Employer says internship partnership helps address skills gap

Commenter, a business representative, told the meeting that a partnership placing interns into the company has helped address a local skills gap and produce hire-ready candidates.

The comment came during discussion of workforce programs and described a simple referral and internship process that the speaker said typically moves a candidate to hire in about two weeks.

"In general, yeah. We have a, we have a skills gap. And really, it's an uphill battle to get people with with the right skills. Really, people that want to go to work. This helps out a lot," Commenter said. The speaker added that the partnership expanded the business's reach to applicants it might not otherwise find and allowed the company to build a short internship that demonstrates the industry's range of work: "It kinda shows them really what, what our side of the industry does."

According to Commenter, the partner organization screens and refers candidates to the employer, which then interviews and places interns. "They say, hey, have a good candidate that kind of fits what you're looking for. And then they send them to us, we interview them, and then, we get them going. It usually only takes about 2 weeks," Commenter said. The speaker noted the program required only a simple agreement to outline needs and expectations.

The representative framed the program as both a recruitment and an educational tool, saying it steers youth toward "a career path that is very profitable" and disputes common assumptions that construction work is limited to "the hammer and nail." No formal action or vote on the partnership was recorded during the meeting.

The discussion highlighted employer concerns about a skills shortage and described a local, employer-facing internship model that employers say shortens the time between referral and hire.