The
99s Pilot Careers Resource Center
Workforce Investment
Act Funds
for Furloughed / Displaced Aviation Workers
for Furloughed / Displaced Aviation Workers
Updated April 23, 2002
Updated April 23, 2002
Workforce
Investment Act (WIA) Funds from the Government
WIA-Approved
Flight Schools
Tips
for Securing WIA Funds from Individual States
Additional
Information
The Workforce Investment Act (WIA) gives funds to help displaced workers obtain the necessary training to find work. It is a federally funded program but each individual state gets to choose how they distribute the money. Each state has a list of "approved" courses and schools. The types of training vary greatly from state to state, and the amount of money that they give an individual also varies from state to state. Some states have a $2,500 limit others have paid $18,400 for A300 type ratings.
- Do not wait until after you
are furloughed to find out what is available to you. In Pennsylvania,
many people were approved for funds 3 weeks before they were
furloughed and started B737 type rating training shortly after
their furlough date.
- As pilots, we work for a company
headquartered in one state, are based in another state (or have
been based in more than one state in the past year), and live
in another state. Depending on what state your employer paid
your unemployment insurance, you may be eligible for funds from
any or all of those states.
- Visit or call the unemployment
office. Explain your situation. Ask to speak with someone who
can tell you what type of training WIA funds for that specific
state can be used. Many times, the first person you speak with
is misinformed or knows very little about what WIA does and does
not cover. Most times, if they don't know the answer they simply
tell you that the answer is "no". Be polite, yet persistent.
If you don't like the answer you get, visit another office or
call and speak with someone else. Once you get the proper person,
be prepared to convince them that you NEED this training to get
a job.
- If you want a type rating and
are not getting the results you want from the bureaucrats, try
calling the school you wish to attend. If the school is WIA-approved
by your state, they may be able to give you some insider tips
on how to get the money. One person was denied funding by a state
that had given funds to other people for the same kind of training,
and the school was able to tell him the exact questions to ask,
and he got his money. Or, if your state does not have that school
on their WIA approved list, the school may be able to get themselves
on the list. Higher Power has "broken into states"
before.
-
- This web site is full of WIA information. It will link you to your specific state's contact information. www.doleta.gov/usworkforce/ or try www.naco.org or www.doleta.gov
- This web site is full of WIA information. It will link you to your specific state's contact information. www.doleta.gov/usworkforce/ or try www.naco.org or www.doleta.gov
WIA-Approved
Flight Schools
- Flight Training International
Shari Egan
800/233-0050- Higher Power Aviation
Attn: Sandy Sirkel
878 Greenview Drive
Grand Prairie, TX 75050
800/ jet-crew
800/538-2739
972/641-5978 fax
www.jetcrew.com- Pan Am International Flight Academy
Attn: Sarah
5000 NW 36th Street
P.O. Box 660920
Miami, FL 33266
305/874-6641
305/874-6644 fax
www.panamaccademy.com- US Airways Contract Training
Attn: Casey
4800 Hanger Road
Charlotte, NC 28208
800/308-2771
704/359-2766 fax
- Tips
for securing WIA funds from individual states
Colorado
Charlotte Mecklenburg county- Must:
-Fill out several forms
-Attend 3-hour class
-Then assigned a counselor- Florida
WorkForceOne in Broward county- Must:
-Speak with a counselor to determine eligibility for retraining
-Show that you can get employment if awarded funding
-Awards $4000.00 max, must show how you will pay for the difference in training costs- Kansas
Only interested in giving funds for "retraining"
They do not want to give you money to help your already floundering career
They will give you $3,000/year for 2 years to go to one of their approved schools to study truck driving, cosmetology, brick laying, etc.- Massachusetts
Employment Resource Inc
315 Broadway- Cambridge, MA 02139
617-864-3808
- Shabana Durrani manages the grant for Massachusetts
New York
Department of Occupational Resources
Town of Hempstead
50 Clinton St.
Hempstead, NY 11550
516/485-5000- North Carolina
Sheila Hemhill
704/342-6131 ext. 334- Virginia
Falls Church skill Source Center
6245 Leesburg Pike, Suite 315
Falls Church, VA 22044
James Doe 703/533-5474
Barbara 703/533-5471- Eligible if:
-Virginia resident or
-Based at DCA, IAD, or BWI on 9/11
Must:
-Have applied for unemployment
-Set up appointment and go to their office in person
-Have documentation that you are a dislocated worker and lost you job due to the events of 9/11
-Fill out 15-min. paperwork
-1 hour career evaluation/aptitude test
-If you qualify (they usually know before they set up the appointment) then they mail a check directly to your school- Must:
- Additional
Information
- How to obtain government grant
money:
"Free Money to Change Your Life" for $44.40 or "Free College Money and Training for Women" for $24.95, both by Matthew Lesko, www.lesko.com, 800/955-7693
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