MnDOT’s On-the-JobTraining Program Had Successful 2020 Season

Minnesota Department of Transportation has an On-the-Job Training Program with the goal of creating a diverse workforce, and in 2020 they had nearly 200 trainees in the program.

With stats provide by the Minnesota Department of Transportation we can get an idea on the success of the program, in total there were 196 trainees and 8 of those trainees made it to the 'Journey Level'.

Of the 196 trainees 121 were male and 75 females in the program, 56 were Hispanic, 52 were white, 42 were black or African American, 29 American Indian, 14 Asian and a few of two or more ethnic backgrounds.

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Eligibility for the program is reserved for people of color, women, and disadvantaged people. Contractors who hire these individuals are qualified for a $1 - $10 per hour wage reimbursement from the Minnesota Department of Transportation, the reimbursement amount is determined by hiring people who have completed a MnDOT funded training program, and/or if the trainee is given a mentor during their time in the program.

Most of the trainees worked in labor on various projects around the state, others completed the program with truck driving, equipment operator, pile driving, and other specialty skills like pipe fitting, ironworker, cement mason, and carpentry.

According to the Minnesota Department of Transportation's website about the program, "Before a project is advertised, it will be evaluated for an OJT goal. An OJT goal includes the minimum number of individual trainees, and a total number of hours that a contractor should utilize on a project."