Michigan Works brought together high school students from Coloma and St. Joseph for its annual Manufacturing Day at Max3 in Benton Harbor last week.
Michigan Works Business Solutions Manager Michael Mompremier tells us 62 students toured the state-of-the-art manufacturing facility to learn a bit about the manufacturing career path. He says the industry is facing a shortage of workers.
“In our area specifically, manufacturing is a core sector, but in the manufacturing space overall, there’s about 30% or so of individuals in the manufacturing space who are 55 or above, and so in about ten years or so, many of them will be exiting the workforce,” Mompremier said. “So, it’s important that we reinvigorate the talent pipeline and bring exposure to it.”
In addition to touring the site, the students had the opportunity to demo virtual reality headsets to experience careers in manufacturing themselves.
Mompremier says getting students exposed to the kind of technical careers possible in manufacturing is key to helping employers find the workers they need.
