Workers Lack Skills to Fill Many Jobs
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VOLUME XLIX, NUMBER 40 Your Local News Source Since 1963 SERVING DUBLIN • LIVERMORE • PLEASANTON • SUNOL THURSDAY, OCTOBER 4, 2012 Workers Lack Skills to Fill Many Jobs Three and a half million of Commerce luncheon at with industry and labor to someone with a four year en- requires them to be able to jobs created in California Wente Vineyards. Her back- provide courses that will fill gineering degree spent three work in all areas of energy went unfilled at a time when ground is in industry, where the training gap. of those years generalizing efficiency with customers the unemployment rate con- she led workforce develop- She noted that two-thirds and one year specializing. to implement a project. As tinues to be high. The reason ment. She is also a member of all jobs over the next However, the specialization a result of industry working jobs have remained unfilled of the National Advisory decade will require a post may no longer be relevant with education, the Cal State is a structural mismatch Committee on Apprentice- secondary education and to keep the person market- system created a four course Find Out What's between workers' skills and ship. constant upgrades in skills. able. certificate in integrated ener- jobs that are available. Ton-Quinliva stated that There needs to be a system Energy efficiency is an gy solutions. The certificate Happening Van Ton-Quinliva, Vice community colleges are a that provides retraining and area where 42 companies prepares pre-sales engi- Chancellor of Economic De- workforce training engine. up-training over and over. in California are looking neers. Another four course Check Out Section A velopment and Workforce She pointed out that close to In the past, graduates earned for workers, she continued. certificate in project man- Section A is filled with Preparation, stated, "The 80 percent of firefighters, po- Workers available don't meet agement trained post-sales information about arts, one degree with the idea that people, entertainment and skills of workers haven't lice officers and emergency they were trained forever. the needs of the companies engineers. special events. There are kept pace with jobs that are medical technicians now "That is no longer true." for pre-sales and post-sales Such programs are driven education stories, a variety created. As a result we are working received training She described a stackable engineers. Applicants are by employee discussions of features, and the arts and moving into a retraining at one of the 112 community credentials concept. There trained in a specific engi- with colleges to create a entertainment and bulletin economy." colleges in the state. She is a need to keep stacking neering area, such as solar ready-now worker pool, said board. She was speaking at the sees it as the role of educa- knowledge onto what is al- or demand reduction. The Ton-Quinliva. Livermore Valley Chamber tional institutions to work ready known. For example, evolution of the market (See JOBS, page 4) Livermore to Locked-out Decide When to Workers to Hold Elections Livermore voters will be Return to asked whether they want to move the city council and Castlewood mayoral election to even The sixty-one Castle- numbered years. wood food service workers There are two options who have been locked out on the November 6, 2012 of their jobs by management ballot. Measure W would change the election year for more than two years will immediately, extending by be able to resume work on one year the terms of cur- Oct. 16. rent councilmbmers and the However, the workers mayor. will have no new contract. Measure X would hold They will be working under two more odd-year elec- the terms of the contract that tions. The incoming elected expired before they were officials’ terms would be locked out during nego- extended by one year. By tiatoins for a new one with moving Livermore’s elec- tions to even-numbered management. years, it’s estimated that the Unite Here union spokes- City will save over $250,000 person Sarah Norr called the per election cycle beginning return to work "a huge step next year. forward for the workers, but With the second option, it's not a complete victory - Measure X, the city would - yet. We are continuing the spend over $500,000 to boycott, and other actions cover the cost of two more until we can reach a fair odd-year elections. Photo - Doug Jorgensen contract and a settlement on Livermore is one of only Demonstrating a programmable thermostat are (from left) Laila Hassen, Diego Hernandez, and Areli three cities in Alameda the back wages." County holding local elec- A meeting is set for Oct. tions on odd years. Since 24 between management Livermore has the largest Green Engineering Academy students find energy savings and the union to talk about a number of registered voters, new