NC H627

Appropriates $5,000,000 in nonrecurring funds from the General Fund to the Department of Labor for a three-year mobile workforce development pilot program operating from 2021-2022 through June 30, 2024.

Establishes a custom-built mobile workshop featuring up to 12 skilled professions in construction, manufacturing, transportation, and utilities that uses simulators and virtual reality to expose middle and high school students to technical careers and statewide wages.

Creates a digital database system to collect student and parent information (with consent) and share it with community colleges, the Department of Public Instruction, the Department of Commerce, myFutureNC Commission, and industry partners to facilitate internships, scholarships, apprenticeships, and job opportunities.

Includes follow-up opportunities for interested students such as on-site learning experiences, volunteering, and networking with job and postsecondary school recruiters, plus scholarship and incentive programs for educators.

Requires the Department of Labor to collaborate with the N.C. Trucking Association to develop a workforce program increasing licensed commercial driver operators, transportation dispatchers, and technicians, and to submit annual reports by April 1 to the Joint Legislative Oversight Committee on Agriculture and Natural and Economic Resources.