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Along with Nataline Lomedico, our CEO and president, I attended the 2nd annual Career Fair at California High School, in Whittier on Friday, February 3rd. It was at a NAWIC Orange County networking dinner, the previous week, where I learned about this event from Izzy Zandvliet, (shown below at her own NAWIC table) , and when I eagerly signed us up to host a table. The Job Fair was open to all students from grade levels 9 through 12, and the school estimates that about 2,800 attended over an extended lunch hour.
With about 700 students estimated to graduate from California High School this year, what a wonderful pool of potential new hires they were! There was a wide diversity of industries represented at the Fair that day. We were among a variety of tables representing companies or agencies from law enforcement to tattoo artistry, from IT specialists to emergency medical teams . . .!
We found that there was actually considerable interest in our industry and especially among those students in which a few of their family members already worked in construction. The fact that as a Union ( Union #636, District Council 36) shop, we pay better wages to journeymen/women than some college graduates earn created much surprise and definitely piqued their interest. That construction technology and projects/locations constantly change also was seen as a big plus by many of the students.
By staffing our table with two women, especially with Nataline, who fills our very top position, one of our goals was to engage female students. At first, I wasn’t sure if we succeeded, as some students expressed concern about the dangers of construction jobs. I explained to them that our safety record is among the top in the industry. Known within the industry as our “EMR” (Experience Modification Rate) Rating, Giroux Glass’ rating so far, in 2017, is at .72 — excellent numbers which are the source of much company pride. Our corporate culture is one of respect for everyone and his or her safety, at Giroux Glass. We take safety seriously, and recognize that it’s critically important when you consider projects in places like the outside top stories of downtown high-rises, where you can look way up and often see our glaziers at work. I had the feeling that some of the students very much liked the fact that they could do a “dangerous” job in a safe environment and we may have swayed their opinions.
I would call the day a definite success. We distributed quite a few marketing materials and I had to make additional copies of a leaflet I had put together about the career path for a journeyman glazier. Many students said they would keep us in mind and seemed genuinely interested in our projects. One student asked to arrange for a visit our shop, to chat with our glaziers first-hand.
Finally, I had so much fun – which I did NOT expect — and I think that Nataline did too. It was so great to talk with these students and to feel their genuine interest in our industry. I found it inspiring that these young people were already giving such careful consideration to their future careers. It was a day well spent, if we could spark that interest in our industry in just a few young people – and also dispel a few misperceptions about the way construction works. I would happily do this again.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/2″][vc_single_image image=”266″ img_size=”450×350″ alignment=”center”][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/2″][vc_single_image image=”267″ img_size=”450×350″ alignment=”center”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/2″][vc_single_image image=”268″ img_size=”450×350″ alignment=”center”][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/2″][vc_single_image image=”269″ img_size=”450×350″ alignment=”center”][/vc_column][/vc_row]