Elgin, Illinois, Leaders Collaborate on Initiative to Help Unemployed Workers Find Jobs

Steve Dutner realized after nearly 15 months of unemployment that he needed more than his extensive supervisory experience and a four-year college degree to land a new job in Elgin, Illinois.

“Before the economy got bad, people with backgrounds like mine had no problem getting interviews and new positions,” he said. “Now there are a lot of well-qualified unemployed people competing for many of the same jobs.”

When Dutner learned about the 1,000 Worker Skills Initiative, an Elgin program geared toward putting 1,000 people back to work, he jumped at the chance to earn a credential that could set him apart from the crowd of job seekers. Participants take three WorkKeys^® assessments—Applied Mathematics, Reading for Information, and Locating Information. Those with qualifying scores receive National Career Readiness Certificates at four levels: bronze, silver, gold, and platinum.

Steve Dutner enjoys his job as a molding technician at Hoffer Plastics, Inc., in Elgin, Illinois. He is responsible for setting up initial molds for particular jobs and fixing and adjusting machines as necessary to ensure they generate a high-quality product.

Dutner’s gold level certificate got him in the door at Hoffer Plastics, Inc., one of Elgin’s largest employers. He was the first person hired by Hoffer through the initiative and is now a molding technician at the custom injection molding company, a position he calls the “perfect fit” for his employment background, workplace skills, and career interests.

“I encourage anyone who is seeking a job—especially those who feel they are not being looked at seriously by employers—to take the WorkKeys assessments and earn a National Career Readiness Certificate. My certificate helped me stand out to employers and show them that I have marketable skills that can be applied in a variety of work environments,” he said.

Hoffer Plastics is one of many Elgin area businesses involved in the 1,000 Worker Skills Initiative, which is offered at no cost to unemployed residents of Elgin Community College (ECC) District 509. The district serves 20 communities located primarily in Kane County, which is about 40 miles northwest of Chicago.

ECC offers vocational counseling and WorkKeys practice tests to participants, the majority of whom are sent to the college from the Illinois Department of Employment Security. Counselors help those who earn National Career Readiness Certificates find jobs at local businesses, including the more than 70 employers who have signed a letter of commitment to consider the certificate in their hiring processes.

The initiative is the result of an extraordinary collaborative effort among education, government, and business leaders representing the Elgin Area Chamber of Commerce, City of Elgin, ECC, United Way of Elgin, Gail Borden Public Library, Illinois Department of Employment Security, River Valley Workforce Investment Board, and Elgin School District U-46.

The groundwork was laid about four years ago when city and chamber officials joined forces to create an economic development plan for Elgin. They learned about WorkKeys from Bill Ratzburg, who was the Career and Technical Education coordinator for the school district at the time. The U-46 school district—the second largest in Illinois—was already offering WorkKeys through the Prairie State Achievement Exam, which includes the Applied Mathematics and Reading for Information assessments. U-46 students who earn level 5 or higher on the two tests can take the third assessment, Locating Information, to qualify for a National Career Readiness Certificate. Approximately 1,500 U-46 graduates have earned certificates so far.

Ratzburg retired in July 2009, and his replacement, Carol DePue, is carrying on his mission of educating the district’s teachers, parents, and students about the importance of WorkKeys and the National Career Readiness Certificate. “We’re getting everyone to understand that WorkKeys is a test for every student regardless of whether they are going to college or into a job. Everyone needs to be proficient in the skills tested by the assessments,” she said.

The district’s success with WorkKeys spurred the 1,000 Worker Skills Initiative, and funding from United Way of Elgin and ECC helped launch the program in July 2010. Since then, officials have been working to bring more job seekers and employers together.

Patrick Hayes, founder and chairman of the board at Fabric Images, Inc., an Elgin business, and former chair of the Chamber’s Workforce Development Committee, has become one of WorkKeys’ strongest advocates. He has been organizing meetings to get more employers on board with the initiative.

“Companies in Elgin have openings, but there are not enough workers with the right skills to fill them. The 1,000 Worker Skills Initiative helps workers obtain a credential that gets them noticed by employers, and employers are getting qualified people to perform jobs,” he said.