The U.S. Department of Labor has approved an initial $5 million in National Dislocated Worker Grant funds for the state of Tennessee to assist 12 counties with recovery efforts in wake of damage caused by remnants of Hurricane Helene.
Disaster Dislocated Worker Grants “provide funding to create temporary employment opportunities to assist with clean-up and recovery efforts, when an area impacted by disaster is declared eligible for public assistance by the Federal Emergency Management Agency.”
We announced the approval of up to $5 million in initial emergency grant funding to Tennessee to support disaster-relief jobs and training services in 12 counties to help respond to Tropical Storm Helene. https://t.co/9apBgIhkLl pic.twitter.com/dzzfOYJmLT
— U.S. Department of Labor (@USDOL) October 18, 2024
The funding approved for the Volunteer State is available through Tennessee CAREs grant program, which is administered by the First Tennessee Development District and the East Tennessee Human Resource Agency.
Residents of Carter, Greene, Hawkins, Johnson, Sullivan, Unicoi, Washington, Claiborne, Cocke, Grainger, Hamblen, Jefferson, and Sevier counties whose employment was interrupted by the disaster are eligible to apply for part-time work under the CAREs program.
Those who apply for part-time work under the CAREs program do not need “specialized skills” to assist in recovery efforts, according to the Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development.
Individuals employed by the CAREs program will earn $25 per hour for part-time, temporary positions “working to remove storm debris from public areas” throughout the impacted counties.
The Department of Labor specifically identified “transportation and debris removal” as high priorities for the state, noting how “19 sections of state routes are closed and six state bridges are impassable, five of which were destroyed.”
“The Employment and Training Administration is committed to ensuring workers in Tennessee affected by Tropical Storm Helene have access to grant funding and assistance,” Assistant Secretary for Employment and Training José Javier Rodríguez said in a statement.
“This Dislocated Worker Grant provides critical support by providing jobs to affected workers while helping Tennessee in its recovery efforts,” Rodríguez added.
Individuals interested in applying for part-time work under the CAREs program can apply online at:
https://www.tn.gov/content/tn/workforce/jobs-and-education/services-by-group/services-by-group-redirect/tennessee-cares.html
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Kaitlin Housler is a reporter at The Tennessee Star and The Star News Network. Follow Kaitlin on X / Twitter.
Photo “Hurricane Helene Damage” by FEMA.
