Nearly 200 parents of high-school students in Fort Collins, Colo., recently gathered for “Parents’ Night.” Their children, they were told, could have great, well-paying careers while being “the next generation of makers.”
The venue? Woodward Inc., an engine and equipment components plant looking for ways to line up the next generation of employees amid a dearth of manufacturing workers nationwide.
“We’re really trying to get after the parents—the parents are influential with their kids,” said Keith Korasick, Woodward’s vice president of operations, who started as a machinist there 26 years ago. “Our message to the parents was ‘there’s another option.’ You can’t have everybody be a lawyer.”
To attract America’s youth onto the factory floor, manufacturers have tried many tactics from hosting high school tours to providing apprentice programs. Their latest strategy is targeting parents.
In Story County, Iowa, where the unemployment rate is 1.4%, Kreg Enterprises Inc. held its first “Parents’ Night” earlier this year to tout careers in toolmaking. Toyota Motor Corp.’s manufacturing plant in Indiana held its first “Parents’ Night Out” in October and plans events for January and March. In Monroe, Ohio, building-materials maker Deceuninck North America this year began hosting parent events on evenings and weekends.
The recruiting tactic aims to persuade today’s highly involved moms and dads that manufacturing work can lead to satisfying—and lucrative—careers for their children with the added benefit of keeping them nearby. It also reflects the strain low unemployment has put on manufacturers that have 400,000 open positions, according to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
more
https://www.wsj.com/articles/to-recruit-workers-manufacturers-go-to-parents-nights-1513425600
The venue? Woodward Inc., an engine and equipment components plant looking for ways to line up the next generation of employees amid a dearth of manufacturing workers nationwide.
“We’re really trying to get after the parents—the parents are influential with their kids,” said Keith Korasick, Woodward’s vice president of operations, who started as a machinist there 26 years ago. “Our message to the parents was ‘there’s another option.’ You can’t have everybody be a lawyer.”
To attract America’s youth onto the factory floor, manufacturers have tried many tactics from hosting high school tours to providing apprentice programs. Their latest strategy is targeting parents.
In Story County, Iowa, where the unemployment rate is 1.4%, Kreg Enterprises Inc. held its first “Parents’ Night” earlier this year to tout careers in toolmaking. Toyota Motor Corp.’s manufacturing plant in Indiana held its first “Parents’ Night Out” in October and plans events for January and March. In Monroe, Ohio, building-materials maker Deceuninck North America this year began hosting parent events on evenings and weekends.
The recruiting tactic aims to persuade today’s highly involved moms and dads that manufacturing work can lead to satisfying—and lucrative—careers for their children with the added benefit of keeping them nearby. It also reflects the strain low unemployment has put on manufacturers that have 400,000 open positions, according to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
more
https://www.wsj.com/articles/to-recruit-workers-manufacturers-go-to-parents-nights-1513425600
