H. Roger Kauffman
Electric Motor Repair Co.
Baltimore, Maryland
Management Services Committee Member
If the trend over the last 10 years continues, where will skilled labor come from in the future? This current dilemma and the worsening prospects will force many companies in the electrical, electronic and/or mechanical apparatus service and repair industry to rethink traditional recruitment and hiring methods.
It will force them to create new and previously untested methods to attract, hire, train and retain skilled workers.
For decent paying jobs, students must choose between college and a trade school. Neither provides training where the graduate can walk into one of our service centers and hit the ground running.
Source or trainees
The question to answer, then, is not where to get skilled, trained individuals to work in our specialized industry, but where to get trainees?
This, I believe, will take a grass roots effort aimed at changing the mindset of younger generations as well as our educational system. It will take a grass roots effort to convince high school counselors that an acceptable and viable career for their graduates can be in the trades. It will take a grassroots effort to send the message to middle and high school students that it is not shameful to do something other than go to college after graduation.
A rewarding future in trades
I have already started to see this begin to take place. People are beginning to admit that everyone is not cut out for college. There is a growing understanding that a career in the trades can be very rewarding both in job satisfaction and monetarily. Our industry, being a very niche industry, would have difficulty promoting this exclusively for our benefit. There really aren’t thousands of jobs waiting to be filled in our particular trade.
We can, however, capitalize on the success of much larger industries such as electrical, plumbing, automotive and HVAC. How to recruit from these groups and convert them to learn the skill set used in our trade is what we need to figure out and focus on.
That brings us to trade schools. Can they help our industry? Trade schools already have programs that provide training for the electrical, plumbing, automotive, and HVAC industries. Large numbers of graduates are needed in these trades, allowing the school to run both repetitive classes and guarantee most students a job after graduation.
This is not so for our industry. We do not need the volume, nor can we guarantee an ongoing placement of a significant number of students after graduation. The relatively low demand for applicants who are trained in motor service center skills makes it unprofitable for trade schools to develop curriculum specifically for our industry.
Trade school advantages
Then what are the advantages to trade schools? In classes typically taught at these schools, students generally receive training in a number of skills: basic electricity, basic troubleshooting, the use of measuring/metering devices and the ability to read and understand basic wiring schematics.
Most of the students are high school graduates, although that is not always the case. They must demonstrate an ability to read, write and comprehend by the time they have graduated.
The disadvantage lies in the “basic” references. As I stated above, our industry does not offer a large enough incentive for a trade school to develop a curriculum meant to turn out a motor winder, motor mechanic, etc. For that reason you get someone with a “basic” technical education.
A plan for each trainee
Students generally pay trade schools from $15,000 to $23,000 for 18 months of instruction that provides just the basics. When a recruit accepts a job with your company, you must be prepared to train him or her and transfer the “basic” skills learned into specific job skills for the motor industry.
It’s an absolute necessity to have a plan for introducing each trainee to the unique skills required in their job. Otherwise, putting them in the job and hoping they “get it” some day is just too costly. EASA’s recently introduced instructional CD-ROM on How to Wind Three-Phase Stators is excellent training material that can be incorporated in your program to improve that “basic” training.
Another thing we have found is that trade school graduates can lack maturity. Given that a majority of them are young adults, this is understandable. Maturity develops over time and requires nurturing and sometimes a measure of patience. While the curriculum may look good in the recruitment brochures, it has been our experience that the new hire may even require some retraining unless you are fortunate to find the exceptional student.
Resource to locate employees
The more you become involved with and familiar with a trade school, the better your chances of getting these exceptional students.
Remember, trade schools are not the source of trained, experienced, and qualified workers who can start working for you immediately with no additional training. They are a resource through which you locate individuals who have chosen to work in the trades, have shown their commitment by paying the tuition and completing 18 months of training, and now have at least a familiarity with some of the basics; at least enough to get them started.
Much of their success rests with how well the company that hires them follows up this initial training with work specific training and mentoring.
If you are willing to take the raw material coming from these schools and work to develop it, this can prove to be a very good resource for trainees.
In a society where many young adults preparing to enter the labor market have grown up with PlayStation® systems, computers, and iPod media players, choosing a career troubleshooting and repairing equipment often times is not at the top of their list.
Related Reference and Training Materials
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