Florida Manufacturing Jobs Offered by MOST
One Florida program is helping people get entry level jobs.
The Mobile Outreach Skills Training program trains and places low-skilled workers in entry level Florida manufacturing jobs. The program, funded by the United States Department of Labor and other local workforce boards, requires candidates to undergo an intense two-week training course in basic manufacturing skills.
The program is specifically designed to address the critical need for qualified manufacturing employees, including CNC machine operators. The training can be completed by new hires or existing employees to advance their existing skills. Graduates of the program earn an average of $31,200 per year plus health benefits, according to an article by FloridaToday.
Officials think the program could help offset the expected 2010 employment gap from the space shuttle program and the next generation of spacecraft.
“The technicians at the Space Center are exactly what we need,” Robert Scaringe, president and founder of Mainstream Engineering, said in the article. “We have a tremendous number of openings.”
Mainstream Engineering makes “high-speed, high-efficiency compressors and turbines for air, steam, refrigeration and other chemical process applications,” according to its Web site. It also makes thermal control systems and other components for spacecraft.
The company also is currently working on a 100-mph diesel hybrid car, deemed “the Hundred,” which it plans to unveil at an international car show in 2012.
Former Presidential Candidate Mike Huckabee and State Sen. Bill Posey recently toured a mobile classroom for the program. Huckabee said he thinks spending money on job retraining makes more sense than the current Wall Street bailout.
“I think it’s a fantastic model of a way to bring employment to people,” he said in the article.
“I think it’s a really good idea,” Posey added. “You rarely see something that comes out of Washington that truly helps people every day. There’s no downside to it.”