CareerSource Tampa Bay has always been a pillar of support for the Hillsborough community and now, more than ever, their commitment to helping talent meet opportunity is critical, as people who have become unemployed due to the COVID-19 crisis search for stable, high-quality jobs. Fortunately, Hillsborough County has a booming industry right in its backyard—manufacturing.

In 2018, Hillsborough County was home to 1,203 manufacturers and more than 28,000 manufacturing jobs. With earnings over $54 billion, the manufacturing industry continues to grow more promising with each passing year.

“We are in the interview business. We want to talk to people, and get people talking to each other,” said Dan Schneckenburger, Director of Business Services at CareerSource Tampa Bay.

Working with employers and job seekers to help both sides find the right fit is one of CareerSource Tampa Bay’s top priorities. And it’s the reason why they have industry experts, like Angela Lyons, to help with recruiting, hiring and training solutions for newly relocated and current manufacturing employers. Groves is CareerSource Tampa Bay’s manufacturing sector expert and she works closely with manufacturers to help them find the talent they need—and continuously nurture the talent they have.

“We are here for manufacturing employers, providing innovative employment and training strategies that help strengthen their workforce and elevate employee skills, which gives businesses a competitive edge,” said Lyons.

As the manufacturing industry evolves with new innovation and more advanced technology, this training will be key to maintaining that competitive edge. CareerSource Tampa Bay’s On-The-Job Training (OJT) program was developed to encourage manufacturers to train new and inexperienced employees. Manufacturers can hire any qualified candidate they choose and CareerSource Tampa Bay will cover 50% of their paid wage during their training period and can even aid with candidate recruitment and pre-screening. Furthering the development within the manufacturing industry is well worth the price of training employees. And this investment in our workforce has never been more important than in a crisis like today’s COVID-19 pandemic.

While many answers about the future are still in the air, the challenges this pandemic presents is only pushing local Hillsborough County manufacturers to develop new and innovative ways to step up and support their communities. Manufacturers like Southern Manufacturing Technologies (SMT) and Sun Coatings are all responding to the crisis with ways to keep their employees safe and also lend a hand to those in need.

“I believe manufacturing is going to come out of this stronger than ever,” said Schneckenburger.

For more information visit www.CareerSourceTB.com or contact CareerSource Tampa Bay here.

Categorized in: Careers, Industry, Training