By OWEN BOSS
Staff Writer
BOSTON — Gov. Deval Patrick announced Tuesday that he will commit $8 million in Reinvestment Act funding to invest in re-employment services programs statewide in the hopes of offering a lifeline to the thousands of unemployed Bay State residents struggling to find work.
The announcement, made at the North Shore Career Center in Lynn, means the Franklin and Hampshire County Workforce Investment Board, overseeing projects in Greenfield, Northampton and Amherst, will receive $157,324 in state funding.
According to Patricia Crosby, the executive director of the Franklin Hampshire Regional Employment Board, the funding will provide for a variety of services including support groups, career planning and workshops focused on getting out of work residents back on their feet.
“It allows us to provide more intensive services to the people who walk in our door every day,” Crosby said. “It will give us the ability to respond more quickly to them and offer them the resources they need for their job search.”
Re-employment services programs kicked off last November, and currently over 37,000 residents are enrolled statewide. The $4 million put aside for this fiscal year has been allocated to the state’s 16 regional Workforce Investment Boards (WIB). These allocations were determined by Department of Workforce Development using a formula based on unemployment claimants in each region.
For employment and news and updates, visit the Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development’s Web site at: www.mass.gov/EOLWD.
Owen Boss can be reached at oboss@gazettenet.com
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