Woonsocket - RIPIC

The workforce partnership of greater RI provides various Project Upgrade programs to companies looking for the opportunity to increase the overall productivity of their employees through upgrade retraining.

Project upgrade is funded by the State of Rhode Island's Human Resource Investment Council (HRIC), the Project Upgrade program provides small businesses with funds to upgrade the skills of workers whose jobs are being impacted by technological or organizational changes. Workers must have been employed full-time for at least six months to be eligible. Participating employers are asked to match the Project Upgrade grant on a one-to-one basis. The match may be made in cash or in-kind.

In the past three years, more than 100 northern Rhode Island businesses have benefited from the Project Upgrade program to train over 250 employees. Some companies have even chosen to leverage their Project Upgrade grant by partnering with other firms on a group training project. RIPIC Business Development Specialists are available to assist you with a consortium training effort.

HOW IT WORKS:

Project Upgrade is a simple program that can be working for your company in as little as two weeks. The following is typical of the average application process.

Northern Rhode Island companies contact their local RIPIC Career Development Center to apply for Project Upgrade grants
RIPIC Business Development Specialists meet with employers to discuss the program and develop training to meet the employee's need. Classroom, on-the-job training or a combination of both may be used
Project Upgrade applications are submitted to RIPIC staff for review and approval
a maximum Project Upgrade grant of $5,000 may be awarded to eligible companies
Grants over $3,000 must involve at least two employees
Grants are performance-based with costs reimbursed upon successful completion of the training program

WHAT TYPE OF TRAINING:

The HRIC Project Upgrade program is designed to meet the many training needs of Rhode Island companies. In the past, companies have used Project Upgrade funds to provide their employees with training for:

New machinery and equipment
software and office technology
supervisory training
Preparedness for Total Quality Management/Continuous Improvement in the workplace
Statistical process control or other inventory control systems
New processes and product lines
Staff assuming new responsibilities

For additional information, please contact the RIPIC Career Development Center near you:

Pawtucket Career Development Center 401-727-7990
Woonsocket Career Development Center 401-767-4590

IS MY COMPANY ELIGIBLE?

Eligible companies are defined as:

RI for-profit businesses with less than 100 employees
Registered employers who contribute to the RI Department of Employment & Training Job Development Fund
Companies that have not received Project Upgrade fund in the past 12 months

IS MY COMPANY AN IDEAL CANDIDATE?

Ideal companies for the project upgrade program are those who:

Face changing technology and/or organizational changes
Provide the newly upgraded employee with an unscheduled increase in wages
Use their Project Upgrade experience to increase their number of employees
Use the Project Upgrade program to meet objectives defined in their business plan