Workforce Alliance has launched a new job training and service program called Recovery Works.
Its goal is to help people who have been impacted by the state’s opioid epidemic get back into the workforce.
Participants must be underemployed, unemployed six months or more, laid off or no longer self-employed as a result of the opioid crisis.
Bill Villano, president and CEO of Workforce Alliance, said there are thousands of skilled workers who haven’t been able to participate in the workforce due to opioids.
“It’s time to provide victims and their families support and services during their recovery and build a path to new jobs and careers,” Villano said.
Participants will be able to benefit from video and phone sessions, emotional support, recovery wellness plans, community referrals, peer guidance, support groups, one-on-one and family coaching.
To help people secure employment, the program helps with training tuition assistance, paid on-the-job training, transportation and childcare.
Allyson Quinn, a peer recovery navigator, certified recovery coach and a person who is in long-term recovery from a substance use disorder, is leading the program.
Quinn is also looking to build a network of employers and community resources dedicated to opioid recovery. Employers are encouraged to participate and will receive a wage subsidy for hiring and training on the job.
The initiative is funded by a Disaster Recovery National Dislocated Worker grant to address the opioid crisis.
Recovery Works is open to eligible residents in the 30 towns in south central Connecticut served by the Workforce Alliance.
For more information, visit the alliance’s website, https://www.workforcealliance.biz/recovery-works/
