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About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (May 7, 2016)
REGION East Oregonian Page 2A Saturday, May 7, 2016 Study: Workforce needs to go back to basics sure they aren’t undercutting each other in a way that sends those opportunities outside of the county. “A win down the road is probably a win for their community anyway,” Drugge said. • Joe Franell of Eastern Oregon Telecom and the West Umatilla County Economic Development Group said he would like to see some sort of listserv or other way for the various entities at the table to share opportunities and ideas with each other. • Jordan McDonald from the Pendleton Development Commission said more effort needs to be made to put second-story residential spaces downtown and other “ghost properties” back onto the tax rolls. • Kim Puzey of the Port of Umatilla said the county needs to make sure the transportation and utility infrastructure is in place for the former Umatilla Chem- ical Depot to be developed as soon as the land is transferred to local control. • Rep. Greg Smith said local entities needed to talk with their state legislators about projects that could be included in the major trans- portation package being put together for consideration in the 2017 legislative session. The county plans to put together an economic devel- opment strategic plan and is looking for people who are interested in being involved in the plan. The county and Blue Mountain Community College also plan to put the full Workforce Needs Study that they commissioned on their websites starting May 11. ——— Contact Jade McDowell at jmcdowell@eastorego- nian.com or 541-564-4536. Umatilla County employers note lack of eligible, interested workers By JADE MCDOWELL East Oregonian Applicants’ inability to pass a drug test is one of the top problems Umatilla County employers face when trying to ill open positions. That was one of several takeaways in the Umatilla County Skilled Workforce Study that didn’t paint a very lattering picture of today’s job seekers. “I heard some stories that were amazing to me,” said Susan Bower of Eastern Oregon Business Source. Bower presented the results of the study on Thursday at the irst Umatilla County Economic Development Summit, a gathering of more than 50 people involved in economic development. More than 400 employers — who together employ nearly one third of Umatilla County’s workforce — participated. Bower said another problem employers say they’re running into is applicants who have decided it is more beneicial to stay on government beneits than join the workforce. “Employers chose candi- dates that said, ‘No, wait a minute, I don’t actually want the job, I’m just supposed to show I’m working to ind one,’” Bower said. She also said that a poor work ethic was employers’ top concern about the current workforce. “One hundred percent — 100 percent — of employers EO ile photo A technician adds coolant to an air-conditioning unit in July 2015 (left) and workers sort red onions on a conveyor belt at the River Point Farms packaging facility in Hermiston in January (right). A skilled workforce study showed employers struggle to ind workers in Umatilla County with the basic skills needed to ill entry level positions. Top 10 skills employers are looking for: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8 9. 10. Good work ethic Professionalism Communication skills Fluent English Customer service Basic ofice skills Leadership abilities Critical thinking Basic computer skills Basic math brought up work ethic, unprompted from me,” she said. Similar themes were brought up in her conver- sations with employers about training needs for the workforce. Skipping compli- cated certiications like a commercial truck license, employers often said new hires lack skills like basic computer troubleshooting, phone etiquette and the ability to make change when a customer pays in cash. Not all of the takeaways from the study were so simple, however. Bower said one of the top concerns, voiced by employers in several indus- tries, was an unreasonably dificult process for getting an electrician apprenticeship in Oregon. Another top concern was reciprocity with Washington for certiied trades. Bower said in many industries, getting licensed to work in Oregon is much more complicated than in Washington. And few steps from Washington’s licensing process carry over to Oregon, prompting tradespeople to stick to the other side of the river even though they would rather work in Umatilla County. “We lose people because they can just drive right across the border,” she said. Forty-four percent of the employers who participated in the study said their company did not require a college degree, but Bower said employers reported the highest demand in skilled