CLEARFIELD, Utah — Contractors have filed a lawsuit to block the Trump administration from wiping out Job Corps, the largest job training program in the U.S. for low-income youth.
Last week, the U.S. Department of Labor announced the closing of all contractor-operated Job Corps centers nationwide. Centers across the U.S. are impacted, including a location in Clearfield.
Officials say the closures are due to financial deficits, low graduation rates and safety concerns. Officials say the centers are closing by June 30.
The program is ending for thousands of students, which means businesses that employed those students are affected, too.
Eric Hubbell, owner of Hubbell Handyman & Hauling Services, relies on the program’s students. The Syracuse resident said he wasn’t prepared for this sudden hit and is losing most of his staff this week.
“It’s disappointing to lose that many people that quick is kinda hard,” Hubbell said. “I wasn’t expecting it.”
He said most of his staff members, mainly Job Corps students, are heading back to their home states on Friday.
“There wasn’t really a grace period to really let that settle in. We’ve had to restructure a lot of our jobs. It’s going to be tough to fulfill all our obligations,” he said.
Karece Thompson, an outreach specialist for the Utah State Office of the State Treasurer, understands what it means to get a second chance at the American Dream.
“Too often we look at those kids as castaways, but really they’re real people who need help, and I was one of those people who needed help,” Thompson said.
Thompson moved from San Bernardino, California to Utah for Job Corps in 2008.
“At the time, I was in college. I was really struggling economically between picking between books or food,” he said. “I’m not sitting here without that institution, and there are too many students who probably feel the same exact way.”
The U.S. Department of Labor was not immediately available for an interview on Wednesday. The National Job Corps Association also didn’t respond Wednesday to a request for an interview.
“The challenges I’m going to face is having to find qualified applicants that give the same vibe, the same energy of super motivated to want to work. Today, it’s super hard to find people — not saying they’re not out there, it’s just hard to find them,” Hubbell said.
