2013 Vermont Statutes
Title 10 Conservation and Development
Chapter 22 EMPLOYMENT TRAINING PROGRAM
§ 531 Employment Training Program

531. Employment Training Program

(a) The Secretary of Commerce and Community Development may issue performance-based grants to any employer, consortium of employers, or providers of training, either individuals or organizations, as necessary, to conduct training under the following circumstances:

(1) when issuing grants to an employer or consortium of employers, the employer promises as a condition of the grant to increase employment or provide training to enhance employment stability at an existing or expanded eligible facility within the State where eligible facility is defined as in subdivision 212(6) of this title relating to the Vermont Economic Development Authority, or the employer or consortium of employers promises to open an eligible facility within the State which will employ persons, provided that for the purposes of this section, eligible facility may be broadly interpreted to include employers in sectors other than manufacturing; and

(2) training is required for potential employees, new employees, or long-standing employees in the methods, either singularly or in combination relating to pre-employment training, on-the-job training, upgrade training, and crossover training, or specialized instruction, either in-plant or through a training provider.

(b) Eligibility for grant. The Secretary of Commerce and Community Development may award a grant to an employer if:

(1) the employer's new or expanded initiative will enhance employment opportunities for Vermont residents;

(2) the employer provides its employees with at least three of the following:

(A) health care benefits with 50 percent or more of the premium paid by the employer;

(B) dental assistance;

(C) paid vacation and holidays;

(D) child care;

(E) other extraordinary employee benefits;

(F) retirement benefits; and

(3) the training is directly related to the employment responsibilities of the trainee.

(c) The employer promises as a condition of the grant to:

(1) employ new persons at a wage which, at the completion of the training program, is two times the prevailing state or federal minimum wage, whichever is greater, reduced by the value of any existing health benefit package up to a limit of 30 percent of the gross program wage, or for existing employees, to increase the wage to two times the prevailing state and federal minimum wage, whichever is greater, reduced by the value of any existing health benefit package up to a limit of 20 percent of the gross program wage, upon completion of training; provided, however, that in areas defined by the Secretary of Commerce and Community Development in which the Secretary finds that the rate of unemployment is 50 percent greater than the average for the State, the wage rate under this subsection may be set by the Secretary at a rate no less than one and one-half times the federal or state minimum wage, whichever is greater;

(2) employ persons who have completed the training provided for them and nominated as qualified for a reasonable period at the wages and occupations described in the contract, unless the employer reasonably finds the nominee is not qualified;

(3) provide its employees with at least three of the following:

(A) health care benefits with 50 percent or more of the premium paid by the employer;

(B) dental assistance;

(C) paid vacation and holidays;

(D) child care;

(E) other extraordinary employee benefits; and

(F) retirement benefits.

(4) submit a customer satisfaction report to the Secretary of Commerce and Community Development, on a form prepared by the Secretary for that purpose, no more than 30 days from the last day of the training program.

(d) In order to avoid duplication of programs or services and to provide the greatest return on investment from training provided under this section, the Secretary of Commerce and Community Development shall:

(1) first consult with the Commissioner of Labor regarding whether the grantee has accessed, or is eligible to access, other workforce development and training resources offered by public or private workforce development partners;

(2) disburse grant funds only for training hours that have been successfully completed by employees; provided that a grant for on-the-job training shall either provide not more than 50 percent of wages for each employee in training, or not more than 50 percent of trainer expense, but not both, and further provided that training shall be performed in accordance with a training plan that defines the subject of the training, the number of training hours, and how the effectiveness of the training will be evaluated; and

(3) use funds under this section only to supplement training efforts of employers and not to replace or supplant training efforts of employers.

(e) The Secretary of Commerce and Community Development shall administer all training programs under this section, may select and use providers of training as appropriate, and shall adopt rules and may accept services, money, or property donated for the purposes of this section. The Secretary may promote awareness of, and may give priority to, training that enhances critical skills, productivity, innovation, quality, or competitiveness, such as training in Innovation Engineering, "Lean" systems, and ISO certification for expansion into new markets.

(f) Upon completion of the training program for any individual, the secretary of Commerce and Community Development shall review the records and shall award to the trainee, if appropriate, a certificate of completion for the training.

(g) None of the criteria in subdivision (a)(1) of this section shall apply to a designated job development zone under chapter 29, subchapter 2 of this title.

(h) The Secretary may designate the Commissioner of Economic Development to carry out his or her powers and duties under this chapter.

(i) Program Outcomes.

(1) On or before September 1, 2011, the Agency of Commerce and Community Development, in coordination with the department of labor, and in consultation with the Workforce Development Council and the legislative Joint Fiscal Office, shall develop, to the extent appropriate, a common set of benchmarks and performance measures for the training program established in this section and the Workforce Education and Training Fund established in section 543 of this title, and shall collect employee-specific data on training outcomes regarding the performance measures; provided, however, that the Secretary shall redact personal identifying information from such data.

(2) On or before January 15, 2013, the Joint Fiscal Office shall prepare a performance report using the benchmarks and performance measures created pursuant to subdivision (1) of this subsection. The Joint Fiscal Office shall submit its report to the Senate Committee on Economic Development, Housing and General Affairs and the House Committee on Commerce and Economic Development.

(3) The Secretary shall use information gathered pursuant to this subsection and customer satisfaction reports submitted pursuant to subdivision (c)(4) of this section to evaluate the program and make necessary changes that fall within the Secretary's authority or, if beyond the scope of the Secretary's authority, to recommend necessary changes to the appropriate committees of the General Assembly.

(j) Consistent with the training program's goal of providing specialized training and increased employment opportunities for Vermonters, and notwithstanding provisions of this section to the contrary, the Secretary shall canvas apprenticeship sponsors to determine demand for various levels of training and classes and shall transfer up to $250,000.00 annually to the regional technical centers to fund or provide supplemental funding for apprenticeship training programs leading up to certification or licensing as journeyman or master electricians or plumbers. The Secretary shall seek to provide these funds equitably throughout Vermont; however, the Secretary shall give priority to regions not currently served by apprenticeship programs offered through the Vermont Department of Labor pursuant to 21 V.S.A. chapter 13.

(k) Annually on or before January 15, the Secretary shall submit a report to the House Committee on Commerce and Economic Development and the Senate Committee on Economic Development, Housing and General Affairs summarizing all active and completed contracts and grants, the types of training activities provided, the number of employees served, and the average wage by employer, and addressing any waivers granted. (Added 1977, No. 214 (Adj. Sess.), 1, eff. April 12, 1978; amended 1981, No. 211 (Adj. Sess.); 1985, No. 172 (Adj. Sess.), 5; 1989, No. 66; 1991, No. 50, 230; 1993, No. 89, 3, eff. June 15, 1993; 1995, No. 46, 33; 1995, No. 190 (Adj. Sess.), 1(b); 1997, No. 66 (Adj. Sess.), 67a, eff. Feb. 20, 1998; 1997, No. 71 (Adj. Sess.), 54; 1999, No. 147 (Adj. Sess.), 4; 2003, No. 122 (Adj. Sess.), 233a; 2005, No. 103 (Adj. Sess.), 3, eff. April 5, 2006; 2005, No. 174 (Adj. Sess.), 16; 2007, No. 46, 3, eff. May 23, 2007; 2009, No. 78 (Adj. Sess.), 14a, April 15, 2010; 2009, No. 146 (Adj. Sess.), G13, eff. June 1, 2010; 2011, No. 52, 10, eff. May 27, 2011.)