The Bi-Weekly Workforce Newsletter of the Council of Industry
August 25, 2021
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LoDolce's Zach Pillis Receives Certification Upon Completing CNC Machinist Apprenticeship
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Zach Pillis, the latest apprentice to receive his certification, completed a CNC Machinist apprenticeship with LoDolce Machine Co. Inc. in Saugerties. Mark Harris, Director of Manufacturing at LoDolce, expresses the company's interest in Zach's career progressing internally. "We'd love to make Zach a leader in the CNC turning department," he says. "He's doing well and we want him to have that team leadership opportunity."
Harris praised the apprenticeship program and looks to continue training apprentices through it. "The apprenticeship program has been a great experience for us," he says. "Thanks to the Council of Industry for getting us involved with the program and help keep everyone on track."
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In-Person Certificate in Manufacturing Leadership Classes Begin October 6th
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For over 25 years, The Certificate in Manufacturing Leadership program has offered attendees a range of leadership skills through concentrations of courses. Participants who complete the required courses are presented with the Certificate in Manufacturing Leadership by the Council of Industry. Use Early Registration Discount Code: Leadership2022
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Upskill Your Workforce With The MIAP Apprentice Program
Quality Assurance Auditors ensure a company's production processes are up to regulation. They help with decisions regarding quality of products, materials, and equipment.
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Periodically the Council of Industry will share profiles of individuals who have applied for, or expressed an interest in, a job in Hudson Valley manufacturing.
Other Council members can contact Johnnieanne Hansen directly for additional candidate details or to learn more about the recruiting initiative.
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Position Interest: Machine Operator, Forklift, Production
Education: High School
Summary: A hard-working, reliable individual looking to expand their professional career into manufacturing as a Machine Operator or more technical role. Looking for a full-time role, with the possibility of overtime in or around the Poughkeepsie area. Works extremely well in a warehouse setting with many years in this environment. Forklift certified, experience with pallet jack, cherry picking, and supervising small teams.
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Position Interest: Quality Control Technician, Quality Assurance, R&D in food manufacturing
Education: Bachelor’s in food science & Nutrition – Hunter College
Summary: This candidate has developed their skills in Food Safety & has many years of experience in a laboratory & high volume production facility environment including a handful of years working directly under the NYC Department of health, the NYS Department of Agriculture & a variety of accredited research institutions. Experienced with quality control, food safety, food production, supervising experience & extremely computer literate.
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Position Interest: Mechanical / Electrical Engineering
Education: Aerospace Mechanical Engineering Degree – June 2021 Electronic Power Engineering Associate Degree - May 2014
Summary: This candidate currently resides in Puerto Rico. They are looking for a long-term career opportunity in the United States which would allow them to utilize their very well-balanced knowledge of engineering tools, principles, and practices. This mechanical / electrical engineering technician has significant experience in all manners of the electrical and electronics trade craft. Well experienced in Solid works, MATLAB, with a heavy background in Electrical Technician for the manufacturing sector. 10 years’ experience in the mechanical / engineering field, with 7 of those in a manufacturing setting.
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Position Interest: Accounts Payable / Accounts Receivable
Education: Associates in Accounting – Greene Community College
Summary: This candidate is looking for a long-term career opportunity which would allow them to make use of and utilize their very well-balanced knowledge of accounting principles & account management. Well-versed in a variety of accounting tools such as Sage, QuickBooks & Dynamics GP. The ability to input data correctly and efficiently, creating no room for errors is how this candidate operates. Over a decade of experience in correcting balance sheets, managing accounts and data entry have created an ideal candidate for any company looking to grow their existing payroll department.
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News for HR and Workforce Professionals
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Women in Manufacturing Announces 2022 Class of Hall of Fame Inductees
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The Women in Manufacturing Education Foundation (WiMEF), which was founded in 2016 by of a group of industry advocates in order to provide affordable educational opportunities for women to thrive in manufacturing, recently announced its 2022 Hall of Fame inductees. Women were chosen based on having made outstanding contributions during the course of their established careers in manufacturing.
“The impressive work these 13 women have accomplished throughout their careers to support and advance women in our industry is inspiring," said WiMEF Board Chair Cara Herzog, vice president of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, Southwire Co.," said in a statement. "WiMEF has now welcomed 37 trailblazing women into the Hall of Fame. They exemplify why the foundation exists—to provide women in industry with opportunities to advance their careers and become leaders in manufacturing.”
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Data Show Gender Pay Gap Opens Early
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Broad new data on wages earned by college graduates who received federal student aid showed a pay gap emerging between men and women soon after they joined the workforce, even among those receiving the same degree from the same school.
The data, which cover about 1.7 million graduates, showed that median pay for men exceeded that for women three years after graduation in nearly 75% of roughly 11,300 undergraduate and graduate degree programs at some 2,000 universities. In almost half of the programs, male graduates’ median earnings topped women’s by 10% or more, a Wall Street Journal analysis of data from 2015 and 2016 graduates showed.
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Why HR Must Fight for its Budgets and Resources
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Just when HR might have felt like things were beginning to stabilize … along comes an economic downturn and potentially a recession. Anyone who’s been in the field for a while knows what’s coming next: cost cuts. Hiring freezes, slowing down discretionary projects, salary freezes and perhaps even the dreaded reductions in force (RIFs). So, we should definitely be eyes wide open that soon our CFO and the broader finance team will come knocking on HR’s door asking for cuts.
