+1,000 new jobs in region due to NMC training partnerships

TRAVERSE CITY —  NMC trustees unanimously approved job training agreements with five companies Monday, carrying the region over the 1,000 mark for new jobs created under a state program begun in 2008.

Including Monday’s agreements, 1,013 new jobs in northwest Michigan are now attributed to partnerships created through the New Jobs Training Program (NJTP).The newest, 25 new jobs by 2031, was approved with Iron Fish Distillery Monday, while existing agreements with Britten, Inc., Century, Inc, Elmer’s Crane and Dozer, Inc., and Strata Design were amended with extensions.

The statewide program, which grew out of a 2008 bipartisan effort to stimulate job creation, allows companies to divert payroll taxes into a fund to train new hires. NMC receives 15 percent of the funds to administer the program and is also a training provider.

“NJTP continues to be one of our important tools in supporting regional economic development,” said Marguerite Cotto, NMC’s vice president for Lifelong and Professional Learning. “We’re proud to be the only community college in the state to bring agreements for Board approval in every cycle since the program’s inception.”

NMC inked its first agreement with Electro Optics Technology in 2010. All jobs must pay 175 percent of prevailing minimum wage. As of January 1, 2022, that amounts to $17.27 per hour.

Legislation is now under consideration to expand the program by raising the statewide cap on deferred payroll taxes under contract from $50 million to $100 million.

Release date: DECEMBER 21, 2021

For more information:

Diana Fairbanks
Associate Vice President of Public Relations, Marketing and Communications
dfairbanks@nmc.edu
(231) 995-1019