Gov. Evers, DWD Announce Over $1.5 Million in Fast Forward Grants to Help Train Over 700 Wisconsinites for in-Demand Jobs
Grants will go to 19 employers across the state to support job training in construction, child care healthcare, manufacturing, transportation, and more
MADISON — Gov. Tony Evers, together with the Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development (DWD), today announced over $1.5 million in worker training grants through the Wisconsin Fast Forward Program to assist 19 employers in training more than 700 workers for high-demand jobs in construction, child care, healthcare, manufacturing, and transportation across the state. This includes training for EMTs in Winnebago County, child care workers in Milwaukee County, commercial drivers in Waukesha County, machine operators in Pierce County, and more across the state, helping fill critically needed roles while increasing wages for hardworking Wisconsinites. This announcement comes as Gov. Evers secured an additional $500,000 for Fast Forward healthcare industry grants in the bipartisan 2025-27 Biennial Budget.
“Here in Wisconsin, we’ve been hard at work to reduce barriers to work, address our state’s generational workforce shortages, and build the 21st-century workforce needed to support a 21st-century economy, and supporting workforce training opportunities for in-demand jobs is a big part of that work,” said Gov. Evers. “I’m proud we’re getting these funds out the door to employers in our state that are working to offer the critical training tools folks need to grow their careers, all the while ensuring our essential industries have the skilled workforce they need to thrive.”
The training programs include partnerships with employers, local or regional economic development organizations, workforce development boards, post-secondary institutions, nonprofit organizations, and private training providers.
Administered by DWD, the Wisconsin Fast Forward Program works to help Wisconsin businesses train and retain highly skilled workers and support the state’s workforce. Since the program launched in 2013, more than $54 million in funding has been awarded to 487 projects to support the training of 31,000 workers. The Wisconsin Fast Forward grant program awards funds to Wisconsin businesses to reimburse occupational training costs. The grants cover training costs for those who are unemployed or underemployed, as well as for incumbent workers.
“These investments in worker training move workers ahead in their careers, strengthen a company’s talent base, and increase the resilience of Wisconsin’s economy,” said DWD Secretary Amy Pechacek. “Gov. Evers’ strategic focus on modernizing Wisconsin’s workforce moves the entire state forward, and we thank all the grant recipients for their partnership.”
Employers must meet these minimum requirements to receive funding:
- 85 percent of the participants must complete training;
- 65 percent must gain employment, whether by hiring unemployed folks or improving employment for underemployed workers; and
- 75 percent of incumbent trainees must receive pay raises.
The over $1.5 million in Wisconsin Fast Forward grant awards will go to 19 employers. Grant recipients include:
Latino Academy of Workforce Development (LAWD) | $55,583
Latino Academy of Workforce Development (LAWD) in Dane County is partnering with LiUNA Training Center to provide 11 unemployed, 14 underemployed, and seven current workers with training in construction and infrastructure workplace readiness, and technical trades and safety certification. Trainees could receive an increased wage of $3 or more per hour.
Sergenian’s Floor Coverings Inc | $5,050
Sergenian’s Floor Coverings Inc. in Dane County is partnering with Natural Fiber Installer Certification (NFIC) to prepare four trainees to earn NFIC Installer Certification and qualify trainees for advanced roles in Lead Installer or Master Installer. Trainees could earn $2 or more per hour.
Pure Sound Vision LLC | $19,000
Pure Sound Vision LLC in Milwaukee County will provide in-house training for one underemployed and one incumbent worker in audiovisual (AV) installation, system configuration, and client service.
Kouba Group LLC | $90,760
Kouba Group LLC in Sauk County is partnering with Skilled Trade School, Pure Water Laboratories, and Patriot Paving to train eight unemployed, six underemployed, and 14 current workers. Trainees will learn skills for roles in drilling, water systems, and environmental testing, and could earn $4.50 or more per hour.
Visu-Sewer LLC | $21,576
Visu-Sewer LLC in Waukesha County will train 15 incumbent commercial drivers on how to remove the manual transmission restriction from their driver’s license. This would qualify them to operate any type of commercial vehicle and could earn them a minimum hourly wage increase of $2.
Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Milwaukee | $54,087
The Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Milwaukee in Milwaukee County is partnering with Wisconsin Out of School Time Alliance (WOSTA) to train 120 current workers in essential child care skills, qualifying them for a promotion to group leader/lead teacher role and a possible wage increase of 50 cents or more per hour.
Aurora Health Care | $325,769
Aurora Health Care in Sheboygan County is partnering with the University of Wisconsin (UW)-Milwaukee to train 60 current workers as forensic nurse examiners. Trainees could receive a minimum hourly wage increase of $1.51 per hour.
Gold Cross Ambulance Service Inc. | $27,271
Gold Cross Ambulance Service Inc. in Winnebago County to train 24 unemployed people to become state-licensed Emergency Medical Technicians (EMTs) who are certified by the National Registry of Emergency Medical Technicians. Trainees will be employed as EMTs after the program.
Nemak USA Inc. | $400,000
Nemak USA Inc. in Sheboygan County is partnering with Advanced Technology Services Inc. to train 70 current workers in mechanical power systems, Computer Numeric Control (CNC), fluid power, robotics, and other skills for high-pressure die casting jobs. Trainees could receive an hourly wage boost of 78 cents per hour.
Beyond Vision Inc. | $10,427
Beyond Vision Inc. in Milwaukee County is partnering with Global Six Sigma USA to train 38 incumbent workers who are blind or visually impaired in Lean White Belt certification. Training includes hands-on exercises, critical skills in problem-solving, process improvement, and operational efficiency. Trainees could receive a wage increase of 45 cents per hour.
ATACO Steel Products Corp. | $18,390
ATACO Steel Products Corp. in Ozaukee County to train 16 current workers in partnership with TCR Integrated Stamping Systems and Maintecx. Training will increase skills for laser operators, press brake operators, and stamping press staff to lift speed, quality, and throughput, and cut down scrap and downtime. Trainees could receive a minimum hourly wage bump of 65 cents or more.
Badger Truck Refrigeration Inc. | $30,000
Badger Truck Refrigeration Inc. in Eau Claire County, in partnership with the UW-Stout Manufacturing Outreach Center, will provide training for 39 incumbent workers, including process efficiency, process improvement, leadership development, and value stream mapping. Trainees could receive a wage increase of 99 cents per hour.
Kleen Test Products Corp. | $55,968
Kleen Test Products Corp. in Ozaukee County, in partnership with Manage Assist, will train 94 current workers in sales skills, managing downtime, and creating processes. Trainees could receive increased wages of at least 63 cents per hour.
TCLAD Inc. | $76,598
TCLAD Inc. in Pierce County will offer courses to 70 current workers in risk mitigation, print reading, online robotics technologies, specialty machine operations, safety operations, and more. Trainees could receive an hourly wage increase of 50 cents or more.
Jack Links | $63,050
Jack Links in Washburn County to begin training 14 current workers to fill Maintenance Mechanic positions. Following this program, trainees could move into the Registered Apprenticeship program or into a short-term certificate in mechatronics and earn $2 or more per hour.
Muza Sheet Metal Company LLC | $125,642
Muza Sheet Metal Company LLC in Winnebago County to train 50 incumbent journeymen, apprentices, and fabricators to learn how to install product through a plank installation training program. Trainees could receive a wage increase of 91 cents or more per hour.
Lacerta Group LLC. | $30,278
Lacerta Group LLC in Columbia County, in partnership with Manage Assist, to train 11 current workers in inventory management, workplace safety, and lean manufacturing. Trainees could earn an hourly wage increase of 58 cents or more.
GFL Environmental | $36,000
GFL Environmental in Waukesha County is partnering with commercial driver’s license (CDL) training providers to provide entry-level CDL training to 12 unemployed people.
Northwest Wisconsin Workforce Investment Board | $92,400
Northwest Wisconsin Workforce Investment Board in Ashland County to partner with Halvor Lines and Superior CDL to provide 15 unemployed people with training in Class A CDL.
