| Q1. | In the expected outcomes portion of the RFP it says the monies will be used to avert the layoff of all workers directly affected. Does this mean that the monies cannot be used for workers who have already received a notice of layoff or for a company that has already filed a WARN? |
| A. | A company that has filed a WARN or layoff notice would still be eligible to apply for these funds. Their application would have to clearly describe how the impending layoff covered by the WARN or layoff notice will be averted by the proposed training project. |
| Q2. | Must a company applying for an aversion grant have filed a WARN notice? More explicitly, clarification is sought regarding what is required under Section B (fourth bullet) of the application narrative section which reads, "What notification regarding this situation has been provided to the current employees of the business or the plant" |
| A. | A company does not have to have filed a WARN notice to be able to apply for a layoff aversion grant. The fourth bullet in Section B of the Application Narrative is to let the Department know to what extent the business has made known its current situation to its employees. This information is necessary so that the Department is sensitive to the current situation at the plant or business. Some businesses may not want to initially notify their employees of their project plans or the possibility of layoffs for fear of creating panic in the workplace, while others may want to gain the earliest possible buy-in from their employees or their respective unions for the project and will notify them early on in the process. A response one way or the other by a business to this question will not impact on the scoring of the proposal as the review criteria does not factor this in. |
| Q3. | Is a not-for-profit corporation eligible to apply for funding to implement training for employees of a for-profit business as part of that business' layoff aversion strategy? The non-profit corporation is an employment training provider. The business would provide the required 50% match. |
| A. | No, an employment training provider would only be an eligible applicant if it were implementing a training program to avert the layoff of its own employees. They could potentially be a training provider for another applicant business, but in that case they would be a subcontractor only (they could not be the applicant). The applicant must be the business that is looking to avert the layoff of their own employees. The only exception to this requirement is a Local Workforce Investment Board (LWIB) working with and applying on behalf of an affected business. |
| Q4. | Can the 50% match include in-kind services, such as salaries of staff implementing the layoff aversion strategy or donated space? |
| A. | The 50% match can include any elements that are part of the overall cost of the proposed training. The salaries of staff involved in implementing the strategy can be an allowable match if these costs are directly related to the training project being implemented (i.e. wages of employees while participating in the training, wages of staff instructors, wages of staff administering the project). If the proposed project includes OJT, then the match must include 50% of the OJT wages being paid to project participants. The fair market value of donated rental space for the proposed training activities can also be an allowable match cost. |