contract, and also to try Livermore must pay most By Patricia Koning to more efficient light bulbs cool for them to see what vides financially constrained to resolve how much money Students in the Green and computers, installing engineers really do and get local school districts access of the costs charged by the in back wages must be paid Registrar of Voters to con- Engineering Academy at programmable thermostats, some recognition for helping to a centralized resource for Livermore High School eliminating unnecessary their school and the environ- energy efficiency expertise to the workers. duct an election. Castlewood general man- Livermore paid the Reg- (LHS) are looking for ways lighting, and running pumps ment. Plus, they’ve made and energy management to make their school even on the school pool only as connections with the engi- assistance. LEEP also part- ager Jerry Olson said, "In (See ELECTIONS, page 10) greener by reducing energy needed. For the students, neers at KW and other part- ners with green jobs educa- fairness to the workers, we usage. Over the summer, it was a chance to put into ners in this project, so they tion programs like the LHS are excited they are coming several students worked practice some of the engi- now have new resources and Green Engineering Acad- back. We realize some have with KW Engineering on a neering skills they have been mentors.” emy to provide hands-on other jobs. Those few look- facilities energy audit of the learning in the classroom. The audit is part of the field training and resume- ing for other jobs have been CAMPAIGN LHS campus and several “The students experi- Alameda County Office of building opportunities for thrown in the middle of this area schools. enced the non-geeky side Education (ACOE)’s Lead- students. 2012 NEWS The audit uncovered of engineering,” says LHS ership in Energy Efficiency After LEEP was estab- dispute." about $35,000 in poten- teacher Mike Waltz, who Program (LEEP), which is lished two years ago, the The work resumption S C H O O L B O A R D tial savings from simple leads the Green Engineering funded by PG&E’s Innova- ACOE reached out to all comes two months after a CANDIDATES FORUM changes, such as upgrading Academy. “I think it was tor Pilot Program. LEEP pro- (See GREEN, page 3) (See WORKERS, page 10) There are two open seats on the Livermore Valley Joint Unified School Board Buchanan, Phillips In Assembly Race of Trustees. They will be Two candidates for the in the 16th District, which JOAN BUCHANAN filled during the general states’s 16th Assembly Dis- stretches as far north as Prior to her election to the election on November 6, trict are running, Democrat Lafayette. State Assembly, Buchanan Joan Buchanan, the incum- The Independent dis- served on the San Ramon 2012. Four residents have bent, and Republican Al cussed issues facing Cal- Valley School Board for filed papers to run. Incum- Phillips. ifornia with each of the 18 years. She is a 30 year bents Belia Martinez and Buchanan was elected candidates. They include resident of Alamo. She holds Chuck Rogge have filed, as to the Assembly in 2008, the economy, education, a B.A. in Economics from well as David Jonas and Tom representing the 16th Dis- and pension reform among the University of California, trict. Following realign- others. Santa Barbara. McLaughlin. Each elected ment, she now represents The interviews are in Buchanan said that she Trustee will serve a full four- the 15th. Dublin, Livermore alphabetical order. believes she has been effec- year term. and Pleasanton are included (See ASSEMBLY, page 5) The District’s Parent Club Information Council (PCIC) will hold a Candidates Fo- DeSaulnier, Meuser Vie for Senate Seat rum on Tuesday, October The new 7th Senate Dis- looking for his second term. would make more adjust- 9, 2012 at 6:30 P.M. in the trict boundary will take ef- His Republican opponent is ments. Board Room, 685 E. Jack fect in the Legislature’s next Mark Meuser. They were also asked London Blvd., Livermore. session. It will be comprised The Independent inter- about how to deal with parks of eastern Contra Costa viewed both candidates, and open space, given the PCIC is a group of parent County, as it has been, and and asked them the same limited budget. The shift leaders representing each of will add eastern Alameda questions about the issues. from state prisons to county the District’s school sites. County. They were asked about their jails for some prisoners was The group acts as a parent The new district includes stands on Propositions 30 another topic. network to advocate for Livermore, which is cur- and 38, how state education The candidates gave in- rently in the 9th District, funding might be designed formation they would like and communicate between and Pleasanton, in the 10th for reliable funding in the voters to know about them, parents, schools, the Dis- District.