Submitted by Janis R. Trueblood
April 1 - June 30, 2004
231 Main Street, Quincy, CA 95971
(530) 283-1606
www.aworkforce.org
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QUARTERLY CONFERENCES 2004-2005 |
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"HOW TO HIRE AND FIRE LEGALLY"
Business representatives in Plumas County welcomed John McBride, Deputy Labor Commissioner with the Department of Industrial Relations back to our area. John kicked off this year's Quarterly Conference with "How to Hire and Fire Legally". In an open format of questions and answers, local business came prepared to get the answers and to develop solutions to assure that they are compliant with the most up-to-date labor laws. This is John's second time presenting for the Plumas Workforce Development Team's Quarterly Conferences which started in Portola on June 3rd at 7:30am and on to Quincy at 11:30am. The second day (June 4th) started in Greenville at 7:30am and wrapped up in Chester during the noon hour. Over 60 businesses attended across the County and feedback was very positive about the presentation (although not everyone liked everything John had to say).
The plans in progress for the rest of this year's Quarterly Business Seminar series will be focused on the general topics of "Employee Recruitment & Hiring", "Orientation & Training", and "Employee Retention". Stay tuned for updates in future Quarterly Reports. |
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Quarterly Conferences Plumas Workforce Development Team Working together to support local business!
Members of the Plumas Workforce Development Team includes representatives from the Employment Development Department, Plumas Corporation, Plumas Rural Services, Plumas County Office of Education, Feather River College, Plumas County CalWORKs, Alliance for Workforce Development, the Small Business Development Center, and the Quincy, Lake Almanor, Eastern Plumas, and Indian Valley Chamber's of Commerce. |
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ASKED TO SHARE BEST PRACTICES! Alliance for Workforce Development, Inc., has had two requests to speak on behalf of their development of business services including their newly formed focus on "HR Solutions to Business". The first week in April, AFWD joined the Shasta Private Industry Council, the Tehama Job Training Center, and Northern Rural Training & Employment Consortium representatives to present at the California Workforce Association's Annual Conference in San Diego. During two different sessions, NoRTEC had the opportunity to share their innovative approaches to business services including the successes and challenges. On June 17th, six representatives from the Community Services Consortium in Oregon visited the Lassen Career Network to learn more about how we have been successful in delivering HR Solutions and other business services. It was a very pleasant afternoon, starting with lunch at the Black Bear Diner followed by an informal information exchange the rest of the afternoon. Kathleen, Sharee, Joan, Tanarae, Marie, and Sue were wonderful guests and we wish them every success in their endeavors to "kick off" a business services program in the beautiful State of Oregon. |
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JOB SEEKER TRANSITION SUCCESS STORY Receiving her lay-off notice from the sales department by a large manufacturing business was a “blessing in disguise.” Stacie Berrie, a single mother and Quincy resident was seeking assistance with finding the one great job after being laid off. Confident that she would be employed right away, Stacie used this opportunity to seek assistance through the Alliance for Workforce Development with career planning and job search. Stacie first met with AFWD staff in August of 2003. She was eager to explore career opportunities in Quincy and develop a plan for her job search. Stacie had several years experience in sales but stated that she was somewhat “dissatisfied with this career.” . Stacie and Employment Specialist Jeff Finch developed a Job Search Plan targeting employment in the Human Services field. Through a brief analysis of her basic computer skills, staff was able to determine that an upgrade was needed. Stacie worked through Element K for office related computer skills upgrades. She also attended Job Seeker Workshops to increase her marketability. Stacie excelled at resume writing, interviewing and networking. Over the next few months, Stacie applied with several businesses in the Quincy area and was invited to several interviews. However, securing employment became increasingly elusive. Stacie met with Athea Stephenson, AFWD’s Program Coordinator. Athea was able to assist Stacie with barrier resolution and career confirmation through various assessment tools and with professional guidance. These services provided Stacie with the confidence to remain focused and stay on track. Stacie never quit! By February of 2004, Stacie had secured employment through one of our areas largest employers, Plumas Rural Services (PRS), a non-profit agency providing a multitude of service and assistance to the community. Stacie began working as a Program Assistant where the tutorials through Element K “paid off.” She also took an “on-call” position with PRS as a Domestic Violence Counselor. Stacie was beginning to feel the rewards of working in Human Services which she so eagerly sought. As of July 2004, Stacie has remained employed with PRS and is working full time with benefits. She has decided to continue her college education, “one class at a time” until she completes her Bachelors Degree.
