IN.gov - Skip Navigation

Note: This message is displayed if (1) your browser is not standards-compliant or (2) you have you disabled CSS. Read our Policies for more information.

Amber Alert
Amber Alert - TEST

DWD > News > Newsletters & Publications > Workforce Developments :: July 2009 Workforce Developments :: July 2009

In this issue..

Indiana Career Connect Celebrates First Anniversary

Indiana Career Connect (ICC), the largest online resource for jobs in Indiana, just reached its first anniversary of serving Indiana employers and jobseekers. ICC receives an average of 265,000 hits per week and is the most comprehensive source for Indiana job openings. It effectively matches employers with the individuals who are most-skilled and qualified for positions in their company.

Kara Webb, Business and Employer Services Team Leader at WorkOne West Central, has seen the benefits ICC offers employers firsthand.

"ICC offers many possibilities for the employer," said Webb. "An employer can register on ICC and look for qualified candidates in multiple ways. They can search for candidates or place job orders. The most popular way that the employer has a candidate apply is the online resume. This allows the employer to control the number of applications, review and screen candidates to come in for interviews, and they can also add the interview question set to the job order to obtain additional information about the candidate."

Webb adds that ICC has been extremely successful in Economic Growth Region 4, which covers Benton, Carroll, Cass, Clinton, Fountain, Howard, Miami, Montgomery, Tippecanoe, Tipton, Warren, and White Counties.

"This tool has allowed employers to be more successful in finding qualified applicants," she says. "Screening from the interview question set gives them the capability to screen the candidates in a short amount of time.

"This month we are working with an employer who will be hiring 600 people in the next year. They will be hiring around 100 people to start in July. This employer has chosen to use ICC for all of their recruiting. We have listed 17 job orders for them in ICC. As of June 26, 2,840 applicants have submitted resumes for these 17 positions. For one of the positions, we are able to pull the resume and bring them in for testing - the first part of the recruiting process - within 48 hours of submitting their resume."

Many employers that are using the system on their own are reporting to Kara how efficient and easy the system is to use.

"Employers that we assist with job orders have reported it to be a more multifaceted system to use," adds Webb. "They are able to post more detailed information about the job, utilize quick and accurate screening tools, and can access a larger pool of candidates. They are able to post jobs using one online application system and reach the masses: people in Indiana as well as across the nation. They are also pleased that they can access the EEO (Equal Employment Opportunity) reporting information."

Unemployment Insurance System Changes Take Effect July 1

On July 1, 2009 several changes to the unemployment insurance system will take effect due to the passage of House Enrolled Act 1379, the Unemployment Trust Fund Bill. Below is one of the key components of this legislation that will go into effect July 1:

New Wage Guidelines for Suitable Work. Unemployment Insurance recipients must accept any offer of suitable work. HEA 1379 codifies wage requirements for "suitable work." During weeks 5-8 of receiving unemployment insurance benefits, a claimant must accept work that pays at least 90% of his or her previous wage. After 8 weeks of collecting benefits, claimants must accept work that pays at least 80% of previous wage.

The new tax schedule for businesses, as well as a majority of other changes listed in HEA 1379, will not go into effect until January 1, 2010. Hoosier companies will receive their new tax rate in a mailing during the fourth quarter of this year.

YHCC Participate in Hardwood Ecosystem Experiment

The Indiana forest products industry is the 6th largest employer in Indiana, employing more than 56,000 people and generating around $2.55 billion a year. This is a vital portion of the state’s economy that requires Hoosiers to manage forests for the future.

This summer, Hoosier youth are getting involved with forest management through the Young Hoosiers Conservation Corps (YHCC), a program sponsored by the Department of Workforce Development. YHCC participants work with the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) to beautify Indiana’s state parks, forest, reservoirs, nature preserves, wildlife and recreation areas and historic sites.

At Yellowwood State Forest in Brown County, YHCC members are working on the Hardwood Ecosystem Experiment, a long-term, large scale experimental study of forest management. Participants are currently, fencing-in control areas for the project to protect plants and trees from deer and wildlife to determine their effects on vegetation in the forest. The project will help DNR understand how plants and animals respond to timber harvesting so adjustments and improvements can be made to harvest practices to assure biological sustainability.

"I was looking for work and went into (WorkOne Bloomington) and they recommended the YHCC program to me," said YHCC worker Shane Starr, as he took a break from installing fencing for the ecosystem experiment. "It is great training, a great experience and it’s good, hard work. I would definitely recommend the YHCC program to others. It’s a good work reference for the future."

Starr and his fellow employees also planted 700 trees on the very first day they started the YHCC program. They all expressed great interest in the forestry project and are looking forward to collecting the results.

Annual Veterans Awards

The Department of Workforce Development and its WorkOne Centers are committed to providing veterans with top notch employment services. Each office has a trained Disabled Veterans Outreach Program Representative (DVOP) and a Local Veterans Employment Representative (LVER) on site to help veterans and military members make the transition to the civilian workforce. Over the past month, four WorkOne employees and two WorkOne centers have been recognized for their outstanding veterans’ services.

Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) named Jessica Pickett of the Terre Haute WorkOne Center the DVOP of the year and Mike Morrow of the Anderson WorkOne Office the LVER of the Year. The VFW awarded the Indianapolis Eastside Office the large office Outstanding WorkOne award and the Lawrenceburg office the small office Outstanding WorkOne award. These awards were presented at the VFW’s annual convention ceremony.

Disabled American Veterans (DAV) awarded Stephen Ward of the Indianapolis Eastside office the DVOP of the year and Jared Lanich of the Richmond WorkOne the LVER of the year. Stephen and Jared both received their awards at the DAV’s annual convention.

These awards recognize the accomplishments of community members dedicated to serving the men and women who serve our country. Each award was presented based on outstanding performance record over the past year.

Congratulations to all of the awardees. Your dedication and commitment to service is truly appreciated. Keep up the good work!

Tecumseh Youth Jammin’ 4 Jobs

Twenty youth from the Tecumseh area participated in Jammin’ 4 Jobs guitar building classes at Purdue University’s School of Mechanical Engineering Technology. The course allows students to learn engineering technology, while building their own electric guitar.

"You start off with a blank piece of wood. It’s just a big block," said Ian Finley "You design the head stock, put it in the machine and it prints it out. You do the contouring, sanding, pick your body and paint it. You come away with a customized guitar."

Through the use of advanced manufacturing techniques, the course utilized the student's math and reading skills, and their interests in science, technology, engineering and mathematics.

WorkOne funds Jammin’ 4 Jobs through the WIRED (Workforce Innovations in Regional Economic Development) grant. The program prepares young people for the future by helping them recognize the opportunity, power and joy of solving problems through science, technology and engineering.

WorkOne Eastern Indiana and the CAA Program Assist Hoosier in Earning Degree

Tonja Van Fossan, a Management Information Systems (MIS) Tracker at WorkOne Eastern Indiana, recently helped Wendy Barber get a degree in dental hygiene through the Career Advancement Act (CAA), a program that assists individuals in climbing the ladder to a better position.

CAA provides voucher payments for tuition, books, and any type of assistance that people need in their training towards a better paying position within their occupational field.

"Currently, Wendy is working as a substitute dental hygienist and expecting a baby,’ said Van Fossen. "Once her baby is born, her employer will be putting her on full-time status, which will mean another increase in pay.

"She is extremely grateful for the CAA program’s assistance because her education and training wouldn’t have been possible without that additional funding."

Van Fossen enjoys helping people through her position at WorkOne. It wasn’t long ago that she was unemployed and found her current position through Indiana Career Connect (ICC), the state of Indiana’s no cost job matching system.

"ICC was my right hand and I signed up immediately upon filing for unemployment," she said. "I used ICC on a daily basis to keep tabs on the available jobs and I applied for anything that I was remotely qualified for. Even today, my resume is still loaded and active. JobWorks posted the position of Tracker on ICC and I immediately applied for it.

"I promote ICC to customers at every opportunity I get - as well as to people that I run into - and anyone that will listen to me."

In her job, Van Fossen speaks with people on a daily basis. She follows through with customers and makes sure that they are aware of the services offered at WorkOne. She hears positive feedback from jobseekers that are now employed and how they are amazed at how much the Indiana Department of Workforce Development and WorkOne offers to help them find employment.

Spotlight on Marty Morrow - Chief Operating Officr

Marty Morrow is the Chief Operating Officer at DWD after having worked a number of years for Eli Lilly in IT, manufacturing, HR, marketing and sales and several Lilly startups. Marty was the founder and CEO of Quovix, LLC, an Indianapolis-based software engineering firm and a founding member of Maaguzi, LLC, a clinical trails software company.

Recently, Marty has been exclusively focused on implementing the Unemployment Insurance Modernization (UIM) project. Marty, who is totally dedicated to this project, said, "This is a once every 20 years type project and is extremely important. It’s very difficult and has never been done before."

Indiana is the first state to fully integrate the UI tax and benefit system. Many pieces of the project have already been deployed but there is one last big piece that is scheduled for November 2009. When that last piece falls into place everything will be tied together and the engine used to calculate both benefits and taxes will be fully integrated.

Marty pointed out that all eyes are on Indiana as DWD moves toward this most critical stage of the UIM project. DWD is contacted almost weekly as other states watch Indiana’s progress. Several states have tried to do what Indiana is doing but have failed.

Marty says, "We are on center stage and very close to the finish line. We will be successful."

Stay Connected

You are leaving the IN.gov website. By clicking OK, you will be taken to a website that is not affiliated with the State of Indiana and may have different privacy and security policies. The State of Indiana is not responsible for, and does not endorse, guarantee, or monitor content, availability, viewpoints, products, or services that are offered or expressed on this non IN.gov portal website.

To get the Hot Jobs for Today
widget on your site, click here.