A new Bermudian company has teamed up with an American school to offer a cheap way for employers here and throughout the Caribbean to train their workforce without sending them off-island.

Michael Stowe, president and CEO of Alliance Workforce Solutions (AWS), has signed a deal to represent Penn Foster Career School, a Pennsylvania-based distance learning provider, in Bermuda and the Caribbean.

Mr. Stowe will be aiming to convince employers of the benefits of training staff on the job in their home country, with one of 2,000 technical or vocational courses offered by Penn Foster, rather than sending them abroad to study.

He said yesterday that sending a technical student overseas usually costs $20,000 for course fees alone, with additional living expenses ratcheting the price up to about $35,000 for a yearlong programme.

But companies, governments and other organisations could cut their training costs to as little as $5,500 per worker during the current economic crisis by choosing distance learning, according to Mr. Stowe.

"Our real strategy here is to make training affordable and accessible with flexible scheduling and to keep down the cost of education and training," he said. "The global economic crisis has caused Caribbean leaders to reduce or eliminate the practice of sending students overseas.

"They have realised that technical training can be very expensive. These programmes allow students to continue to work while they gain their qualification."

Al De Seta, president and chief operating officer of Penn Foster, said distance learning was an efficient and cost effective solution to training.

"The courses permit Bermudians to pursue enhanced skills, qualifications and job-retraining options without disrupting family, career, employment and financial responsibilities," he said.

Mr. Stowe, former executive officer of the National Training Board (NTB), set up Reid Street-based AWS at the end of last year and is currently a one-man band but expects to take on staff once the business develops.

He will represent Penn Foster in 20 countries throughout the Caribbean, covering an area of about one million square miles and developing custom-made training courses for employers specific to their needs.

He will also aim to recruit more home study students for Penn Foster, which already offers some courses through the NTB and was previously represented in Bermuda by the late Neville Tatem.

The school has about 500 students in Bermuda and 5,000 studying in the Caribbean. Mr. Stowe said he expected the number here to reach 2,000 and had already had positive feedback from industry leaders.

Penn Foster has 200,000 students worldwide and provides training to major corporations including General Electric, British Petroleum, Ford and Nestle. Mr. De Seta said: "We are deeply committed to serving the Caribbean region. Penn Foster for many years has had representation in Bermuda and is very excited about growing our presence by joining with AWS."