AUGUSTA, Maine — Democratic House Speaker Mark Eves on Wednesday proposed spending $5 million over the next five years to create public-private training partnerships across Maine.
The initiative is part of a prolonged project in the Legislature to create new, high-paying jobs through training initiatives that route students from higher-education institutions directly to industry sectors that have shortages of workers, according to early information from Eves, who unveiled the proposal Wednesday morning at Pratt & Whitney in North Berwick, where he lives.
Eves said a prior $330,000 state investment to create a precision machinist training program at York County Community College is a model of what he hopes to accomplish in at least 10 more sites across Maine.
“If we want good jobs and strong wages, we must bring our workers and businesses together to prepare for the jobs of the future,” said Eves in a written statement. “By investing in training for workers and students in every region of the state, we are putting a down payment on growing the middle class.”
Eves and Senate Democratic Leader Justin Alfond, D-Portland, said the initiative builds upon work started during the past two years by a special legislative committee called Maine’s Workforce and Economic Future.
“We are challenged with numerous training programs all over the state with no direct coordinated effort,” said Lisa Martin of the Manufacturers Association of Maine, in a written statement. “What we need are full classes and training labs filled with current and future workers.”
Martin said one sector that could benefit from the program is the textile industry, which has 90 companies in Maine and is expected to create approximately 500 jobs in Maine.
Eves and others will tout the initiative during a statewide “jobs tour” over the coming months. The next stop on the tour will be next month in Aroostook County.
