CI Workforce Newsletter | August 10, 2023

The Monthly Workforce Newsletter of the Council of Industry

August 10, 2023

WKIP to Broadcast Live from DCC’s New Mechatronics Lab on Mfg Day, October 6th — Start Planning Your Event, Too!

The Council of Industry will once again team up with WKIP’s Hudson Valley Focus Live to celebrate National Manufacturing Day October 6th. The broadcast will be live from Dutchess Community College’s new Mechatronics Lab located at the college’s Fishkill campus. The broadcast will take place from 6:00 a.m. to 9:00 a.m. and will include guests from the education, economic development, government and the manufacturing industries.  

Celebrated nationally on the first Friday in October, Mfg Day is manufacturing’s biggest annual opportunity to inspire the next generation, positively shift perceptions about our industry, and build the foundation for the manufacturing workforce of the future. Now is the time for you to start planning an event for your company. By hosting a Mfg Day event you help students, teachers, parents and community leaders explore careers in modern manufacturing and see how creators are making the future in the United States and the Hudson Valley. Events can be as simple as an open house, a tour for teachers and students or workshops and hands-on experiences. Mfg Day helps us end the misperceptions of modern manufacturing and present the sector as a viable career path in our region. 

Council of Industry Training: Plenty of Opportunities to Upskill Your Workforce This Fall  

The Council of Industry on its partners have put together a busy schedule of training for manufacturers this Fall. It includes our very popular Certificate in Manufacturing Leadership (being held remotely), Lean Six Sigma Yellow Belt, Solidworks, workplace safety and more.   

 

Council training programs are designed by manufacturers to provide the skills your workforce needs to be successful in today’s global economy.   

 

MIAP Apprentice Information Sessions Underway 

Looking to train your workforce to build the skills your company needs? The Council of Industry's apprentice program might be the answer. We are presenting a series of webinars to highlight each of the program’s manufacturing trades, as well as the incentives and resources available to participating companies. 

The Council of Industry's Manufacturing Intermediary Apprenticeship Program (MIAP) is a comprehensive training program offering numerous benefits to employees and employers. Apprentices who complete this training will be awarded a recognized industry credential through the NYS Department of Labor. This webinar is designed to provide valuable insights on apprenticeships, incentives and best practices. During these sessions, you will: 

Apprentice Program Information Series 

Email Johnnieanne Hansen to learn more.

CI Golf Outing August 28th Sold Out! Sponsor Opportunities Are Still Available 

The Council of Industry will once again hold its Annual Golf Outing on the last Monday in August at the Powelton Club in Newburgh. The Powelton is a beautiful course conveniently located just off of Route 9W in Newburgh, NY. The event sold-out again this year with more than 100 golfers from manufacturing firms throughout the Hudson Valley participating. Registration begins at 11:00 and lunch will begin at 11:30 followed by a shotgun start at 12:30. Cocktails and a light dinner will follow at approximately 5:00 p.m. 

Corporate Sponsor – JPMorgan Chase 

Shirt Sponsor - NRG 

Cocktail Sponsor - Allendale Machinery Systems 

Lunch Sponsor - Crown Castle  

Golf Cart Sponsor - Ulster Savings Bank 

Scramble Prize Sponsor - $1,050 

Yellow Ball Prize Sponsor - Belfor Property Restoration 

Best Ball Sponsor – Lakeland Bank  

Closest to the Pin Prize Sponsor - Viking Industries 

Hole In One – Package Pavement Corp 

Longest Drive Prize Sponsor - Anderson Financial Group 

Tee Sign Sponsors $335 - PKF O'Connor Davies, LLP, Emergency One Urgent Care & Occupational Health, Pawling Corporation, Metallized Carbon Corporation, Fryer Machine Systems Inc., Fair-Rite Products Corp., ITC Communications, M&T Bank, Sono-Tek Corp., AMI Services Inc., RBT CPAs LLP, Lakeland Bank, Eastern Alloys, Elna Magnetics

Council of Industry and ToolingU Partner to Bring Members Training Online 

The Council of Industry is pleased to report that ToolingU - SME will make licenses for its manufacturing training platform available to Council members at discounted prices.  

Tooling University is the nation’s number one manufacturing-specific online training service. It offers real-world, practical, and technical education with more than 500 unique online classes targeted to engineers, machinists, press operators, assemblers, and industrial maintenance professionals. This offering provides specialized learning that is both versatile and customizable to suit various scenarios. 

