So how do you attract millennials to your workplace? Young people today face a tighter job market compared to previous generations. But there’s an ongoing talent gap in manufacturing, especially high-tech niches. Proactive high school and college academic advisors are often instrumental in directing students toward careers in high-demand manufacturing sectors and recommending apprentice or internship programs.
Many businesses and schools work together in Project Lead the Way (PLTW) programs that start preparing students for science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) careers as early as kindergarten. Today roughly 6,500 schools operate PLTW programs in all 50 states.
Manufacturing companies are a key partner in PLTW programs. For example, owners and managers may mentor students and teachers, companies may lend technology equipment to community colleges and high schools, and human resources departments may offer apprentice or internship programs.
Not only do PLTW programs offer opportunities for manufacturers to give back to local communities, but they also create a source of workers trained in STEM disciplines that they can draw from in the future. And money spent on these training programs may be deductible for income tax purposes — and, in some cases, may generate federal and state tax credits that could be refundable or carried forward to future periods.