occupations was for electricians, mental health counselors, medical certiied support, mechanics, truck drivers, value-added agricultural tech experts and computer information systems jobs. Bower said the county had the following recom- mendations: • Lobby for reciprocity between Washington and Oregon on certiied trades licensing. • Seek simpliication of the process for electrician apprenticeships. • Develop a collaborative effort to connect high school and college students with employers and trades • Market the county as a great place to live, work and play. After opening up the discussion to the rest of the Didn’t receive your paper? Call 1-800-522-0255 before noon Tuesday through Friday or before 10 a.m. Saturday for same-day redelivery 211 S.E. Byers Ave., Pendleton 541-276-2211 333 E. Main St., Hermiston 541-567-6211 Ofice hours: Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Closed major holidays To subscribe, call 1-800-522-0255 or go online to www.eastoregonian.com and click on ‘Subscribe’ East Oregonian (USPS 164-980) is published daily except Sunday, Monday and Dec. 25, by the EO Media Group, 211 S.E. Byers Ave. Pendleton, OR 97801. Periodicals postage paid at Pendleton, OR. Postmaster: send address changes to East Oregonian, 211 S.E. Byers Ave. Pendleton, OR 97801. NEWS • To submit news tips and press releases: • call 541-966-0818 • fax 541-276-8314 • email news@eastoregonian.com • To submit community events, calendar items and Your EO News: email community@eastoregonian.com or call Tammy Malgesini at 541-564-4539 or Renee Struthers in at 541-966-0818. • To submit engagements, weddings and anniversaries: email rstruthers@eastoregonian.com or visit www.eastoregonian. com/community/announcements • To submit a Letter to the Editor: mail to Managing Editor Daniel Wattenburger, 211 S.E. Byers Ave. Pendleton, OR 97801 or email editor@eastoregonian.com. • To submit sports or outdoors information or tips: 541-966-0838 • sports@eastoregonian.com Multimedia Consultants • Jeanne Jewett 541-564-4531 • jjewett@eastoregonian.com • Terri Briggs 541-278-2678 • tbriggs@eastoregonian.com • Dayle Stinson 541-966-0806 • dstinson@eastoregonian.com • Stephanie Newsom 541-278-2687 • snewsom@eastoregonian.com • Audra Workman 541-564-4538 • aworkman@eastoregonian.com • Chris McClellan 541-966-0802 • cmcclellan@eastoregonian.com SUBSCRIPTION RATES Local home delivery Savings off cover price EZPay $14.50 41 percent 52 weeks $173.67 41 percent 26 weeks $91.86 38 percent 13 weeks $47.77 36 percent *EZ Pay = one-year rate with a monthly credit or debit card/check charge www.eastoregonian.com Classiied & Legal Advertising 1-800-962-2819 or 541-278-2678 classiieds@eastoregonian.com or legals@eastoregonian.com ADVERTISING Advertising Director: Jennine Perkinson 541-278-2683 • jperkinson@eastoregonian.com Subscriber services: For home delivery, vacation stops or delivery concerns: 1-800-522-0255 — Founded Oct. 16, 1875 — table, further suggestions included: • Stanield City Manager Blair Larsen said govern- ment investments such as the Eastern Oregon Higher Education Center in Hermiston should — when possible — be placed in areas where there are restaurants and retail outlets to help drive business to those establish- ments. • Art Kegler of American West Properties said he would like to see more resources from the county to help entities ill out grant applications that would bring new investment into the county. • Melissa Drugge of Business Oregon and Dave Tovey of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation said there needs to be an effort for the entities at the table to continue to compete with each other for economic development opportunities, while making Single copy price: $1 Tuesday through Friday, $1.50 Saturday COMMERCIAL PRINTING Production Manager: Mike Jensen 541-215-0824 • mjensen@eastoregonian.com Copyright © 2016, EO Media Group REGIONAL CITIES Forecast SUNDAY TODAY Warmer with sunshine Mostly sunny and not as warm 83° 56° 73° 45° MONDAY Partly sunny TUESDAY Partly sunny and pleasant WEDNESDAY Mostly sunny and beautiful PENDLETON TEMPERATURE FORECAST 69° 43° 74° 43° 79° 51° HERMISTON TEMPERATURE FORECAST 88° 58° 78° 47° PENDLETON through 3 p.m. yesterday TEMPERATURE HIGH LOW 71° 68° 93° (1992) 48° 44° 31° (1927) PRECIPITATION 24 hours ending 3 p.m. Month to date Normal month to date Year to date Last year to date Normal year to date 0.02" 0.17" 0.21" 4.57" 3.14" 5.36" HERMISTON through 3 p.m. yesterday TEMPERATURE HIGH Yesterday Normals Records LOW 75° 71° 95° (1966) 57° 44° 27° (2000) PRECIPITATION 24 hours ending 3 p.m. Month to date Normal month to date Year to date Last year to date Normal year to date 0.00" 0.59" 0.24" 3.57" 1.80" 4.26" SUN AND MOON Sunrise today Sunset tonight Moonrise today Moonset today First Full May 13 May 21 Last