GROWING THE TRUCKING WORKFORCE IN WISCONSINKim Thill Kathy Heady Bruce Palzkill Sandy Schmit

Partners

State Agency Partners– Wisconsin Department of

Workforce Development (DWD)

– Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation (WEDC)

– Wisconsin Technical College System (WTCS)

Industry Partners– Schneider National, Green

Bay

– Roehl Transport, Marshfield

– WEL Companies, De Pere

– Truck Country, Appleton

– Marten Transport, Mondovi

Wisconsin Motor Carriers Association

Wisconsin Transportation Consortium• Economic development tied to transportation

– Infrastructure, trained professionals, and industry capital investments

• Transportation jobs for people in Wisconsin – 1 in 15 workers tied to “trucking,” $41,000 average salary, $6.6B

annual payroll

• Transportation industry workforce needs: common challenges, equally unsuccessful results– Lack of interested/qualified/trained workforce and spiraling cost

of filling needs

Consortium – Original Objectives and Goals• Build public/private partnership through collaborative

efforts with WI based transportation employers and State agencies

• Initial focus was industry-led effort to source, train, and place WI residents in stable, well-paying transportation jobs

• Primary initiatives included:– Integrated marketing effort to increase awareness of need and

opportunities– Building levels of training capacity in the state to meet the

industry’s needs– Identify and secure funding opportunities that help meet

collective objectives

Mutual Needs – Jobs and Job Creation• WI Motor Carriers Association members started

working together to fill vital industry workforce needs: CDL drivers and diesel technicians– Marten Transport, Mondovi– Roehl Transport, Marshfield– Schneider National, Green Bay– Truck Country, Appleton– WEL Companies, De Pere

Common challenges and opportunities • Lack of interested, qualified, and trained CDL drivers and

diesel techs, yet many in WI are out of work

• Shortages today will become more severe at a higher rate than other industries– Aging transportation workers retiring and younger workers not

backfilling them – Increased regulatory requirements and liability exposure increasing

standards– Widening gap could limit economic expansion (manufacturing) in

the state

• Collective efforts can yield better results for all– Statewide marketing and recruiting actions– Expansion of in-state training capacity for diesel techs and CDL

drivers– Fill transportation jobs, employ WI residents, optimize funding

resources

WEDC Business & Industry Development Division

Leveraging industry leadership to accelerate growth and high quality jobs by advancing targeted, high impact initiatives

in Wisconsin.

Qualifying Investment Criteria

• Industry-Led• High Job Creation• High Economic

Impact

• Sustainable• High Return• Low Managed Risk

Collaboration

Trucking Consortium

WEDC

DWD

WTCS

• Workforce Development Boards (WDBs)

• Technical Colleges

• Department of Transportation (DOT)

• National Guard

• Veteran’s Services

3 Goals

• Increasing awareness / visibility

• Increasing training capacity

• Reduction in training costs

INCREASING AWARENESS

Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation• Visibility

– Outreach to veterans• Military CDL waivers formalization with Department

of Transportation– http://www.dot.wisconsin.gov/drivers/drivers/apply/types/

cdl-military.htm

– Youth Apprenticeship

Department of Workforce Development

• Web-page– Trucking was first industry sector included on

the Job Center of Wisconsin (JCW) Website– Initial focus: increase awareness of Diesel

Mechanic/Technician and CDL/Over-the-road truck driver career opportunities

– Direct link for training opportunities

DWD (Cont’d)

• Web-page (cont’d)– Worked with Trucking Consortium to identify

relevant industry reports/trends– Incorporated current State and Federal labor

market information pertinent to these careers– Increased awareness by having trucking

company logos prevalent on this page.

DWD (Cont’d)

• Email outreach– Have done several rounds of email blasts to

job seekers to raise awareness of career opportunities

– Separate email blasts to veterans

DWD (Cont’d)

• Next steps– 1) Increasing the number of trucking firms

participating in this website– 2) Implementing the web-site as an entry

portal to CDL training program

Web-site Hits• Hits, 1/1/2012 – 12/31/2012:

16,545

• Hits, 1/1/2013 – 1/29/2013:2,849

• Projected hits for 2013:36,540

INCREASING CAPACITY

Supply Chain/Logistics

Diesel Technician Programs

Truck Driving Technician Programs

Training Capacity• Start of consortium

– Diesel Technician - 200 annually, however 100 graduate

– Truck Drivers-Class A CDL - 350 annually• Today

– Diesel Technician - 250, TBD on the number of graduates

– Truck Drivers-Class A CDL - 1200 annual

Projects• Brainstorming sessions with

Deans/Faculty• Meetings with industry to make

connections with colleges and to raise awareness

• Made connections between industry and career prep college staff

• Developed online hybrid curriculum for several diesel courses

New Programs• FVTC and CVTC have expanded diesel

program capacity• FVTC has expanded truck driver training

capacity• All colleges have or will offer a 4 week CDL

contract training program• 1 College is exploring a Class A CDL program• 2 Colleges are exploring or expressed interest

in Diesel Programming

Challenges

• Program Cost– Low instructor to student ratio in truck driver

training– Equipment and facility needs for both

programs• Attracting students to programs• Time to develop skills-difficult to

“accelerate” or shorten programs

REDUCING TRAINING COSTS

High Cost of Training

• Potential Opportunities Identified– CDL Training program– Funding avenues– Existing Resources

• Financial aids from schools• Veterans Benefits

Key to Approach• Industry-led • Identification of commonalities

– Assists all companies– “…take off your competitive hats and leave them

at the door.”– Understanding of the mutual interest of working

together• Clearly articulated goals• Industry-Agency collaboration• Multi-pronged approach to solutions

Q&A

Agency ContactsKathleen Heady, Sector ManagerKathy.heady@wedc.org

Bruce Palzkill, Section ChiefBruce.palzkill@dwd.wisconsin.gov

Sandra Schmit, Education Director-Transportation and ElectronicsSandra.Schmit@wtcsystem.edu