Workforce Development Initiatives
The masonry industry's workforce population is waning and it has been for over a decade - that's a fact. Both contractors and suppliers in the industry have a stake in this crisis. In order to grow, progress and ensure sustained industry production, new mason journeymen need to be trained by today's veterans. It is the time to recruit talented, hardworking youths that will carry on the trade's reputation for quality workmanship into the future. The MCAA understands this need, and has launched multiple programs that address recruitment and promote apprenticeship.
Shipping the career kits to each school is just the first step of this program. By building relationships with these schools, conducting career days, establishing vocational training programs, and arranging community events, this High School Recruitment Campaign will change the image of masonry in these young peoples' eyes and grow the workforce. This is a long-term, multi-stage, multi-target campaign offering much more than just a "career kit."
- Stage One: deliver career kit to each school as student resource and communicate with guidance counselor about encouraging students to use the kit.
- Stage Two: coordinate with guidance counselor to arrange visit from an industry representative with a masonry career presentation and a hands-on demonstration.
- Stage Three: establish Skills USA (or similar) masonry vocational training in each school.
- Stage Four: organize community event through the vocational classes (i.e. Habitat for Humanity) that will gain public relations exposure.
As the second stage of the program got underway in 2004, we began communicating on a quarterly basis with the counselors who have received our career kit. We send them newsletters via email and mail to remind them of our program's offerings (career days, brochures, posters), and updating them on our online database and industry news. The result of this communication is that we have fielded over 100 requests for career day presentations nationwide during the 2004-2005 school year. This number is five times more than we received in 2003.
The communication has continued with these counselors, and we have already received 30 requests for the 2005-2006 school year. Based on this, we will be developing presentation materials to provide to those volunteers who visit these schools.
The next stage in this campaign is to establish pre-apprenticeship programs in many of these high schools. We will be surveying each school in the program to determine feasibility and interest level, and then work with SkillsUSA and our members to provide training if possible.
The "Check Out a Career in Masonry" promotion campaign has introduced masonry to hundreds of thousands of young people who never before had knowledge of what our industry offers its workforce. We are continuing our effort to fund this program so we can fulfill our commitments to the remaining schools.
You can request a career kit or request a career day through our website.
The contest is especially important to the industry because it will be watched by an audience of not only Masonry Showcase attendees, but by the architect and specifier attendees of Construction Specifiers Institute's exhibits as well. Masonry Showcase's partnership in Construct America allows our industry to show off the quality of our craftsmen and the dedication of our apprentices to those who will be specifying systems and products for millions of dollars worth of business. It is integral that masonry represent itself as the obvious choice for these specifiers, and convince them that the industry can deliver if they design with our products. The Skills Challenge doed this by conducting a professional and impressive contest!
MCAA has increased the profile of the International Masonry Skills Challenge at Masonry Showcase, and it has left a positive impression on the audience. Some changes were issuing uniforms to all contestants, opening the contest floor to greater accessibility, publishing contestant profile brochures, incorporating stone in to the project designs?the list goes on and on. Basically, we have attracted greater numbers of spectators than ever before, and it is more important to do so than ever before.
The MCAA Workforce Development Committee plans every detail of this event, from project drawings and materials, to show floor design and sponsors. Thank you to all the committee members who help shape the success of the Skills Challenge.
For more information please, visit the International Masonry Skills Challenge page of our website.
Devoted to this goal, the Mason Contractors Association of America promotes programs that focus on the skills, workmanship, and strength of our workforce. The flagship program that was developed for this purpose was the Fastest Trowel on the Block competition. In this contest, journeymen from across the country compete at MCAA's Masonry Showcase to be called the "Fastest Trowel on the Block."
Throughout its history, the Fastest Trowel competition has been responsible for growing excitement about the trade and the journeymen that work so hard for pride in their workmanship. It has also prompted mason contractors to encourage skill and quality their workers, so they can have a contestant represent their companies in the competition. Each year, the energy increases on the contest floor as more and more spectators from the industry gather to see if the old records will be broken and to cheer on their hometown favorites. Most importantly, however, the spectators see the industry's best journeymen proving the superiority of masonry.
