(Substack)—The U.S. Department of Labor has allocated $86 million in grants to 14 states, aiming to expand training in high-demand skills that power key American industries. This funding, distributed through the Industry-Driven Skills Training Fund, targets programs that reimburse employers for on-the-job training, focusing on sectors like advanced manufacturing, shipbuilding, and energy production. Of the total, over $20 million goes toward bolstering the domestic shipbuilding workforce, training people in trades such as welding and marine electrical work.
Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer tied the initiative directly to broader administration goals in her announcement. “President Trump has directed the Labor Department to Make America Skilled Again by providing states with the resources they need to expand on-the-job training opportunities,” she said.
This directive reflects a push to shift resources toward practical, employer-led programs that get workers into roles quickly, rather than relying on traditional education paths that often leave graduates burdened with debt and mismatched skills.
Chavez-DeRemer added, “By investing more than $86 million in workforce development initiatives across the country, we are carrying out our responsibility to prepare American workers to fill the mortgage-paying jobs being created by this Administration’s efforts to revitalize American manufacturing, shipbuilding, energy production, and other critical industries. This is how we keep America working and winning.”
Her words point to a strategy that prioritizes real-world outcomes, such as filling positions in revitalized factories and shipyards, where hands-on experience can lead to stable, family-supporting careers without the need for four-year degrees.
These grants align with two executive orders issued by President Trump earlier this year. The first, Executive Order 14278 on Preparing Americans for High-Paying Skilled Trade Jobs of the Future, calls for a comprehensive review of federal workforce programs to streamline them and expand registered apprenticeships to over one million participants. It emphasizes upskilling current workers for emerging technologies, like artificial intelligence in the workplace, and identifying alternatives to college degrees that better match employer needs.
The second, Executive Order 14629 on Restoring America’s Maritime Dominance, addresses the decline in U.S. shipbuilding capacity, which now accounts for less than 1% of global commercial ships compared to China’s roughly 50%. This order mandates a Maritime Action Plan to secure funding, invest in supply chains, and rebuild the workforce, countering decades of neglect that have weakened national security and economic edge.
The funding breakdown shows a targeted approach across diverse states and industries:
- Arizona’s Department of Economic Security receives $5 million for advanced manufacturing.
- Connecticut’s Department of Labor gets $8 million to cover advanced manufacturing, construction, logistics, health care, IT, and shipbuilding.
- Georgia’s Technical College System is awarded $5 million for advanced manufacturing, construction, and energy.
- Idaho’s Department of Labor secures $8 million for advanced manufacturing, domestic mineral production, and nuclear energy.
- Iowa Workforce Development receives $4.7 million for advanced manufacturing.
- Louisiana’s Workforce Commission gets $7 million for advanced manufacturing, AI-related roles in data centers, and industrial trades.
- Maine’s Department of Labor is granted $8 million for advanced manufacturing, aerospace, defense, and shipbuilding.
- Michigan’s Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity receives $8 million specifically for shipbuilding.
- Mississippi’s Department of Employment Security gets $5.7 million for shipbuilding.
- Oklahoma’s Employment Security Commission is awarded $6 million for advanced manufacturing, aerospace, defense, and AI infrastructure.
- Tennessee’s Department of Labor and Workforce receives $5 million for advanced manufacturing, AI, nuclear energy, and tech infrastructure.
- Texas Workforce Commission gets $5.4 million across a wide range including advanced manufacturing, aerospace, AI, aviation, biotech, defense, energy, IT, life sciences, petroleum, semiconductors, and shipbuilding.
- Wisconsin’s Department of Workforce Development is granted $7.3 million for advanced manufacturing and generative AI.
- Wyoming’s Department of Workforce Services receives $3 million for advanced manufacturing, construction, minerals, finance, IT, health care, and nuclear energy.
This initiative comes at a critical time, as the nation faces a growing gap in skilled labor. The construction sector alone is short about 500,000 workers, driven by mass retirements and limited interest from younger generations. Overall, skilled trades are projected to see growth rates from 4% to 60% through 2033, with roles like solar installers and other renewables leading the way. A 5-to-2 ratio of retiring workers to new entrants exacerbates the issue, alongside a skills mismatch from rapid automation and a cultural emphasis on college over trades. Manufacturing firms report persistent struggles to find qualified applicants, even in urban and rural areas alike.
By channeling funds into employer-driven training, the Labor Department aims to reverse these trends, fostering self-reliance in critical sectors and reducing dependence on foreign labor or imports. Additional rounds of grants may follow, depending on future funding availability, building on the momentum from America’s Talent Strategy and the AI Action Plan referenced in the department’s release.
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