Incumbent Worker Training Program

The Incumbent Worker Training Program is administered by CareerSource Florida and funded through the federal Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act. The program supports continuing education and training for incumbent employees of existing Florida businesses by reimbursing approved direct training-related costs. For the July 1, 2026 through June 30, 2027 fiscal year, $3 million is available, with a maximum reimbursement of $100,000 per grant per company. Each individual Federal Employer Identification Number must submit a separate application, and each FEIN generally may receive one award every other year, subject to stated exceptions for certain funding priorities. The program is intended to strengthen employee skills, improve business competitiveness, support employee retention, and avert layoffs. Eligible applicants include for-profit companies and hospitals, including hospitals operated by nonprofit or local government entities in Florida. An applicant must generally have operated for at least one year before applying and must have at least one full-time Florida-resident employee receiving a W-2 matching the company name on the application. Eligible incumbent workers must receive a W-2 from the applicant employer, work at least 37.5 hours per week, be at least 18 years old, be a U.S. citizen or otherwise authorized to work in the United States, reside and work at a physical location in Florida, and have worked for the applicant employer for at least six months before the application's signature date. Retail establishments, labor unions, volunteer-administered entities, local workforce development boards and their administrative entities, and most governmental and nonprofit entities are ineligible, subject to the hospital exception. Funding supports preapproved direct training costs. Allowable expenses include tuition or training-course costs, instructor wages, vendor training at up to $300 per instructor hour, employee-delivered training at up to $40 per hour, limited curriculum development, qualifying textbooks and manuals, and certain related training materials. Curriculum development may not exceed 25 percent of an approved course cost, while textbooks and manuals are capped at $100 each before application of the reimbursable percentage and may not exceed 50 percent of an approved course cost. Employee or trainee wages and fringe benefits, consultant fees, capital improvements, travel, food, memberships, conferences, test or examination fees, equipment, certain website and software expenses, employee assessment systems, and annual memberships for online courses are not reimbursable. Businesses must provide at least 50 percent of requested direct training costs. Most eligible companies therefore receive reimbursement of up to 50 percent, while qualifying priority applicants may receive reimbursement of up to 75 percent. Applications must be completed online; applications submitted by email, mail, or fax are not accepted. Applications may be submitted on or after July 1 and are accepted without a stated fixed final application deadline. Each application must instead be submitted at least 45 business days before the applicant's desired training start date, and awards are made monthly. The email used to create an application must be associated with the company's domain or an account linked to the company. The application includes Company Information, a Training Program or Training Item Detail for every requested course, a Training Program Budget, and Anticipated Outcomes. Applicants must describe the requested training, objectives, expected outcomes, business and employee benefits, and measurable performance outcomes. Required supporting documentation includes a Florida Department of Revenue Tax Clearance Letter, applicable tax documentation, a 2024 W-9, and a bank letter verifying the applicant's banking relationship and good standing. CareerSource Florida reviews applications for completeness and conducts due diligence. Outstanding balances or liens owed to the State of Florida result in denial, while incomplete applications can delay review and return the application to the queue. Funding priority is given first to businesses providing opportunities to earn credentials on the Master Credentials List, followed by qualifying nonprofit or local-government hospitals and healthcare facilities providing nursing or allied healthcare skill opportunities. Additional priorities include significant employee skill upgrades, businesses with 25 or fewer employees, businesses in rural or distressed inner-city areas, qualified targeted industries, and significant layoff-avoidance strategies. Budgets are reviewed for accuracy, correlation with the proposed training, and reasonableness of cost per trainee. Awards are made monthly, and the company contact receives email notification of the preapproved grant amount after review. Approved applicants receive a contract electronically through DocuSign. The contract becomes effective when signed by the CareerSource Florida CFO, and contracts not executed within 45 days are voided. Training and reimbursable expenses may begin only after the contract is fully executed; training that begins before execution is not reimbursable. Training must be completed within 12 months of the contract effective date, contract extensions are not permitted, and final reimbursement requests must be submitted within 60 days after the contract ends. Reimbursement may be requested throughout the 12-month period and is tied to training progress. Reporting requirements include trainee data, reimbursement requests, applicable sign-in sheets, a Training Expense Summary Report, substitution requests where needed, curriculum development and textbook documentation where applicable, a Six Month Status Report, and a Final Training Evaluation. Questions may be directed to CareerSource Florida Grants Manager Malissa Counts at 850-759-4349 or MCounts@CareerSourceFlorida.com.

Submit at least 45 business days before the desired training start date. Ensure Section 1 is accurate before leaving it because it cannot be revisited or edited. Keep the FEIN consistent across all documents. Submit all required supporting documentation because incomplete applications return to the queue and delay approval. Resolve outstanding State of Florida balances or liens because they result in denial. Make the training budget correlate directly with the training project and keep cost per trainee reasonable. State specific measurable outcomes tied to competitiveness, viability, profitability, job retention, layoff avoidance, turnover reduction, or wage improvement. Do not begin reimbursable training before the contract is fully executed.