Employment Training Programs

There are programs to help adults and youth get training and find jobs.

Find resources to fit your needs below. There are also resources or immigrants and refugees.

Economic Support Programs

• Child Care Assistance Program
  Helps make child care affordable for income-eligible families. Child care costs are paid for qualifying families while they go to work, look for work, or attend school. All families have a copayment based on their gross income and family size.
• Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) Employment and Training Program
  Provides qualified recipients with services while they gain employment and self-sufficiency. Participation in work or work-related activities is required each month to receive food support.
• Housing Choice Vouchers
  Allows very low-income families to lease or purchase safe, decent, and affordable privately-owned rental housing.
• Minnesota Family Investment Plan (MFIP)
  Provides support for families to help them move from welfare to unsubsidized work.

General Public Programs

• Apprenticeship
  Promotes, develops, certifies, and monitors registered apprenticeship training programs for Minnesota's workplaces.
• Literacy Minnesota
  Provides a directory of Adult Basic Education (ABE) opportunities through the Minnesota public school system to obtain the academic, interpersonal, and problem-solving skills necessary to be self-sufficient.
• Workforce Solutions
  Customized Training for those already employed who need tailored training to meet the specific needs of business, its employers, or the industry as a whole.  You can also find Continuing Education courses designed for working adults.
• Displaced Homemaker Program
  Provides pre-employment services to men or women who have worked in the home for at least two years but now must support themselves and their families.
• Goodwill Easter Seals
  Assists people in achieving their goals for employment, education, and independence. All services are at no cost to the participant.
• HIRED
  Provides job-skills and employment training to disadvantaged people and other job seekers to become qualified for and obtain employment.
• Jewish Family and Children's Service of Minneapolis
  Delivers employment, training, and career development services that positively impact people of all backgrounds, business, and society.
• Jewish Family Service of St. Paul
  Helps job seekers develop long-term career plans, enhance their skills, and find and keep jobs. Services include skills assessment, career planning, resume preparation, job search assistance, interview skills, and post-placement support.
• Job Service Program
  Functions as a labor exchange. It offers job opportunities on a no-fee basis to all Minnesotans and provides employers an effective method of recruitment to fill job openings.
• Lutheran Social Services of Minnesota
  Provides services across Minnesota to children, families, seniors, and people with disabilities.
• Migrant and Seasonal Farmworkers Program (Intercambio de información para trabajadores migrantes)
  Provides assistance to migrant and seasonal farmworkers who want to work and to employers that need workers to fill agricultural and non-agricultural positions.
• National Indian Council on Aging (NICOA)
  Serves a number of tribes. Sponsors the Senior Community Service Employment Program (SCSEP). Its SCSEP provides part-time work in community services and the opportunity to transition to unsubsidized jobs in the private or public sectors.
• Refugee Assistance
  Assists refugees with employment and other self-sufficiency goals.
• Senior Community Service Employment Program (SCSEP)
  Provides part-time community service assignments for low-income people 55 years of age or older. Used as a way to acquire or improve existing skills to gain unsubsidized employment.
• ServeMinnesota
  Administers the AmeriCorps program (the domestic Peace Corps) in Minnesota. It offers service opportunities for people in the community in exchange for a living allowance. Workers also receive an educational award that can be used to pay for college or pay off student loans.
• Twin Cities Rise
  Aims to provide employers with skilled workers. Its focus is on men from communities of color in the Twin Cities area. It trains under- and unemployed adults for skilled jobs that pay a living wage of at least $20,000 annually.
• WomenVenture
  Help women start and grow a business.
• Work Opportunity Tax Credit (WOTC)
  Provides a federal tax credit to employers as an incentive for hiring members of targeted groups. WOTC is a tool for job seekers to help them obtain gainful employment so that they may acquire the skills and experience needed to be eligible for better, higher paying job.

Resources for People with Disabilities

Be sure to consult People with Disabilities for more education and employment resources.

