Laboratory bridge to employment continues to grow

Contact: David Lyons, (505) 665-9198 (99-114)

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LOS ALAMOS, N.M., August 10, 1999 -- Thanks to a new contract with the New Mexico Department of Labor (NMDL), the welfare reform program at the Department of Energy's Los Alamos National Laboratory continues to grow, providing training to welfare recipients from Northern New Mexico.

The Laboratory's "Bridge to Employment" program, the first of its kind in New Mexico, was started in July 1997 with nine welfare recipients. In coordination with the New Mexico Human Services department, the Laboratory was able to establish a job readiness program to support welfare reform. The program coordinator of the Laboratory's Welfare-to-Work program, Mary Van Eeckhout, explained that the main goal of the program is to assist welfare recipients with work experience, job search and short-term training needs. Program participants spend roughly 20 percent of their time in formalized training, focusing on such things as résumé writing and basic computer skills. The remaining 80 percent is spent in on-the-job training in basic entry-level positions. Additionally, program participants who need help with basic educational skills are enrolled in on-site tutoring.

Carol Smith, group leader of the Laboratory's Materials Management group-the group where most participants complete their on-the-job training-said, "Our first group of nine participants was extremely successful. All nine completed the six-month training program and are working in full-time positions at the Laboratory and elsewhere, and all nine report being off of Welfare."

In March 1999, the Laboratory signed a two-year contract with the NMDL to receive job training funding to help continue the program. Since March, two new groups of welfare participants have started the program-six started the program in April, and six more started in late June.

VanEeckhout said, "We are extremely excited about the opportunity to partner with NMDL on this program. It's a great partnership, bringing in new participants to learn and train for real jobs-both at the Laboratory and elsewhere. I would strongly encourage other employers in Northern New Mexico to set up similar programs."

Smith explained that the participants themselves deserve a lot of the credit. "They are great workers, very dependable, hard-working, and anxious to be self-supporting."

One program participant, Jeanette Trujillo, explained that the biggest benefit is for her children. "It's such a good feeling to wake up in the morning, knowing that I'm going to work that day. Now, I'm supporting myself, and my kids, and they know that they can do the same someday."

Employers interested in participating in the Bridge to Employment program, or in hiring program participants, should contact Carol Smith at 667-5245 or send email to Mary VanEeckhout at msvan@lanl.gov.

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