Caterpillar announced that it will put up to $10 million toward training workers for manufacturing and industry technician jobs in North Carolina. The Irving, Texas-based company announced the funding last week; it is the latest investment from Caterpillar’s five-year, $100 million Building the Future Workforce Initiative.
“Investing in people is essential to building the workforce advanced manufacturing will need for the future,” Caterpillar chief human resources officer Christy Pambianchi said in a press release. “North Carolina’s growth creates an opportunity to help more people build the skills they need for careers in manufacturing and strengthen the workforce that will support the industry for years to come.”
Caterpillar is working with Central Carolina Community College and the Sanford Area Growth Alliance to add hands-on manufacturing training for students, get more regional employers involved and offer affordable training that leads to better jobs. The company has more than 3,600 employees in North Carolina and works with 325 suppliers across the state.
The workforce funding follows Caterpillar’s plan to invest about $1 billion in North Carolina, which includes a new manufacturing facility in Sanford. North Carolina is the program’s sixth allocation, after launches in Indiana, Texas, Illinois and Arkansas, and an innovation challenge.