• Centers for Independent Living
  These eight centers located statewide provide a variety of services to help you find accessible housing, transportation, job opportunities, interpreters, readers, and many other services.
• DHS Direct Care and Treatment
  Serves people with mental retardation and related conditions who need vocational support.
• Deaf and Hard of Hearing Services
  Assists children and adults who are deaf, deafblind, or hard of hearing and their families. It helps them access the services they need to live independently in their communities.
• Extended Employment Programs
  Provides ongoing employment support services to Minnesotans with severe disabilities or severe impairment to employment.
• Medical Assistance for Employed Persons with Disabilities (MA-EPD)
  Allows working people with disabilities to qualify for medical assistance under higher income and asset limits.
• Minnesota Work Incentive Connection
  Provides clear, accurate information regarding the impact of work on government benefits for people with disabilities.
• State Services for the Blind (SSB)
  Ensures that people who are blind or visually impaired (including those who have additional physical and/or mental impairments) have the rehabilitation services they need to prepare for, seek, retain, and regain employment.
• Vocational Rehabilitation Services
  Provides basic and customized services to eligible people to achieve their employment goals. These may include college or vocational training, job placement services, and services to assist students to go from school to work.

Resources for Veterans

The veterans section helps you plan your career, search for jobs, learn about education and training, and connect with experts on the transition process.

You can also find scholarships and other education benefits for military members, veterans, and their families.

Local and National Veterans Resources

• Higher Education Veterans Programs (HEVP)
  Connects veterans, military members, and their families with educational benefits and resources to help them succeed in college. Regional Coordinator contact information is easily located.
• Key to Career Success
  Connects veterans and service members to career planning, training, and job search resources available at local One-Stop Career Centers. Find topics for military spouses, employers, and the workforce staff serving them.
• Veterans Employment Services, CareerForce
  Find veterans employment representatives, Transition Assistance Program (TAP)/Army Career and Alumni Program (ACAP) workshops, Minnesota Veterans Licensure and Certification Program, and Veterans Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment (VR&E) service. Also listed are various state and federal programs that help Minnesota veterans get specialized employment and training services.

Resources for Older Workers

• Questions and Answers for Older Workers after a Job Loss
  Provides answers to common questions for older worker who have experienced a job loss during a recession.
• Senior Community Services Employment Program (SCSEP)
  Find local SCSEP providers that have programs in Minnesota to serve older workers in their local communities. Helps older workers connect with the resources they need after losing a job.

Resources for Youth

• Career and Technical Education (CTE)
  Provides academic and technical skills to students in various occupational pathways. It helps develop solid college and career paths while still in school. It also includes the transition-disabled program. This helps students who require curriculum modifications and other supplemental services not generally available in regular secondary career and technical education programs.
• Job Corps
  Teaches eligible young adults the skills they need to become employable and independent. It places them in meaningful jobs or education programs.
• Office of Youth Development
  Has three programs (WIA Youth, Minnesota Youth Program, and Youthbuild) that prepare Minnesota's neediest and at-risk youth to succeed in a global economy.

Work-Related Support Programs

• Dislocated Worker Program
  Serves people dislocated from long-held jobs. Job loss may be a result of such factors as technological changes, investment decisions, and changes in consumption and competition. It customizes services to the needs of workers and businesses affected by a plant closing or mass layoff.
• Pathways to Prosperity
  Pathways to Prosperity helps Minnesota workers be more competitive. It helps underprepared adults to succeed in careers that pay a living wage. It integrates basic skills and career-specific training in fields where new skills are in demand. Participants receive advising and support services. Participants complete a credential valued by employers.
• Minnesota Job Skills Partnership
  Helps Minnesota businesses and schools train the workforce. Grants are awarded to educational institutions that partner with businesses to develop new-job training or retraining for existing employees.
• Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA)
  Provides training services, job search allowances, relocation allowances, and reemployment services to eligible workers who lose their jobs (or whose hours of work and wages are reduced) as a result of increased imports.
• Vocational Rehabilitation, Workers' Compensation Division
  Provides vocational rehabilitation services to injured workers whose claims have been denied by the employer/insurer.
• Unemployment Insurance Program (UI)
  Provides temporary benefits to qualified persons out of work through no fault of their own.
• Worker's Compensation
  Explains how Minnesota laws apply to work-related injuries or illnesses. It includes frequently asked questions. Detailed information is provided for employers and employees.