Keeping Manufacturing Strong in Minnesota

By Irene Connors
October 2008

PDF of article (6 pages)

The manufacturing sector is a vital part of Minnesota’s economy, accounting for just over 15 percent of total wages paid in the state and 12 percent of all jobs. Moreover, manufacturing pays well above overall salaries in the state. In 2007 Minnesota’s manufacturing workers earned $1005 per week on average compared with $853 for all industries combined.

Minnesota’s manufacturing employment has declined since 2000, including 4,400 jobs lost in 2007. Many of these declines resulted from advancing technology and production capabilities, as well as the housing slowdown. Still, Minnesota’s manufacturing sector lost a smaller percentage of jobs than the nation, declining 1.3 percent compared with 1.9 percent nationwide in 2007. Moreover, Minnesota’s manufacturers continue to hire workers, reporting 5,600 job vacancies during the fourth quarter of 2007.

These job openings may be the result of workers leaving for other jobs, firm expansions, or the need to bring new or updated skills into the workforce. The aging workforce and retirements will play a large role in jobs being available in years to come. Between 1994 and 2007, the average age of the Minnesota manufacturing workforce grew faster than the overall workforce (see Figure 1). As a sector, manufacturing has among the state’s oldest employees, with 45 percent older than 44 (see Figure 2).

Minnesota’s Manufacturing Workforce

Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) Commissioner Dan McElroy says there are manufacturing jobs out there. The state’s free job bank (MinnesotaWorks.net) has 18,000 to 23,000 job openings posted, including more than 1,700 that are in manufacturing, he said.

However, to qualify for many of these positions, job candidates must have up-to-date skills. “I will be very frank,” McElroy said. “Somebody who learned to run a Bridgeport lathe years ago and that is still all they can do … they may not be as employable as someone who has been back to technical college or has kept up their skills … on newer technology.”

According to the report “Understanding the Worker Needs of Manufacturers: The 2007 Minnesota Skills Gap Survey,” 66 percent of Minnesota manufacturers cite having a “high-performance workforce” as the No. 1 factor for firm success. What skills are manufacturers looking for? Here’s how Minnesota manufacturers responded:

1. Computer skills
2. Basic employability skills
3. Technical skills
4. Problem-solving skills
5. Process improvement
6. Supervisory/managerial
7. Working on a team
8. Print reading
9. Customer service
10. Reading/writing/communication
11. Math
12. English fluency
13. Innovative/creative

The survey also demonstrates evidence of shortages of qualified workers in Minnesota’s manufacturing sector. Just over half of survey respondents (52 percent) had unfilled positions because of a lack of qualified applicants. These responses indicated a moderate or serious shortage of workers overall. Current and future workforce shortages are most noticeable in the southwest and northwest regions of the state. Importantly, respondents expected workforce shortage to be more significant three years from now.

Responding to Workforce Shortages

With evidence of skill shortages in the manufacturing sector, Minnesota economic and workforce development programs are well-positioned to respond. For example, 88.9 percent of survey respondents in southwest Minnesota, an area that reported the most acute workforce shortages, favored significant or moderate involvement from the state in assisting manufacturers to meet workforce needs. Moreover, only 54 percent of survey respondents had collaborated with the educational system in response to workforce shortages, opening the door for the state to assist many other employers as well.

In response, Minnesota is providing a variety of “bridges” to manufacturing careers for its young adults who want to work in the manufacturing sector. These programs help to provide these young adults with the proper skill training and background to be able to fill the manufacturing jobs of the 21st century.

One such program encourages young adults to consider careers in manufacturing by letting them experience this ever-changing field of work and by exposing them to its opportunities and possibilities. Minnesota’s Manufacturing Camp, a program for young adults with disabilities, is preparing youth to transition from school to work. It provides an opportunity for approximately 20 high school students per camp session to obtain applied knowledge and to demonstrate their abilities in the context of current manufacturing. This year the program is expanding to four camps at three technical colleges. Later expansions will target other areas of the state and other groups, such as returning veterans, according to Alyssa Klein, transition specialist with DEED. Students try their hand at completing a simple project that requires AUTOCAD, metal forming, welding, grinding and more. Also available are an introduction to robotics and fluid power, industry tours and guest speakers. The camps put participants inside a technical college with a post-secondary training team and also provide segues into skills-training programs. For more information about Minnesota’s manufacturing camp, go to http://www.deed.state.mn.us/pte/materials.htm .

This is one of a number of tools that Minnesota is using to upgrade and expand the manufacturing workforce. See sidebars for information about other tools the state of Minnesota is using to boost the competitiveness of its manufacturing sector.

