By: Rhoni Basden, VWW Executive Director
May 9, 2025 – Vermont Works for Women (VWW) is a 2024 grant awardee of the U.S. Department of Labor Women’s Bureau’s long-standing Women in Apprenticeship and Nontraditional Occupations (WANTO) grant program. This funding ($398,019 pledged in total over two years, September 2024-September 2026) is intended to support the expansion of our statewide Trailblazers training program for women and gender-expansive individuals, including the creation of a new training program for careers in semiconductor/advanced manufacturing. This grant also funds training for employers to create more inclusive workplaces, and enhanced services for current and future tradeswomen.
On May 6th, Vermont Works for Women received a Notice of Termination, which stated that our WANTO grant “is being terminated because it no longer effectuates the U.S. Department of Labor’s (Department) priorities for its grant funding, including with regard to diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility. Specifically, you included the following statements in your grant statement of work that demonstrate misalignment with the Department’s priorities:
- VWW will offer gender equity awareness training […] to address systemic bias and barriers, promote inclusive workplaces, and educate and equip the incoming workforce.
- Provide extensive gender equity training and technical assistance for employers to support inclusive workplaces.
- Enhance our gender equity services and technical assistance for trades employers to create successful environments for women in A/NTO.
The termination is effective as of the date of this letter.”
Accordingly, VWW has been forced to pause work on the funded programming while we determine next steps. Our WANTO contract has been signed and executed and originates from Public Law No: 102-530, passed by Congress and enacted into law in 1992.
The remaining balance of VWW’s terminated WANTO grant is approximately $322,000. This rescission of substantial, previously appropriated federal dollars coming into Vermont directly impacts our state’s ability to meet workforce development goals and labor needs. It hinders our ability to expand necessary training programs, reduce gender-based harassment in the workplace, and help Vermonters gain skills to enter high-need industries such as the trades and advanced manufacturing. This would be a significant loss for Vermont’s economy and growth, and for many individuals across our state.
This termination follows an earlier attempt to pause WANTO funding through two Executive Orders titled, “Ending Radical and Wasteful Government DEI Programs and Preferencing,” issued on January 20, 2025, and “Ending Illegal Discrimination and Restoring Merit-Based Opportunity,” issued on January 21, 2025. That pause was lifted by a preliminary nationwide injunction issued by the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland on February 21st which prohibits all federal agencies from pausing, freezing, impeding, blocking, cancelling, or terminating any awards or obligations on the basis of the President’s recently issued Executive Orders. Litigation is underway; read more about two of the legal challenges from our allies here and here.
At this time, VWW is working diligently to identify potential next steps and raising awareness on the immediate impacts of the May 6th grant termination. In the meantime, know that we are committed to running our previously announced 2025 Trailblazers classes. Thank you for supporting VWW during these tumultuous and uncertain times! We will continue to communicate information as it becomes available and seek to have conversations around impact and potential opportunities for the work ahead.