Employers suffering from high turnover and unskilled employees might find help with a fairly unknown statewide initiative.

The Georgia Work Ready Program, a free service to job seekers and employers, is being pushed by educators and the Georgia Chamber of Commerce.

"We're trying to grow jobs here and keep jobs here," Lisa Palmer, the director of Augusta Technical College's Business & Industry Services Department, said Wednesday during a gathering of the Augusta-Area Society for Human Resources Management chapter.

The program, created in 2006 with help from the Governor's Office, offers free services such as job profiling and assessments to give employers, educators and job seekers "a common language," Ms. Palmer said.

As a result, job training in Georgia will improve, which enhances the state's marketability and drives statewide economic development efforts, she said.

Ms. Palmer has spent the past year conducting business and industry training for 210 local companies.

She learns what skills are required for certain jobs, then develops a list of the skills needed to do the jobs effectively, using parameters determined by the American College Testing Association.

If employers were to do this, it would cost them $2,000. Employers also used the program's computerized assessments to determine employee skill levels for job openings or promotions.

All technical colleges in Georgia provide Internet-based training for workers who need to improve skills in particular areas. Because some companies are requiring the training, those who complete the tests receive a certificate.

Ms. Palmer is optimistic the program will benefit Georgia employers.

"If you've got people who can do the job, that's half the battle right there," she said.