Meetings & Minutes

Maine Jobs Council meeting minutes 9/28/07

September 28, 2007:

Minutes:

MAINE JOBS COUNCIL Commerce Center Augusta, ME September 28, 2007

Minutes

Present: Joanne Harris, Jim Trundy, Bryant Hoffman, Kathleen Kierney, Kathy Coogan, Mel Arsenault, Chris Hastedt, Jill Duson, John Christie, Dan Muth, Barry Martin, Pat Boucher, Linda Smith, Mike Roland, Mel Clarrage, Phil Dionne, Garret Oswald, Graham Newson, Antoinette Mancusi, Peaches Bass, Lisa Baldassini, Gene Ellis, Ned McCann, Steve Duval, Sue Swanton, Greg Dugal, Meg Harvey, Laura Fortman, Al Menard, Phyllis Cohn, Debbie Reitchel (scribe)

Proxies: Joanne Harris (arrived later) Peter Thompson, Thaxter Trafton, Lisa Martin, Sue Giguere, Tuesday Woodworth, Sarah Standiford

Phil Dionne called the meeting to order at 09:07 AM.

Administrative Cost Limitations

A motion was made, seconded and passed to accept the new Cost Allocation Policy.
Adoption of the Cost Allocation Policy reinforces the mandate in the Workforce Investment Act that there is a ten percent administrative cost limitation placed on local workforce investment boards. The policy defines administrative costs and the methods of documenting charges.

WIA Incentive Funds - Phil Dionne

Phil gave an overview of the WIA Incentive Funds Policy. The states must use a portion of the WIA funds to provide incentive grants to local areas for achieving exemplary performance results in the adult, dislocated worker, youth, and nontraditional employment categories. All monies allocated for that particular year's incentive funds will be awarded for exemplary performance if met, otherwise the remaining funds will be dispersed to the LWIBs for specific projects that seek to advance the workforce development system through service delivery, performance management or process innovation.

Steve Duval advised that it is unlikely that all LWIBs will meet the 15 required performance standards this year because of the policy changes handed down by the USDOL on how the states manage performance. The states were required to clean up five years of data. The states will find it easier to meet performance standards after the clean up.

A motion was made, seconded and passed to accept the WIA Incentive Funds policy with one opposing vote.

One Stop Operator - Ned McCann

A letter from Governor Baldacci is forthcoming designating the Local Workforce Investment Boards as the One Stop Operators.

Committee Reports

Service Delivery Committee - Mike Roland

The newly formed Service Delivery Committee had its first meeting on September 21, 2007, which was well attended and very constructive. The Service Delivery Committee discussed future agenda items and membership. The next meeting of the committee will be on 10/16/07 in Rockland. The meetings will be held in different locations throughout the state.

Women's Employment Issues Committee - Peaches Bass

The big project for the Women's Employment Issues Committee was the Working Women in Maine: Initial Indicators for Progress 2006 report which establishes baseline data for accessing women's economic security in Maine.

Members of the committee were active in assisting in the drafting of the Competitive Skills Scholarship Fund legislation which establishes a training fund for workers with incomes below 200 percent of the poverty level in targeted high growth, high wage occupations.

WEIC helped organize the annual Equal Pay Day observance at the state house and partnered with the Bureau of Labor Standards and the Maine chapter of the WAGE Project to provide pay equity education and technical assistance to employers through their HR departments.

Older Worker Committee - John Christie

According to Northeastern University Center for Labor Market Studies, the older population is projected to be the source of all population growth in Maine between 2000 and 2030. In recognition to this aging workforce the MJC has designed the Silver Collar Awards to honor employers in Maine whose policies and practices match the needs of mature employees and recognize their value. The 2007 Silver Collar Awards will be presented to the winning employers right after the MJC meeting.

The Older Worker Committee participated with Seasoned Workforce LLC, an older worker advocacy organization in meetings and forums designed to educate older workers and employers about the CareerCenter services. Many of Maine's CareerCenters continue to provide outreach and support for programs aimed at hiring older workers.

