Training Existing Staff

Incumbent Worker Training Program

Incumbent Worker Training (IWT) provides both employers and workers with an opportunity to build and maintain a quality workforce. The program is designed to meet the needs of an employer or group of employers to retain a skilled workforce or avert layoffs so participants can be promoted within the company and create backfill opportunities for employers.The Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) sets criteria to determine which workers, or groups of workers, are eligible for IWT services and the cost sharing required for IWT projects and employers.

Employers will propose an IWT program. The training should improve the competitiveness of the employees or both the employer and employees. The majority of the IWT cohort must have an employment history with the employer for at least 6 months.Employers share in the cost of the training based on the number of employees employed, at least:

10% of the cost for employers with up to 50 employees,
25% of the cost for employers with 51 to 100 employees, and
50% of the cost for employers with more than 100 employees.

The remaining training cost-share is funded by WIOA, potentially up to $10,000 per trainee depending on the availability of funds. IWT may be used for underemployed employees and participants in the training cohort are not required to be enrolled in the WIOA program. Priority will be given to training programs for individuals with barriers to employment.

Employer Training Panel

California businesses pay one-tenth of 1% of taxable wages to the State Employment Training Tax of which a portion funds the Employment Training Panel (ETP) to provide employee training cost reimbursement to state businesses. Workforce Santa Cruz County wants to bring money from ETP to your business. ETP can repay your business either:

$21.13 per trainee per hour of training, if your business has less than 100 employees or
$14.63 per trainee per hour if you have more than 100 employees.

ETP Requirements

Requirements for Employment Training Panel Funds to train your existing employees:

Only the company’s full-time employees qualify for reimbursement.
Only the company’s W2 employees qualify (no 1099 employees or temps).
The company is reimbursed for employees that earn at least $16.25 per hour including wages and health benefits.
Minimum 10 employees at one company need to be trained.
Each employee trained must complete at least 24 hours of training, usually within a six month period. Maximum reimbursable hours per employee: 240.
If the company has fewer than 100 employees, the reimbursement is $21.13 per employee per hour of training. If the company has 100 or more employees, the reimbursement is rate is $14.63.
The company reimbursement is calculated 90 days after training is complete. The calculation is based on the number of employees retained who completed the training and the number of hours of training they completed.

You decide what training you want, who provides the training, which staff to train, and when/where to have training.

Contact a Business Services Representative