Wisconsin Fast Forward grants are open to all industry sectors and range from $5,000 to $400,000. Projects require a 50 percent cash or in-kind employer match, and training must provide transferable skills to incumbent workers, underemployed workers, and unemployed people.
EVERS ADMINISTRATION’S EFFORTS TO BOLSTER THE WORKFORCE AND REDUCE BARRIERS TO EMPLOYMENT
This announcement also comes as, earlier this year, Gov. Evers delivered his 2026 State of the State address, where he highlighted new efforts by the Evers Administration to address the state’s generational workforce challenges and build a workforce prepared to meet the needs of a 21st-century economy. This includes launching:
- Two new registered apprenticeship pathways for high-demand fields, including the state’s healthcare and education workforces;
- The new Wisconsin Training for Resilient Advanced Industry Needs (WisTRAIN) employer grant program to deliver employer-driven, occupational skills training focused on advanced manufacturing and artificial intelligence; and
- The first round of funding through the newly created Ignite Wisconsin program, which aims to make strategic investments that will advance startup companies in targeted sectors with high growth potential.
Gov. Evers has made building a 21st-century workforce to support a 21st-century economy and addressing the state’s long-standing workforce challenges a top priority of his administration. Thanks to these efforts over the last 7 years, the state has seen record-low unemployment, record-high employment, and record enrollment in both the state’s registered and youth apprenticeship programs. In fact, this year, Gov. Evers and DWD celebrated that for the fourth year in a row, Wisconsin’s Registered Apprenticeship program set a new record high of 18,524 apprentices enrolled and more than 3,095 employers participating in the program in 2025. Further, annual average wages have also gone up for workers, increasing nearly 26 percent over the governor’s first six years in office, and median wages in 2024 reached an all-time record high.
Additionally, Gov. Evers declared 2024 the Year of the Worker in Wisconsin to highlight the need to address the state’s generational workforce challenges and promote new efforts by the Evers Administration to build a workforce prepared to meet the needs of a 21st-century economy. This included launching the state’s first teacher apprenticeship pilot program, creating the Governor’s Task Force on the Healthcare Workforce and the Governor’s Task Force on Workforce and Artificial Intelligence, establishing the Office of Employee Engagement and Retention for the state of Wisconsin workforce, and more.
The Evers Administration’s efforts to bolster the state’s workforce and ensure it can meet the needs of a 21st-century economy are also evident through the workforce accomplishments the state has celebrated in recent years, including capping off 2024 with nine counties showing the lowest rates of unemployment on record, as well as the state seeing seven consecutive months of record-high employment—a record that was only later to be beaten again in January 2025.
But Gov. Evers’ efforts to bolster Wisconsin’s workforce have extended well beyond 2024 the Year of the Worker. In 2021, Gov. Evers launched the state’s Workforce Solutions Initiative, which works to connect unemployed or underemployed workers with new opportunities while also incentivizing innovative solutions to regional workforce challenges. To date, programs included in the governor’s Workforce Solutions Initiative have collectively served 127,775 Wisconsinites across the state.
Of the 127,775 Wisconsinites served by the Wisconsin Solutions Initiative, 118,000 of those workers were helped through the Workforce Innovation Grant Program. Grants were awarded to support projects across the state that seek to address key regional workforce challenges, including barriers to entry, career training, child care, skills training, entrepreneurship, health services, housing, transportation, and more. Through the program, 195 childcare slots were created, 165 housing units were constructed, over 2,550 businesses were served, and 185,000 rides were provided to help workers get to and from work.
Gov. Evers has also made supporting Wisconsin’s current and future workforce a centerpiece of every budget he has introduced as governor, including his most recent 2025-27 Executive Budget. While the final 2025-27 Biennial Budget was a far cry from the budget the governor proposed, in July, the governor signed a budget that made important investments to support Wisconsin’s current and future workforce. This included critical investments in the University of Wisconsin and Technical College systems, as well as over $6 million to support the Youth Apprenticeship Program. More information on those investments is available in a previously released press release.
NOTE: This press release was submitted to Urban Milwaukee and was not written by an Urban Milwaukee writer. While it is believed to be reliable, Urban Milwaukee does not guarantee its accuracy or completeness.
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