Clark County manufacturers face shortage of qualified workers

Clark and Champaign County manufacturers face a rapidly aging workforce, a national problem that one recent study showed could lead to as many as 2 million jobs remaining vacant over the next 10 years.

Many current workers are nearing retirement age, with far too few workers in the pipeline ready to fill the jobs that exist now. Almost half of Champaign County's current manufacturing workforce is between the ages of 45 and 64, according to data from the Dayton Development Coalition. But only about 5 to 6 percent are between 19 and 24 years old.

"It's not if, it's when," said Darlene Carpenter, human resources manager for Cascade Corp., a Springfield firm that manufactures forklift attachments. "I might not see it this year or next year but within my career time, I'm going to have problems filling jobs because there's just not enough people."

Add to that, some employers have found that many workers lack even basic job skills like showing up on time and communicating with supervisors, leading to high turnover.

The shortage of qualified labor has led to local companies battling over the same small group of workers.

So workforce development officials in both counties have stepped up efforts in recent years, including finding ways to draw more skilled students into the industry.

"Unemployment is so low, it's presenting a challenge at all levels of hiring, not just at entry-level positions but even middle management and senior level opportunities," said Ross McGregor, executive vice president of Pentaflex, which specializes in producing parts for the heavy truck industry.

The lack of skilled workers can have a significant economic impact. The average U.S. manufacturer is potentially losing as much as 11 percent of its annual earnings due to the talent shortage, according to a recent report by Deloitte and the Manufacturing Institute.

"The skills shortage needs to be managed and tackled given the serious economic implications it has, not only on an organization's growth and margins, but also on the U.S. economy as a whole," the Deloitte report says.

A coordinated effort

Area schools, manufacturers and workforce development agencies in both Clark and Champaign counties have developed several programs in the past few years to address both a lack of skilled workers and entry-level employees in the industry.

Some of those programs include:

--The Ohio Hi-Point Career Center in Bellefontaine will start a new program with Triad schools in Champaign County this fall to develop manufacturing skills as early as middle school.

--Springfield City Schools, along with several area companies and other partners, developed an internship program for high school students that has since been expanded to several other districts. High school juniors and seniors from Springfield, Clark-Shawnee, Northeastern and Southeastern school districts have taken internships this year with local manufacturers. Next year, Greenon and Northwestern school districts are expected to take part as well.

--A program rolled out last year provides basic manufacturing skills to both students and adults. It includes a six-week program to teach manufacturing and problem-solving skills. Students also can earn certifications from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration and the National Institute for Metalworking Skills in an optional second phase. That program is a partnership between several organizations, including Springfield City schools, Clark State Community College, OhioMeansJobs of Clark County, the Chamber of Greater Springfield and Opportunities for Individual Change of Clark County.

--Clark State has received a $2.5 million grant from the U.S. Department of Labor and U.S. Department of Education. The school is working with local manufacturers to develop new certificate programs in fields like welding, Computer Numerical Controlled machine operations and industrial maintenance.

--Honda announced a $1 million plan earlier this year that includes scholarships at area community colleges, a new work study pilot program and week-long technology camps to involve students in activities like computer programming.

Several company leaders gathered Wednesday evening at the Greater Springfield CareerConnectEd Center to honor students in the manufacturing internship program. The Springfield district and area manufacturers paired up a few years ago to address the skills gap, said Chris Flood, a human resources manager at Remington Steel Inc.

The program provides students with a chance to learn basic skills employers expect, Flood said, and see what it's like to work in a modern factory. It helps manufacturers accomplish basic projects and many students will ideally return to the industry or company once they graduate high school of college, she said.

Many schools cut vocational programs in the years leading up to the Great Recession and for a long time there was a perception that manufacturing no longer offered viable careers, although Flood said that's not the case.

"A lot of it is attitude," Flood said. "We went through a phase that everyone had to go to college and the only job to have was a desk job."

