Texas Border Business
AUSTIN ⎯ Lineage Logistics and Wonderful Citrus Packing have partnered with South Texas College to provide job training for 288 new and incumbent workers using a $391,350 Skills Development Fund grant from the Texas Workforce Commission (TWC). The grant will benefit workers in the Workforce Solutions Lower Rio Grande Valley area.
This grant will be used to provide customized training to 288 new and incumbent workers for industry-related topics with focused instruction on diesel maintenance, electrical troubleshooting, basic industrial electricity and basic programmable logic controllers. Trainees will include forklift operators, customer service representatives and warehouse supervisors. Upon completion of training, the workers will receive an average wage of $12.73.
“The partnership between South Texas College, Lineage Logistics and Wonderful Citrus Packing on this Skills Development Fund grant will benefit both the local community and its workforce,” said TWC Commissioner Representing Labor Julian Alvarez. “Our labor force is among the most talented and skilled in the world and we continue to seek and implement strategies to improve the skills of Texas workers.”
The Skills Development Fund grant program is celebrating 20 years of success as the state’s premier training program in 2015-16. The fund was initiated by the Legislature in September of 1995 and first began awarding contracts in 1996. During that time the Skills Development Fund grants have created or upgraded more than 329,333 jobs throughout Texas. The grants have assisted 4,141 employers with their customized training needs. The Legislature allocated $48.5 million to the Skills Development Fund for the 2016-17 biennium. Employers seeking more information about the Skills Development Fund may visit the TWC website at www.texasworkforce.org/skills.
