MCTA, OhioMeansJobs Provide Workers
YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio – OhioMeansJobs Mahoning and Columbiana Counties and the Mahoning and Columbiana Training Association are helping employers fill positions and individuals reskill and retrain for in-demand jobs.
Ohio To Work helped drive individuals to OhioMeansJobs centers to learn more about training opportunities that could be provided through several grants and the YouScience assessment. The Ohio To Work initiative wrapped up in December. But OhioMeansJobs centers were granted an extension to continue providing the assessment through Dec. 31, says Susie Kooser, chief operating officer of MCTA.
A recent JobsOhio report says regional efforts surpassed goals early in the campaign in the categories of “number of jobseekers served” and “number of jobseekers enrolled in reskilling at Ohio To Work training provider partners.” In November, the third goal was met in the category of “number of jobseekers who received placement offers.” Regional Ohio To Work partners included Flying High, National Center for Urban Solutions, United Returning Citizens, OhioMeansJobs Trumbull County and OhioMeansJobs Mahoning and Columbiana Counties.
Kooser says about 4,500 individuals visited the local OhioMeansJobs centers in 2022 to access a variety of employment services, including workshops, job searches and training funds through MCTA.
In 2022, 330 individuals were enrolled in a classroom training program through MCTA, Kooser says. Of those, 121 were in short-term training such as LPN, truck driving, welding and HVAC. There were 209 individuals in long-term training that can include the last two years of a bachelor’s degree. A requirement for training is that it must be in a field that is “in demand,” and there must be a reasonable expectation of a job when training is completed.
In 2022, OhioMeansJobs business services representatives helped 203 local employers post 410 staff-assisted job orders, Kooser says. They also helped employers take advantage of the On-the-Job Training program. In 2022, 167 newly hired employees participated in the program, which resulted in more than $575,000 in payments to their employers to offset wages during their training period, Kooser says.
The Mahoning and Columbiana Training Association also provides services to youths with barriers to employment. It is conducting an outreach campaign to help “hard-to-reach, out-of-school” youths receive tutoring, job shadowing, housing or dependency referrals, and other resource, Kooser says.
Published by The Business Journal, Youngstown, Ohio.
