Story Photos
 Photo by Greg Ebersole Jerry McNeilly, right, talks with Dan Sullivent, a manufacturing associate, in the Steelscape plant in Kalama earlier this week. McNeilly, who formerly worked at Longview Aluminum, learned that getting a job in manufacturing now is much more rigorous than when he applied to then Reynold's Aluminum 26 years ago. |
Learning as they grow
Thursday, March 18, 2004 7:21 AM PST
By Amy M. E. Fischer
Printable version
E-mail this articleIn January, Weyerhaeuser advertised for 10 entry-level job openings at the timber industry giant's Longview wood products planer.
The jobs, which pay $12 to $14 an hour and offer benefits, attracted hundreds of applicants. But three of the positions remained unfilled for three months because the company couldn't find enough people who qualified.
Of the 250 applicants, 27 passed the first round of basic skills tests. Interviews and a second round of testing eliminated 20 more candidates, said Jackie Lang, the company's regional communications manager.
"What we're doing now is telling people up front that there will be a paper-and-pencil test to evaluate math, reading and comprehension," Lang said.
As competition for a scarce number of manufacturing jobs toughens and the work itself becomes more technical, job hunters are increasingly expected to prove they have strong knowledge of basic skills, educators and economists say
"We've got to break the thinking in this town that there's always going to be high-paying mill jobs regardless of their educational background. We've got to have more training," said Jim McLaughlin, president of Lower Columbia College.
A high school diploma no longer is enough to earn a living wage, experts say.
"Whereas you used to be able to finish high school, get a job, be middle class with two cars and a family and all that, those jobs are few and far between -- if not gone," said Scott Bailey, regional economist for the state's Employment Security Department.
Washington ranks 11th nationally in education attainment level, with 29.5 percent of the population over age 25 holding a bachelor's degree or higher, according to U.S. Census figures. In Skamania County, it's 17 percent and 22 percent in Clark County.
But in Cowlitz County, that number drops to 12.5 percent, below even the lowest-ranked state in the nation, West Virginia, where 16.5 percent of the population has a four-year degree or higher.
Low education levels hit area workers where it hurts -- their paychecks. In 2001, the average wage in Cowlitz County was $27,824. That's more than $3,000 below the state average, according to statistics cited in the Southwest Washington Workforce Development Council's 2003 strategic plan.
An under-educated workforce affects more than the individual who can't find a job, sources say. There's the stagnant economy to consider, too. Without a skilled workforce, the large corporations that Southwest Washington hopes to woo will look elsewhere.
"The only way to attract businesses is to have a large talent pool," said Bill Freemel, Steelscape's vice president of human resources, organizational development and public relations.
Freemel hopes to see the region attract light manufacturing and corporate headquarters, but he fears that, "If people think the skills set of the community is low, they might go to Nevada or something."
The shift in skill requirements, at least in Weyerhaeuser's case, is related to changes in technology and a commitment to safety, Lang of Weyerhaeuser said.
Once upon a time, Weyerhaeuser workers had specific jobs they'd perform day in, day out, year after year, Lang said. Now employees "flow" from job to job, meaning that they must read and follow directions for different tasks. Working in teams requires workers to communicate effectively with each other, she said.
Additionally, Lang said, those who can't read well or follow directions are at risk of injury.
Lang's top recommendation to those seeking work is to take advantage of free basic skills refresher courses available locally, she said.
"The ability to read a ruler and compute a basic math problem is far more important than a slick resume," Lang said. The company expects applicants to have a high school diploma or a GED, she said.
A worker's tale
When Jerry McNeilly of Longview wanted to work at Reynold's Metals Co. in 1978, he waited in the parking lot with several hundred people to fill out an application for a laborer's position. A high school diploma and physical exam were enough to land the job, where he earned "a really good living" for the next 19 years.
In 1996, when McNeilly applied for an equipment maintenance job at Steelscape, the application process was much different. This job required a mechanical or electrical technology apprenticeship completion certification or a degree in mechanical or electrical technology, said McNeilly, who had earned both while working at Reynolds through an apprenticeship program and attending LCC.
His education served to get a foot in the door, but it wasn't enough to seal the deal. Steelscape asked McNeilly to take math, English, reading and mechanical aptitude tests at Lower Columbia College. The Kalama steel-coating plant also sent him to the employment office, where he took a four-hour attitude and teamwork test, recalls McNeilly, who is now 52.
"It certainly was a wake-up call. It amazed me that I had to do it," said the 1969 Mark Morris High School graduate. "It was pretty extensive. It wasn't a one-day thing."
Although he waited more than a month before learning he'd been hired, the drawn-out process was worth it, said McNeilly, whom the company recently promoted to a supervisor of operations.
"Every step was just another milestone, just a really good feeling, and I knew what I was coming to was the place I wanted to work," he said. "They want motivated people, and it shows what kind of person you are."
Expect more testing
Requiring job seekers to take tests as part of the application process is catching on in the region, especially with the growing popularity of a test created by American College Testing company called Work Keys.
Several area companies are using the test, including Cowlitz PUD, Cowlitz Public Works and Noveon, and Red Lion Hotel and local fast food restaurants have expressed an interest in it, LCC officials said.
Steelscape, which had been using its own series of tests for job candidates, switched to Work Keys 2 1/2 years ago.
"The test works. I would characterize Steelscape's employees as a cut above other people," said Steelscape's Vice President Freemel, who attributes the company's low turnover rate to its thorough testing of applicants. Among Steelscape's three West Coast plants (two are in California), the worker turnover rate is 5 percent. That number drops to 1.6 percent after six months, Freemel said.
Swanson Bark, a recycled wood products company in Longview, used Work Keys for the first time this spring as an employment screening tool. The company also is considering using the test to evaluate current employees and to identify areas in which they could be promoted, said Vicki Leber, Swanson Bark's human resources manager.
Job seekers who want to figure out where their skill levels fit into the job market can take the Work Keys test at LCC. Those who score high in applied math, reading for information and locating information sections of the test will walk away with a Workplace Skills Certificate, which the college began offering last winter.
The certificate is useful because it tells employers that the holder is capable of performing up to 80 percent of jobs in the country.
"A high school diploma -- we're not really sure what a student knows," Freemel said. "The employability certificate says that there are some national standards, and this person has passed it."
For people who haven't attended college and whose work history would fit on a Post-it note, the Workplace Skills Certificate can provide credibility to employers who are tired of the hiring game crapshoot, sources say.
"You can't have a student say, 'I've graduated from high school and that speaks for itself. That doesn't say anything," LCC President McLaughlin said. "It's very frustrating to hire a person and find they can't read the manuals, can't do the math."
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