The state of Texas has created an incentives program to push employers to hire unemployed Texans. Any business in Texas that hires such an employee will be eligible for a $2,000 incentive payment. The Texas Workforce Commission and Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst worked together to create the new program, called the “Texas Back to Work” program. The Workforce Commission believes that up to 15,000 unemployed Texans could find a job through the program. State officials are applying for an additional $50 million in federal funding.

Under the program employers will receive $500 a month for four months for hiring someone unemployed and receiving unemployment insurance or someone who has exhausted their benefits. The new hires must be employed for at least the four month period and it is expected they will stay on longer than that. The new employees must have made $15 or less an hour in their previous job and only private sector employers qualify.