Hiring for successAgencies helping to boost the job pool and connect candidates with employersStory by Kurt RentmeesterSearching for qualified job applicants in a tight labor market can be a costly and exhaustive process. Staffing agencies ease that burden by taking on that work, while service providers can direct businesses to an often overlooked pool of highly-qualified candidates with disabilities. Finding qualified job applicants will continue to be challenging as the job market changes, predicted Hans Schultz, director of business development with Landmark Staffing Resources, an employment agency with offices in Oshkosh, Appleton and Green Bay. Projected statistics for the next few years point that out. By 2010, the United States will have 16.7 million available jobs, while labor projections estimate 15.7 million available workers, according to figures from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. In Wisconsin, about 348,000 jobs are expected to be created between 2004 and 2014, according to the Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development. Another 1.07 million jobs are also expected to open up during that period. “We’re in a tight labor market right now. We have contacts saying to us that they’ve tried to hire for a position on their own,” Schultz said. “They’ve tried all the recommended means and they’re not finding candidates that are truly on target.” With the significant cost of hiring, more businesses are turning to employment agencies such as Landmark to screen applicants and hire them on a temporary basis. “When you hire someone in a temp-hire situation, you essentially have a three-month working interview, when you see that person in action, performing the job duties, and interacting with the people in the department,” Schultz said. Applicants to Landmark may go through a battery of performance-measuring tests using Microsoft Office Suite software, including Word, Excel and Outlook. Skills such as basic math and proofreading also are tested and evaluated to ensure the potential staffer is up to the demands of the position the company is looking to fill. Businesses want to know if applicants can follow directions. Landmark offers self-paced tutorials and other guidance through an alliance with Fox Valley Technical College. “The evaluations often tell me whether they can perform the specific task,” Schultz said. “It may be an indicator of their ability to follow directions and to problem solve on the job.” Helping people find jobs in the 1990s was much easier because there was a shortage of employees, according to Deborah Franke, employment and marketing coordinator with Valley Packaging Industries of Appleton. She and her co-workers help match jobs for their clients, many who are referred by the Outagamie County Department of Health and Human Services, but still others who come to Valley Packaging with a master’s degree and years of job experience. In addition to helping people find jobs, Valley Packaging employs 1,300 people facing language, cognitive, physical, other employment barriers, as well as those with no special needs. “We have a very integrate workforce,” Franke said. “We also have employees who aren’t in any of our programs.” Martin said most of Goodwill’s client base has some type of disability, including cognitive, physical or anxiety disorders, but still can be opportune employees. Goodwill provides training to the clients before placing them at a job site, and over the years has established excellent relationships with several area businesses, such as the five Rogan’s Shoes stores in the Fox Valley. Alex Annoye, a disability navigator for Workforce Economics Inc. in Oshkosh, helps disabled clients use employment programs in seven counties, including Winnebago, Outagamie and Fond du Lac. While increasing a client’s employment abilities, Annoye said he wants to educate employers on the benefits of hiring employees with disabilities. That market is often underserved and underemployed. “People with disabilities often are dedicated and better workers because they’re glad to be working,” said Rich Redman, director of marketing for Goodwill Industries of North Central Wisconsin. “Online applications can be difficult, even for someone with great computer skills – let alone someone who might have none,” Ormsbee said. “They are very long and very involved and are difficult for some people to comprehend, who could otherwise do a job that’s available.” In some cases, Ormsbee said human resources departments might be attempting to make their own job easier by reducing the number of applicants they have to screen. He warns employers that doesn’t always lead to the best pool of applicants. Businesses often don’t realize applicants with disabilities can represent the best option among candidates for a position because they can’t see past the accommodations they need to provide. It’s not only illegal to discriminate in hiring a particular candidate based on a disability, but it’s important for many employers to recognize that providing accommodations doesn’t have to be a tremendous burden. “A lot of times, the perception (of businesses) when they hear the word ‘accommodations,’ they think it’s going to cost a ton of money,” Annoye said. The Americans with Disabilities Act requires many newly constructed buildings, for example, be handicap accessible. “It’s really underutilized,” Annoye said. “The staffing agencies are more well-known. We provide a free service and potential benefits for employers who hire people with disabilities.” While the hiring process can be exhausting, Schultz of Landmark said it also can be exciting for businesses. New employees – with or without disabilities – can bring a fresh perspective to the workplace. But finding qualified workers will continue to be a challenge. Landmark found work opportunities on a temporary basis for about 1,500 employees in the Fox Valley last year. “The fact that we have so many opportunities and open jobs, that’s a positive,” Schultz said. “Companies are hiring again. Things are happening in business.” |