State offers training subsidies for employers

A solar energy services company in Elmsford that entered the metropolitan New York market in 2012 will be the first business in Westchester County this year to benefit from a state program that partially reimburses employers for the cost of training new employees.

SolarCity Corp., a solar panel manufacturer and installer headquartered in San Mateo, Calif., was the first to apply to the Westchester-Putnam Workforce Investment Board for the state”™s federally funded On the Job Training program, County Executive Robert P. Astorino announced. He said the county will reimburse the company for at least half of the $160,000 it will spend to hire 40 employees over the next few weeks.

SolarCity last year leased an approximately 32,500-square-foot office and warehouse building at 203 Ridgewood Drive in Elmsford for use as its East Coast operations and training center.

Funded through a $6.4 million grant from the U.S. Department of Labor, the state program allows employers to receive subsidies for up to six months for hiring and training new full-time employees. The subsidies range from 50 to 90 percent of costs based on the size of the business.

John Andrews, regional recruiter at SolarCity, in a press release said the grant will be crucial to the company as it expands and “a significant boost to help solidify our local operations.”

In 2012, Golden Renewable, a startup recycling company in Yonkers, received an $85,000 state grant for hiring and training 10 employees.

To apply or for additional information on this and similar programs, businesses may contact either Bob Fois at 914-995-4976, Milton David at 914-995-8631 or Walter Recher at 914-761-7111, ext. 324. Employers also can apply online at westchesterputnamonestop.com.

Participating employers must hire trainees through a One-Stop Employment Center.