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ENLARGE
Education needed: Norm Gershon, president of Umpqua Training & Employment in Roseburg, believes education is a fundamental problem that creates the county‘s job gap. ‘We have a mismatch with skills and abilities with the people in our county,’ he said. ‘The basic problem is a lack of education.’
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Holding on to workers: Dick Baltus, one of the owners of Roseburg’s bbg Marketing, has hired many talented artists and designers. It’s keeping them in Roseburg that has been difficult. ‘It doesn’t matter if you’ve got skyscrapers around you. It matters if you have friends around you,’ he said. ‘That’s a difficult sell to the younger people.’
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Discovery program: During a session on how to use the ute1stop computers, a student points to a graph showing
the current unemployment rate in Oregon compared to the national numbers. The Discovery Program
at Umpqua Training & Employment includes orientation on the ute1stop computers in the lobby and a testing/evaluation period in the afternoon.
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Applicant testing: In front of a bulletin board at Umpqua Training & Employment Cody McCool, 24, of Roseburg, waits to take a test to earn a job at Roseburg Forest Product’s Engineered Wood Products plant in Riddle. McCool, recently out of the Army, is hoping to one day become a police officer.
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Some say it’s a lack of education. Others point to drugs. A lack of “soft skills” is admittedly also a problem with Douglas County’s work force.
For local employers, those are all reasons there is an employment gap in Douglas County. Unfortunately, there aren’t any easy solutions.
The average unemployment rate for Douglas County was 9.4 percent in 2004. During 2005, it peaked in February at that same number.
Though it hadn’t again reached 9 percent through November, it was still continuously well above the state and national averages throughout the year.
In November, Douglas County had the second highest unemployment rate in the state at 7.6 percent. There were 3,619 people counted as unemployed. Only six counties outside metropolitan areas had a higher total number of unemployed residents, all of which had a civilian labor force of at least 100,000 residents.
But, there are jobs out there. The Oregon Employment Department’s Roseburg office had 280 open jobs listed last week. That doesn’t include companies advertising in the newspaper or even just their store window.
Alcan Cable, for example, has held four employee recruitments in the last 1 1/2 years.
They’ve added 30 employees, but it hasn’t been easy.
“We struggle to find enough folks to fill those gaps sometimes,” said administration manager Shawn Ballard.
Alcan is particular about who they hire. At a starting rate of $13.81 an hour, maybe they can be.
Still, it can be astounding to management how few applicants even qualify for an interview.
Potential Alcan employees have to take a math and reading test. They must have a clean employment and criminal record and be drug free.
Often, those background checks aren’t even necessary. The majority of people flunk the basic skills test.
“We’re not talking engineering-level type questions, strictly typical everyday situations you would come across,” Ballard said.
Alcan contracts with Umpqua Training & Employment to administer those tests and recommend applicants.
For local employers, those are all reasons there is an employment gap in Douglas County. Unfortunately, there aren’t any easy solutions.
The average unemployment rate for Douglas County was 9.4 percent in 2004. During 2005, it peaked in February at that same number.
Though it hadn’t again reached 9 percent through November, it was still continuously well above the state and national averages throughout the year.
In November, Douglas County had the second highest unemployment rate in the state at 7.6 percent. There were 3,619 people counted as unemployed. Only six counties outside metropolitan areas had a higher total number of unemployed residents, all of which had a civilian labor force of at least 100,000 residents.
But, there are jobs out there. The Oregon Employment Department’s Roseburg office had 280 open jobs listed last week. That doesn’t include companies advertising in the newspaper or even just their store window.
Alcan Cable, for example, has held four employee recruitments in the last 1 1/2 years.
They’ve added 30 employees, but it hasn’t been easy.
“We struggle to find enough folks to fill those gaps sometimes,” said administration manager Shawn Ballard.
Alcan is particular about who they hire. At a starting rate of $13.81 an hour, maybe they can be.
Still, it can be astounding to management how few applicants even qualify for an interview.
Potential Alcan employees have to take a math and reading test. They must have a clean employment and criminal record and be drug free.
Often, those background checks aren’t even necessary. The majority of people flunk the basic skills test.
“We’re not talking engineering-level type questions, strictly typical everyday situations you would come across,” Ballard said.
Alcan contracts with Umpqua Training & Employment to administer those tests and recommend applicants.
