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Two Ohio community colleges plus one state agency will receive more than $6.7 million in grants to train workers for advanced technology applications, thanks to three recent grants by the U.S. Department of Labor.

In each case, the funds were awarded because employers in the area need a more skilled labor pool. All three grants will be used to train workers in the burgeoning healthcare industry.

James A. Rhodes State College in Lima, Ohio will receive an award of $1,999,054 to hire staff and implement new worker training programs in healthcare.

An additional grant of $2 million dollars goes to Stark State College of Technology in North Canton, Ohio.

The final grant was awarded to the Cleveland/Cuyahoga One-Stop Career Center, a state employment agency.

As a result of technological innovations, many industries in the United States will expand, and many new industries will come on the scene during the 21st century. Many of these industries are suffering a deficit of skilled employees, the available positions far exceeding the number of qualified applicants.

Employers receive more benefits from these programs than just skilled workers. The Workforce Investment System offers incentives such as tax credits and government training assistance. Join these with the reduced recruiting costs, and these programs greatly relieve some of the financial burden of seeking out qualified workers. In addition, the programs provide a method of screening and referral of skilled candidates, which increases retention of employees and the quality and competitive ability of the workforce.

The Grants focus on the businesses and industries, and are an extension of a national model for development of a workforce on demand known as the President’s High Growth Job Training Initiative. These programs focus on community colleges in the areas that need help. Funds are granted to increase the college’s ability to train employees in these high-growth high-demand positions.

The Community Based Job Training Grants award funds to help train new and experience workers. These funds are used to hiring qualified teachers, arrange work-study programs and to provide updated equipment required for the training. The colleges work closely with the local industries to develop training courses and programs to help meet the needs of those industries.

According to the research done by the High Growth Job Training Initiative, fourteen areas of the economy are expected to provide new jobs. Some of these jobs will come from new industries, others from innovations in technology that result in new methods requiring new skills. Included in these 14 areas are Financial Services, Geospatial Technology, Aerospace, Homeland Security and Retail.

The President’s Community Based Job Training Grants Initiative was established to aid these industries in finding trained employees by providing funds to local community colleges and training facilities.

Established in 2005, the program awarded 72 grants. In the second round in 2006, 70 grants were awarded. According to a recent U. S. Department of Labor announcement, the grants for 2008 were awarded to 69 institutions in 36 states.

“Preparing local residents for careers in growing hometown industries is critical to improving the quality of life of thousands of Americans,” said acting Assistant Secretary of Labor for Employment and Training Brent R. Orrell. “These programs will provide participants not only with the skills needed to gain employment, but the change to enter into careers that offer opportunities for advancement.”

The focus of the Grants program is to boost the community college’s role in aiding American workers, and to assist these workers in gaining high-paying jobs with advancement. A secondary goal is to provide America’s companies with the workers needed to get the job done, now and well into the 21^st century.

Under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), employees have the right to as much as 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave yearly to deal with their own “serious medical condition” or that of a member of their immediate families.

Employers, in turn, have long had the right to require that a professional healthcare provider certify the employee’s condition. Employers have had the right to request second and third opinions, provided they pay for them.

Now some of the regulations regarding certification are being streamlined and updated. The new rules permit employers to “request” recertification of an ongoing condition at least every half-year, in connection with an absence.

The U.S. Department of Labor uses the word “request,” but employers may actually deny an FMLA leave if an employee does not reply with that “request.”

A new provision would allow employers to require new medical certifications yearly for an employee’s ongoing health condition. If a worker has migraine headaches, for example, and must take periodic days off through FMLA, yearly recertification may legally be required.

The new rules allow employers to clarify a medical condition with a healthcare professional as long as neither party violates HIPAA medical privacy regulations. Employers may not, however, ask the providers for information not included on the certification. While the WH-380 form has been updated, it remains optional. Healthcare providers need not supply a diagnosis.

Under the old regulations, employers could request recertification if a previous certificate put a time limit on the health condition. The problem is that providers often list conditions as “lifetime” or their duration as “unknown,” effectively preventing employers from seeking recertification. The new rules change that. If Mary suffers from carpal tunnel syndrome requiring 6 weeks’ absence, her employer may seek recertification if she is absent after 6 weeks are up.

Employers, under the old rules, could request recertification after 30 days, but only if the employee was currently absent on FMLA leave. If, for example, employee John takes more than one month off under FMLA his employer could seek recertification, but only if John is still away from work.

More Ohio FMLA Changes

New changes to the FMLA regulations will be published in the National Register after April 11, 2008. At that time they become law. Until April 11, employers may comment on the updates, as may other interested parties.

