(The Center Square) – The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) is taking applications for a $71 million grant program it said will help American Indians, Alaska Natives and Native Hawaiians with employment readiness.
Authorization from the grants came through the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) Section 166 Indian and Native American Program, according to a DOL fact sheet. The funding will cover 167 grants from $20,000 up to $6 million. Competition for the grant program is open every four years, according to Monica Vereen, public affairs specialist for the DOL.
Fifty-seven percent of the money is allocated for job training and support for adults, according to a news release. The remaining 14% is for a programs serving low-income "Native American youth on or near reservations and in Alaska, Hawaii and Oklahoma."
“Once awarded, the grants funded by the Department of Labor’s Indian and Native American programs will deliver resources straight to the organizations – tribal organizations and the tribes themselves – who can best serve their communities,” U.S. Secretary of Labor Marty Walsh said in a news release. “These grants will empower American Indians, Alaska Natives and Native Hawaiians as they enter or return to the workforce by ensuring these communities have access to the education, job search assistance and skills training they need get on their way to providing a secure future for their families."
The DOL began adding monthly labor statistics from American Indians and native Alaskans in February, according to a blog post from the agency. Statistics show American Indians have higher jobless rates than other ethnicities.
The overall jobless rate was 14.7% for the total population in April 2020 but was 28.6% for American Indians and Alaska natives, according to the post.
Native Americans still are struggling in the labor market when compared with others, two years after the pandemic began, according to a report from the Brookings Institution.
"For comparison, the January 2022 unemployment rate for Native American workers was higher than the unemployment rate for white workers in June 2020, just two months after the unemployment peak – a period widely considered a national crisis," the report's authors said.
The employment readiness grants are available to federally recognized tribes and tribal organizations, as well as organizations controlled by Alaska natives, native Hawaiians, Indians and organizations that serve Indians, according to information from the news release. State-controlled entities also can apply.
The deadline for applying for the grants is May 6.
via Oklahoma's Center Square News