Association for Public Policy Analysis & Management

This paper describes the implementation of the U.S. Department of Labor’s H-1B Technical Skills Training Grants program.  To address skill shortages in the US labor market, the DOL’s Employment and Training Administration awarded 76 grants in 2011 and 2012 to partnerships of workforce agencies, training providers, employers and other organizations.  The grants were used to provide training to unemployed individuals and incumbent workers for middle-skill positions in information technology, communication and broadband technology, advanced manufacturing, and healthcare, including health IT. The program is funded by fees paid by employers seeking to hire foreign individuals requiring an H1-B visa.

The paper documents grantees’ experiences operating their training programs and spotlights two employer-based training strategies:  incumbent worker training, where employers refer employees to training to upgrade workers’ skills; and on-the-job training, where the individuals’ wages are subsidized as an incentive for employers to hire and train workers.  The paper uses information collected between fall 2013 and spring 2014 (midway through the grant programs) through phone interviews with all grantees and site visits to five. The paper examines key operational themes and strategies from all the grantee programs, including industry focus, target populations,  partner roles and responsibilities, types of services provided, target credentials, and recruitment strategies.  It also focuses on the targeted populations and industries, employer partnerships, and training and service delivery strategies as they relate to incumbent worker and on-the-job training programs.