As employers struggle to fill jobs post-pandemic, there are programs that will allow businesses to hire and retain more skilled employees at lower costs in the short and long term, says David of the Guam Department of Labor. • The North Guam Rotary Club at the Hilton Guam Resort & Spa, Director DeIsola said at a meeting Wednesday.
Dell’Isola, the group’s first guest speaker for 2023, hires employees to take advantage of Guam Department of Labor programs that offer tax credits or subsidize employee salaries while they gain work experience Mostly encouraged.
“This is probably the best program that no one knows about and has saved millions of dollars for those who know,” Dell’Isola said of the Guam Enrolled Apprenticeship Program.
He said the program has given local businesses about $17 million in tax credits over the past four years, and used it to pay the salaries of trained apprentices for positions they might not otherwise be eligible for. I was.
In a subsequent interview, Dell’Isola said about half of the average $4 million in annual tax credits goes to telecom companies, finding ways to hire and retain employees with the right skills.
“We get better retention when we hire through GRAP. We have a retention rate of 40%, which is a huge number,” he said, noting that the program has an average of more than 250 apprentices each year with over 15 jobs. I added that I am working under the Lord.
Dell’Isola said it’s not just the difficulty of finding employees these days, but more importantly, the difficulty of finding employees with the right skills and training qualifications that employers need. I am aware of the
work experience
Dell’Isola also promoted a Work Experience Program that pays people up to 480 hours while they learn about the job.
“If you hire someone who may not have the level of skill you want, we will pay them 480 hours. We are paying them so you can upskill them. We can,” he told Rotarians.
Within just four months, participants become the skilled employees your business needs. By then, employers will be more likely to decide to keep upskilled workers.
Both programs, especially the work experience program, take time to complete because they involve contracts that must be reviewed by the attorney general and the governor, Dell’Isola said. But he said it’s worth the effort of employers because it ultimately means businesses can retain competent and skilled employees.
He encouraged Rotarians and employers to contact the Guam Department of Labor regarding apprenticeships and work experience programs, as well as job fairs, labor compliance, and related matters.
skilled worker
In addition to the pandemic’s impact on the job market, large-scale military-related construction on Guam will also require more skilled workers, the labor director said.
Dell’Isola said hiring skilled foreign workers under the federal government’s H-2B program is not cheap. But even with more H-2Bs on the island, the demand for skilled technical workers is very high for construction projects related to the relocation of Marines from Okinawa to Guam, he said.
Dell’Isola also shared a “paradigm shift” for the Guam Department of Labor and its American Job Center.
“I want to help people who don’t just want a job, but want a career path,” he said, noting specifically Guam’s ongoing post-pandemic economic recovery.