Alabama is launching a nearly $4 million workforce initiative aimed at building a new pipeline of skilled workers for some of the Gulf Coast’s fastest-growing industries.
The Alabama Restart Initiative will use $3,999,999 in federal funding to train 550 adults in Mobile and Baldwin counties for careers including welding, pipefitting, shipfitting, electrical work and machining.
The effort comes as more than $14 billion in new and expanding capital investment along Alabama’s Gulf Coast increases demand for workers in shipbuilding, advanced manufacturing and related trades.
“There are multitudes of opportunity available in Alabama, for all sectors of our workforce,” Alabama Department of Workforce Secretary Greg Reed said.
“We know that sometimes there are hurdles to entering or rejoining the workforce, and we are here to provide assistance and training to help prospective employees overcome those challenges.”
The initiative brings together Workforce Alabama, the Alabama Bureau of Pardons and Paroles, J.F. Ingram State Technical College, the Alabama Community College System, the Southwest Alabama Partnership for Training and Employment and the Council of State Governments Justice Center.
Participants will include people recently released from prison and those under probation, parole or mandatory-release supervision, giving the program a dual focus on workforce development and reentry.
Training will take place through ABPP Day Reporting Centers and the Perry County PREP Center, where Ingram State will provide education, workforce training and industry-recognized credentials.
“This federal investment will expand access to workforce training that connects directly to opportunity,” Ingram State President David Walters said.
He said the program will prepare participants for careers in shipbuilding and maritime industries, as well as offshore wind energy, aerospace manufacturing, automotive manufacturing and industrial construction.
The initiative is also designed to connect training directly with employers in the Mobile-Baldwin corridor.
“A critical part of this initiative, however, must be employer engagement and a commitment from businesses to hire these individuals,” SWAPTE President Sydney G. Raine said. “Training alone is not enough.”
ABPP Director Cam Ward said the effort could also support public safety by helping people leaving the corrections system find stable employment.
“That opportunity is essential to public safety because one of the key drivers of recidivism and crime comes from lack of employment,” Ward said.
The program will run for 42 months, with partners planning to evaluate and expand the initiative as workforce needs and opportunities develop.
Sawyer Knowles is a state and political reporter for Yellowhammer News. You may contact him at [email protected].