Norm Gershon, UT&E president, believes a fundamental problem creates the gap between high unemployment and available jobs.
“We have a mismatch with skills and abilities with the people in our county,” he said. “The basic problem is a lack of education.”
<b>SKILLS MISMATCH</b>
Gershon is blunt about what a lack of education means to someone entering the work force.
“To be casual about education is to commit yourself to being poor,” he said.
He’d like to see a statement like that sprawled across billboards, newspapers and television commercials so students realize they will not earn a livable income without an education.
UT&E is a locally owned, nonprofit agency — funded by state and federal dollars — that works to train, educate and place potential employees.
“We have a mismatch with skills and abilities with the people in our county,” he said. “The basic problem is a lack of education.”
<b>SKILLS MISMATCH</b>
Gershon is blunt about what a lack of education means to someone entering the work force.
“To be casual about education is to commit yourself to being poor,” he said.
He’d like to see a statement like that sprawled across billboards, newspapers and television commercials so students realize they will not earn a livable income without an education.
UT&E is a locally owned, nonprofit agency — funded by state and federal dollars — that works to train, educate and place potential employees.
Gershon said unemployment is different today than it was when UT&E first opened in 1975.
“The winter would come and logging would stop and unemployment would go up,” he said. “ … The economy was very cyclical.”
Today, he said, it’s more “structural.” There aren’t drastic fluctuations in the unemployment rate. It remains high, Gershon said, because there seems to be an anti-education sentiment in Douglas County that just won’t go away.
It developed in decades past, he continued, when a student could drop out of school and immediately make more money than his or her teachers by working in the woods.
Timber jobs required little education or training and offered high wages. They were “miracle jobs,” Gershon said.
“There are no more miracles in our economy,” he said. “It’s based on skills.”
Even the most basic skills are lacking in many county residents.
A survey released in April by the Oregon Employment Department showed that 59 percent of businesses provide training in Douglas County. That’s the highest in the state.
Much of that training isn’t going toward developing high-level workers. It’s teaching the absolute basics.
Of the local businesses that provide training, more than 80 percent train employees to, among other skills, develop positive attitudes and work habits.
Rob Abbott, work force analyst for the county office of the Oregon Employment Department, hears about it often.
Even just showing up on time is important — and lacking, Abbott said.
“Being dependable is probably the number one thing I hear from employers,” he said. “(They say) ‘get me someone who’s dependable.’”
<b>OUT-OF-TOWN HIRING</b>
Abbott doesn’t put a lot of stock in unemployment rates. A better indicator, he said, is the work force.
“The winter would come and logging would stop and unemployment would go up,” he said. “ … The economy was very cyclical.”
Today, he said, it’s more “structural.” There aren’t drastic fluctuations in the unemployment rate. It remains high, Gershon said, because there seems to be an anti-education sentiment in Douglas County that just won’t go away.
It developed in decades past, he continued, when a student could drop out of school and immediately make more money than his or her teachers by working in the woods.
Timber jobs required little education or training and offered high wages. They were “miracle jobs,” Gershon said.
“There are no more miracles in our economy,” he said. “It’s based on skills.”
Even the most basic skills are lacking in many county residents.
A survey released in April by the Oregon Employment Department showed that 59 percent of businesses provide training in Douglas County. That’s the highest in the state.
Much of that training isn’t going toward developing high-level workers. It’s teaching the absolute basics.
Of the local businesses that provide training, more than 80 percent train employees to, among other skills, develop positive attitudes and work habits.
Rob Abbott, work force analyst for the county office of the Oregon Employment Department, hears about it often.
Even just showing up on time is important — and lacking, Abbott said.
“Being dependable is probably the number one thing I hear from employers,” he said. “(They say) ‘get me someone who’s dependable.’”
<b>OUT-OF-TOWN HIRING</b>
Abbott doesn’t put a lot of stock in unemployment rates. A better indicator, he said, is the work force.
Abbott said an economically viable community has a strong work force. That’s the number of people employed, plus those who are unemployed and available to work.
Douglas County has a potential working population — people between 18 and 69 years old who are physically and mentally able to work — of nearly 65,000. The average work force in 2004 was around 48,000.
Those numbers mean around 74 percent of the potential work force is available to work. For a rural community, that is a strong figure, Abbott said.
It is also a strong indicator of the employment gap.
The available work force is high, but they don’t all work. Companies that need a specific skill may not find a suitable candidate locally and have to look elsewhere.
