In the News

How to Attract and Retain a Quality Workforce

MELISSA GRIFFEN | CONTRIBUTING EDITOR

At the 2021 Executive Leadership Conference (ELC) produced by PMMI, The Association for Packaging and Processing Technologies, Gardner Carrick, vice president of strategic initiatives at The Manufacturing Institute (MI) and National Association of Manufacturers (NAM), presented technical workforce development trends, both in connection to and beyond COVID-19.

Results show that since 2010 there has been an increase of nearly a million-and-a-half jobs in manufacturing. Those numbers decreased when the pandemic hit, but recent studies suggest they have rebounded and are returning to previous levels.

Beyond COVID-19, the second 2021 key business challenge is the continuing struggle of attracting and retaining a quality workforce. There’s not a “strong enough pipeline of individuals desiring to go into a career in manufacturing and not enough breadth of training programs to prepare them with skills to be successful in those careers,” said Carrick.

MI and NAM prioritize the success of manufacturers and their workforces—whether it be through fi ghting for manufacturer rights, providing news and intelligence about the industry, or through initiatives to support a diverse American workforce by providing skilled training programs.

The MI and NAM e orts, presented at ELC, are: • Creators Wanted, which exhibits in towns to invite high school students to enter the manufacturing fi eld post-graduation. MFG Day— when facilities open their doors on the fi rst Friday in October—has been combined with Creators

Wanted. It includes virtual tours and 3D maps, as well as an MFG

Day webinar series. • Military and veteran recruitment starts these brave men and women on their next career. Individuals in their last six months of service can start training in the MI programs, which have recently been modifi ed to include networking days with manufacturers. Both noncommissioned and commissioned o cers have shown increased interest in leadership roles in manufacturing.

These programs are available at fi ve U.S. military bases. • The STEP Women’s Initiative, which includes training women to be role models in their communities. More than 800 women have been recognized so far.

Attracting and retaining a quality workforce in manufacturing is a systemic key business challenge.

Sabra Names New President and CEO

Joey Bergstein became Sabra’s (a Strauss Group brand) new president and chief executive o cer on July 8. Bergstein most recently served as CEO of Seventh Generation.

Digital Feature Debuts at PACK EXPO Las Vegas

For the fi rst time in its history, show producer PMMI, The Association for Packaging and Processing Technologies, is o ering a virtual component to PACK EXPO Las Vegas and Healthcare Packaging EXPO (Sept. 27-29, Las Vegas Convention Center).

PACK EXPO Xpress will allow those unable to travel to access products and innovations in digital showrooms and connect with solutions suppliers during the event, while also serving as a supplement to the on-site experience for those in attendance or their coworkers back at the o ce. Registration provides access to a My Show Planner account, PACK EXPO Las Vegas and Healthcare Packaging EXPO’s personalized resource planning tool and directory.

“The goal of PACK EXPO Xpress is twofold, o ering access to the show experience to larger portions of the packaging and processing community, some of whom can better serve their customers remaining back on the plant fl oor,” says Laura Thompson, vice president, trade shows, PMMI. “At the same time, it allows in-person attendees not to have to choose, for example, one education session over another.”

The registration fee for PACK EXPO Las Vegas and Healthcare Packaging EXPO is $30 through Sept. 3, after which it increases by $100. The registration fee for PACK EXPO Xpress remains $30. Visit packexpolasvegas.com to register for the in-person or virtual event.

• The NAM Pledge of Action ensures broad-based recruiting strategies “to cast as many nets as wide as possible in order to fill the roles that we need,” said Carrick. This allows for greater diversity in the workforce by reaching out to minority communities. • The Second Chance operation is for people with criminal records. Studies done on the retention routes and productivity of individuals with criminal records show that those in the Second

Chance program have a competitive drive to keep their positions.

An apprenticeship program that Carrick highlighted is FAME, the Federation for Advanced Manufacturing Education—created by Toyota. FAME is a multi-skilled maintenance technical program operated by a group of companies, which promotes professional behaviors in dress and speech, and educates workers on the culture of manufacturing or, in other words, how to think as maintenance employees.

PMMI efforts to build the workforce

PMMI has invested in a single-employer model with Amazon to develop an apprenticeship program. Amazon wanted to develop a program to upscale current employees, which would build a baseline to allow individuals to build new skills. The company had been looking for di erent models and certifications to provide standards with which to align. PMMI’s mechatronics certification program became the base of Amazon’s apprenticeship program, which allows individuals to not only finish the program, but obtain certifications as well.

PMMI saw a 223% increase in utilization of the certification program throughout 2020. This increase is expected to continue as more schools o er the certification program, thanks to the Amazon apprenticeship program. PMMI is also attempting to get involved in e orts to make military personnel aware of the industry and become properly trained.

Since research shows that the majority of students who participate in manufacturing programs do not end up in the manufacturing workforce, PMMI created its Skills Fund for the future workforce. It allows companies to work with local education programs and to donate money or equipment. PMMI then matches company donations up to $50,000.

Learn more about PMMI’s workforce development programs at www.pmmi.org/workforce/current-workforce.

COBOTS, ROBOTS & AUTOMATION

Robotic Packing . Smart Conveyors . Targeted Filling & Spraying . Tray Management

Automation equipment that is built to help you with:

Labor shortages. Repetitive stress injuries. Managing operational costs. Product consistency & throughput. Dull, dangerous and dirty tasks.

TRAY HANDLING Endless options for loading and unloading trays.

CAKE LAYERING SYSTEM Smart conveyor that automatically stacks iced layers of cake.

INTEGRATION & COLLABORATIONS Baker-Bot shown target depositing over a form fi ll seal line.