West Palm Beach, Florida (November 30, 2007) -- Workforce Alliance awarded $346,480 in federally-funded training grants to ten Palm Beach County employers during the past quarter (August – October, 2007), funding job-related training for over 220 employees. The program, entitled “Employed Worker Training,” is intended to help Palm Beach County businesses remain prosperous and competitive by providing funds to give their employees additional skills or a certification, advance their wages and help provide a path to personal advancement.  Kathryn Schmidt, President and Chief Executive Officer of Workforce Alliance, pointed out, “The total impact of the grants was over $900,000 since the ten businesses that received the awards added a total of over $556,000 of their own funds to conduct the training.  The companies benefit through increased productivity, company efficiency, and employee retention, and therefore, the taxpayer-funded program requires that each participating employer share in the total cost.”The Palm Beach County employers that received the awards during the past quarter included JMWA Architects, Inc., Host.net,  Daszkal Bolton LLP, Okeelanta Corporation, Viking (JS Family Holdings), Maschmeyer Concrete, Folding Shutters Corporation, Spine LLC, and Balfoort Finnvold Architects. Daszkal Bolton LLP, a professional services firm that provides a full breadth of accounting services, conducted training in communication strategies and auditor independence issues as well as broad based training for better client service.  Rob Sacks, a Principal in the firm, said, “The funding provided by Workforce Alliance enabled us to train staff in necessary skills and knowledge as well as maintain state licensing requirements.” Roger Barranco, Vice President of Operations for Host.net / BroadbandONE, Inc. of Boca Raton, said, “One advantage of the Workforce Alliance funding was that we were able to conduct formal training for our employees on-site during their normal shift hours, so we didn’t have to break up any shifts.  The additional CISCO certifications that resulted from the training will help us give better service to our customers.”   

Workforce Alliance, as the non-profit company chartered by the State of Florida to develop and manage a workforce system in Palm Beach County, is the local recipient of federal taxpayer dollars earmarked to assist local employers in need of such programs as employee training to enhance the workplace skills of existing employees.  The federal funds also can be applied to work readiness training for job seekers, and other measures designed to ensure the availability of a skilled and qualified labor pool.  “You have already paid for it,” CEO Kathryn Schmidt often stresses to employers, “so why not use it?”

Palm Beach County businesses that are interested in obtaining more information or eligibility criteria for similar training grants should contact Mimi Coenen, Workforce Alliance, Senior Director of Business Services (561) 340-1060 ext. 359 ( This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it ), or Carol Carlson, Director of Business Services (561) 340-1060 ext. 380 ( This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it ).  Information and application procedures are also available on line at www.pbcalliance.com