The Joint Finance Committee unanimously approved a Republican bill Monday that would distribute $15 million for workforce development initiatives across the next two fiscal years.
The bill would fund skill-training programs through technical schools, such as Madison Area Technical College, and will focus specifically on fields that lack skilled workers. The bill aims to bridge Wisconsin’s perceived skills gap, which refers to a problem rooted in graduates not having the necessary skills to immediately join the state workforce.
Under the proposal, businesses could apply for employee training grants, but each applicant company would have to match the amount the grant provides using its own money.
The bill also aims to create a $5 million Labor Market Information System, an online system that tracks job creation and matches people to available positions. The LMIS would allow the state to efficiently match and train workers in areas with job shortages, according a release from the bill’s authors.
If the proposal passes the state Legislature, it will move on to Gov. Scott Walker
