The availability of wage reimbursement for training new hires was first on the agenda at the Plant Managers Roundtable Breakfast hosted by Graves County Economic Development on Feb. 26 in Mayfield, followed by an overview of artificial intelligence tools and how they are being incorporated into business applications.
Speakers were Mary Anne Medlock, Business Liaison, West Kentucky Workforce Development Board, along with Mike Hopkins, CEO and Jeremy Blackford, Business Development of DEVsource Technology Solutions.
Medlock said there are funds currently available through the Workforce Board to reimburse employers for training new hires that meet set criteria: “If you are hiring individuals who are unemployed or underemployed, and who are not in school or college, they may be eligible for on-the-job training wage reimbursement,” said Medlock.
Other available programs include work-based learning, in which the Workforce Board serves as the employer of record during training, paying the employee’s wages and providing workers’ compensation insurance while the employee works for the participating business or industry. Medlock also highlighted a workforce program that can reimburse local governments and non-profits up to $20,000 for qualifying employees taking jobs related to disaster recovery or humanitarian benefits.
To learn more about the West Kentucky Workforce Board programs, click here.
DEVsource Technology Solutions has provided comprehensive information technology (IT) services for businesses across Kentucky and Tennessee since 2001. Mike Hopkins explained that AI can be a great tool for businesses with the right guardrails in place. “I've been doing this a very long time. I've seen many technologies. My first love is manufacturing, so that's my jam, but I haven't seen anything accelerate like AI.”
Hopkins reminded guests that users must be accountable for the accuracy of AI solutions. He also recommended re-using successful AI prompts to ensure consistent results on subsequent requests. Finally, Hopkins recommended businesses using AI develop a policy guide to protect information. “You need to be explicitly telling employees what they can and can't do--these are the tools that you can and can't use,” he said. “It’s important to have guardrails around your data, particularly for anyone in a regulated industry. This is just the next level of cybersecurity.”
To learn more about AI and DEVsource, click here.
“Today’s program is a great example of what we mean to accomplish with our Plant Managers Breakfasts,” said GCED President Jason Lemle. “Workforce Development brought updates on programs that are viable tools for these managers and DEVsource gave us better insight into AI, which is literally changing the world in so many ways. We are grateful to Mary Anne Medlock, Mike Hopkins and Jeremy Blackford for sharing their time and expertise and to our managers who take this information back to their companies and use it to become stronger, more resilient, and ultimately more successful.”
The next GCED Plant Managers Roundtable Breakfast will be held in April 2026.