Tag Archives: idaho employers

Apprenticeship Spotlight: Idaho floral business grows careers through Registered Apprenticeship

NEWS RELEASE

For Immediate Release: Feb. 15, 2023
Media Contact: Gina Robison, Gina.Robison@labor.idaho.gov

Contributor: Mike Hollenbeck, American Institute for Floral Designers

Construction, technology, advanced manufacturing and a host of other industries benefit greatly from apprenticeship programs – why not include the floral industry?

Floral Artistry, a floral business in Lewiston, recently made use of a Registered Apprenticeship, a training program registered through the U.S. Department of Labor that provides paid on-the-job learning and related technical instruction.

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Labor expands its employment services in north central Idaho

-Mobile Labor locations now available in Grangeville, Kamiah, Kendrick, Moscow, Potlatch, Orofino and Weippe-

People living in remote, rural areas of north central Idaho can now access Idaho Department of Labor services at seven – soon to be eight – nearby locations.

“Our mobile offices allow us to bring our services to you,” explains Department of Labor Director Jani Revier. “With the help of our partners of local libraries, community centers, city halls and other organization, we’re in more locations than ever before.”

Idahoans throughout the state can now get help finding a new job, upgrading their skills and increasing their earning potential in more than 50 locations. All mobile Labor locations offer walk-in hours and appointments for help with writing resumes, filling out job applications, preparing for an interview, accessing job training resources, filing for unemployment insurance benefits and other services.

Labor services for businesses include support for listing jobs, recruiting employees, organizing hiring events, employer seminars and gaining access to job training programs.

Three local office employees from the Lewiston Idaho Department of Labor office visit Kendrick, Moscow and Potlatch.

The remaining five offices are managed by Monica Jones and Heather Lerandeau. Together, they deliver a wide range of employment services to local job seekers and employers in Orofino, Weippe, Grangeville, Kamiah and Riggins, which opens April 14.

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Labor Department Unveils New Look for IdahoWorks Website

NEWS RELEASE

For Immediate Release: March 5, 2021
Media Contact: Darlene Carnopis, Darlene.Carnopis@labor.idaho.gov

The Idaho Department of Labor’s website to connect job seekers with employers has a new look.

IdahoWorks.gov customers will find:

  • Contemporary new design.
  • More intuitive workflows which means fewer clicks to find what you need.
  • New components for better usability ‒ easier and improved login process.
  • Improved accessibility.
  • Updated job and resume search which delivers more information at a glance to users and includes tags for wages, education and experience requirements and remote work opportunities.
  • Updated resume pages with improved navigation, clear instructions, better wizards.
  • Improved mobile-friendly design.
  • Reorganized employer registration with clear notifications and instructions, improved navigation.

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Developing a Skilled Workforce Through Registered Apprenticeships

by Idaho Department of Labor Director Melinda S. Smyser

Not too long ago, St. Mary’s Hospital in Cottonwood found itself in need of a medical lab scientist. After searching eight months for a qualified applicant, hospital officials worked with their local Idaho Department of Labor office to develop a registered apprenticeship program. Today the program is working so well St. Mary’s plans to set up a second apprenticeship for the same skill set.

As I meet with Idaho employers, they tell me they all have one thing in common with St. Mary’s Hospital. They need a pipeline of skilled workers with industry-specific training and hands-on experience.

Registered apprenticeships are a proven strategy for successfully building that pipeline and benefits both businesses and job seekers. Most employers see reduced turnover costs, greater employee retention, increased productivity and an average of $1.05 returned for every dollar they invest in their employees.

Apprentices benefit by on-the-job training and earn while they learn, reducing student debt. They see increased opportunities for promotion and higher wages over the course of their careers. Nationally, nine out of 10 find themselves gainfully employed at an average starting salary of $60,000 per year, and over the course of their careers, earn $300,000 more than their non-apprenticed peers.

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Around Idaho: February 2017 Economic Activity

Information provided in this article is from professional sources, news releases, weekly and daily newspapers, television and other media.

