Training program hopes to bolster skilled work force

By ROBERT BAKER The Item Staff Writer Local businesses and educators are hoping Clarendon County will have one of the best-prepared work forces in South Carolina this fall once the Rural Economic Workforce Alliance for Resource Development (REWARD) program gets under way. Beginning in late August, the program seeks to help those workers who otherwise wouldn't have certain job requirements meet those requirements, then find gainful employment. "The problem that we are having in the community is that a lot of people need work, but they're not having the skills to do the work," said John M. Truluck, executive director of the Clarendon County Development Board. "It's kind of a common misconception in this county that we just don't have the jobs, but we do. The problem is we don't have the qualified work force to fill those jobs." The development board has joined with Clarendon County Adult Education, the F.E. DuBose Career Center, all three Clarendon County school districts, numerous businesses and Central Carolina Technical College to bring REWARD to Clarendon County next month. The program, Truluck said, was copied from programs that have already been implemented in Marion, Dillon and Chesterfield counties and will apply to many career fields, including manufacturing, textiles, medical, retail and technology. Bobby McDonald, supervisor, and Patsy White run DC-1, a paper dropcloth folding machine. Applications for Clarendon County's REWARD program, which will match qualified workers to such jobs, will be taken through Aug. 10. The REWARD program is modeled after those in neighboring counties, according to county Development Board Executive Director John M. Truluck.

"It started in Marlboro County and moved on to those others," he said. "We have patterned ours after what they did. There has been talk of extending it statewide, but we wanted to get in early on before that."

The program, which will target those who are unemployed, underemployed and those who have been denied work because of no qualifications, teaching interview skills, workplace ethics, computer skills, problem solving skills, professionalism and WorkKeys preparation, said Julie Griffin, Clarendon County Adult Education director.

"Some jobs right now require WorkKeys," she said. "It's a type of assessment that lets employers know, based on a certain score, what your skill level might be."

The assessment, she said, is now given in high school, but those who are new to the idea might have a little bit of trouble qualifying for employment, which Truluck added can lead to a prospective employee filling out application after application without getting anywhere.

"A lot of times, businesses will get a number of applications, but the ones who are applying don't have the qualifications," he said. "Then, later on when another opening comes up, those same people are filling out the applications again and still aren't qualified, and it just becomes this long cycle."

That's why Truluck and Griffin hope the program will create a pool of employees who are not only ready to work, but are qualified to do it.

"This will be our first go of it," he said. "In the other counties, they're now running three classes: morning, afternoon and evening. We're just doing morning, but we hope to expand eventually if this works well."

The program will begin Sept. 10 and end Nov. 1. Orientation will be Aug. 27.

"The deadline for applications in Aug. 10," Griffin said. "Then, we will of course have orientation and assessment and find out where we need to put someone."

Other than the application, there's no other qualification, other than that the student must be able to attend morning classes.

"We'll run for eight weeks," Truluck said. "Then, they will get a certificate, which hopefully will be able to get them a job."

He said for the first session of the program they might try to have local businesses come during graduation and have a career fair.

"Of course, the million dollar question is who is going to be hiring after this, and the answer to that is that we don't know," he said. "But we hope to, at the time of graduation, have these (students) be able to talk to some of these companies."

The program is free, and Truluck and Griffin noted many businesses in the community will be contributing their time and assets.

"All of the partners are kind of chipping in where they can with some of the industries providing instruction," Truluck said.

Griffin agreed.

"This program, I think, is really going to help us unite in the community and see what kind of resources we all have to make this county a better place to work and live," she said. "I'm in adult education and John is out there in the work force, and we're just interested in reaching those who need employment."