The Environmental Career Worker Training Program (ECWTP) provides opportunities for individuals from unemployed or under-employed communities to obtain careers in environmental cleanup, construction, hazardous waste removal, and emergency response. To date, more than 15,000 people have been trained by the program's partners, which include community colleges, historically Black colleges and universities, and apprenticeship programs, among others. From 1995 to 2024, the ECWTP has maintained an average job placement rate of 70%, and it has provided an economic boon to communities across the country.

Life Skills and Job Readiness Training

Life skills and other pre-employment training are a fundamental component of the ECWTP. This instruction provides trainees with the personal and interpersonal skills required to deal with the challenges of everyday life and to obtain and sustain employment. Life skills curricula address topics such as:

• Confidence building
• Financial responsibility
• Job readiness/employment success
• Stress and time management
• Work relationship dynamics

Some ECWTP-supported training also includes enrollment in apprenticeship programs. Apprenticeships provide trainees with on-the-job training in a specific trade and prepare the trainee for a long-term career in the profession. Mentoring and counseling are also an important part of the ECWTP, as they help trainees to develop direction, confidence, and positive attitudes toward job training and work.

Success through Partnerships

Partnerships are integral to the success of the ECWTP. Program award recipients have developed partnerships with government agencies, community and faith-based organizations, academia, labor unions, and employers to help support ECWTP recruitment, training, and employment opportunities.

ECWTP Produces Positive Results

A 2024 study (5MB) of the ECWTP's impact showed that the program has a positive nationwide economic impact. The study shows that from 2014 to 2022, the program returned approximately 28 times the amount invested by the federal government back into the economy. Other direct benefits to the economy include increased earnings, reduction in workplace injuries, and hiring cost and crime-related cost savings. The executive summary (518KB) and flyer (125KB) provide a high-level overview of the study's results.