GREENSBURG — The Indiana Region 9 Workforce Board officially announced Friday afternoon at Honda Manufacturing of Indiana they have received a $1.5 million Disaster Relief Dislocated Worker Grant from the Indiana Department of Workforce Development.
The grant will provide disaster-relief jobs and employment services to eligible individuals in Indiana impacted by the health and economic effects of widespread opioid use, addiction and overdose.
The grant is part of a larger grant from the U.S. Department of Labor. The total amount awarded to the DWD was approximately $4.7 million, which will be shared between three workforce regions, including Region 9 (Southeastern Indiana), Region 6 (Eastern Indiana) and Region 10 (Southern Indiana).
Region 9 consists of Bartholomew, Dearborn, Decatur, Franklin, Jackson, Jefferson, Jennings, Ohio, Ripley and Switzerland Counties.
According to information provided by the U.S. Department of Labor, the grant will also provide eligible participants with disaster-relief employment in positions addressing the crisis, such as community health workers, recovery coaches and peer navigators.
Additionally, it will assist eligible individuals directly impacted by the crisis with reintegration into the workforce, providing them opportunities for work-based training and placement in high-wage, in-demand occupations.
The state anticipates serving approximately 450 grant participants across 25 Indiana counties.
Indiana State Sen. Jean Leising (R-Oldenburg) spoke at the event, citing the importance of the grant. She referenced statistics from 2010 to 2017 where the numbers of opioid-related deaths were four times greater the latter year than the former.
“I’m hoping that we’ll see that money put to good use to help a lot of good people in our district,” Leising said. “You know, sometimes people think that drug addicted [people] are a little bit lower, but it’s not true. Everybody I know knows of someone – someone’s kid, someone’s friend, someone’s something – that has fallen to drug addiction.”
Indiana State Rep. Cindy Ziemke (R-Batesville) has been outspoken in the past about drug addiction. Six years ago, her oldest son survived a drug overdose. She said he has since had a successful recovery.
“I will tell you that employment is one of the very most important pieces to a successful recovery,” Ziemke said. “Any advocate will tell you that, any counselor will tell you that. That’s why this is so very important what we’re doing here today.”
Indiana Department of Workforce Development Commissioner Fred Payne referred to the disaster relief jobs and services that will be made available through this grant, and was adamant about using any resource available to put an end to the opioid crisis.
“The Department of Workforce Development is proud to be a leader in the fight against our opioid epidemic, and we’ll utilize every resource that we have available, such as this federal grant, to combat this awful plague,” Payne said. “I’m here as a sign that this state is very serious about eliminating this plague, and I’m confident that because each one of you is here today, that we will make this plague something of yesterday.”
Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb also offered his thoughts on the grant and how it’ll directly impact Hoosier communities.
“As we continue to combat the drug crisis, this grant from the U.S. Department of Labor will bolster Indiana’s Next Level Recovery and workforce initiatives,” Holcomb said. “Increasing the number of trained professionals who can assist people by navigating treatment, while empowering more Hoosiers with the skills, training and a pathway to employment in high wage, in-demand jobs will help more people through recovery and into employment.”
Southeast Indiana WorkOne Executive Director Kurt Kegerreis said the next step is to try and meet with stakeholders to discuss the grant, shared challenges, opportunities, and what can be done together.
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