SC employment agency partners with technical colleges to help unemployed workers

South Carolina is spending $8 million to offer free access to workforce training programs for people who are unemployed amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Gov. Henry McMaster on Tuesday announced the workforce training partnership between the Department of Employment and the state’s technical college system.

Under the program, unemployed workers receiving jobless benefits will have the option of enrolling in a short-term retraining program at a local technical college in lieu of completing a weekly job search requirement.

The training program is free for attendees and is being paid for with federal COVID-19 relief money, the governor’s office said.

“We have the culture and people who are ready to take the next step forward and we just need to get them trained and ready for work,” McMaster said.

South Carolina’s participation in the federal unemployment assistance program will end later this month, meaning the additional $300 a week of assistance unemployed workers receive will stop. McMaster made the decision in order to encourage people to head back to the workplace. Critics of the federal benefits said they incentivize people to not take a job because they can make more on unemployment.

“We want to ensure that claimants have access to all options involving training and employment opportunities, said DEW Executive Director Dan Ellzey. “If someone is ready to make a career change, exploring the state technical college programs should be your first step. This free training could lead to a certification or credential, which provides you access into new or higher paying jobs.”

Employers around the state have more than 82,000 available job openings. S.C. Technical System President Tim Hardee said the system has 11 programs that last less than 16 weeks. The programs also have a high placement rate in critical workforce areas, Hardee said.

“Our colleges are uniquely positioned to quickly get people negatively impacted by the pandemic back on their feet — training them in these high-demand fields and building more stability for their lives,” Hardee said.

To participate in the program go to www.sctechsystem.edu/training.