Workforce Development

Middlesex Community College & University of Massachusetts-Lowell Graduates

Lowell's Middlesex Community College (MCC) and University of Massachusetts-Lowell graduates provide a talented labor pool to businesses wishing to relocate or expand in the City of Lowell. U-Mass Lowell is a nationally recognized research facility with more than $50 million in yearly budgeted research work.

U-Mass Lowell has recently completed the construction of the Emerging Technologies and Innovation Center (ETIC) a $70 million, 84,000 square foot building on North Campus which houses nanotechnology, plastics engineering, biomedicine, and electro-optics. The university is also home to the Innovation Hub which serves as a co-working space that allows early-stage entrepreneurs and ventures to test products and business concepts. The ETIC and Innovation Hub, as well as the Robotics Center are the best examples on how companies can tap into the resources and talent pool offered right here in Lowell.

Lowell Career Center

Our office works closely with the Lowell Career Center in assisting employers with their hiring needs by listing companies' job openings on their website, pre-screening job applicants, and offering employers on-site recruitment at the Career Center.

The Lowell Career Center and the Greater Lowell Workforce Investment Board (GLWIB) also provide technical assistance on direct funded grants including the Workforce Training Fund and Hiring Incentive Grants (provided through the Commonwealth of Massachusetts to employers for incumbent or new worker training).

Workforce Training Fund Programs (WTFP)

Massachusetts employers, of any size, may apply for grants of up to $250,000 to train new or existing workers. Training grants are available but not limited to the following: ESL; Project Management; Machine step-up and operations; Sales; Software and IT training; and Customer Service. The "Express Program" provides grant funds limited to $30,000 per company per calendar year and $3,000 per employee per course. If approved, the program will reimburse employers for the actual cost of training: 100% reimbursement for companies with up to 100 employees or 50% for companies with more than 100 employees. Locally, these grants are managed through MassHire. Learn more at MassHire

• General Program - Available to any size company to train employees in job-related skills through a program designed by the company. Applications are accepted and reviewed on a rolling basis.
• Express Program - For companies with 100 or fewer employees training employees using off-the-shelf training.

Learn more about upcoming info sessions about the Workforce Training Fund, 

UMass Lowell Corporate Training Programs

UMass Lowell has partner with more than 1,400 companies in the Greater Lowell Area to provide customized training and professional development. Learn more about training programs and professional development.

Middlesex Community College (MCC) Corporate Training Programs 

For over three decades MCC has educated and trained thousands of employees in hundreds of industries and municipalities throughout the Greater Lowell area.  MCC works in collaboration with MassHire and The Greater Lowell Workforce Investment Board in a administering the state's Workforce Training Fund Training Fund  Program. Learn more about MCC Corporate Training Programs. 

Work Opportunity Tax Credits for hiring Veterans

 Employers may be eligible for a federal tax credit through the Work Opportunity Tax Credit (WOTC) if they hire a qualified unemployed veteran. Click here for more information. You can also contact the City of Lowell Veteran's Office for more information.