Vermont Business Magazine Playing to its strength, the state is counting on improving Vermont’s manufacturing industry by increasing workforce development and enhancing tax incentives, which includes linking them to the livable wage rather than the minimum wage. Matching jobs available to skills available in the workforce has been an ongoing problem in Vermont for many years, before, during and since the end of the Great Recession.
With steady job growth over the past year and hundreds of job openings throughout Vermont, but with a nearly stagnant labor force, Governor Peter Shumlin on Wednesday outlined a number of steps the state is taking to train Vermonters for those jobs, prepare young Vermonters for skilled manufacturing positions in the state, and help Vermont businesses continue to expand and grow jobs.
The governor held a press conference and spoke at the Lake Champlain Regional Chamber of Commerce (LCRCC) Vermont Manufacturers Summit, which brings together manufacturers, state officials, and education and training providers. He was joined by Agency of Commerce Secretary Patricia Moulton, LCRCC President Tom Tori, Vermont Technical College President Dan Smith, GW Plastics President and CEO Brenan Riehl, and Logic Supply Director of Human Resources Mark Heyman.
Ethan Allen furniture company CEO Farooq Kathwari was the keynote speaker at the event. The Danbury, CT-based company has global plants, with two in Vermont – the Beecher Falls sawmill and the Orleans manufacturing plant. Kathwari announced that Ethan Allen, whose high-end furniture and housewares take styles from around the world and modernizes them, is soon to release a new line of furniture.
Catherine Davis from the LCRCC answers a question during the governor's press conference. From left, Heyman, Moulton, Riehl, Davis, Governor Shumlin and Smith.Vermont Business Magazine photos.
The Vermont manufacturers all said they need more and well-trained workers, which can be a challenge in a tight labor market or in a rural location. Shumlin noted that nearly every worker in the US economy needs education beyond just a high school degree. This does not necessarily mean a bachelor’s degree, but it does mean some type of additional training.
According to a report in January 2013 from the Vermont Commerce Agency, average annual earnings in Vermont manufacturing is about 36 percent above statewide average earnings (ie, $51,829 in manufacturing vs $38,124 on average). Manufacturing contributes about 11.1 percent or $2.9 billion (in Year 2009) of Vermont's Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
On average, manufacturing is a larger percentage of the economy in Vermont than for the US economy.
The most recent preliminary jobs numbers from the Vermont Department of Labor show that between December 2013 and December 2014, the number of jobs in the state grew by 3,900. About 3,000 of these jobs were in the private sector. While these numbers are preliminary and may be revised up or down as more data becomes available, the job growth trend over the past year is decidedly positive.
That trend coincides with hundreds of job openings around the state at companies like Columbia Forest and North Country Hospital in Newport; Ethan Allen in Orleans; Cabot in Waitsfield; Northern Gas Transport in Lydonville; NSK Steering and National Hanger in Bennington; General Electric and Westminster Cracker in Rutland; Arc Mechanical in Bradford; National Life in Montpelier; Stowe Mountain in Stowe; Veterans Administration in White River Junction; C&S Wholesale, GS Precision, and Commonwealth Dairy in Brattleboro; Jeld Wen and VTEL in Springfield; Keurig Green Mountain in Waterbury; Peck Electric in South Burlington; IBM in Essex Junction; Champlain College, UVM Medical Center, UVM, Burton, and Peoples United Bank in Burlington; Husky and Perrigo in Milton; Vermont Precision Tools in Swanton; and Mylan in St Albans.
Governor Shumlin and Farooq Kathwari.
“The job growth numbers we’ve seen combined with the hundreds of job openings around the state is promising news for Vermont’s economic future, but we can and should do more,” Shumlin said. “We need to help match Vermonters with available, good-paying jobs, ensure employers have a pool of skilled workers from which to choose, and help Vermont businesses continue to expand and grow jobs.”
The governor outlined a number of steps today to do just that, including:
Helping Businesses Contract with State Government
Vermont does well in awarding state contracts to Vermont companies, with 79 percent of architectural and engineering, 74 percent of construction, 67 percent of service, and 47 percent of commodity contracts going to in-state companies. More work is needed, however. For example, no Vermont business applied for about 30 percent of current commodity contracts.
That is why the State of Vermont is launching a series of workshops to educate Vermont businesses about how to contract with state government. These free, two-hour workshops will focus on working specifically with the Department of Buildings and General Services (BGS). Small businesses will get a chance to speak directly to a representative from BGS and receive personal assistance from the Vermont Procurement Technical Assistance team (VT PTAC) who will be available to assist them with every phase of the state contracting process.
Workshops will be held at the following locations and times:
- Hyde Park - Tuesday, February 17, 2015 10:00 - 12:00 - Green Mountain Tech and Career Center, (GMTCC), Location: 738 VT 15 West, Hyde Park, VT 05655
- Newport - Tuesday, February 24, 2015 10:00 - 12:00 - Passumpsic Savings Bank, 1 Gardner Street, Newport, VT 05855
- Rutland - Tuesday, March 10, 2015 10:00 - 12:00 - The Chittenden Building, 110 Merchants Row, Rutland, VT 05701
- Burlington - Tuesday, April 21, 2015 10:00 - 12:00 - Greater Burlington Industrial Corporation (GBIC), 60 Main Street, Burlington, VT 05401-8422
Additional workshops will be held in Springfield, St. Johnsbury, and White River Junction later in 2015. To register for this free workshop, and to see a complete listing of training events, go to:http://vtptac.ecenterdirect.comor contact a VT PTAC Procurement Counselor:[email protected]; (802) 522-9135.