New Entry Level and Incumbent Workers: M-Powered

Other workforce development programs focus on increasing the skills of the incumbent workforce and those who have chosen to begin a career in manufacturing. M-Powered offers multi-level training for several occupations in the metal manufacturing sector to about 10 employers in the Minneapolis-St. Paul metro area. The program is led by a consortium of community champions, manufacturing industry leaders and training partners, and DEED staff members Debra Bultnick, Diane Knutson, and Mike Schaitberger who collaborate to create a fast track training solution.

“The M-Powered suite of programs is a result of a successful pilot program that began in the spring of 2005 and was completed in spring 2007,” says Nancy James, executive director of HIRED, a key partner of the program. The program has benefited from $374,256 in grants awarded by the Minnesota Job Skills Partnership in April 2006 as well as support from the National Association of Manufacturers.

Participants receive 96 hours of foundational manufacturing training, 480 hours of on-the-job training and 72 hours of specialized classroom lab instruction, according to James. Currently participants study basic safety, math and courses introducing them to manufacturing skills. The program has been expanded to include welding, sheet metal fabrication, metal stamping and computer numerical control operations. Most recently -- thanks to a Minnesota Sector Partnership grant -- HIRED, Hennepin Technical College and plastics manufacturers are collaborating to expand the program to include training for plastics injection molding technology.

About half of the participants are new to manufacturing and include high school graduates, career changers and low-wage earners who want to boost their incomes by working in manufacturing. Under M-Powered, these entry-level participants are paired with incumbent workers and with other students. The partners work in the manufacturing field and are enrolled in the program by their employer.

Skill attainment through M-Powered is validated through the earning of credentials from the National Institute of Metalworking Skills (NIMS). The credentials are awarded through satisfactory completion of both performance tests and related theory exams. The assessments are standards based. Both performance and theory assessments have been developed and piloted by the industry. Moreover, outcomes for participants who attended all of the M-Powered programs to date have been tracked so that program success can be evaluated.

Outcome results indicate that the program has been successful in meeting its goals. As of April 2008, M-Powered in both its pilot and its expansion program has recruited 292 low- income individuals, trained 154 and placed 144 in manufacturing jobs. The average wage for incumbent workers who graduated from the program is $14.42 per hour and $11.85 for entry level workers. Nearly 100 percent of the workers retain their jobs after 90 days; 84 percent retain their job after 180 days. Another class will graduate in spring 2008, 16 in metals and 11 in plastics.

As the program continues it has been refined and improved, according to James. “The graduates begin a pathway that sets the model of life-long learning while earning a good income,” James says.

Model Training in Manufacturing for Youthful Offenders

Under a U.S. Department of Labor grant awarded to NIMS, the Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry, HIRED, Hennepin Technical College and the Minnesota Department of Corrections have partnered to provide a program similar to M-Powered specifically for incarcerated offenders ages 18 to 24. Participants will receive 300 hours of technical training, soft skill training and remedial math. At completion the participants are expected to have earned three NIMS credentials and 12 college credits. Upon release, participants will begin a state-certified apprenticeship with a selected Minnesota manufacturer. The program was launched in April 2008 at both the Stillwater and Shakopee correctional facilities. About 50 students will be enrolled at the facility in Stillwater and about 10 students in Shakopee.

Standards and Certification for Manufacturing Skills

Bultnick, a DEED industry liaison for manufacturing workforce development, said two sets of standards have been developed for two different purposes. The Manufacturing Skills Standards Council (MSSC) has established standards for production workers to meet company needs for persons with the proper core skills and knowledge to keep pace with technological change. These skills include math, science, reading, writing, communications, information technology, analysis, problem-solving, teamwork, organization, planning and basic technical skills -- all in a manufacturing context. The MSSC system awards a Certified Production Technician (CPT) credential to individuals who pass all four production modules: Safety, Quality Practices and Measurement, Manufacturing Processes and Production, and Maintenance Awareness. For more information, visit www.msscusa.org .

The NIMS competencies are geared for those preparing for occupations in precision manufacturing. Those who earn the credentials have demonstrated that they can translate and apply specific technical instructions for metal forming to create component or end products. There are 48 distinct NIMS skill certifications from entry level to masters level. Individuals who earn these credentials demonstrate they are highly skilled in precision manufacturing. For more information, visit www.nims_skills.org.

Conclusion

Minnesota is taking a proactive approach to building a workforce to keep our competitive edge in quality, innovation and exceeding customer expectations. The state is using innovative programs and a toolbox of grant programs to help grow the skilled manufacturing workforce for the 21st century. For more information, you may contact DEED’s Bultnick at Dbultnic@ngwmail.des.state.mn.us.

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