A growing number of hourly-wage workers in 海角换妻 are gaining access to higher education as several of the state鈥檚 top employers in retail and hospitality expand tuition assistance programs to attract and retain staff.
The highly competitive labor market has spurred companies like Amazon, Target, Walmart and most recently the Mohegan Sun Casino & Resort 鈥� which employ thousands of people in 海角换妻 鈥� to offer education benefits for full-time and part-time employees, emulating and expanding on programs popularized by Starbucks . As the unemployment rate ticks downward, companies have been scaling up tuition assistance in an effort to attract increasingly in-demand labor.
鈥淚 think it makes a lot of sense,鈥� said Tim Larson, executive director of the state office of higher education. 鈥淭he larger employers recognize talented people, and they need to be able to stay ahead of the curve.鈥�
In March, with the University of 海角换妻 and Capital Community College, offering full college tuition, industry certifications and other programs to its 18,000 in-state employees after 90 days of work. At Walmart, 427 of the company鈥檚 8,900 海角换妻 employees have taken advantage of the 鈥溾�� program covering online education at several schools, which is available to employees as soon as they start working. Target鈥檚 new 鈥渄ebt-free鈥� program to cover a portion of education costs for employees pursuing various degrees, including master鈥檚 degree-level programs. Home Depot, UPS, FedEx and many other large employers also now offer tuition assistance.
And last month, Mohegan Gaming with for-profit, Waterbury-based Post University, offering discounted tuition to 8,000 casino employees, 2,000 Mohegan Tribe members and their families, as well as players on the WNBA鈥檚 海角换妻 Sun team.
Bobby Reese, Post University鈥檚 chief operating officer, said the school has partnered with more than 250 businesses to design customized training for their staff and to provide tuition benefits to strengthen employee recruitment and retention. Interest in the latter, he said, has grown in the last few years.
鈥淪omething happened to workers in the pandemic,鈥� Reese said. 鈥淭hey鈥檇 wake up in the morning, and they鈥檇 think, 鈥業 just don鈥檛 want to do this anymore.鈥欌�� Companies had to respond, he said. 鈥淭hey came late to the dance. I think we should have done this years ago.鈥�
A spokeswoman for UConn said Amazon鈥檚 program follows in the footsteps of an agreement the university holds with defense manufacturer Raytheon Technologies, which sends around 200 staff to UConn each semester. Several other companies pay for their employees to take classes at UConn, either directly or through reimbursement, spokeswoman Stephanie Reitz wrote in an email.
鈥淲e look forward to welcoming students from Amazon and other employers and appreciate how much their life experiences and participation enriches our campus communities,鈥� Reitz wrote.
Higher education 鈥� even at public institutions 鈥� has become unaffordable for many Americans interested in pursuing a degree. As per-student public funding has fallen, . And private employers are stepping in to fill the gap.
海角换妻 State Colleges and Universities work with several health care organizations to provide training and workforce development. In partnership with Manchester Community College, a consortium of companies known as the Aerospace Components Manufacturers has set aside funding to train their workforce 鈥� a necessity in today鈥檚 rapidly changing advanced manufacturing sector.
The Office of Higher Education鈥檚 Larson described those programs as a 鈥渄ouble bonus鈥� for companies, whose employees can gain expertise without the company having to absorb the full cost of on-site training.
There are also tax benefits for companies that cover their employees鈥� tuition.
Up to $5,250 per employee in tuition payments, reimbursements or credits is tax-deductible for the company. And beginning this year, 海角换妻 businesses can take advantage of an additional state tax credit if they provide to their employees.