Incumbent worker training grant applications sought

From Montana Department of Labor and Industry

HELENA — The Incumbent Worker Training program of the Montana Department of Labor and Industry will open its process to award workforce development grants for small businesses beginning Jan. 2.

Applications must be submitted by June 10 with training beginning by June 30 and completed by June 30, 2019.

The Incumbent Worker Training program awards grant funding to Montana-based small businesses wanting to purchase skills-training and certified education to upskill their existing workforce. Training must be short term and completed in less than a year.

“These grants provide Montana businesses the ability to improve their operations through increased training for their existing workforce,” said Labor and Industry Commissioner Galen Hollenbaugh. “For workers, these training opportunities can improve their job skills and career pathway options.”

“The funding awarded to our company allowed our team to build new, marketable expertise through training, which has led to organizational growth,” said Courtenay Sprunger, owner of Kalispell-based Big Sky Public Relations. “Our clients depend on us to deliver the most up-to-date knowledge for our industry, and Incumbent Worker Training grants have provided funding to do that.”

Grants are awarded to businesses which:

• Have operated in Montana for at least one year;

• Have 50 or fewer employees; and

• Have registered with the Montana Secretary of State.

Grant amounts are determined by the number of eligible employees requiring training and the number of hours those employees work. Eligible employees must be permanent and work a minimum of 20 hours per week year-round.

Grant applications are available online beginning Jan. 2 at https://fundingmt.org. Applications must be submitted by June 10, 2018.

For more information about the Incumbent Worker Training program, people can visit http://iwt.mt.gov, or contact Shawn Andersyn at 406-444-3351 or via email at [email protected].