GreenPOWER — a U.S. Department of Labor funded job skills training program that began training workers in this summer — is a free program that trains current workers, new hires and unemployed or dislocated workers in a wide range of green and greening industries. A key focus of the program is training Ford workers to transition to new vocations after the plant closes. The plant is scheduled to close in 2011.
“It’s unfortunate that this plant — which is a landmark in St. Paul — is closing, but we need to focus on the needs of the workers who will be displaced by Ford’s decision,” said Brant Ingalsbe, program director of GreenPOWER. “GreenPOWER training will help give these workers a ‘leg up’ as they move on to other vocations. The skills they gain from the classes will help ensure they are more attractive to potential employers because they will help make their businesses more efficient and sustainable.”
Workers are trained to succeed in the energy-efficient building construction and retrofit industries, the renewable electric power industry, the energy efficient and advanced drive-train vehicle industry and other industries that produce environmentally-friendly products using sustainable processes and materials.
“We need to focus on what’s next and this training program is going to help give workers skills they can use for a lifetime,” said Ronda Danielson, president of UAW Local 879. “We’re excited that workers will be getting this free training and are working to ensure that everyone that wants it will get it.”
The GreenPOWER program was developed by the BlueGreen Alliance Foundation in partnership with Honeywell, the Solar Energy Industries Association, the United Steelworkers, Minnesota State Colleges and Universities, Dunwoody College of Technology, the Institute for Career Development, Minnesota’s Workforce Investment Boards and support services providers from around the state. The program’s curriculum was developed in cooperation with Purdue University and is certified by the Society for Manufacturing Engineers.
For more information
Visit the GreenPOWER website
Share
GreenPOWER — a U.S. Department of Labor funded job skills training program that began training workers in this summer — is a free program that trains current workers, new hires and unemployed or dislocated workers in a wide range of green and greening industries. A key focus of the program is training Ford workers to transition to new vocations after the plant closes. The plant is scheduled to close in 2011.
“It’s unfortunate that this plant — which is a landmark in St. Paul — is closing, but we need to focus on the needs of the workers who will be displaced by Ford’s decision,” said Brant Ingalsbe, program director of GreenPOWER. “GreenPOWER training will help give these workers a ‘leg up’ as they move on to other vocations. The skills they gain from the classes will help ensure they are more attractive to potential employers because they will help make their businesses more efficient and sustainable.”
Workers are trained to succeed in the energy-efficient building construction and retrofit industries, the renewable electric power industry, the energy efficient and advanced drive-train vehicle industry and other industries that produce environmentally-friendly products using sustainable processes and materials.
“We need to focus on what’s next and this training program is going to help give workers skills they can use for a lifetime,” said Ronda Danielson, president of UAW Local 879. “We’re excited that workers will be getting this free training and are working to ensure that everyone that wants it will get it.”
The GreenPOWER program was developed by the BlueGreen Alliance Foundation in partnership with Honeywell, the Solar Energy Industries Association, the United Steelworkers, Minnesota State Colleges and Universities, Dunwoody College of Technology, the Institute for Career Development, Minnesota’s Workforce Investment Boards and support services providers from around the state. The program’s curriculum was developed in cooperation with Purdue University and is certified by the Society for Manufacturing Engineers.
For more information
Visit the GreenPOWER website