Additional Vermont Employment Growth Incentives
The Governor has proposed enhancements to the Vermont Employment Growth Incentive (VEGI) which provides incentives to businesses to encourage expanded economic activity.The program has been very beneficial to a variety of Vermont companies and those seeking to expand or relocate to Vermont. Just this year, the VEGI program has provided funding that will help Vermont companies create over 550 new jobs with an average yearly salary of more than $50,000.
The proposed VEGI enhancements will increase the number of employers that could be eligible and increase the geographic distribution of the program. They include:
- Decouple the VEGI wage threshold from minimum wage and tie it to livable wage.
- Give the Vermont Economic Progress Council (VEPC) discretion to extend the grace period to earn the incentives beyond the current one or two year period.
- Remove the $1 million dollar cap per VEGI incentive in areas with high unemployment, enabling VEPC to enhance the incentives in these regions.
- Provide an enhanced incentive for VEGI recipients with significant training needs.
Employer Partner Program
The Administration, Vermont businesses, and Vermont Technical College are moving forward with the Engineering Partnership Program announced by the Governor in his budget address. The program will use existing state programs and support from Vermont employers to allow Vermont kids to earn a free Associates Degree in mechanical and electrical engineering as well as computer science and information technology. This partnership between VTC and Vermont employers will help fill Vermont’s needs for two year engineering and information technology graduates. The Administration and VTC have been reaching out to and meeting with employers to get them engaged.There is growing demand for these two year engineering graduates with employers like IBM, GW Plastics, Mack Molding, and other advanced manufacturing or information technology companies in Vermont.
“We support the Governor’s plan to partner with employers to develop innovative solutions to provide affordable, technical education and training for Vermont’s students, said Brenan Riehl, President and CEO of GW Plastics. “With an aging workforce, Vermont’s manufacturers must have a sustainable pipeline of skilled employees if they are to remain competitive in the global market place.”
"Vermont Tech is where the skills gap closes,” said Dan Smith, President of Vermont Tech. “This program is an excellent alignment of state resources for the purposes of helping employers address the challenge of the workforce pipeline. It will also offer Vermont students an excellent career path right here in Vermont."
Enhanced Job Training
The Governor’s budget proposes over $3 million for Next Generation training programs for Vermonters that support a wide variety of objectives, including employer-based job training; K-12 career exploration;access to college credit and loan repayments; secondary and postsecondary internships; skill training for incumbent workers and job seekers including Vermonters who face employment barriers; and support for entrepreneurs, product innovations, and economic development. Specific allocations include:
- Workforce education & training Fund: $1,017,500
The WET Fund supports partnerships with Vermont employers, educators and training providers to meet the goal of: (1) Direct training of the available workforce to enable the State recruit new employers to Vermont; (2) Saving jobs from moving out of Vermont; (3) Customized training to match Vermont job seekers with actual job openings of Vermont employers; (4) Skill training to allow Vermont employer to expand if it is clear that new jobs will result; (5) Supporting key initiatives such as high school and college internships; (6) Job training programs to assist Vermonters with significant employment barriers; (7) Career Readiness Certificate to resolve skill deficiencies and (8) Career Exploration for young students.
- Adult Technical Education:$360,000
These are accessible, low-cost programs of Vermont’s Regional Technical Centers. The Centers are integrating into their curriculum training and certificate programs to meet the regional workforce needs.
- UVM Tech Transfer: $100,000
This program at UVM has demonstrated success in the innovation of products with market potential, and works closely with VCET on moving innovations to market.
- Vermont Center for Emerging Technologies: $100,000
This program has demonstrated success in supporting entrepreneurs through the start-up phases and can demonstrate the creation of jobs and additional demand for skilled workers for Vermont employers.
- Non-Degree Grants: $494,500
The program provides tuition assistance grants to individuals who meet eligibility requirements – scholarships for non-college credit programs offered by non-profit organizations, proprietary schools, unions and Regional Tech Center Adult Ed programs.
- National Guard Educational Assistance:$150,000
This is tuition assistance to Vermont National Guard troops.
- Dual Enrollment:$600,000
Dual enrollment programs and flexibility in learning environments are essential to the success of many Vermonters. Dual enrollment provides a way for students to earn college credit while in high school. College lasses can be taken through the VSC, UVM, and several private colleges that have chosen to participate, and include substantial tuition discounts. The model has proven particularly effective at raising the aspiration of non-college bound and first-in-family students.
Statewide Registered Apprenticeship Program:
The State of Vermont General Fund is also funding the Statewide Registered Apprenticeship Program, which currently has 1,000 apprentices who are earning the trade/occupation salary while learning the skills of the job. There are currently over 30 apprenticed occupations available for enrollment in Vermont. There are also many opportunities for pre-apprentice and industry credentials through partnerships with VDOL, UVM, Vermont State Colleges, and approved-training providers. Examples include: The VDOL – VTC collaborative for Electrical and Plumbing Apprentices. In addition, we have new apprenticeship initiatives for approximately 150 new apprentices with Husky in Milton; DHMC; Vermont Information Processing in Colchester; Triad in Williston, and Precyse (statewide job locations).