Utah scrambling to meet need for technical workers

OGDEN — Northern Utah's skilled technical work force is on the verge of critical shortages, according to a white paper released Monday by the Weber Economic Development Corp. and the Ogden-Weber Applied Technology College.

The state faces challenges in generating necessary interest to fill available manufacturing jobs for what Utah's governor has called the state's "Aerospace Hub," both immediately and in the future, the report said.

The situation continues to worsen, with jobs being created and unemployment remaining low in the state. And as the current work force ages, the supply of skilled workers is diminishing, forcing employers to recruit outside of Utah and sometimes leave Utah altogether, the report said.

Applied-technology job opportunities "run the gamut" from construction to the health industry, to welding and machining, said the Ogden college's president, Collette Mercier. She said the college's Lean Manufacturing Center, which opened in November, is running at only one-third its capacity, while hundreds of local technical and manufacturing jobs remain unfilled.

"Right now, we have the capacity to be able to train more people," she said. "Our problem is just getting them in the door."

The college and the Weber Economic Development Corp., which is part of the Ogden Chamber of Commerce, plan an advertising campaign aimed at young people and their parents, who often think of technical training as "a second-rate path only suitable for students who are not cut out for a university," said Ron Kusina, the Weber group's executive director.

"Students erroneously perceive these jobs as dirty, low-paying and unstable," he said. The aim is to change perceptions and promote that a technical education, received at a technical college, is "a different choice, not an inferior choice," Kusina said.

Manufacturing jobs, he said, offer more than $1,000 more per month than the average job in Weber County. Job-seekers also have increased opportunities, as new employers like Proctor & Gamble, Hershey's and the U.S. Food Service open facilities in Utah.

After recent layoffs at Rodney Hardy's former job, he headed back to school on a scholarship offered through a placement program at the technology college.

"I wanted to gain knowledge and experience and just make things better for me and for my family," he said. After eight months of full-time course work, Hardy, 49, will finish a conventional manufacturing program and will head out into the work force once again, this time with what he perceives as more job security.

"You can do so much more with this kind of training," he said. A woodworker by hobby, Hardy said, it's "fascinating to take a raw piece of metal and turn it out into some really fancy, usable part."

The college's Lean Manufacturing Center was built from an old warehouse with state funds and $30 million from rocket-booster manufacturer Williams International. Williams provides the college with equipment and mentors to train students with practical, real-world applications, said Lloyd McCaffrey, the Lean Center's director.

Companies including Siemens, Boyer and Rocky Mountain Power also partner with the center and employ many students who complete the college's training programs.

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E-mail: wleonard@desnews.com

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