December 18th, 2007
More than half of companies responding to a Wisconsin staffing firm’s survey said they expect to increase hiring in the first quarter of 2008. QPS polled 200 companies in Wisconsin and northern Illinois this month for its Employment Forecasting Survey.
The poll found that 54 percent plan to hire more and those who plan to increase payroll will do so by an average of 7.54 percent.
Almost three quarters of respondents expect average or above average growth in the first three months of the new year. But they expect a lack of qualified or skilled employees to be among the biggest issues in 2008.
December 7th, 2007
The Workforce Connection, a partnership of agencies providing services to both job seekers and employers, moved its Belvidere office.
The agency is now located in the Logan Square Building at 998 Belvidere Road, just south of Logan Avenue.The office used to be located at 1208 Logan Ave.
A formal ribbon cutting and grand opening celebration is planned for early January.
The Workforce Connection has offices in Belvidere and Rockford to provide one contact for employers to find workers and for job seekers to receive training, education and employment services.
The phone number for the office is still 815-547-9616.
December 6th, 2007
Last month, 136 students from Rockford area high schools piled on four buses to go to the FABTECH show in Chicago, a massive trade show at McCormick Place. It was all part of an effort to get young people interested in manufacturing careers.
Local manufacturers say they’re having a hard time finding qualified workers to run machines — machines that require extensive training in mathematics and computer programming. And the average age of local machinists is getting older. So five companies and three organizations sponsored the students’ trip to see 470,000 square feet of exhibitions from nearly 1,000 companies.
Sponsors were Woodward, Forest City Gear, W.A. Whitney, Specialty Screw and Reliable Machine. The Rockford Area Economic Development Council, the Rockford Community Foundation and the Fabricators & Manufacturers Association also chipped in.
“The shortage of skilled workers is a major industry concern and the number one issue facing employers in the metal forming and fabricating sector,” said Gerald Shankel, president & CEO of FMA in a press release. “This initiative addressed the importance of introducing young people to these jobs in order to train tomorrow’s workforce.”
The event must have had an effect. Some of the students from Guilford are building a Web site and photo slide show of their field trip. Here’s one of the photos:
Caption: Guilford High School students pause to watch an equipment demonstration at the W. A. Whitney booth during the FABTECH Show at McCormick Place on Nov. 14. (Photo provided)