Course content on the platform is designed to equip manufacturers with cutting-edge learning tools. Courses can be completed at your preferred pace, and are accessible on desktops, laptops, and even mobile devices and tablets via the Tooling U-SME app. Training Packages by Tooling U-SME, offers progressive roadmaps across various domains, paving the way for manufacturers to track comprehensive career trajectories for their employees. These packages are crafted to elevate your existing on-the-job training, enabling the creation of effective job progression plans. Unlike conventional programs, these packages have minimal preparation, delivering efficient and impactful training endorsed by manufacturing experts. 

"We are excited to bring this opportunity to our members.” Johnnieanne Hansen, Vice President of Operations and Workforce Development at the Council of Industry said. “Tooling U-SME is a great resource, and highly customizable to address diverse scenarios. They are an important tool in the Council’s toolbox to help our members give their workers the skills they need to succeed."  

To learn more visit our website or email Johnnieanne Hansen.

Nominations for the 2024 Women MAKE Awards are NOW OPEN through October 6, 2023! 

The Women MAKE Awards (formerly known as the STEP Ahead Awards) recognize women in science, technology, engineering and production careers who exemplify leadership within their companies. This national honor identifies top talent in the manufacturing industry and further encourages award winners to mentor and support the next generation of female talent to pursue modern manufacturing careers. The Women MAKE Awards give women across the country a platform to showcase the incredible opportunities the industry has to offer, whether they are running the company, designing the next big product or testing innovations on the shop floor.  

In 2023, the Institute will recognize 100 women and 30 Emerging Leaders, a category to honor women under the age of 30 who have achieved unique accomplishments at the start of their careers. 

See last year’s winners 

Submit a nomination 

Apprenticeship Spotlight  

Welcome, New Apprentices!  

Sean G. - Maintenance Mechanic, Fair Rite Products 

Rebecca K. – Industrial Manufacturing Technician, Selux 

Learn more about the Council of Industry’s Apprentice Program 

Need to Upskill Your Workforce?

The MIAP Apprentice Program Can Help.

CNC Machinist, Toolmaker Quality Assurance Auditor, Industrial Manufacturing Technician, Maintenance Mechanic and Electro-Mechanical Trades are all available.

Learn about MIAP  Watch our Apprentice Video Arrange a Meeting

For information on advertising in this and other CI publications contact Harold King (hking@councilofindustry.org)

News for HR and Workforce Professionals

4 Questions to Ask Before Adopting AI in Your Hiring Process 

Artificial Intelligence (AI) presents countless exciting new opportunities to streamline processes, increase efficiency, and improve fairness and equity across the hiring landscape. When considering bringing AI into your hiring process, your vetting process should prioritize the explainability of an AI tool over the promises the tech can deliver. It needs to be legally defensible and be able to pass a rigorous bias audit. There needs to be documented evidence of the tool’s efficacy and accuracy. And it should alleviate some of the tedious and stressful nature of the hiring process for candidates and hiring managers alike. If your prospective AI vendor can check off those boxes, your organization is likely to bring on an impactful solution to your talent acquisition efforts. 

As more and more AI vendors are emerging in the marketplace, it’s imperative to ask the right questions when considering bringing AI into your hiring process. Failing to do so can set your organization up for major challenges, from lost time and resources to costly legal liability. 

Read more at Benefits Pro 

‘How Do I Do That?’ The New Hires of 2023 Are Unprepared for Work 

Roman Devengenzo was consulting for a robotics company in Silicon Valley last fall when he asked a newly minted mechanical engineer to design a small aluminum part that could be fabricated on a lathe—a skill normally mastered in the first or second year of college. “How do I do that?” asked the young man. 

The knock-on effect of years of remote learning during the pandemic is gumming up workplaces around the country. It is one reason professional service jobs are going unfilled and goods aren’t making it to market. It also helps explain why national productivity has fallen for the past five quarters, the longest contraction since at least 1948, according to the U.S. Labor Department. The shortcomings run the gamut from general knowledge, including how to make change at a register, to soft skills such as working with others. Employers are spending more time and resources searching for candidates and often lowering expectations when they hire. Then they are spending millions to fix new employees’ lack of basic skills.

  

Read more at The WSJ 

A Four-Day Workweek Experiment Finds the Work Does Get Done in Less Time 

Findings from one of the largest experiments with a four-day workweek offers new ballast for people hoping to adopt the same schedule: The longer people worked in new, more efficient ways, the shorter their workweeks became. The results come from a series of four-day-workweek trials conducted in the U.S., Canada, the U.K. and Ireland over the past 18 months. Dozens of companies ranging from design agencies to manufacturers and nonprofits tested the four-day concept. Workers were given a paid day off a week but the same workload to see whether they could get as much done working more effectively.  