AFWD is proud to have a
client as determined and consistent as Stacie Berrie. |
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HR Solutions for Business The AFWD HR Solution Team is ready to kick off their full service menu to local businesses! AFWD staff passed the California Accredited Consultant exam in May. Those staff included Gary Corderman, Nancy Gregg, Jeff Finch, Deborah McClure, Laurie Wann, Ken Cordrey, Holly Schirmer, Traci Holt, Leslie Solberg and yours truly. Moving forward, the Team will be using a variety of outreach methods to get the word out that they are ready and available to provide high quality services. So far, the public seems very receptive to this new array of services which include customized recruitment, position descriptions, employee handbooks, customized training, safety programs, sexual harassment prevention, and more! more! more! Lake & Glenn County Invites AFWD to Present The Lake County Business Outreach Team invited AFWD to present to a group of hospitality industry businesses on May 20th at their office in Lakeport on FUNdamentals of Customer Service. I had the opportunity to spend the afternoon with a great group of people and share some good ideas on how to improve customer service in their respective businesses while having some fun in the process. The evaluations were positive and we look forward to the opportunity to come back to Lake County soon! On June 23rd, Glenn County businesses were gathered in Willows to hear a presentation on Recruiting, Hiring, and Retaining Mr./Ms. "B" Right. Although the turnout was small, the informative presentation helped those in attendance come up with workforce solutions that may help reduce turnover through best practices in hiring and ideas for motivating and keeping good employees. AFWD has been asked to return in November with the same presentation....of course we are happy to oblige. A special thank you to Jeff Lucas for thinking of us and "giving us the show"! |
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EMPLOYMENT & TRAINING COMMITTEE Guest Speaker, Jim Pena, USFS May 2004 Forest Supervisor, Jim Pena, spoke to the Employment & Training Committee about upcoming goals and focus of the Plumas National Forest and how that will impact the local economy. Jim stated that there is a challenge with the location in getting qualified employees that are high-skilled and diverse. The Plumas National Forest currently has 413 employees which includes permanent, students, and part-time. This will increase an additional 100 positions by July 2004. Jim stated that there is currently 125 temporary positions filled with the need to fill 43 more. The greatest concern for the USFS is that they recruit from all over the country but there is very limited housing in Plumas County. There is a need for increased development of rental houses of better quality. This has been 90% of the hiring battle in getting people to relocate to the Plumas National Forests. For a full report of the Employment & Training Committee Meeting, click: MeetingNotes5_20_04.doc The members of the Plumas Employment & Training Committee are the decision makers who can commit resources to projects, grants, etc., and carry out hte Workforce Employment Plan in Plumas County. This committee consists of community and business leaders.
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GRIZZLY CREEK RANCH "CAMP FOR KIDS" OPENS! Sierra Health Foundation opens the Grizzly Creek Ranch east of Portola to serve children populations with special needs. On May 26th, AFWD Staff Athea Stephenson and Janis Trueblood had the opportunity to tour the Camp along with other members of the Feather River College/Plumas County Office of Education Tech-Prep Committee. The Ranch is beyond impressive and is difficult to describe adequately in written form. We encourage you to check out their website at: http://www.grizzlycreekranch.org/ Our compliments to Sierra Health Foundations' vision and dedication to helping children.
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AFWD WELCOMES NEW CONTROLLER BARRY SEGULYEV Although being the "Acting Controller" for a few months was a whole lot of fun, there was a sigh of relief when Barry Segulyev said yes to our offer of employment starting in May (most of the relief was on the part of our Executive Director, Gary Corderman). Barry comes to us with a strong background in non-profit accounting out of the Sacramento area. He has always wanted to migrate to the beautiful Sierra's and we were happy to offer him the opportunity to relocate to Mohawk Valley. Welcome Barry! |
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UPCOMING EVENTS PLUMAS Quarterly Conference,
Recruiting and Hiring the Right Employee NoRTEC Program
Directors Meeting LASSEN Paid Family Leave Workshop Website Training Class HR Solutions to Business MODOC Paid Family Leave Workshop
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