Phil Cothran, Chair
San Bernardino County WDB
In some ways, it’s hard to imagine the news being any better: A robust economy, a labor pool at historic levels and unemployment at near-record lows (see our Labor Market Intelligence report below). But for many employers, finding workers who match their business needs has never been more difficult.
At WDB, we have a fully-staffed Business Services team whose job it is to help fill this void, with programs and resources specifically for employers. These range from a free Human Resource hotline to customized recruitment services to On-The-Job Training (OJT) funds that pay up to half of a qualified employee’s salary during his or her training period. We also have access to a large pool of screened job applicants, through our three America's Job Centers of California.
Combined, these resources and services have helped thousands of employers across the county. One of them – Off The Grid Brewery in Apply Valley – is featured below.
We know that finding the right people can be a daunting task, so let us help you. Click here for a digital copy of our Business Services Toolkit, or visit our Business Services team online.
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Off The Grid Brewery Vice President Mike Schneider (right) recently shared his success in recruiting through WDB’s On-The-Job Training program. Mike is shown here with WDB Director Bradley Gates (left), Chair Phil Cothran and Business Services Representative Sal Monica.
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Off The Grid Brewery: Another On-The-Job Training Success |
Off The Grid Brewery is a 10-year family-owned business in Apple Valley that was able to meet its hiring needs on its own – until about six months ago. As the company has grown, finding employees with the skillsets needed to operate within a specialized brewery environment proved difficult.
With the support of WDB and its On-The-Job Training (OJT) program, Off The Grid has hired its next head brewer en route to doubling its profits over the course of a year. OJT will pay up to half of an employee’s salary during the training period – a resource more and more businesses are taking advantage of these days.
“Brewing is a lot of chemistry, physics, biology. We also have a lot of cleaning that has to be done. If we don’t keep everything as sanitary as possible, the beer will either spoil and won’t taste great. Finding someone with the skills that we need can be very, very expensive,” says company Vice President Mike Schneider, who, along with his brother, started Off The Grid in the family garage.
Six years ago, the brewery moved to its Apple Valley location, and today produces 30 different beer recipes. The next head brewer initially was hired as a bartender, but has been trained – through OJT – for his new position.
“The program allows us to bring in people without the experience we need and to train them without having to take on the big expense,” Schneider says. “It really takes the stress and financial burden off the business owner, to be able to bring in someone, train him and find out if he’s going to work out.”
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Labor Market Intelligence |
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San Bernardino County’s job market continued its dramatic ascent in April, with the labor pool surpassing 1 million for the fourth straight month and unemployment dropping to near-record lows. The 3.8% jobless rate essentially returns the county to 2019 levels – the strongest year for employment since the state began tracking local data in 1990. |
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My first job was at Knott’s Berry Farm in food service, at the Hollywood Beanery restaurant. It was a wonderful job that was perfect for that time of life. It taught me the importance of being on time, working diligently and efficiently, meeting goals (“Would you like to upgrade that to a large drink? It’s only 59 cents more”), and working with a team. Most importantly, it taught me about myself. It taught me that I was not nearly as good in the kitchen, but was wonderful with customers. I loved interacting with customers, sharing about our products, helping them to a good meal that would enhance their experience for the day. I also learned that I was detail oriented and good with money. My register usually balanced to the penny, even after a full shift. I still carry today many of the skills and lessons that I learned from that first job. I still love connecting with people, still love sharing with our clients and community the passion I have for both, and still love and appreciate the hard work that restaurant staff do every day to ensure that we have a great experience. |
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Connecting Employers and Job Seekers |
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Local employers will participate in several hiring events at all three of the County’s America’s Job Centers of California (AJCCs) in the coming weeks:
Thursday, June 16: West Valley AJCC, 9650 9th St., Suite B, Rancho Cucamonga. Register here.
Thursday, June 23: High Desert AJCC, 17310 Bear Valley Road, Suite 109, Victorville. Register here.
Thursday, July 7: East Valley AJCC, 500 Inland Center Driver, Space 508, San Bernardino. Register here.
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WDB hosts free virtual seminars throughout the week to help job seekers on topics such as interviewing skills, resume building and navigating the employment resources available during the pandemic. If you know of anyone who could use this valuable assistance, a calendar of upcoming sessions is available here.
In the meantime, here are some upcoming events and release dates.
Friday, June 17: California EDD releases its May jobs report.
Thursday, July 7: WDB hosts a Zoom conference call on Change Management, 10-11 a.m. Register here.
Friday, July 8: Bureau of Labor Statistics releases its June U.S. jobs report.
Wednesday, July 13: WDB committee meetings
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For archived videos of our free Business Services webinars, such as this one on conflict resolution in the workplace, click here.
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Click here to catch up on past editions of Workforce Update, WDB’s monthly e-newsletter and labor market intelligence report.
If you know others who would like to receive this timely and important information, please invite them to join our mailing list at info.workforce@wdd.sbcounty.gov.
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