Idaho

Bringing the Economy Home

Chobani Receives Bulk Of New Worker Training Grant Money

Emilie Ritter Saunders / StateImpact

Chobani will open its Twin Falls facility later this year. The company has been approved for $3.3 million in training grants.

The Idaho Department of Labor has approved another round of workforce development training grants for eight companies, totaling $4.8 million dollars.

The biggest chunk of that goes to three businesses, Chobani, Central Garden and Pet, and ATK.

New York-based Greek yogurt maker Chobani is currently building its Twin Falls, Idaho manufacturing facility.Ā  It’s already started training managers, and the company is eligible for reimbursements of up to $3.3 million from the Idaho Department of Labor.Ā  The Department estimates Chobani will train 583 people, costing on average $5,700 per person.

ATK makes ammunition in Lewiston.Ā  The company is headquartered in Virginia, and has about 650 employees in Idaho.Ā  According to the Department of Labor, ATK plans to add 150 people to its payroll.Ā  The company can get reimbursed for $436,000 in training costs.Ā  The Department estimates the average cost to train an ATK employee is $2,900.

[spreadsheet key=”0AiLU6Cs5LWZIdHRaRmlBeTBCMXpfcDhoVUY1bHMxQkE” source=”Idaho Department of Labor” sheet=0 filter=0 paginate=0 sortable=0]

The workforce development training grants are paid for by a tax on business.Ā  In order to qualify, a company has to pay at least $12 an hour, offer health benefits and most of the goods produced by the business need to be sold outside of the region.

A company can receive training reimbursements for new hires, or to train existing employees in danger of being laid off.

The Department doesn’t require these companies that receive training money to stay in Idaho for a certain amount of time.Ā  As StateImpact recently reported, about a dozen companies that have gotten training grants no longer have employees in Idaho.

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