Regional Workforce Conference begins

by Ken Quintanilla

Guam - With several island leaders and key players from the local government to the private sector and of course the military on hand, the two-day Regional Workforce Conference convened today hoping to provide some clarity to the military buildup specifically workforce development. The Agency for Human Resources Development along with the Guam Chapter of the Society for Human Resource Management started its two-day "Hire Local - Regional Workforce Conference" at the Sheraton.

From discussions on expected military projects to actions from congress to training and apprenticeship programs available for potential workers and employers, SHRM Guam Chapter president Grace Donaldson hoped today's conference would provide some clarity on what is expected of both the local community and several stakeholders. "The buildup doesn't occur in a vacuum," she said. "We need to make sure everybody is having a conversation saying this is the best way to go and this is why we invited the military, the private sectors, the non-profit organizations, to have this conversation."

Speaking on the panel of the expected employment opportunities from the Marines realignment, Guam Contractors Association chairman William Beery focused on what Guam does have in terms of works in progress saying despite the stall in the buildup, the construction community has actually done the opposite staying steady since 2010 with construction projects unrelated to the buildup. However, it's something he hopes will improve with the buildup.

He said, "Well, there's no bump, its kind of like we're sustaining ourselves - we've been running about 6,000 people on payroll in construction for the last two to three years and it looks like we're continuing that way. Don't get me wrong; the bump with the buildup would be wonderful but we got to kind of follow the money instead of getting ahead of it and deal with what we do have."

And while there are potential opportunities for the local community, he says more training is necessary as contractors specifically are willing to pay workers more if it results in better productivity. Sharing similar sentiment was commander for NAVFAC Marianas Captain John Heckmann, who discussed regional employment opportunities specifically on long-term sustainment after the buildup, who spoke to the group on regional employment opportunities focusing more on the future and long-term sustainment.

"Are they going to be prepared to have the right skills, training, educational requirements to meet the demands that are out there and those demands are evolving? What I was also trying to emphasize in my talk was what you were trained to do ten years, may not be keeping up with the latest trends in innovation that we currently see in today's facilities," he said.

Tomorrow's session will focus on career paths, labor issues in the new economy and opportunities for human resources for health in Guam and Micronesia.  The conference meanwhile continues tomorrow at the Ukudu Workforce Village with checkin at 8 in the morning and ending at 5 in the afternoon.