U.S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR (DOL)
Mission and Vision
The mission of the U.S. Department of Labor is to foster, promote, and develop the welfare of the wage earners, job seekers, and retirees of the United States; improve working conditions; advance opportunities for profitable employment; and assure work-related benefits and rights.
Grant Program Highlights
Employment and Training Administration
The Employment and Training Administration (ETA) administers federal government job training and worker dislocation programs, federal grants to states for public employment service programs, and unemployment insurance benefits. These services are primarily provided through state and local workforce development systems. ETA also administers grant programs for targeted populations, such as the Re-Entry Opportunity Programs for justice-involved youth and adults, the Indian and Native American Training and Education grant program, YouthBuild, a pre-apprenticeship program in construction for individuals ages 16-24, the Workforce Opportunities for Rural Communities grant program to support economic development in rural communities, as well as grants to bolster Apprenticeship and strengthen Community Colleges.
OSHA - Workplace Health and Safety - Susan Harwood Training Grant Program
The Susan Harwood Training Grant Program awards grants to nonprofit organizations on a competitive basis. Awards are issued annually based on Congressional appropriation. The focus of the program is to provide training and education for workers and employers on the recognition, avoidance, and prevention of safety and health hazards in their workplaces, and to inform workers of their rights and employers of their responsibilities under the OSH Act. Target audiences include underserved, low-literacy, and workers in high-hazard industries. Since 1978, over 1.8 million workers have been trained through this program.
Veterans’ Employment and Training Service
The Homeless Veterans' Reintegration Program (HVRP) grant program is the only federal grant to focus exclusively on competitive employment for homeless veterans. HVRP has two core objectives which are to provide services to assist in reintegrating homeless veterans into meaningful employment within the labor force and to stimulate the development of effective service delivery systems that will address the complex problems facing homeless veterans.
Women in Apprenticeship and Nontraditional Occupations (WANTO)
The Women in Apprenticeship and Nontraditional Occupations (WANTO) grant helps to expand pathways for women to enter and lead in all industries. Awarded organizations will provide one or more of the following types of technical assistance: Developing pre-apprenticeship or nontraditional skills training programs to prepare women for those careers; Providing ongoing orientations for employers, unions, and workers on creating a successful environment for women to succeed in those careers; and setting up support groups, facilitating networks, or providing support services for women to improve their retention.
Fostering Access, Rights, and Equity (FARE) Grant Program
The Fostering Access, Rights and Equity (FARE) grant program helps women workers who are paid low wages learn about and access their employment rights and benefits. FARE grant recipients will provide the following: conduct outreach to women who are paid low wages at work and otherwise marginalized and underserved; Share educational materials through various platforms, including social media, in-person or virtual events, brochures and leaflets, and one-on-one consultations; Assist women workers with navigating and calculating benefits; Help women to become focal points for rights, benefits and assistance in their own communities (i.e., a train-the-trainer model for navigation).
Mine Safety and Training Grants
The Brookwood-Sago Mine Safety Grants Program provides funding for education and training programs to better identify, avoid, and prevent unsafe working conditions in and around mines. Grantees will use these funds to establish and implement education and training programs or to create training materials and programs on MSHA-identified safety priorities.
International Labor Affairs Bureau (ILAB)
ILAB’s international grants support projects to combat some of the most abusive labor practices, including the use of child labor, forced labor, and human trafficking in global supply chains. ILAB-funded projects also promote trade partners’ compliance with the labor requirements of U.S. trade agreements and preference programs – helping to ensure a fair global playing field for workers in the United States and around the world.
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