Jobs skills on the way

Some laid-off workers in Butte County will soon receive job training thanks to a grant.

The California Employment Development Department (EDD) announced in a press release it’s sending $288,750 to Butte and Nevada counties to help retrain 50 recently laid-off workers.

The grant money will be given to the Northern Rural Training and Employment Consortium (NoRTEC) for retraining workers, including locals who were laid off this year by Milestone Technologies Inc. and Sears.

According to the press release, “the grant will help the displaced workers prepare for new jobs in the region’s industries that NoRTEC has identified as having the greatest potential for future career growth, including health care, advanced manufacturing, agriculture, information technology and tourism.”

The grant funding comes from the federal Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act and is administered by the EDD and the California Labor and Workforce Development Agency.