The internship was the first real job experience for Adam Szekas, a senior at Shawnee High School who worked for several weeks at Remington. Szekas wants to pursue a career in engineering, but said he would consider manufacturing after college.

"I kind of learned about what work really is," Szekas said of the internship.

The school district developed the program after hearing often from both employers and colleges who raised concerns that students lacked even basic skills like time management and working as part of a team, spokeswoman Kim Fish said.

"We're working hard to adjust our teaching styles and our classrooms so we can work on developing those skills ... Those are what employers want to see and frankly they're not seeing enough of it," she said.

Employers see lack of basic skills

It's not clear what may be causing the perceived gap in basic skills, but companies like Pentaflex are also facing high turnover, McGregor said, particularly with younger employees. In some cases, the company interviews as many as three candidates a week just to maintain staffing due to high turnover.

Unskilled entry level candidates start at a lower pay scale but the company offers higher pay as workers gain experience and learn more skills, he said.

"I have opportunities here for people who may not have ever attended college and in some cases may not have even graduated from high school," McGregor said. "Our problem has been finding folks who want to come in and commit. We count on people when they come on board as an employee to be here when we say they're going to be here and we're finding it difficult for individuals who want to do that."

Some employees have worked just a few days and walked out without providing notice, he said, or left for lunch breaks and never returned.

Carpenter has seen similar issues at other companies she's worked for, but said Cascade typically works with a staffing agency that screens potential candidates. Still she has seen a shift in the workforce.

"We have one employee who's been here for 52 years," Carpenter said. "But I interview several people who say they've had three jobs this year."

But many employees may have also lost faith in manufacturing firms after waves of layoffs during the Great Recession.

"2008 and 2009 hit people pretty hard," Carpenter said. "There were some loyalties lost when people got laid off during that time so it's going to take employers some time to build up that dedication and loyalty in their workforce again."

Stability is key to John Hayes, a Pentaflex worker who's been on the job about two weeks. Hayes has worked as a roofer and carpenter but said he's looking forward to a steady paycheck and is willing to learn.

"You learn something new every day," Hayes said. "They teach you a little about everything."

A long process

Developing basic job skills is an issue for manufacturing firms statewide, said Bill LaFayette, an economist and owner of the analytical firm Regionomics. He recently spent 18 months working with Ohio University's regional campuses looking at skill needs for various industries, including manufacturing.

"Where that becomes a problem, in manufacturing particularly, is manufacturing is less and less about standing on a line and turning bolt after bolt," LaFayette said. "It's more about working together as a team. That was one of the big needs these employers identified over and over again."

Local agencies and schools are doing a better job of coordinating efforts in recent years, said Amy Donahoe, director of hiring and employer services for the Greater Springfield Chamber of Commerce. She recommended employers and other entities should look first to OhioMeansJobs of Clark County, which coordinates with other agencies to provide training.

The manufacturing internship program at Springfield is a good example of several groups working together to provide basic job skills, as opposed to operating independently, Donahoe said.

"That's a wonderful place where everyone came together," she said. "It wasn't necessarily easy. It took time and it took a lot of relationship building and trust building, but through that great things can happen."

It's going to take a sustained effort to ensure younger workers have the skills they need to succeed in manufacturing, especially as older workers begin to retire, said Lehan Peters, deputy director of OhioMeansJobs of Clark County.

Many workers who seek help at OhioMeansJobs are directed to workshops that offer extensive training in the kinds of soft skills manufacturers are looking for, she said.

"Trying to change those habits is not easy," Peters said. "But there are a lot of organizations that are providing those particular skills."

Area schools are beginning to incorporate soft-skills training in their curriculum, Peters said. Teaching those skills to students early and collaboration between employers and other local agencies is the most realistic solution to ensuring local firms have the workforce they need moving forward, she said.

"We are all on the same page and we're no longer working in silos in Clark County," Peters said.

Visit Springfield News-Sun, Ohio at www.springfieldnewssun.com

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.