do just that.
Funding from the Senior Community Service Employment Program (SCSEP) will underwrite CWI’s commitment to the thousands of job seekers who will benefit from this grant award.
For further information about this grant or on ways to offer your additional support to the work of the Center for Workforce Inclusion, please contact Lee-Berkeley Shaw, Chief Engagement and Partnership Officer, at LBShaw@workforceinclusion.org.
For media inquiries, please contact Rita Santelli, Chief Growth and Communications Officer, at RSantelli@workforceinclusion.org.