Grand Rapids Reporter

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer announced that she and the Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity (LEO) awarded a grant that will provide 225 veterans with registered apprenticeships in the Michigan construction industry.

Helmets to Hardhats received the $250,000 grant to back the Michigan Construction Apprenticeship post-Military Opportunity (MiCAMO) Program, according to a news release by the Office of Gretchen Whitmer.

“Veterans represent the best of the best that our workforce has to offer,” Michigan Veterans Affairs Agency Director Zaneta Adams said, according to the release. “This program is exciting because it helps veterans realize the many opportunities to gain skills and sustainable income and enables them to increase the economic footprint in their communities. Serving the community is what veterans have been trained to do.”

Stephanie Beckhorn, the director of LEO’s Office of Employment and Training, says they are constantly on the lookout for solutions for the skilled talent needs of Michigan's employers.

"... the MiCAMO Program does that and much more,” Beckhorn said, according to the release. “The program not only helps address the talent needs of one of our state’s crucial industries [construction] but it also expands high-wage opportunities for Michigan veterans. MiCAMO will have a real impact on Michigan families, businesses and communities.”

Funds will allow training to assist in the transition to active duty and retired military service members, National Guard, reservists and veterans with Registered Apprenticeship avenues to high-paying construction jobs that are in demand, according to the release.

“The MiCAMO Program offers active duty and retired military veterans meaningful career opportunities in Michigan’s construction industry," Whitmer said, according to the release. “To continue fixing our roads and bridges so people can go to work or drop their kids off at school safely, we need high-quality construction completed by highly skilled workers. The MiCAMO Program will empower those who served [to] land a good-paying, high-skill, and in-demand job and help employers fill open positions. We will stay focused on growing our economy and turbocharging our progress to keep fixing our infrastructure."

The release states that registered apprenticeships are good career training programs where employers create and prep Michigan’s future workforce. The release says "Apprentices gain paid work experience, related classroom instruction and a national industry-recognized credential upon program completion. The programs help employers begin an immediate transfer of knowledge from current to future high value workers. Workers get a paycheck from day one while they build the right skills in a new career."