From good to great: Training opportunities for job seekers and employers | Business

If 2026 is your year to find a new job, make a career change, or grow in your current role, all professionals should create a plan for upskilling. Skill growth, increased confidence, job satisfaction, and career advancement are just a few reasons to continuously train and retool.

Here are some reasons why now is a great time to take a new class or enroll in a workshop or degree program. Certificates make you more employable and help you retain your job. Keeping your skills sharp can help you stand out from your peers. You may have more downtime to focus on skill development. You may increase your income. Finally, certifications nearly always provide a measurable career boost.

You may be wondering how to start a more secure career or what is the best way to train for a new career. Even though it may be a little overwhelming to take the next step in your career journey, doing so now can get you ahead and help you reach your career goals faster. The MassHire Berkshire Career Center can help you identify your strengths and opportunities for improvement, formulate a career plan, and outline a variety of education and training programs to help get you started!

Building Skills for a Strong Economy

If you are unemployed or looking for a career change or working someplace where your skills feel underutilized, there are several free training programs to help you upskill and enter some pretty amazing companies in the Berkshires. There are thousands of job opportunities in the region.

MassHire and our many collaborative partners are currently recruiting for occupational training which are grant-funded and tuition-free:

• English for Employment – ESOL classes start Jan. 27. This 10-week course will offer interactive lessons to improve speaking, listening, and writing skills.

• Health care (ongoing training)

— Certified and modified nursing assistant programs

— Licensed practical nursing

— Medical assistants

— Phlebotomy technicians

— Emergency medical technicians (EMT)

• Career and technical programs

— Advanced manufacturing technology

— Automotive technician

— Metal babrication/welding (currently recruiting)

• CORI workshop —  Feb. 3, 11 a.m., MassHire Career Center in Pittsfield

• Culinary arts training —  Northern Berkshire Adult Education is currently enrolling for an evening program

• Human services training (new) —  Polus Center is hosting a six-week virtual training starting in March

• Commercial driver’s license (CDL) training —  Berkshire Community College is hosting this weeklong class March with 40 hours of classroom, field, and on-the-road instruction

Many of these trainings start in January or February 2026 and will fill up quickly, so please register today!

Company Training

Most companies provide training for practical reasons — to keep up with industry standards and to onboard critical new hires. However, many businesses are not aware of the real importance of training employees and the measurable impact it has.

Training and development help companies gain and retain top talent, increases job satisfaction and morale, improves productivity, addresses internal weaknesses and leads to better processes and business growth. Additionally, businesses that have actively interested and dedicated employees see 41 percent lower absenteeism rates and 17 percent higher productivity.

At MassHire, we’ve seen firsthand what training employees can do for businesses, and we’ve helped hundreds of companies set up training strategies and access resources to help businesses thrive.

The Berkshire Workforce Board can help your company access:

• Workforce training fund resources (up to $250K) help upgrade your current workforce and express to streamline and simplify access to course training.

• Safety grants to reduce the risk of injury and illness to workers and promote safe and healthy conditions in the workplace.

• Workforce Competitiveness Trust Fund (WCTF) demand-driven programs by industry sector partnerships that train and place unemployed and underemployed workers.

• Career technical initiative (CTI) to address the persistent need for skilled labor in construction, trades and manufacturing.

• Behavioral health to establish a recruitment pipeline and to promote career advancement in this health care sector.

Upskilling employees is more than a strategic decision in order to maintain your staff’s competitive edge. It’s a way to offer them a sense of certainty and security. According to Harvard Business School, companies experience a 17 percent increase in productivity and a 21 percent boost in profitability when employees receive targeted training. It also leads to better performance, improved culture, higher retention and a stronger workforce.

Many Berkshire employers are aware of the value of investing in their employees and that on average employers expect to offer upskilling and reskilling to just over 70 percent of employees by 2026.

At MassHire, we develop a pipeline of workers by connecting un/under employed residents and career changers to training to help fill critical vacancies for Berkshire businesses. We help train and upskill current workers for career advancement which helps to build skills and contribute to business competitiveness. Let us help connect you to your next training opportunity. Go from good to great by connecting to one of our training programs today!

Resources

• Berkshire Community College (workforce and adult education programs)

• Berkshire Workforce Board

• MassHire Berkshire Career Center

• McCann Tech – 

• Taconic High School

• Northern Berkshire Adult Basic Education program

• Pittsfield Adult Learning Center

• Pittsfield Public Schools