ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – Hundreds of Albuquerque workers are taking advantage of free training programs. 

It’s all organized by the City of Albuquerque in an effort to give local businesses an extra boost. City reps say it’s so successful, they’re expanding the program.

“A lot of older neighborhoods right now, we’re seeing a lot of service upgrades,” said Joe Wojick, owner of Powerhouse Electric. 

Wojcik is a seasoned electrician with more than two decades of experience under his work belt.

“I got my training in the Navy, I was a shift electrician, and I decided that I want to continue that that career,” said Wojcik. 

He knows what he’s doing, but he didn’t know everything about the job. For example, how to safely climb one of these wooden, electric poles.

“In older neighborhoods, just like this all around here in Albuquerque, the power or utility poles are in backyards. So it’s really tricky to get any equipment back here at all,” Wojcik said. 

Wojcik says he likely would’ve passed on this project, but that was before he found out about the City of Albuquerque’s free job training program.

“I applied for it, and a few days later, I was happy, very happy to find out that I qualified,” said Wojcik. 

Wojcik attended a two-month Electric Line Worker pre-Apprenticeship Course, teaching him how to climb one of these poles, and a lot more about working as an electrician.

“You learn a lot about teamwork and leadership. You learn how to market yourself, write a good resume, how to communicate,” Wojcik said. 

That’s just scratching the surface of what the city’s Economic Development Department is offering local businesses.

“People who want to grow their skills and want to advance their careers, they don’t want to go into debt to do it. This is a way for them to accomplish that at no cost,” said Sara Mannal, a community relations manager for the city’s Economic Development Department.  

The city launched the program in 2020. Since then, more than 1,600 workers across 246 local businesses completed training sessions. Adding nearly 880 jobs to the local economy, and earning an average 24% increase in wages. 

A huge return-on-investment for the $3.6 million price tag over the years.

“It really does have a huge trickle down impact when you have someone who’s making 24% more. They’re able to spend that 24% more in the community, and it does really make a difference and grow the economy,” said Mannal. 

There’s already 125 unique training sessions available, and the city recently expanded the program to the hospitality industry, including serve safe training for restaurants.

“You can’t do much without that. That restaurant owner can send their employee to become ServSafe certified at no cost,” Mannal said. 

Wojcik admits he should’ve applied for the program sooner, and says it’s a game changer for local businesses.

“There was not one thing about it that I didn’t like, or that wasn’t useful, or that I didn’t see any benefit from,” said Wojcik. “It just feels like there’s a lot of potential in Albuquerque just getting better.”

It is important to know some of these training sessions could take several weeks, but business owners will tell you it’s worth it in the long run. For more information, click here.