May 29 78° 45° 84° 49° Seattle 79/52 ALMANAC Yesterday Normals Records 74° 43° 5:34 a.m. 8:10 p.m. 6:37 a.m. 9:27 p.m. New June 4 Today Spokane Wenatchee 82/54 88/60 Tacoma Moses 80/49 Lake Pullman Aberdeen Olympia Yakima 88/54 78/51 68/49 79/46 90/54 Longview Kennewick Walla Walla 77/50 82/57 Lewiston 89/56 Astoria 84/56 65/49 Portland Enterprise Hermiston 81/53 Pendleton 73/46 The Dalles 88/58 83/56 89/58 La Grande Salem 76/45 81/51 Albany Corvallis 81/49 81/49 John Day 77/51 Ontario Eugene Bend 80/55 81/49 75/41 Caldwell Burns 78/52 75/43 Astoria Baker City Bend Brookings Burns Enterprise Eugene Heppner Hermiston John Day Klamath Falls La Grande Meacham Medford Newport North Bend Ontario Pasco Pendleton Portland Redmond Salem Spokane Ukiah Vancouver Walla Walla Yakima Hi 65 76 75 67 75 73 81 80 88 77 75 76 74 83 61 62 80 88 83 81 79 81 82 74 81 82 90 Lo 49 43 41 52 43 46 49 51 58 51 41 45 44 50 49 53 55 55 56 53 40 51 54 43 52 57 54 W s pc s pc t pc s s s pc pc s s s s s c s s s s s s s s s s NATIONAL WEATHER TODAY Sun. Hi 61 73 66 64 74 68 67 70 78 71 71 70 67 76 59 61 81 81 73 68 70 68 74 67 65 74 79 Lo 47 34 35 49 33 34 40 38 47 38 34 38 36 46 45 48 45 46 45 48 29 43 44 33 45 48 44 Shown are noon positions of weather systems and precipitation. Temperature bands are highs for the day. W c pc s pc pc pc c s s pc s s s pc c c pc s s c s c s pc c s s WORLD CITIES Today Beijing Hong Kong Jerusalem London Mexico City Moscow Paris Rome Seoul Sydney Tokyo Hi 80 88 67 73 84 70 74 70 72 75 75 Lo 49 78 51 56 55 44 54 51 50 62 61 W s c pc t pc pc pc pc s s pc Sun. Hi 82 87 71 77 82 72 76 71 74 73 74 Lo 54 80 56 58 56 47 59 53 55 62 63 W s t pc pc pc pc pc pc pc c s WINDS Medford 83/50 (in mph) Klamath Falls 75/41 Boardman Pendleton REGIONAL FORECAST Eastern Washington: Mostly sunny today. Mainly clear tonight. Eastern and Central Oregon: A storm in the south; sunny in central parts. Sunny in the north and the Cascades. Cloudy in upper Treasure Valley. Western Washington: Mostly sunny today. Considerable cloudiness tonight with a shower in places. Cascades: Sunny to partly cloudy and warmer today; pleasant in the south. Northern California: Rather cloudy today; an afternoon shower or thunderstorm in central parts. Sunday N 6-12 NW 6-12 WSW 10-20 WSW 12-25 UV INDEX TODAY Shown is today’s weather. Temperatures are today’s highs and tonight’s lows. Coastal Oregon: Partly sunny today; breezy in the afternoon. Pleasant across the north. Today 1 4 7 7 4 1 8 a.m. 10 a.m. Noon 2 p.m. 4 p.m. 6 p.m. 0-2, Low 3-5, Moderate 6-7, High; 8-10, Very High; 11+, Extreme The higher the AccuWeather.com UV Index™ num- ber, the greater the need for eye and skin protection. Forecasts and graphics provided by AccuWeather, Inc. ©2016 -10s -0s showers t-storms 0s 10s rain 20s flurries 30s 40s snow ice 50s 60s cold front 70s 80s 90s 100s warm front stationary front 110s high low National Summary: Showers and storms will move through the southern Great Lakes and Ohio Valley today. It will be sunny and warm across the Southeast. Severe storms will erupt in the afternoon from Texas to Nebraska. Yesterday’s National Extremes: (for the 48 contiguous states) High 101° in Presidio, Texas Low 25° in Chemult, Ore. NATIONAL CITIES Today Albuquerque Atlanta Atlantic City Baltimore Billings Birmingham Boise Boston Charleston, SC Charleston, WV Chicago Cleveland Dallas Denver Detroit El Paso Fairbanks Fargo Honolulu Houston Indianapolis Jacksonville Kansas City Las Vegas Little Rock Los Angeles Hi 69 81 58 64 68 82 74 54 81 74 61 70 84 68 70 81 57 72 82 83 77 81 82 73 84 67 Lo 44 60 51 50 47 57 55 48 62 54 42 44 67 41 45 57 41 42 69 62 50 55 59 57 60 55 W pc s c c c s t c s t t t pc t t s pc s pc pc t s t pc s pc Sun. Hi 67 87 66 70 77 85 79 64 91 68 68 65 78 57 67 78 64 76 81 80 63 89 73 80 82 69 Lo 46 64 51 48 51 62 47 49 65 52 50 46 67 41 45 57 41 48 71 69 54 59 61 63 64 56 Today W pc s pc pc pc pc pc sh s sh c pc t t pc s pc s c pc c s t pc pc pc Louisville Memphis Miami Milwaukee Minneapolis Nashville New Orleans New York City Oklahoma City Omaha Philadelphia Phoenix Portland, ME Providence Raleigh Rapid City Reno Sacramento St. Louis Salt Lake City San Diego San Francisco Seattle Tucson Washington, DC Wichita Hi 81 82 81 58 69 84 80 61 81 75 64 76 53 60 75 64 61 64 87 63 68 64 79 79 66 84 Lo 59 61 65 42 47 60 61 51 62 55 52 61 44 47 60 41 50 53 60 51 60 54 52 56 55 61 W pc s s c s s s c pc pc c pc c c pc c t sh pc sh c sh s pc c pc Sun. Hi 74 83 83 61 71 86 82 68 79 74 70 79 59 63 82 59 74 74 79 63 70 66 65 77 71 75 Lo 62 66 70 45 51 63 69 53 64 58 51 62 40 47 60 43 48 51 64 54 59 52 49 54 55 61 Weather (W): s-sunny, pc-partly cloudy, c-cloudy, sh-showers, t-thunderstorms, r-rain, sf-snow flurries, sn-snow, i-ice. W c pc s pc s pc pc pc t r pc pc sh pc pc r c pc c sh pc pc pc c pc t