Northern Idaho
North Central Idaho
Southwestern Idaho
South Central Idaho
Southeastern
Eastern Idaho

NORTHERN IDAHO – Benewah, Bonner, Boundary, Kootenai & Shoshone counties

Kootenai County

  • The city of Coeur d’Alene is moving forward with a bike share program. The city council reached an agreement with Zagster, a Massachusetts-based company that has created more than 140 bike share programs around the country. City officials stressed the focus of the program is on commuters and is not designed to compete with companies that rent bicycles to tourists. Source: Coeur d’Alene Press
  • The landmark Dingle Building in the heart of downtown Coeur d’Alene is under new ownership, and the new owners have proposed to turn the property into a boutique hotel. This plan would include retail and restaurant space on the ground floor of the building with and an added fourth story to provide additional hotel occupancy. The plans have been submitted to the city and now await approval. Source: Coeur d’Alene Press
  • North Idaho College has asked the state legislature for $594,900 to provide two free courses at NIC for Idaho residents during the summer quarter of 2017. NIC officials expressed hopes that providing free courses during the summer will raise their fall enrollment numbers. Source: Coeur d’Alene Press

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Around Idaho: Economic Activity in May 2016

Information provided in this article has been gathered from various sources throughout the state, including professional sources, news releases, weekly and daily newspapers, television and other media.

Northern Idaho
North Central Idaho
Southwestern Idaho
South Central Idaho
Southeastern
Eastern Idaho

NORTHERN IDAHO – Benewah, Bonner, Boundary, Kootenai & Shoshone counties

Region

  • According to a new report from the Idaho Housing and Finance Association, homelessness in the five northern counties increased by 5 percent from 2015, including a 35 percent increase in the number of homeless people without access to shelter. Source: Coeur d’Alene Press

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Millennials Bring Different Expectations to Work

Millennials began to enter the workforce in 2006, just a year before the last recession began to bite into the economy. Nine years later, during the first quarter of this year, millennials have surpassed the baby boomers – people born approximately between 1946 and 1964 – as the largest generation in the workforce.

Millennials – individuals born approximately between 1982 and 2004 – bring with them a different outlook and view of the workplace than previous generations. Due to their size, and the uniqueness they bring, it helps for employers to understand some key differences in this group. In general, they 1.) place a greater emphasis on work-life balance; 2.)  focus on the community in which they live to the degree that it takes precedence over job considerations and 3.) desire to work for companies motivated by more than just baseline profit.

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Small Businesses Important to Idaho’s Economy

Nearly 7,000 new businesses established in Idaho through the worst years since the Great Depression still existed in 2013. These companies represent 13 percent of all employers and employed 49,000, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics Business Employment Dynamics program.

Small businesses – those with fewer than 50 employees – make up 96.7 percent of all Idaho businesses. They employ over 280,000 people, more than half of all workers in the state. Continue reading →

New IdahoWorks FAQ for Employers

Beginning in mid-June 2015, the Idaho Department of Labor is launching a new IdahoWorks, the free online system businesses use to post jobs and recruit workers. ​As the launch date nears, more information will be added to this list, so please check back often.

In order to launch the new system, the job search, job posting and the unemployment insurance systems will be temporarily unavailable starting at 6 p.m. Wednesday, June 10 until 7 a.m. Monday, June 15. 

Q. What is the new IdahoWorks?

A. It is a user-friendly Web-based workforce development system that connects job seekers to jobs, employers to qualified talent and workforce professionals to tools that improve efficiency and employment outcomes. It is powered by the America’s Job Link Alliance. Continue reading →

Demand For Electricians Expected To Grow

Electricians install and maintain electrical systems in homes, businesses and factories and play an integral role in the economy. Almost every building or house has an electrical system that is installed during electricians by countyconstruction and maintained after that.
Electricians held approximately 2,780 jobs in 2011 throughout Idaho, of which 57 percent were employed in the electrical contractors and other wiring installation contractors industry, but more than 5 percent of manufacturing jobs in Idaho are filled by electricians.

Electricians learn their trade through a formal apprenticeship or a technical school. Most states license them, and in Idaho, a licensed journeyman electrician requires four years – a minimum of 8,000 hours – of
work experience as an apprentice electrician making electrical installations under the constant supervision of a qualified journeyman electrician and four years – a minimum of 576 hours – of approved electrical
apprenticeship classroom instruction.

The median hourly wage of electricians is $23.10 in Idaho. The starting pay for apprentices usually is between 30 percent and 50 percent of what fully trained electricians make and receive pay increases as they gain more skill.
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