By Marilyn Odendahl, Truth Staff
modendahl@etruth.com
INDIANAPOLIS -- Perhaps in a sign that the current contraction of the recreational vehicle industry is here to stay, a just-awarded federal grant will assist only unemployed RV workers who want to change careers.
The U.S. Department of Labor has approved a $10.4 million national emergency grant to pay the education and training costs for permanently displaced RV employees. The funds are in addition to the $3 million the state released in August for employee retraining.
In praising the federal grant, Gov. Mitch Daniels expressed confidence in the future of the RVs.
"We know the industry will be back and many of the workers that $5 diesel has thrown out of work temporarily will get back to those jobs," Gov. Mitch Daniels said. "We want to help every single worker who is interested in using this opportunity to advance their education or learn a new skill to do so."
Daniels noted "there are a lot of great jobs waiting" and he referred the orthopedics industry in Warsaw. During a press conference in August announcing the state retraining grant, Daniels said the medical device manufacturers in Kosciusko County had hundreds of positions available but the Indiana Department of Workforce Development subsequently found the number of jobs totaled only about 150. Also many of those jobs require machining skills which are very different from the assembly skills RV workers generally have.
Elkhart County's unemployment rate reached 9.3 percent in July, up nearly 5 percent from July 2007. Moreover between July and August over 6,000 RV workers filed an unemployment claims either for initial or continuing benefits.
The federal funds will be used to help RV workers displaced next week while the state money will go toward assisting RV workers laid off earlier, said Gary Abell, spokesman for the DWD. The amount of the labor department's grant is not an indication that the state is expecting significant downsizing to continue in the RV industry.
"We don't know what might be coming up but we wanted to make sure the funds are there if the need is there," Abell said.
The governor's office had requested $14 million. Of the $10.4 million awarded, the state will immediately receive $3.53 million with the remaining amount to become available as the state demonstrates a continued need for assistance, according to the labor department.
As part of the grant, eligible workers can receive up to $6,000 to either complete an associate's degree or upgrade existing skills in a high-demand occupation. Also supportive services for participants such as child care, transportation and books will be covered and help with interviewing and preparing a resume will be provided.