Nearly 2,700 American technology workers in 12 states will receive advanced information technology job training in the coming months in programs administered by CompTIA, the Computing Technology Industry Association, Oakbrook Terrace, Ill.CompTIA has received two grants totaling $6 million from the U.S. Department of Labor Employment & Training Administration. The H-1B Technical Skills Training Grants are intended to train U.S. workers in specialty occupations such as computer science, information technology, engineering and advanced manufacturing technology.
Occupations targeted for advanced training include web designers, web developers, network architects, systems engineers, software engineers, database administrators, systems analysts, software quality assurance specialists, application developers, IT project managers, IT security specialists, computer engineers, analog design engineers, computer programmers, computer and information systems managers, database administrators, systems architects, web architects, marketing engineers, network administrators, programmer analysts, security administrators, and software application engineers.
Workers in Colorado, Florida, Illinois, Missouri, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, and Texas will participate in the advanced IT training program administered by CompTIA.
Companies whose employees will participate in the advanced IT training include Allstate, Citigroup, ComputerLand, IBM, Merrill Lynch, MetLife, OTAi, ValCom, and VanCura.
Funding for the grants comes from fees paid by employers who bring foreign workers to the United States under H-1B non-immigrant visas. The H-1B visas allow employers to hire non-immigrants to work in the U.S. in high skill or specialty occupations on a temporary basis
In addition, companies and organizations participating in the program must match at least 100 percent of the grant award amount, either in cash or in-kind services. Between the two grants awarded to CompTIA, the total match commitment from participants is more than $7.4 million
"These businesses are generating the demand for jobs, in particular those high skill occupations filled today by temporary H-1B workers," said Neill Hopkins, vice president, workforce development and training, CompTIA. "We are working closely with these employers and the education providers to develop and manage a program that matches training with the skills needed in the workforce of the 21st century."
Source: The Computing Technology Industry Association