After six months, workers said they had less burnout, improved health and more job satisfaction, and had cut their average work time by about four hours to 34 hours a week. Those who continued the schedule a full 12 months reduced working times even further, to about 33 hours a week, researchers say. Meanwhile, they continued to report better mental and physical health and work-life balance. Up to now, most studies of four-day weeks examined the short-term effects. The new findings are the first that look across multiple companies over a longer, 12-month period. They suggest that businesses and employees both benefit in the long run as workers get accustomed to shorter weeks, companies and researchers say. 

Read more at The WSJ 

OSHA Plans to Expose Your Injury Data  

If allowed to stand by the courts, a rulemaking issued recently by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) will require employers to expose their reported accident illness and report data on the Internet, making it available to union organizers, personal injury lawyers, and their competitors. Scheduled to largely take effect on Jan. 1, 2024, It applies to employers with 100 or more workers in industries the agency defines as “high hazard,” although the list of these industries that OSHA provides appears to cover very nearly every employer in America today.  

“With the new online availability of these records, employees, former employees and their representatives will be able to review your recordkeeping decisions by directly accessing the OSHA website without involving you,” explain attorneys who work for firm of Constangy Brooks Smith & Prophete. Another complaint raised in the legal challenges that were brought against the agency that could be resurrected this time around is the enormous cost to employers of adhering to the new rules, a subject remarked on by legal analysts as well.Employer attorneys advise covered organizations to begin preparing now for next year’s reporting requirements. 

Read more EHS Today 

NLRB Adopts New Legal Standard for Evaluating Employer Work Rules 

On August 2, 2023, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB or Board) issued its decision in Stericycle, Inc., 372 NLRB No. 113 (2023), where it adopted a new legal standard to determine whether an employers’ work rules violate Section 8(a)(1) of the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA). The Board’s decision overrules existing precedent and establishes a more stringent test that is likely to render some existing work rules facially unlawful.

Ultimately, the Board ruled that the prior existing standard under Boeing allowed employers to adopt overbroad work rules that had a chilling effect on employees’ exercise of their Section 7 rights, including the “right to self-organization, to form, join, or assist labor organizations, to bargain collectively …, and to engage in other concerted activities for the purpose of collective bargaining or other mutual aid or protection.” Significantly the Board noted that the extant standard from Boeing as clarified in LA Specialty Produce failed to acknowledge employees’ economic dependence on their employers, and the resultant reluctance employees have to risk violating, or even construing work rules liberally, for fear of disciple or discharge. Further, the then-existing standard places too much weight on the employers’ interests and does not require employers to narrowly tailor its rules to only promote substantial and legitimate business interests while avoiding burden to employees.

The Semiconductor Industry Must Do More to Bring Girls and Women into STEM Careers 

The gender divide in the semiconductor industry is significant and systemic, even in education, and goes way back to the pre-college level. While there are no fundamental differences in the engineering field that favor any gender, male students outnumber female students almost 3 to 1 in high school engineering courses. Work needs to be done. To begin, a big push comes from introducing children to engineering programs early in their education– an initiative Girls in STEM is already working to address, starting with the elementary school level. This extends into higher education with groups such as the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), encouraging colleges to recruit more women into STEM fields of study. 

Companies can help to eliminate the gender divide by recruiting students from these programs for entry-level positions, or from colleges with more diverse populations to attract a variety of applicants. Organizations should also consider creative, unconventional ways to recruit women at the college level – for instance, promoting open opportunities, fellowships and internships at sorority events. This way, students can learn more about a career in STEM by discussing it with women who have gone before them. 

Read more at IndustryWeek 

3 Ways to Improve Neurodiversity in the Workplace 

While 93% of 483 U.S. corporations encouraged employees to self-identify as disabled, only 4.5% of them chose to do so, according to the 2023 Disability Equality Index (DEI) from Disability:IN (formerly the US Business Leadership Network), which advocates for more disabled representation in corporate America. This number, far below the 25% of people in the workforce who identify as disabled, according to a BCG survey, reveals a hesitancy to disclose. 

Dr. Hala Annabi, associate professor of information science at the University of Washington, specializes in neuro-inclusivity in organizations — particularly how to recruit, retain and advance individuals with autism. ADHD, dyslexia, OCD and Tourette’s syndrome are other examples of neurodiversity. “Most employers that I talk to state that they wish that more employees would disclose and engage with them, so that they can provide the right support,” Annabi said. To address hesitancy around disclosure, Annabi identified three distinct areas that HR leaders can focus on to increase neuro-inclusivity in their workplaces. Awareness and action around these areas can help facilitate the disclosure process and take the onus off the individual to normalize neuro-inclusion. 