Getting someone to relocate to Douglas County isn’t always easy.
Wages are part of the problem, Abbott said.
The average wage in Douglas County for 2004 was $30,085, according to employment department figures. That’s about $5,000 less than the state average, but locally it’s likely even more skewed because of higher-paying manufacturing jobs.
“Manufacturing doesn’t account for 80 percent of the jobs,” Abbott said.
If a local company is looking for someone trained and skilled in computers, they may have to look as far as Portland, Abbott said. That employee would then have to be sold on moving 180 miles south.
“It’s going to have to be a really good opportunity,” Abbott said.
Even that doesn’t always matter.
Dick Baltus, owner of Roseburg’s bbg Marketing, has hired many talented artists and designers. It’s keeping them in Roseburg that has been difficult.
“It doesn’t matter if you’ve got skyscrapers around you. It matters if you have friends around you,” he said. “That’s a difficult sell to the younger people.”
<b>COUNTY CULTURE</b>
Baltus describes the talent pool for his company’s needs as “shallow” locally. The company was built by local people, though, and Baltus said the talent level of local workers is as strong as anywhere.
Douglas County has a potential working population — people between 18 and 69 years old who are physically and mentally able to work — of nearly 65,000. The average work force in 2004 was around 48,000.
Those numbers mean around 74 percent of the potential work force is available to work. For a rural community, that is a strong figure, Abbott said.
It is also a strong indicator of the employment gap.
The available work force is high, but they don’t all work. Companies that need a specific skill may not find a suitable candidate locally and have to look elsewhere.
Getting someone to relocate to Douglas County isn’t always easy.
Wages are part of the problem, Abbott said.
The average wage in Douglas County for 2004 was $30,085, according to employment department figures. That’s about $5,000 less than the state average, but locally it’s likely even more skewed because of higher-paying manufacturing jobs.
“Manufacturing doesn’t account for 80 percent of the jobs,” Abbott said.
If a local company is looking for someone trained and skilled in computers, they may have to look as far as Portland, Abbott said. That employee would then have to be sold on moving 180 miles south.
“It’s going to have to be a really good opportunity,” Abbott said.
Even that doesn’t always matter.
Dick Baltus, owner of Roseburg’s bbg Marketing, has hired many talented artists and designers. It’s keeping them in Roseburg that has been difficult.
“It doesn’t matter if you’ve got skyscrapers around you. It matters if you have friends around you,” he said. “That’s a difficult sell to the younger people.”
<b>COUNTY CULTURE</b>
Baltus describes the talent pool for his company’s needs as “shallow” locally. The company was built by local people, though, and Baltus said the talent level of local workers is as strong as anywhere.
“They stand up to anybody I’ve seen,” he said. “The difficulty has been replacing them.”
Hiring from out of the area has proven dicey for bbg Marketing. Baltus has had an employee commute daily from Eugene, which did not work out. Another worker moved from Portland and didn’t last long because it was a “culture shock,” he said.
He doesn’t try to con anyone into coming to work for him in Roseburg, though.
“I am first and foremost brutally honest about what Roseburg is,” he said.
He admits it can be a lonely place for a single person who moves from out of town. There isn’t a wide variety of restaurants or shopping spots on every corner.
But he also stresses the “countless amenities” Douglas County has over big cities. The outdoor recreation and short lines at a restaurant or movie, among them.
“They will come here with a perception about what Roseburg is, and that will change when they’re here,” he said.
Baltus has made work force issues the platform of his yearlong Roseburg Area Chamber of Commerce presidency.
He remembers working for a home builder when he was younger.
Before he started the job, he had heard stories of the foreman, a man called “Sweed,” who was not to be messed with.
On his first day, Baltus showed up early. Another worker showed up five minutes late.
Sweed fired the late employee on the spot.
Hiring from out of the area has proven dicey for bbg Marketing. Baltus has had an employee commute daily from Eugene, which did not work out. Another worker moved from Portland and didn’t last long because it was a “culture shock,” he said.
He doesn’t try to con anyone into coming to work for him in Roseburg, though.
“I am first and foremost brutally honest about what Roseburg is,” he said.
He admits it can be a lonely place for a single person who moves from out of town. There isn’t a wide variety of restaurants or shopping spots on every corner.
But he also stresses the “countless amenities” Douglas County has over big cities. The outdoor recreation and short lines at a restaurant or movie, among them.
