ShareThisBy PAUL MONIES
Thursday, November 09, 2006
At first, the young man kept to himself and didn't say a word to many of his new co-workers at National Oilwell Varco.
But a few months later, he's beginning to communicate with fellow employees and supervisors, said Kirk Hurst, vice president of manufacturing and sourcing.
"These kids have never really had a break," said Hurst, whose company makes oil-field pumps. "It's easy for them to give up after that first obstacle, so we have to provide the support."
The young man, a former nonviolent youth offender, is among three hired by National Oilwell Varco in the summer after an innovative pilot program at Oklahoma State University-Okmulgee to train young adults for manufacturing careers.
"I think it's a great thing," said Hurst, who oversees five plants in three states. "Everybody needs a second chance. Some kids don't have the direction at home and get in with the wrong crowd. This is a heck of a chance for these young men."
Eleven youth offenders entered the six-week residential program last summer at OSU-Okmulgee, said Roy Cail, executive director of economic development and training at the university. Eight have since found jobs with Tulsa-area manufacturers. The program will be expanded as part of a $1.5 million federal grant to help recruit and train disadvantaged and at-risk young adults for manufacturing jobs.
The three-year program - dubbed Project Moves - will help youth offenders, those aging out of the state's foster program and high school dropouts at Thunderbird Youth Academy in Pryor, Okla., said Norma Noble, deputy secretary for work force development at the state of Oklahoma Commerce Department.
"This allows them to increase their manufacturing skill levels as part of getting further credentials," Noble said. "The manufacturing industry is getting behind this. The stars are aligning."
Cail and Hurst said Project Moves will build on the success of the pilot program at OSU-Okmulgee. Applicants for the pilot program had to have either a high school diploma or a GED, as well as pass a drug and alcohol test.
During the first week of that six-week program, participants learned basic life skills such as showing up for work on time, conflict management and interacting with co-workers. Other events focused on meal etiquette, budgeting and even doing laundry.
"A lot of the things most of us take for granted haven't been emphasized in these young men's lives," Cail said.
The heart of the pilot program involved skills such as reading blueprints and instruments, as well as hands-on exposure to manual and computer-numerically controlled machines in laboratory settings, Cail said. Students also had to program and build robots using Legos. The final week of the program was spent job shadowing at manufacturing companies.
"We've taken people destined to be struggling in their careers and been able to provide a focus for them," Cail said.
As Hurst put it, the program helped build the self-esteem of young men who were on the wrong track. It also filled a need for manufacturers, who are scrambling to develop talent and fill skilled jobs as many of their employees face retirement in the next decade.
"We haven't done a good job of selling manufacturing as a career," Hurst said. "There's a severe shortage of people who want to get into this business."
Hurst attributed that shortage to a lack of exposure at young ages to careers in manufacturing. The industry is not the dark, hot and dirty business it was 50 years ago, he said. Most manufacturing plants are well-lighted, air-conditioned and spend a sizeable amount of money on new technology and machines. Manufacturing jobs pay average wages and salaries of $38,000 in Oklahoma, compared with the statewide average of almost $30,000.
Cail said employers and manufacturers still are tweaking the program for youth offenders, but he hopes to have a new class by early 2007. Successful participants can go on to get associate degrees or other certificates.
