Small Business Workforce Accelerator Grant
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The Small Business Workforce Accelerator Grant, funded by the Washington State Department of Commerce’s Community Reinvestment Project, aims to promote equity for businesses in Seattle-King County, with a focus on those 51% or more owned and operated by individuals from Black, urban Indian/Tribal, and Latine communities. Funds from the grants can be used for one of the following projects: Paid Internship, Employee Development/Training, or New Hire Wages. The overarching goal is to ensure that historically marginalized communities gain equitable access to resources to support them and their workforce development efforts.
Objective:
The focus of this opportunity aims to repair wealth disparities in communities disproportionally harmed by the war on drugs by helping reduce economic barriers to hiring and training. Applicants can request up to $6,500 for one of the following eligible projects:
Paid Internship—Supporting businesses in talent pipeline development, while providing meaningful work experience and skills development for interns. With a duration of 3 months or less, an intern can work up to 40 hours per week and are paid minimum wage or more.
Employee Development/Training—Funding can be used to provide worker training such as short-term certifications and other employee development that reduces the cost of training employees, supports worker retention, and provides upskill or advancement opportunities for employees.
New Hire Wages—Full wage subsidy of 100% of wages for a new hire during their initial three months of employment (up to $6500). New hire can be part-time or full-time, and businesses must agree to retain the employee after the wage subsidy period.
You may apply for one project. Once that project is complete, you are welcome to apply again for another project if applications are being accepted or other WDC funding opportunities if they are available.
Please see Frequently Asked Questions below for detailed information about project supports and requirements.
Eligibility Requirements:
Small Business (fewer than 50 employees)
Funds are prioritized for self-attested Black, Latine, and urban Indian/Tribal business owners and operators and their employees as stated in the Community Reinvestment Project and Washington State Community Reinvestment Fund Program Policy.
Active business license, and licensed in King County
Be registered with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and have an account with the Washington State Employment Security Department for Unemployment Insurance and carry Worker’s Compensation Insurance
Reporting Requirements:
New Hire Wages and Paid Internship projects will require timesheets/payroll documentation
Employee Development/Training will require receipts for training/certification costs and documentation of training completion and/or copies of certification
All projects require a report of successes/impact story and creation of a WorkSource WA account by the Intern/Employee/New Hire funded by this grant opportunity
Application submissions will open for this opportunity on January 27, 2025 at 12:00 PM PST and will close after 40 applications are received (the anticipated number that can be awarded with currently available funding). Information about the opportunity, requirements, how to apply and available supports are outlined in the RFP information below to support interested business owners in being prepared to submit for consideration when applications open.