Massachusetts Awards $2.1M to Expand Worker Training in Health Care, Other Fields

The Healey-Driscoll administration announced a $2.1 million GROW (Grants for Registered Apprenticeship Opportunities in Workforce) package to support 34 organizations in expanding registered apprenticeships in Massachusetts. Organizations will use the funds to train and place more than 300 apprentices in growing sectors such as health care, manufacturing, clean energy, and life sciences.

The GROW funds leverage nearly $2 million in state funding with federal support, designed to provide paid work experience, classroom instruction, on-the-job training, credentials, wage progression, and career mobility for participants. Additionally, the Healey-Driscoll administration has passed legislation to expand eligibility for the Registered Apprenticeship Tax Credit, which provides employers with a $4,800 credit for each apprentice hired.

Massachusetts Labor and Workforce Development Secretary Lauren Jones made the announcement at Middlesex Community College's (MCC) Lowell campus. MCC, in particular, has received a $125,000 GROW grant to launch a Surgical Technology Registered Apprenticeship Program in partnership with Lowell General Hospital and Tufts Medicine. Funds will help convert an unused operating room into the MCC-LGH Surgical Technology Simulation Lab and Learning Center.

“The GROW grants are an effective way to expand Registered Apprenticeship opportunities that connect people to good jobs and help build a skilled workforce,” said Healey in a statement shared with The (Lowell) Sun. “Through these investments, our administration is helping more residents access pathways into growing industries while supporting employers who are ready to train and hire.”

Registered Apprenticeship offers individuals paid work experience. This experience includes classroom instruction and on-the-job training combined with securing nationally recognized credentials, progressive wage increases, and economic mobility and advancement.

The Division of Apprentice Standards (DAS) within the Massachusetts Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development (EOLWD) administers the Commonwealth's Registered Apprenticeship Programs. According to The Sun, DAS oversees more than 500 active programs with over 10,000 apprentices. Construction trades have historically dominated these apprenticeships, but growing representation has occurred in health care, education, and manufacturing within expanding industries.