Apprenticeships: A Way to Develop Talent
At FRA’s Fall Meeting in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, the National Supplier – Consumer Relations Committee will host a presentation and discussion on Registered Apprenticeship as a Talent Development Strategy. I had the opportunity to catch up with one of the presenters, Marie Price, Director of Training and Development for the Idaho Forest Group (IFG), for a preview, and I’m looking forward to learning more about this strategy to attract, retain, and promote talent in the forest products industry at the meeting.
IFG sawmills in Idaho and Mississippi have a production capacity of over a billion board feet and employ around 1,300 people. Like so many forest industries, IFG needs skilled labor for in-person work in rural, often geographically isolated areas. In order to help build its talent pipeline, IFG has developed registered apprenticeships for those jobs that require training and validation of a skill set – think millwrights, diesel mechanics, and saw filers. Over the past ten years, IFG has had 230 employees participate in their apprenticeship program and reports that these employees are more likely to stay with the company and advance as their skills develop.
I asked Marie what a company needs to think about if they are interested in establishing their own registered apprentice program or participating in a group doing the same:
- Does your company already have a training program that can be built upon for an apprenticeship program?
- Do jobs have clearly identified skills and wage progression, so that an employee can see opportunities to level up in both skills and compensation?
- Do you have partnerships established for knowledge development – i.e., classroom learning to support on-the-job training?
- Does your company have subject matter experts that can serve as mentors for those in apprenticeships?
- Do you have a relationship with the registered apprenticeship program in your state?
While many companies probably don’t have all of these in place today, this list provides a path to begin considering if a registered apprenticeship program is right for your company or organization.
I asked Marie about how IFG identifies individuals appropriate for this investment in growing employee skills, and she said the company employs a range of strategies. They have developed relationships with local high schools and community colleges to identify a talent pipeline. This focuses on those programs, teachers, and faculty members that teach the type of skills IFG is looking for, and they have partnered to help shape the curriculum.
They also work with people in the towns where their mill is located, use word-of-mouth recruiting, and look at their own production staff to see who has the aptitude and attitude to develop technical skills. They enjoy broad community support because this program helps local kids find local jobs that offer a living wage that grows into a family wage.
For IFG, the registered apprentice program is a foundational talent development strategy used to support the company’s future. The U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration currently has a big push to promote apprenticeship programs, and there may be an opportunity to find grants or other funding to support a company’s efforts to start or expand apprenticeship.
I am intrigued to hear more about this successful use of apprenticeships and discuss with FRA members how this can be replicated and adapted to support mills, loggers, truckers, and the entire forest industry supply chain. I hope you’ll be there to join me for this presentation and the conversation that follows.
