The city of Milwaukee received massive support for one of its infrastructure goals thanks to help from the White House.
President Joe Biden announced Thursday that Milwaukee would be one of four Workforce Hubs so that citizens could receive good jobs under his Investing in America agenda which aims to replace lead pipes, upgrade transportation, deliver clean energy and ensure residents have access to clean water among other goals.
Milwaukee joins Philadelphia, the state of Michigan and the upstate New York region as the four announced Workforce Hubs.
This decision comes after the city announced plans to reduce its timeline to replace 100% of its lead pipes from 60 years to 10 years last December, which aligns with the president’s goal to remove all lead pipes in the nation within the next decade.
With an increased need for workforce in order to execute the lead pipe removal, the Department of Transportation awarded Milwaukee-based workforce intermediary WRTP | BIG STEP (Wisconsin Regional Training Partnership/Building Industry Group Skilled Trades Employment Program) a $1.5 million grant. The funding will be used to train hundreds of people to enter clean energy and electric charging apprenticeships, according to a press release from the company.
The grant will also aid in the state’s overall clean energy goals. Given Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers’ administration’s recent announcement of committing to creating 40,000 new jobs in the clean energy sector by 2030, WRTP | BIG STEP has worked with employers and unions to expand career opportunities and create a pipeline for talent in the state.
WRTP | BIG STEP is a nonprofit provides apprenticeships, job readiness training and tutoring for manufacturing, skilled trades and other industries.
