A private industry council works with local elected officials to determine the job training needs of West Tennessee businesses and industries and to assure that the training relates to available jobs. Industries who hire JTPA participants can save on training costs and may be eligible for tax credits. The program will pay up to 50 percent of the costs of training JTPA eligible participants. The reimbursement rate is 50 percent of a person's salary. Eligible employers must be expanding their work force.
Employers have the final decision on whom they hire.
Another program, Jobs For West Tennessee Graduates, works in local high schools to teach selected graduating seniors how to get and hold a job. The program's goal is to reduce youth unemployment. Grants can be awarded to employers who certify that a job or job opening exists or will exist at the end of the project for which the job skills assistance grant is sought. The participants in the project must fill such job openings. The starting wage for a new job created through the project will be equal to or greater than the prevailing starting wage for that occupation in the local labor market.