“They will come here with a perception about what Roseburg is, and that will change when they’re here,” he said.
Baltus has made work force issues the platform of his yearlong Roseburg Area Chamber of Commerce presidency.
He remembers working for a home builder when he was younger.
Before he started the job, he had heard stories of the foreman, a man called “Sweed,” who was not to be messed with.
On his first day, Baltus showed up early. Another worker showed up five minutes late.
Sweed fired the late employee on the spot.
“I never saw that guy again and I was never late,” Baltus said.
Local employers don’t always have that luxury. There isn’t necessarily a qualified employee waiting to replace one who is fired.
Baltus said employers have to be willing to invest in people.
Unfortunately, that can include turning away from potential problems.
“There are employers out there who want to implement a drug policy, but are afraid to,” he said. “ … That’s a terrible state for us to be in.”
<b>BRIDGING THE GAP</b>
The chamber is working on solutions. It formed the Workforce Collaborative, a collection of professionals from public and private sectors to find out which groups are doing what with work force issues.
Umpqua Community College, too, is trying to bridge the employment gap. The college has introduced a collection of new programs aimed at getting students quickly into the work force.
There are programs for truck drivers, construction workers and chefs. There soon might be a course teaching workers about those
much-needed soft skills.
UT&E works to educate people who walk through its doors, not just place them in temporary jobs. UTE places 95 percent of the people it trains. Those people, on average, make $7,649 more annually at their new jobs than before.
The business community is also working to get professionals into the schools. The goal is to get the young, talented minds of Douglas County thinking about Douglas County for their careers.
“That’s a long-term process, because there’s got to be jobs for them to come back to,” Baltus said. “When you’re talking about college graduates, you’re talking about good jobs, great jobs.”
Warehousing has been great to the area, Gershon says, with companies like WinCo Foods and Ingram Book Co. employing a high number of county residents. More warehousing would bring more jobs, as well as easier-to-fill jobs.
A new company, though, a high-technology company like Google or Intel, Gershon said, could immediately change the perception of Douglas County’s work force.
That might not be on the immediate horizon, but area business leaders point to expansion at companies like North River Boats and Orenco Systems, along with the arrival of Dell Inc. in 2002, as reason to believe the employment gap will shrink in time.
“This is not just a timber town anymore,” Baltus said. “Far from it.”
• You can reach reporter Paul Craig at 957-4211 or by e-mail at pcraig@newsreview.info.
Local employers don’t always have that luxury. There isn’t necessarily a qualified employee waiting to replace one who is fired.
Baltus said employers have to be willing to invest in people.
Unfortunately, that can include turning away from potential problems.
“There are employers out there who want to implement a drug policy, but are afraid to,” he said. “ … That’s a terrible state for us to be in.”
<b>BRIDGING THE GAP</b>
The chamber is working on solutions. It formed the Workforce Collaborative, a collection of professionals from public and private sectors to find out which groups are doing what with work force issues.
Umpqua Community College, too, is trying to bridge the employment gap. The college has introduced a collection of new programs aimed at getting students quickly into the work force.
There are programs for truck drivers, construction workers and chefs. There soon might be a course teaching workers about those
much-needed soft skills.
UT&E works to educate people who walk through its doors, not just place them in temporary jobs. UTE places 95 percent of the people it trains. Those people, on average, make $7,649 more annually at their new jobs than before.
The business community is also working to get professionals into the schools. The goal is to get the young, talented minds of Douglas County thinking about Douglas County for their careers.
“That’s a long-term process, because there’s got to be jobs for them to come back to,” Baltus said. “When you’re talking about college graduates, you’re talking about good jobs, great jobs.”
Warehousing has been great to the area, Gershon says, with companies like WinCo Foods and Ingram Book Co. employing a high number of county residents. More warehousing would bring more jobs, as well as easier-to-fill jobs.
A new company, though, a high-technology company like Google or Intel, Gershon said, could immediately change the perception of Douglas County’s work force.
That might not be on the immediate horizon, but area business leaders point to expansion at companies like North River Boats and Orenco Systems, along with the arrival of Dell Inc. in 2002, as reason to believe the employment gap will shrink in time.
“This is not just a timber town anymore,” Baltus said. “Far from it.”
• You can reach reporter Paul Craig at 957-4211 or by e-mail at pcraig@newsreview.info.
