Finding a New Route

Ever since she began her job with Covenant Transport, Connie Newman has been spending most of her time behind the wheel of a big rig - a match made in heaven for the 51-year-old from Owosso. But Newman may have never found her calling had it not been for a simple test at Career Alliance, Inc., a contractor for the Genesee/Shiawassee Michigan Works!.

Newman's path to trucking began after she was laid off from her factory job at CNI Inc. in Owosso, Michagan. She eventually realized her interest in truck driving after taking a test at Career Alliance that linked her skills with possible career choices. By February 2009, Newman had taken a truck driving training course, and by August 2009 she was working at Covenant Transport, a company based out of Chattanooga, Tenn. "If people want to be welders, diesel mechanics, any kind of mechanic, they need to go and talk to Michigan Works! I could have went back to college. I could have started something different, and there's a certain amount that they will pay toward it," Newman said. "If you want something bad enough, anyone can do it."

When Newman lost her job in April 2007, only about 7.6 percent of Shiawassee County residents were unemployed, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Since then, unemployment has doubled - by April 2010 unemployment figures reached 14.3 percent. In May 2010, unemployment dropped slightly to 13.7 percent, according to preliminary data from the Michigan Department of Energy, Labor and Economic Growth. Newman is one of many Shiawassee County residents who have used job retraining tools and education to get back on her feet again, and she was lucky to find work in a growing sector.

As the local and state-wide economy has changed and the automotive sector has become a smaller component in the county's economy, the automotive factory jobs Newman and many Shiawassee County residents formerly held aren't as prevalent, Shiawassee Economic Development Partnership President/CEO Justin Horvath said.

"We're not the economy we used to be," Horvath explained. "We don't have the employers we used to have. We are transitioning - we're getting different kinds of businesses coming in, new businesses. We have existing companies that are diversifying...and it's very important for the workforce to recognize this and make the corresponding changes."

Now, the top fields growing and hiring in the county include manufacturing, health care, food and customer service industries, and logistics and truck driving, said Sharon Bowen, vice president for Career Alliance, Inc.

Sitting only a stone's throw away from one another in the Human Investment and Development Corporation at the Owosso-based Career Alliance, Lucy Strachota and Noah Woodbury know first-hand the battle many job seekers struggle through.

After being laid off from their positions at area factories, Strachota and Woodbury were eligible for federal funds that would pay for their associate's degrees. Both were hesitant to go back to school, but with the memory of their unfulfilling jobs in plants, they used the opportunity to take the first steps toward a new career.

Woodbury remembers the hardships his wife and young children faced as they lived on his unemployment for two years while he took classes at Lansing Community College to graduate with his associate's degree in criminal justice. Family and friends helped when Woodbury's car broke down, and they filled his tank when he ran out of gas money to commute to classes in Lansing.

"I think it drove me a little more. It was very difficult to return to school at the age of 34 with a family at home, and I made the most of it," Woodbury said. "It was kind of a blessing in disguise because I was not happy working in a factory and I couldn't walk away from the paycheck, so I was stuck."

With almost a year under his belt as a career planner at the HIDC, Woodbury meets with many area residents each week who are looking for work. And over the past few years, the number of people coming to the Career Alliance office has increased.

In 2007, about 23,200 individuals were served at the office. In 2008 that number jumped to 29,900 and by 2009 the office served more than 36,000 people. This year, the office has seen more than 18,000, Bowen said. And, with the recent halt to federal extensions of unemployment benefits, Bowen expects that number to increase over the next couple months. Many of the new and emerging occupations in Michigan - which range from a cardiac technician to online advertising sales manager to Web designer - also require a higher education or training in specific skills, Bowen said. "If you're a dislocated worker and if you're coming out of a service or manufacturing industry, you may have some transferable skills but you're going to need new skills to be qualified for these emerging occupations," she added.

Depending on the type of career a client is pursuing, training can range from a certificate program to a two-year associates degree or even a bachelor's degree, Bowen said. Additionally, funding ranging from scholarships to federal grants can also help people pay for their training, Bowen said.

"I tried to communicate what I had gone through to a lot of people," Strachota said. "That two-year opportunity is there - take advantage of it. Go and get the education like I did."

Bowen admits that in the past couple of years; No Worker Left Behind funding has been reduced, forcing those now hoping to get involved in the program to wait for funding. But she adds that job seekers can take advantage of many other free resources, including help with writing a resume, crafting a cover letter, filling out an application, searching for jobs and preparing for interview questions.

Moreover, for those like Woodbury and Strachota, utilizing job retraining and educational opportunities can lead to a new career and lifestyle. Compared to her 23-year position at the Lear Corp. plant in Elsie, Strachota said her job at HIDC is much less stressful and more fulfilling.

For Woodbury, graduating with his associate's degree was just the beginning of his path in higher education. Woodbury now is working on his bachelor's degree in criminal justice at the Lansing campus of Ferris State University. But he also hopes his educational path will set an example for his young children. "I want to show them it can be done," Woodbury said. "I'm the first one in my family to go to college and graduate. I want to make sure my kids know that and, that, they need to do the same."

Source: Argus-Press, Julianne Mattera, 7/20/10