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:: Monday, April 05, 2004 ::

'Michigan Works' doesn't work for all By LYNN STEVENS / H-P
Some minorities say they don't get a fair shake when seeking jobs, but area construction projects and building trades programs could help change that

Jim Hahn, of Stevensville, is the statewide training director for Michigan Carpenters, the association of union carpenters. He said Michigan is one of the few states to have an association of building trades teachers. It is a vehicle for sharing information among high school teachers and working professionals so students get up-to-date information on careers and how to get launch them.

Jason Winfield, labor agent for Carpenters Local 525 - which covers Michigan from roughly Battle Creek, west to Lake Michigan and south to the state line - said Lawrence and New Buffalo school districts have strong building trades programs that encourage the best students to enter apprenticeships when they graduate high school.

Apprentices follow a prescribed four-year training course including on-the-job and classroom training. With a few extra courses, paid by the union, they can earn associate (two-year) degrees in the process.
The carpenters apprenticeship program is the only one formally recognized by the federal Department of Labor, Hahn said. With recognition comes federal accountability.

'I myself had to do a demographic analysis of the labor force county by county,' Hahn said.

Matching active membership to the racial and gender demographic percentages of the county becomes the target. Hahn said the carpenters unions have exceeded the minority participation target. And they do not enroll apprentices unless they have jobs.

'We're about double our affirmative action goal,' he said. 'The labor force is 7.16 percent minority; we're at about 13.75 percent. As far as female representation, we're far below where we should be.'

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