Production technician Michael Calzada maneuvers a load of foam at the Tempur-Pedic mattress factory in Albuquerque. The company was awarded $440,029 to create 51 new jobs at its West Side manufacturing facility. (Journal File)
New Mexico’s Job Training Incentive Program board has authorized $1,198,930 during its December meeting to help create 191 new jobs at local companies like Hewlett Packard, Tempur-Pedic and General Mills with an average wage of nearly $16.51 an hour.
“The number of requests this month for JTIP funds demonstrates that New Mexico companies are ramping up production and services and looking to expand their workforce,” said Economic Development Secretary Jon Barela said in a news release. “This is welcomed economic news and we are pleased to help these companies facilitate job creation.”
The recipients are:
- $474,015 to Hewlett-Packard in Rio Rancho for 58 jobs. Its 218,000-square-foot facility includes workstations, conference rooms, and IT infrastructure to support the 1,300 employees who will eventually be employed at the customer support center in Rio Rancho.
- $440,029 to Tempur-Pedic in Bernalillo County to create 51 new jobs at its 750,000-square-foot manufacturing facility off Paseo del Vulcan.
- $157,430 to General Mills in Albuquerque for 64 jobs at the company’s 438,000-square-foot production facility located on 70 acres in the North Valley.
- $48,200 to digital marketing and software service company Liquid Common Inc. in Albuquerque for eight jobs. Liquid Common is a privately held company that serves businesses in the dining and nightlife industries.
- $40,960 to Central New Mexico Community College to provide basic plant skills training for General Mills to create 64 jobs.
- $21,064 to temperature-control packaging business NanoCool in Albuquerque for five jobs. The company sells its temperature-controlled packaging to various health care market segments.
- $9,129 to herb supplier and herbal manufacturer Herbs Etc. in Albuquerque for four jobs. Herbs Etc. sells to more than 2,200 natural and health food stores and health professionals in the United States, Canada and Trinidad and Tobago.
- $8,104 to software and instrumentation engineering firm Bladewerx in Rio Rancho for one new job.
The state program reimburses companies for a portion of training costs associated with job creation. To qualify, new or expanding companies must either create a product in New Mexico, or provide a non-retail service with 50 percent of the company’s customer and revenue base outside of the state.
