March 5, 2019 - The U.S. Department of Labor awarded a $1.75 million grant to the Eastern Kentucky Concentrated Employment Program (EKCEP).

The funding is intended to help people who lost their jobs due to the decline in the coal industry.

“Coal miners in the Commonwealth – in Eastern Kentucky in particular – have suffered enormously over the last several years, resulting in the loss of thousands of high-wage jobs in a region facing serious economic challenges,” Senator Mitch McConnell said. “Those lost coal jobs have had a negative and wide-ranging impact on workers and families in the region, as well as on the local economy. I have been proud to work with Jeff Whitehead and EKCEP to support competitive grant funding in the past for the organization, which allows EKCEP to provide essential reemployment and training services for dislocated coal workers in Kentucky.”

“EKCEP is extremely grateful for this award. These funds will support our region’s on-going efforts to move our economy forward by furthering our workforce retraining and re-employment initiatives,” said Jeff Whitehead, Executive Director of EKCEP. “We are also very appreciative of the U.S. DOL’s partnership in these efforts and Senator McConnell’s strong belief in our workforce and his enduring commitment to these efforts.”