Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer announced a $5 million funding opportunity for up to 14 Women in Apprenticeship and Nontraditional Occupations (WANTO) grants administered jointly through DOL’s Women’s Bureau and Employment and Training Administration to attract and retain more women in registered apprenticeship programs and high-growth industries like construction, manufacturing, and cybersecurity. Grant awards will total between $350,000 and $750,000 each. Applications are due by August 8, 2025 and can be submitted through Grants.gov here.
This grant announcement is notable as the President’s fiscal year 2026 budget request calls for the elimination of the DOL Women’s Bureau and comes as the Trump Administration is engaged in litigation with WANTO grantee Chicago Women in Trades in a lawsuit over whether the Trump Administration can end the organization’s grant focused on bringing Black and Latina women into the trades because their focus on minorities violates President Trump’s January 20, 2025 executive order calling for the termination of “DEI” and “equity-related” federal grants.