Commission on Disability and Employment - Mel Clarrage

Copies of the Commission on Disability and Employment 2007 Annual Report were passed out.

A state disability navigator has been hired who will assist disabled individuals to access services through various government and private entities. Outreach to private employers and government to hire people with disabilities will continue to be a priority as well as improving health care and transportation. The Commission is partnering with the Maine Department of Labor and Department of Health and Human Services to enhance data collection activities to evaluate the success of efforts to guarantee equal employment opportunities for people with disabilities. The Commission continues to improve and expand support programs for young people with disabilities who are transitioning from school to work.

After this meeting Mel would be attending the "Road to Freedom" rally on the Maine State House grounds. The event celebrates the Americans with Disabilities Act. Invited speakers will include Governor Baldacci, Department Commissioners from MDOL, MDOE and DHHS and disabilities rights advocates.

Maine Apprenticeship Committee - Gene Ellis

Gene passed out the Year in Review for the MAP and the report Leveraging Registered Apprenticeship as a Workforce Development Strategy for the Workforce Investment System. Overall, apprenticeship and pre-apprenticeship statistics have increased in all categories and new apprenticeship programs have been added to Maine's list of apprenticeship occupations. There is a strong need to train new employees to meet the demand created by the retirements of the older workforce. All four local areas have met their first six month contract goals.

Anne Norris, a summer intern for the Maine Apprenticeship Program, created a website for MAP which is linked to the Maine DOL website.

There are two openings on the Maine Apprenticeship.

Youth Transitions Committee - Linda Smith

This year, the Youth Transitions Committee focused on identifying, evaluating and supporting successful youth programs and how to leverage limited resources of stakeholders and partners. The committee is in the process of developing an electronic map of youth resources. When the committee meets in October members will work on developing a message about hiring youth which committee member, Jean Parquette, will publish in her magazine HR Times.

Industry Association Committee - Garret Oswald

The committee is in the process of meeting with other committees looking at labor shortages and different strategies to provide workers for the future. The committee is also looking at the Competitive Skills Scholarship Fund and wants to provide input regarding the targeted occupations and skills list of allowable training.

The IAC partners with education, economic development and workforce development organizations to align the opportunities and resources for training. Lisa Martin, IAC chair, is working with Department of Labor's Center for Workforce Research and Information (formerly Labor Market Information) on a multi-state, metal industry, local employment dynamics research project to develop a new way of tracking employment trends of that industry.

Local Workforce Investment Board Reports - Highlighted Issues

Central/Western Maine Workforce Investment Board - Bryant Hoffman

 Work Ready Credential Program  Northstar Alliance Initiative, Workforce Development Pillar  Leveraging of funds from private and public sectors  Developing key economic development projects with businesses  Working with regional CareerCenter managers to optimize CareerCenter resources  Advocating for economic and workforce development programs

Aroostook and Washington Counties Workforce Investment Board - Pat Boucher

 Workforce Skills Survey  Community Transition Teams for displaced workers from Fraser Paper and National Starch & Chemical  National Emergency grant work for Fraser Paper and Domtar  Growing Maine's Economic Health Report with projections

Coastal Counties Workforce Investment Board - Antoinette Mancusi

 Partnering with business, government and stakeholders for cluster development  AAA Airspace Aviation Cluster  ATC (Advanced Technology Center) wood composites project in Brunswick  BRAC Transition Center

Tri County Workforce Investment Board - Mel Arsensault

 Collaboration with community colleges and CareerCenters.  Seeking ways too save costs and gain efficiencies.
 Finalizing the 2007/2009 modification plan  Job Training Grant for biomed cluster  Competitive Skills Scholarship Fund  RFP for service providers  Northstar Alliance assessment  New preapprenticeship programs at regional technology centers  Moosehead Manufacturing National Emergency Grant  I would like to publicly thank the folks in this room and the MDOL folks for your support and technical advice and advice as I navigated through LWIB role.

Mel advised that a new LWIB Director would be selected today to replace her and thanked everyone for their support and technical advice as she navigated through her LWIB role.

The meeting was adjourned.