For the ten years since its formation, the Governor’s Training Initiative has assisted Maine companies with reimbursement of training costs. In recent years, applications have become more comprehensive and the requests more costly. There have also been more requests to participate in business attraction projects as well as to assist Maine companies that are reorganizing and needing to train workers for new skills.

This heavy demand over the past two years, coupled with decreased funding, have led to the program committing all available resources until July 1, 2008. Therefore, we are not accepting new applications until the next fiscal year (July 2008). We are aware this presents a hardship for Maine businesses that were relying on the program to assist in funding much-needed training. In the hope of receiving full funding in the next fiscal year, we will again accept applications starting in April 2008.

If you have any questions about a current application or the process for spring applications, please contact

Gail Dyer, GTI Coordinator, at 623-7982, or Merle Davis, GTI Coordinator, at 623-7983.

Eligible Businesses: Private Sector Maine Employers:

• Incurring work force training costs related to unique circumstances such as expansion, retention, or upgrading issues.

• Paying wages equal to 85% of the average wage for that occupation in the given labor market.

• Contributing at least 50% of the premium cost of employee health insurance except for small companies with fewer than 25 employees and in business less than three years.

Program Summary: Partial reimbursement of training costs may be provided to employers who are hiring new employees, and/or retaining or upgrading their existing work force. Training services eligible for reimbursement include: Recruitment, Assessment, Job Task Analysis, Workplace Literacy, High Performance Skills, Technical Training Higher Education, On-the-JobTraining, Workplace Safety and Competitive Retooling.

How to Apply: Download an application, complete and submit to: