Featured photo: (left to right) Rep. Dan Kildee and Secretary of Labor Marty Walsh
Photos by Tanya Terry
Written by Tanya Terry
WASHINGTON –Dr. Beverly Walker-Griffea, president of Mott Community College, recently thanked Rep. Dan Kildee for the work he has done to support MCC and other community colleges throughout Michigan. She also said she was thrilled U.S. Secretary of Labor Marty Walsh toured Mott Community College’s Regional Technology Center with Kildee on Nov. 1.
“We are doing everything we can at the federal level, particularly recently, to invest in American manufacturing,” stated Kildee. “Our Make it in America agenda, which we’ve been seeing in the Inflation Reduction Act, the CHIPS and Science Act, which is really going to put us in a position to own our own future by reshoring manufacturing. It’s a huge step forward, and we’re beginning to see the fruits of that already in mid-Michigan. We’re seeing companies make the decision to invest in new facilities, in new material, in new capacity. But of course all of that requires a skilled workforce. What we’re seeing here is the marriage of those needs, of the industry needs, of the investment that we’re making to stand up a much more robust manufacturing base here, bringing back manufacturing.”
Kildee pointed out Flint was a community built on the manufacturing economy, specifically the auto manufacturing economy. However, he said over the years, a lot of the supply chain disappeared oversees.
“To reinvest in manufacturing requires us to reinvest in the skills of that workforce,” Kildee added. “We’ve been able to do that here, with the support of the United States Department of Labor.”
Kildee said one thing he saw that day was a group of employees in a pre-apprenticeship program that will lead them to work at Consumer’s Energy. Kildee had the opportunity to meet with some of these individuals.
Steve LePage, plant manager at Miller Industries, spoke about the apprenticeship partnership at Mott Community College. According to LePage, Miller Industries, in southern Genesee County, is in need of 100 new employees for its new expansion. The end goal of the apprenticeship program at Mott for Miller Industries is to have employees end up with a state of Michigan journeyman’s license exam. LePage further explained their partnership with Mott.
“Mott’s portion was the curriculum and academic part to achieve the hours needed for that requirement,” LePage explained. “Miller Industries’ part was to structure 8,000 hours of on-the-job-training over a four-year program to meet the other half of that. I’m just proud to say that currently, we’re in the fourth year of that program, and our first class that we started is currently studying to take their journeyman’s exam.”
The first apprenticeship program Miller Industries had with Mott was for welding. The third apprenticeship will be a sheet metal worker apprenticeship program for Miller Industries.
Goyette Mechanical, located on Court Street in Flint, also utilizes a workforce training program through MCC. Goyette Mechanical has been in the Flint community since 1928. Many Goyette technicians, supervisors and service managers are graduates of the program at Mott.
There is a growing need for skilled trades in installation service, EPC controls, welding and electrical fields.
Students who complete programs at Mott College have the basic knowledge to hit the ground running. Credits also carry over to universities.
A participant of the U.S. Department of Labor’s Job Corps Scholars Program, Matt Tremain, also spoke Nov. 1. Tremain is currently enrolled at Mott and is part of the electric line worker apprenticeship program. His tuition has been sponsored by a grant called Workforce Job Corps Scholars. Tremain said the grant has also helped him with supportive services, such as transportation assistance.
Walsh highlighted the value of workforce development in supporting our nation’s economy. He said his first career was in construction. Walsh spoke on the Biden-Harris administration’s commitment to reducing costs for American families and creating good-paying, union jobs through the investments from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, Inflation Reduction Act and the CHIPS and Science Act.
Intel has committed to spending $20 billion to build two factories in New Albany, Ohio that will employ 3,000 workers. With the backing of the CHIPS Act, the company has said the total investment could end up being $100 billion with as many as eight factories on the site. This would make it one of the largest semiconductor sites on Earth, according to the Columbus Dispatch.
Walsh and Kildee saw the Auto Lab at Mott, right in Flint. Walsh said there he learned about electric vehicles and how they’re going to service such vehicles in the future.
“Think about where our county was two years ago,” Walsh suggested. “We had 10 million Americans out of work. We had a crumbling infrastructure in our country where our Congress couldn’t get infrastructure over the last 20 years, trying to pass a major bill. We were losing jobs to oversees. Our prescription drug costs were high. Our deficit was growing. In less than two years, the American Rescue Plan got shots in people’s arms and got 10 million people back to work. It helped us create more opportunities. We’re back to full employment in almost every single industry. There are some industries that are exceeding full employment. Manufacturing is one of those.”
Walsh pointed out Michigan will get $8 million to rebuild roads and bridges, replace lead pipes and install affordable high speed internet.
“And that’s just the beginning of when you think about laying down the foundation,” Walsh added. “Businesses know this and colleges know this. We’re here because we’re talking about preparing and educating people for the future.”
