Local industry, trades strive to attract talented workers, students

Mike MacDonald, of Kouts, began working at Gary-based Pangere Corp. 15 years ago as an apprentice ironworker.

He rose through the ranks working as a journeyman, foreman and general foreman before obtaining his current position as a project manager and estimator.

In December 2010, seeking to upgrade his skills, MacDonald enrolled in the Supervisory Training Program, sponsored by the Northwest Indiana Business Roundtable.

The NWI Business Roundtable, an independent, nonprofit council of local firms, is committed to improving construction and maintenance projects in Northwest Indiana.

"The classes gave me new techniques and other ways to do things. There is a lot of information that can benefit people who are in my position or trying to climb toward a higher position," MacDonald said.

The eight-week program includes subjects such as oral and written communication, contract documentation and construction law, and accident prevention and loss control. The program is offered at the Portage-based Construction Advancement Foundation.

The CAF is a regional construction industry trade association with more than 500 affiliated contractor companies. It serves union contractors working in Lake, Porter, LaPorte, Newton, Stark and Jasper counties.

Business roundtable members are local industrial employers, and CAF members are construction companies; the two organizations are working together to promote workforce competitiveness and safety.

Honing worker skills

The business roundtable meets monthly to talk about how to build a skilled workforce in Northwest Indiana. Like MacDonald, many of the people who sign up for the Supervisory Training Program are already in the workforce. The training program focuses on enhancing skills and introducing advanced technology and techniques so those workers can take on the roles of project managers and supervisors who are expected to retire in a few years.

Don Karney, of Cedar Lake, works at Engineered Constructors in Hammond, and is enrolled in the Supervisory Training Program now. Those who complete the training program also get college credit.

"A lot of the classes will be a refresher for me," he said. "I've been on my job 23 years, and I'm a project superintendent. I'm sure there will be new things to learn. There have been changes over the years that I'm not familiar with. It's nice to go over things that I use every day. It's a great refresher."

The CAF also offers a Construction Site Safety Certificate Program and seminars for workers in the construction industry on topics such as "Reading and Interpreting Construction Drawings for Commercial Buildings" and "How to Make Your Trenchless Project a Success."

Joe Coar, vice president of Michigan City-based Tonn & Blank, which has had two people in the Supervisory Training Program, said it was beneficial to people in the construction field.

"We currently have five additional potential superintendents enrolled in all the modules for the Supervisory Training Program. We are looking forward to these young men becoming certified. I am very proud the Northwest Indiana Business Roundtable decided to promote and offer this training to all businesses," Coar said.

'Career pathways' reaching out to high school students

About three years ago, the business roundtable created an education committee to attract high school students into apprenticeships. Members want to work with schools on training and the emerging concept of career pathways.

Gary Greiner, director of facilities management at Valparaiso University and a member of the roundtable, said members began meeting with local school superintendents to discuss trade and technical training for students. They also organized a tour for business and academic leaders and visited career centers in Cincinnati, Kokomo and Indianapolis and began a dialogue with local career centers. 

"We want to know what can we do to get students to understand there are high-paying jobs out there," Greiner said. "The career centers offer dual credits through Ivy Tech and other universities and colleges."

Everyone is seeing a need to work together to make young people aware of the educational opportunities through career centers and other programs, said attorney William Satterlee, a partner at Hoeppner, Wagner & Evans LLP who also is vice chairman of the roundtable's executive committee.

Greiner said too many people are used to looking at industry as an "unsafe" place to work. But the truth is young people can have a professional position and a "safe" job.

"The steel mills are looking for highly educated and skilled people to work in the mills," he said.

As more people reach retirement age, jobs will be available in construction, health care and industry, and today's young people need the necessary skills to step into those positions, roundtable members said.

To this end, the CAF invited guidance counselors from across Northwest Indiana on a field trip Wednesday to showcase cutting-edge facilities around Northwest Indiana.

CAF Executive Director Dewey Pearman said Northwest Indiana is home to some of the nation's best union tradespeople and top union facilities.

"Together with the region's union contractors, they provide critical talent and services for some of the world's largest corporations such as (BP) and ArcelorMittal," Pearman said. "And these trades also provide a lucrative potential career path for area students."

The average wage and benefit package of a union tradesperson in Northwest Indiana, for instance, is approximately $55 per hour, more than twice the average hourly wage statewide.