The Fastest Trowel competition benefits the masonry industry in many ways. It has created a level of pride among journeymen and contractors that translates quality construction when they install our materials. It has refocused our industry's attention on the need for promoting masonry systems. It educates about the benefits and quality of masonry workmanship. And finally, it has re-energized the industry as we band together to cheer on our journeymen.
For more information please, visit the Fastest Trowel on the Block page of our website.
You can purchase the Masonry Training Series through our website.
It also offers all masons the opportunity to develop and improve their people management skills. It is a different and unique course in which attendees learn through participation and interaction with other foremen. It is a combination of videos with actual case studies, role playing, and practical experience.
In 2005, the Masonry Foreman Development Course was thoroughly revised. MCAA staff and the course instructor completed a curriculum review of the materials, including the video, and student and instructor manuals.
In April 2005, there were 28 attendees at the course in Chicago, and the course attracted many of our new members. The course will once again be offered at Masonry Showcase, in March 2006, and is available for arrangement in various locations throughout the year.
For more information, please visit the Foreman Development Course page of our website.
Each year at convention, we will provide them with a meeting room to discuss the current trends in the masonry industry and in instruction. We will take their feedback into advisement regarding our committee's activities and initiatives. These Instructor Members are also the only instructors invited to judge the Masonry Skills Challenge, providing us with a skilled and reliable resource for this important role in this event.
To address our industry's workforce growth needs, the Mason Contractors Association of America launched a new website in October 2004, the Masonry Career Training database. This site contains a directory of masonry training and apprenticeship programs from across the country available for interested students to begin their careers. As of today, we have over 100 registered programs listed on the site, and we add more everyday. This website is the industry's only comprehensive resource for training programs.
MCAA works diligently to expand and maintain the quality of the information and features of our Masonry Career Training website. We are able to make changes and additions to our site at a moment's notice. We can update the database with new programs, new features, and new designs, ensuring that our information is always up-to-date and relevant.
An MCAA staff member has personally spoken with a representative of every program listed on the site. We have completed a profile on each of these programs, detailing class meeting times, instructor names, employment placement opportunities, and much more. Each of these programs has also signed a release stating that they will list their program with our site exclusively.
MCAA is selective as to which programs are listed, and there are criteria that the programs must meet in order to appear on the site. This entrance process, along with a yearly review of the program information with a representative at each location, has established our site as the most reliable source for quality training in the industry.
You can search the Masonry Career Training Database to find a training program near you.
The Masonry Career Center provides employers the ability to target their advertising to recruit just the candidates they're looking for—and spend less time doing it. The Masonry Career Center represents a niche talent pool of hundreds of masonry professionals, and what better place to find the candidates you need than the association that represents them?
For job seekers, the Masonry Career Center is the ideal place to be seen by employers who are specifically looking for masonry professionals. Job seekers can post their resumes (confidentially, if they choose), search jobs, apply online and set up search agents to provide automatic email notification whenever a posted job fits their criteria. They can even save jobs and apply when they are ready. All job-seeker functionality is free.
Post your resume or browse avaiable positions today at careers.masoncontractors.org.
SkillsUSA programs include local, state and national competitions in which students demonstrate occupational and leadership skills. During the annual national-level SkillsUSA Championships, more than 4,600 students compete in 80 occupational and leadership skill areas. SkillsUSA programs also help to establish industry standards for job skill training in the classroom.
There are over 250 SkillsUSA Masonry programs through out the United States. The MCAA is a full, voting member of the national Skills USA Masonry Technical Committee. The Association works annually to coordinate the SkillsUSA Championships in Kansas City each June with other industry partners.
For more information on SkillsUSA, please visit www.skillsusa.com.
