Personnel

A New Haven, Connecticut-based worker training organization is getting $3.45 million in state funding to expand a program to grow the workforce in the manufacturing sector. Funds will be used to build upon a program launched in February at Gateway Community College that took 19 unemployed and underemployed workers and provided them with an intensive five-week training course. “Every single one of them had a job before they graduated,” said William Villano, president and CEO of Workforce Alliance. “This (is) a good program for people that want to change careers or high school graduates who aren’t going to college.”

Work/life balance, believing in – and supporting – its people; these are core principles of ARCH Cutting Tools. Dave Fisher is an example of how the organization lives those principles.

Women make up around 47% of the U.S. labor force, nearly 74 million people and counting. But the percentage of manufacturing roles filled by female workers is only 29%. In a sector not only flourishing but facing a potential shortfall of workers, why do women remain so vastly underrepresented?

The light is a little too dim for Carolyn Lee, executive director of the Manufacturing Institute at the National Association of Manufacturers. She wants the industry to shine a brighter light on itself and attract the recognition it deserves.

Building and maintaining a skilled workforce is one of the top challenges manufacturers face today, and the skills gap is only going to increase as older workers look to retire. Companies also might miss out on additional revenue streams because they can’t hire or retain employees fast enough to keep pace with increasing demands. The logical thing to do is to focus on operational improvements: Reduce waste, automate processes, and squeeze out even more efficiency. But this goes only so far. What many manufacturers are doing instead of hiring is repurposing existing employees to take on higher-value roles.

The Manufacturing Institute announced they will award Danielle Allen with the Women in Manufacturing STEP (Science, Technology, Engineering and Production) Ahead Award. The STEP Ahead Awards honor women who have demonstrated excellence and leadership in their careers and represent all levels of the manufacturing industry, from the factory-floor to the C suite.

Connecticut’s manufacturing future continues to evolve. The dirty, dark and dangerous shop floors of yesterday have increasingly become bright spaces with smart technology. Advanced manufacturing, robotics and the internet of things are more than buzzwords—they’re happening. But with all the advancements on the manufacturing floor comes a corresponding need to improve the approach to developing the workforce necessary to ensure success.