SUPERIOR, WI – Today, U.S. Senator Herb Kohl visited Superior Steel Inc. to tour the facilities and meet with recent graduates, instructors and administrators of an accelerated welding training program being administered by Northwest Wisconsin Concentrated Employment Program (NWCEP) and Wisconsin Indianhead Technical College-Superior.  Senator Kohl also announced that he secured $243,667 in federal funds for the continuance of the program, which teaches welding skills to the unemployed and underemployed, for future sessions.  In addition, the Senator met with members and officials of the NWCEP, college and local manufacturing firms, which co-created the program, to discuss its merits for job-seekers and businesses alike. 

"With an anticipated shortage of welders, there is growing demand for people with these valuable skills," Kohl said.  "This intensive welding program teaches those skills to individuals of diverse backgrounds so they can then find well-paying jobs and provide for themselves and their families. 

"This job-training initiative helps people seeking work and manufacturers alike in the region."

With the anticipated retirement of a large segment of the welding workforce, it is anticipated by 2010 the United States will face a shortage of 200,000 welders.  This program helps bring new people into the welding field to fill this gap and to keep the U.S. manufacturing sector strong.  The intensive course will also provide mentoring services to students after completing the course.  Business consultants at NWCEP will also help with job placement by contacting local employers for job openings and other potential opportunities.

The funding secured by Senator Kohl, as a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, will be administered by the US Department of Labor to the NWCEP in October or November.  The project responds to a need from regional manufacturers for more trained welders to fill immediate openings that threaten production in north and northwest Wisconsin.  Individuals who qualify for the program come from CEP's 10-county service area.  The program is expected to train close to 100 students in welding.  Upon completion of the program, students receive a certificate of completion and earn five college credits.

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