Read more at Human Resources Director 

Survey of Social Media Posts Suggests Ways to Improve Employee Mental Health 

The importance of ensuring good mental health has been a topic front and center for most companies over the past few years. Even the government has stepped up with its announcement last month about putting mental health on par with physical health. To help employers create policies and programs to assist with this, a recent whitepaper, Business Case for Focusing on Employee Mental Health, used an unusual survey method. Using Brandwatch’s Consumer Research tool, they analyzed 1,304,110 Twitter posts discussing topics related to mental health and wellness in the workplace. The content was from the United States during the period of January 1-October 31, 2022. Here are their recommendations based on the posts. 

Read more at EHS Today  

The Future of the Workforce Will Depend on Policy Decisions 

A new report, The American Workforce Transformation – Challenges and Opportunities, issued by Littler, looks at the key factors contributing to ongoing labor shortages, including the growing “skills gap,” and the industry sectors that have been most impacted. The report also examines the benefits and disruptions that artificial intelligence (AI) and other new technologies are bringing to the workplace and provides insights on what can be done to meet the challenges. The report provides several recommended policy proposals: 

Read more at Material Handling & Logistics 

Salary Increase Projections for 2024: What the Numbers Say 

After record-high pay raises in 2023, today’s tight talent market appears to be primed to continue driving employee compensation even higher next year—a reality that puts added pressure on HR and compensation professionals to get their salary budgets right. Payscale—a provider of compensation data, software and services—reports that its eighth annual Salary Budget Survey found pay increases in 2024 are predicted to be 3.8% on average in the U.S., instead of the 3% that has been the standard for decades. And it projects higher increases in some states, industries and other countries. 

According to Ruth Thomas, pay equity strategist at Payscale, the last few years have indicated that the “new normal” for salary increases may be in the 3.5%-4% range. The main driver of the increase is workers, who continue to expect higher pay hikes to regain lost value eaten up by inflation. “Although employers may want to bring salary budgets down after recent wage growth, it is still very much an employee’s labor market with skills shortages persisting in some sectors,” Thomas notes. 

Read more at HR Executive 

iCIMS June Labor Market Insights – “The Tea Leaves are Hard to Read”  

While both sides of the hiring equation appeared to be in a holding pattern since the start of 2023, the labor market showed signs of cooling last month as employers slowed down hiring. Despite June’s hiring dip, jobseekers seemed to remain optimistic as application volume increased for the second month in a row. With fewer roles, job seekers could find themselves in a more competitive market than we’ve seen in the last 18 months. 

New census data shows that the median age in the U.S. has risen to 38, compared to 30 in 1980. However, iCIMS platform data indicates that workers between 18-34 still make up the bulk of applicant activity. Overall, 59% of applicants were under 35, but for tech roles, 67% of applicants fell in that younger age range. Applicants for retail positions are in line with overall activity but health services roles skewed older, with a little over half falling under 35. 

HR Briefs

What Amazon’s ‘Voluntary Resignation’ Policy Means for RTO Trends – HR Executive 

Conflicting NLRB Stances Create Employer Compliance Plight – Bond Schoeneck & King 

Listen: USWNT’s Megan Rapinoe on Team-First Leadership – Harvard Business Review 

Workers to Employers: We’re Just Not That Into You – WSJ 

Becoming More Disability-Friendly Is in Manufacturing’s Best Interest – IndustryWeek 

When it Comes to Cancer Care, Employers Need More Guidance on Cannabis Use – HR Executive 

July Jobs Report: U.S. Payroll Growth Totaled 187,000, Hourly Earnings Rise– CNBC 

Appealing OSHA Violations Can Be Cost-Effective – EHS Today 

Study: Internal Mobility Promotes Employee Satisfaction – ScienceDirect 

Upcoming Programs, Training and Events

Webinar: Exploring the Industrial Manufacturing Tech Apprenticeship Program

Date: August 15, 2023

10:00 AM - 11:00 AM (EST)

Join us to learn more about the industrial manufacturing tech apprenticeship training program.

The Council of Industry's Manufacturing Intermediary Apprenticeship Program (MIAP) is a comprehensive training program offering numerous benefits to employees and employers. Apprentices who complete this training will be awarded a recognized industry credential through the NYS Department of Labor. This webinar is designed to provide valuable insights on apprenticeships, incentives and best practices. 

Certificate in Manufacturing Leadership

For over 25 years, the Certificate in Manufacturing Leadership program has offered attendees a range of leadership skills through a series of concentrated courses.

Participants who complete the required courses are presented with the Certificate in Manufacturing Leadership by the Council of Industry.

Individuals who complete the full program will receive acknowledgment and a certificate at the annual luncheon.

Certificate in Manufacturing Leadership Schedule: