April 15 Lunch and Learn with Padma Arvind, Project Manager at the New Jersey Department of Labor
The New Jersey Department of Labor has a smorgasbord of programs and grant opportunities for employers. The NJTC community sat down with Padma Arvind, Program Manager at the New Jersey Department of Labor, to learn more information on how Garden State-based companies can use them as a resource.
Many people aren’t aware of the resources and programs the Department of Labor has to offer. This is largely due to taxpayer dollars being spent conservatively and hardly spent on marketing of the Department of Labor programs.
The programs and opportunities listed below are essentially free-of-charge to employers because it’s already included in the business taxes paid each year.
Internships
Thanks to Governor Phil Murphy, the state of New Jersey created the NJ Career Accelerator Internship program to encourage local students to build and maintain a career in their home state.
This program also allows employers to take advantage of internships without being concerned about costs. If eligible, participating employers will be reimbursed up to 50 percent of wages paid to new interns, up to $3,000 per student.
The application process is a simple one-pager. Awards are available for up to 1,000 undergraduate students on a first-come, first-served basis. To learn more about this program, click here.
Fellowships
Investing in new talent that can keep pace with industry and technological advancements is critical. Fellowships may sound like a luxury to employers but it’s a lot more accessible than one thinks.
Last year the state launched the New Jersey Innovation and Research Fellowship Program, which provides $1.5 million in grants for pre- and post- Ph. D. research fellows. This grant opportunity dedicates money from the Workforce Development Partnership Fund to promote the creation of groundbreaking technologies.
The 2-year grant assists in covering the salaries of the fellows. First-year fellows will be funded at a rate of up to $65,000, while second-year fellows will be paid up to $75,000 with the costs divided between the grant, which pays two-thirds of the fellow’s salary, and the company they work for, which pays one-third. Read more about this fellowship…
Training & Development
The importance of training your employees – both new and existing – is crucial to a company’s success and growth. Training presents a prime opportunity to expand the knowledge base of all employees, but many employers find development opportunities expensive.
The Department of Labor and Workforce Development offers many grant opportunities through programs such as the Skills Partnership Program, Incumbent Work Training Grant and various apprenticeship programs.
The Skills Partnership Program grant reimburses New Jersey employers up to 50% of the cost of training. These funds are used to train new and existing employees to meet skill requirements.
UPSKILL: NJ Incumbent Work Training Grant, a grant awarded to businesses of all sizes to provide cost reimbursement assistance to train frontline employees to meet current and future occupational skill requirements of middle and high-skill jobs.
Each year, the government also announces funding opportunities that are focused on apprenticeships. Explore grants opportunities here.
Recruitment
Don’t have enough bandwidth to spend hours on Indeed, Linked Jobs or Career Builder? Consider turning to the Department of Labor for customized hiring assistance.
The NJ DOL One-Stop Career Center specialists pre-screen qualified and dependable candidates from their database of active New Jersey jobseekers. In addition, the NJ DOL will arrange applicant interviews and advise on hiring incentives and training options for your new employees.
Watch The Full Webinar Presentation:
NJTC has compiled useful links and past videos/webinars to utilize as resources to help your organization during COVID-19. Safety measures, best practices and more on our COVID-19 resource page are available here.
