By Eileen Anderson, Director, Government Affairs, The MBA
Okay all you employers out there! Imagine you are in Anna’s position and hyper focused on long-term people issues. Ellwood has 2,000 team members, 25 facilities in several states, Mexico, Canada, and five Pennsylvania counties. Ellwood does it all – forgings, crankshafts, supplies raw materials, specialty metal engineering etc. People are their biggest asset.
Our workforce conversation revolved around Lawrence and Mercer counties where demographics challenges are acute.
I’ve spoken with many MBA members about workforce, and they often point to the Covid-19 pandemic as the start of workforce problems. Anna said Ellwood first began to strategically plan for a workforce crunch in 2017, although they had observed signals before that. They knew the retirement of the baby boomers would be a huge issue. That’s when they created her long-term people strategy.
Elwood tries to meet workers where they are. Flexibility is key and they have numerous attractive options depending on the facility.
One phrase Anna emphatically repeated was “I don’t want bodies,” meaning the unskilled, and a term she finds misplaced in the industry. She wants and needs “the best and the brightest” and to hire those with skills. That’s a hurdle for many manufacturers who see kids graduating from high school lacking some of the required skills. “The quality and quantity of the workforce pipeline is not what it used to be.”
Anna learned about the successful Mahoning Valley Manufacturers Coalition (MVMC) in Ohio. Local manufacturers faced a shared challenge: a critical shortage of skilled labor and they banded together to build a talent pipeline. She noted there are many workforce development entities, but they are all off in different directions.
“We need everybody on the bus, but manufacturers need to drive the bus.”
…. Brian Benyo, Brilex, founder, Mahoning Valley Manufacturers Coalition.
The MVMC organization was her inspiration and a superior model of workforce development. Three years ago, Anna co-founded the Lawrence-Mercer Manufacturers Coalition (LMMC). The goal was to “Get all of the manufacturers on the bus and have them drive the bus.” This is the unique differentiator between LMMC and other workforce entities.
What drove Anna was the realization that people and kids were not aware of the abundance of rewarding and appealing manufacturing career opportunities in Lawrence and Mercer counties. The careers have not been marketed to the local audience. The Coalition is in a much stronger position than individual manufacturers to reach out to youth and showcase the many opportunities available without a four-year degree.
After three years the LMMC is gaining traction. Their goals:
- Create awareness among youth of the appealing and rewarding manufacturing careers right here at home.
- Create manufacturing readiness in the workforce pipeline.
Shop math, communications skills, critical thinking and showing up on time are important skills. LMMC has influenced curriculum. Students and career switchers can pursue pre-apprenticeships and apprenticeships with stipends, learn via job shadowing, mock interviews, manufacturer tours, in-school activities and role-playing, and other skills and experiences all pointing to manufacturing awareness and readiness. Anna’s comment, “We need to do more and faster.”
Young people should know more about today’s manufacturing. Ai, robotics and automation are used in manufacturing and are not taking jobs away, but shifting skill needs because they require workers to program, operate and maintain the machines. The skill set has changed. Yesterday’s millwrights are those skilled in industrial maintenance and mechatronics.
Ellwood’s motto “Metals with a Mission,” reflects their commitment to the industries served, defense, aerospace, energy, etc.
Let’s circle back to “What keeps me up at night…will we find… the skilled people we need… in five, 25, 50 years from now?’…”
While the Manufacturer & Business Association doesn’t usually place bets, we are placing our money on Anna Barensfeld. Ellwood will find the workers needed 50 years from now!