While your CFO may have an SG&A (sales, general & administration) cost-savings target, this is oftentimes disconnected from the expectations that your CEO and the broader organization have for the HR programs and service levels you’re on the hook to provide. It is unlikely that the commitments to DEI, enhancing the employee experience, employee retention, career development or figuring out culture in hybrid will all of a sudden be forgotten.
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Filling Manufacturing Jobs with Workers Who are Autistic
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With the right training, those on the autism spectrum can find jobs in manufacturing. With that in mind, the Uniquely Abled Academy is offering free training in Meadville, Pennsylvania. The program is being offered to those in the community who are level 1 autism disorder (often called Asperger’s syndrome).
“This is a population that is underserved,” said Robert Zaruta, Erie-based Northwest Industrial Resource Center. “And the population is greater than the number of academy positions available this fall — that’s why we want to run multiple classes each year and expand the program.” In the free, 16-week program participants will receive 405 hours of training as computer-numerical control operators. To ensure success students will also be taught soft skills around the areas of communication and workplace culture. And they are paired with a job coach who helps them transition to their new career. Upon graduation students will be placed in precision machining jobs.
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Employers Anticipating Big Jump in Cost of Health Benefits Next Year
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U.S. employers expect health benefit costs per employee to rise 5.6% on average in 2023, according to early results from Mercer—but those may increase further if employers do not act to hold down costs. Without making any changes, employers indicate that the cost for their largest medical plan would rise by an average of 7%, the Mercer data finds.
The consulting firm’s annual study of employer-sponsored health plans finds that the projected 2023 increase is far higher than the 4.4% increase that was estimated for 2022 and may be even higher next year if organizations don’t make changes like expanding access to virtual care through telemedicine or digital health resources, and taking advantage of high-performance networks, says Tracy Watts, senior partner, national leader for U.S. Health Policy.
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Skills-Based Hiring Gains Momentum
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An interesting finding of the recent survey of 1,688 HR professionals is the use of skills assessments in hiring, including a willingness on the part of employers to consider candidates who do not have a college degree or the minimum years of experience.
The survey found that 79% of HR professionals say that scores on skills assessments are just as or more important than traditional criteria in hiring decisions, and 36% say a job candidate who scores high on an assessment but doesn't meet the minimum years of experience is very likely to make it onto the list of final candidates. 23% of HR professionals said the diversity of their hires has improved using these assessments. Of organizations that utilize pre-employment assessments, 1 in 4 plan to expand their use of these assessments in the next five years.
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Employees Lack Health Insurance Enrollment Knowledge, Support
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While many employees consider themselves knowledgeable about health insurance enrollment, their responses to various questions about general health insurance questions would indicate otherwise, according to a survey from The Harris Poll commissioned by Justworks.
Over eight in ten employed Americans stated that they were knowledgeable about the health insurance enrollment process (82 percent). Despite this self-reported consumer confidence, more than half of the employee participants (53 percent) also reported feeling like they could be maximizing their insurance options more effectively and that they did not know all of the benefits that their existing coverage provides (54 percent). Most employees indicated that they wanted someone to point them toward the best health plan for their situations (72 percent), 44 percent were not comfortable discussing their coverage options with a human resources representative, and nearly half leaned on their friends and family members for enrollment support (47 percent).
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iCIMS July Insights Report: Openings, Applications and Hiring All Up
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Job seekers are making moves – iCIMS data shows a significant uptick in job applications in Q2 2022, with activity up 20% since the start of the year. Job openings are up 12%, and hires are also up 23% since the start of this year. While this news regarding talent shortages is promising, it may also indicate that the Great Resignation is still going strong. In fact, 30% of Americans reported they are looking or plan to look for a full-time job with a higher salary in the second half of 2022.
In the last several years, job seekers have indicated an increased appetite for flexibility, but the tides may be shifting in terms of where they want to work. In Q2 2022, out-of-state applications (job seekers applying for jobs in a different state than where they reside) made up 20% of all applications. This is a nearly three-point decrease from Q1 2022 and the first noteworthy decline in two years.
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Upcoming Programs, Training and Events
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OSHA 10-Hour General Industry Course
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Thursday, September 22, 8:00 am to 4:00 pm
Friday, September 23, 8:00 am to 1:00 pm
This 10-Hour General Industry Course is intended to provide workers in general industry sectors such as warehousing, manufacturing and retail among other, with a broad awareness in the recognition, avoidance, abatement and prevention of hazards in the workplace as well.
Participants will be introduced to OSHA policies, procedures and standards as well as general industry safety and health principles and work practices covered in OSHA’s 1910 Code of Federal Regulations.
Call Ron Coons at (845)-416-2845 to register.
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The Manufacturing Matters Podcast
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Manufacturing Matters Podcast: Stephen Delillo, General Manager at Belfor Property Restoration
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Belfor is the North American leader in integrated disaster recovery and property restoration services. With more than 100 full-service offices in the U.S., they are positioned to respond to almost any disaster – large or small – coast to coast. A proven track record of superior response and unmatched resources has made BELFOR the contractor of choice for damages caused by fire, water, wind or other catastrophes.
Harold talks with Stephen about the property restoration and disaster recovery industry including the types of career, the business model and what it is like to meet people when they are living thorough a terrible life experience.
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