The ReSkill Mississippi initiative is working to educate residents through technical education and on the job training. More than 10% of Mississippians were unemployed at the peak of the coronavirus pandemic. Governor Tate Reeves says in the past month, ReSkillMS helped place more than 1,700 people in training at community colleges to prepare them for skilled jobs with higher pay. Reeves says "The work of ReSkill Mississippi is far from over. In fact, we hope that this is simply the beginning. I want everyone to know that there is more capacity for both individuals who are interested and employers out there who are interested."
Businesses looking to hire new employees and train them can apply for reimbursement for up to 75% of that job's wages. Patrick Sullivan, Director of the State Workforce Investment Board, says 71 businesses have applied so far, hiring more than 340 Mississippians. "This is something that we feel like is going to be a persistent effort. We want to help people in 2020 through all the challenges, but we want this to go beyond 2020," says Sullivan. "The goal of this again is to connect people with better opportunities. So please go, whether you're an employer or whether you're an individual, or you have somebody in your family that you feel like may be interested and a good candidate."
Officials say enrollment is still open, but the program's funding could run out by the end of the year.
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