Wednesday, February 27th 2013

The Smart Energy Initiative strives to keep local employers current with hiring incentives from the Commonwealth. The Keystone Works program seeks to incentivise the retraining and hiring of displaced workers; here are the details:

  • Businesses participating in Keystone Works pay no wages to the trainee – not even the additional premium cost of providing workers’ compensation insurance coverage during the training period.
  • Training can be conducted for up to 24 hours per week for up to eight weeks.
  • Individuals referred to businesses will be prescreened by PA CareerLinkĀ® staff to meet the criteria outlined by the business.
  • Businesses will interview referred individuals to ensure they are an appropriate match.
  • Trainees completing a training plan outlined by the business will have received up to 192 hours of training, enabling them to be immediately productive if hired.
  • Then, businesses who hire trainees receive a monetary incentive for doing so – $375 every four weeks the trainee is employed full time, up to a total of $1,500 per trainee for 16 weeks.

For questions or more information, email Will WIlliams.