Group offering training, jobs

By JUSTIN HARMON/Staff

The days of claiming competency in a trade have long vanished. These days, employers are looking craftsmen who have been certified by someone who isn’t related to them. It’s a process that can take a lot of time and effort. So a partnership between the Shaw group, an international contractor for craftsmen of all walks, and Virginia Highlands Community College looks to make the process much smoother.
According to Shaw Group Workforce Development Manager Joe Halcarz, the partnership will allow craftsmen (such as carpenters, plumbers and engineers) or those interested in becoming craftsmen a chance to earn four respected certifications as well as college credit for their training.
“This gives (students) credit that will follow them wherever they go,” said Virginia Highlands Associate Professor Jim Kroll.
Kroll, one of the three professors at Virginia Highlands that will undergo training to teach the certifications, said these certifications are important for craftsmen who are looking for a job, giving them the edge over someone who simply claims they can do the job.
“It’s another feather in their resume,” said Kroll. “Any certification they can get carries weight with employers and they’ll hire the person with the most papers to stack up.”
While the certifications would stand alone, Halcarz said the main reason behind the partnership was due to the lack of certified craftsmen available to build a clean coal power plant in Wise County.
“There are 7 million journeyman level craftsmen in the country, but less than 5 percent can document their training,” said Halcarz.
As an example, Halcarz referenced a journeyman level carpenter than applied for the job in Wise County, but Halcarz said that most of what the carpenter had done was hang drywall. This, Halcarz said, made him a journeyman drywall hanger, not a journeyman carpenter.
While students will be training on site and building the plant for the Shaw Group, Halcarz said that once the job is done, students will have no obligations to continue working with them. However, Halcarz hopes the status of the Shaw Group and the opportunities they can provide will help them retain the students they’ve taught and move them on to the next project.
“A lot of employers treat craftsmen like rental equipment,” he said. “The Shaw Group is trying to retain the workers we make investments in.”
The Shaw Group, according to Halcarz, has construction projects all over the world, but it would be up to the individual where their next destination is. Halcarz said it could be 20 miles down the road or halfway across the world.
Justin Harmon can be reached at 628-7101 or