The U.S. Labor Department recently issued the proposed changes that will affect employers around the U.S. A significant change involves revisions to the so-called “fitness-for-duty” certification process.

One change would permit employers to require that the certificate specifically talk to the matter of an employee’s capability for performing key components of his or her job. If a warehouse worker’s job largely consists of lifting heavy containers, for example, the employer may require certification that the worker is capable once again of lifting heavy objects.

Another is designed to eliminate occasional abuse of the FMLA leave by some employees. It addresses situations in which workers take intermittent, short-term FMLA leave. The update would allow employers to require a “fitness-for-duty” certificate each time the employee wishes to return to the job, provided there is a valid safety concern.

If truck driver Carl, for example, suffers from migraine headaches that interfere with his vision, his employer may require a certificate each time Carl returns. Having a driver with impaired vision would be a valid safety concern. However, if an employee is pregnant and suffers intermittently from serious morning sickness requiring her to take FMLA leave, a certificate could not be requested because there is no valid safety concern involved.

FMLA regulations currently allow employers to require certificates from a healthcare professional showing they are capable of returning to work. The policy, as with other policies, must be applied consistently in similar situations. All employees taking FMLA leave for a “serious health condition” could be required to provide a certificate when they wish to return. But the manager may also choose not to require such a certificate from someone returning after caring for a newly adopted child.

This policy and all policies must adhere to Title VII of the Civil Rights Act. Title VII prohibits workplace discrimination based on religion, national origin, gender, color, or race.

The U.S. Department of Labor on January 22 announced a grant of almost $2.2 million to assist workers displaced by last fall’s flooding in Ohio.

The $2,199,600 grant, with $1,084,000 released initially, will go to the state of Ohio to help create temporary jobs to aid cleanup and recovery efforts resulting from recent storms and flooding in the state.

Workers who were displaced by the flooding, as well as the long-term unemployed in the area, are eligible for help under the program.

“This $2.2 million grant will provide dislocated Ohio workers with jobs aiding in the cleanup and reconstruction of waterways and repairing other property damage that communities suffered in the storms,” said U.S. Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao.

On Sept. 11, 2007, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) declared the Ohio counties of Allen, Crawford, Hancock, Hardin, Putnam, Richland and Wyandot eligible for FEMA’s public assistance program. Of these counties, Crawford, Hancock and Putnam have been targeted by the state to receive assistance through this grant.

The grant announced today was awarded to the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services and will provide workers affected by the recent storms with temporary jobs on projects related to the cleanup and reconstruction of destroyed waterways and lands within the affected communities. Cleanup projects are also being coordinated with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to ensure operations adhere to policies designed to prevent the destabilization of stream banks and waterways.

Recent National emergency grants have also benefited workers in Washington State.  A grant of $2.1 million went to area workers displaced by deadly Pacific storms on December 1 to December 3, 2007.

The Northwest, including Washington, Oregon and the Canadian Province of British Columbia, was ravaged by a series of Pacific storms between December 1 and December 3, 2007. Winds as high as 139 miles per hour were reported on the Oregon coast and 18 deaths were blamed on the storm systems. Residents were evacuated by the Oregon National Guard. More than 36,000 customers were without power for up to one week.

Also on January 22, the U.S. Department of Labor announced a grant of $1.2 million for Oregon workers displaced by the same storms.

National emergency grants are used in a variety of situations, in addition to natural disasters. Many of the grants go to workers displaced by plant closings or mass layoffs.

In September 2007, a grant of almost $1.1 million was awarded to Missouri workers who were displaced with the closure of the O’Sullivan Industries plant in Lamar, Missouri. In addition, a $250,000 grant was awarded to a new program, SI WORKS, designed to improve worker opportunities and economic development in 20 southern Illinois counties.

Also in September,  a $3 million grant went to provide temporary jobs and benefits to workers in parts of Minnesota ravaged by flash floods.

More than 400 workers laid off by Micron Technology, Inc. in Boise, Idaho received assistance through a grant of more than $2 million. The U.S. Department of Labor immediately released $847,538 of the grant to assist workers dislocated by the layoffs. The total grant is for $2,010,277.

“This $2 million grant will provide these Idaho workers with skills training, career counseling and other employment services to help them find and succeed in new jobs,” said U.S. Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao.

Earlier this year, the U.S. Department of Labor recently announced a grant of more than $1.2 million to assist some 246 Rhode Island workers who were displaced by layoffs at the Brooks Eckerd corporate offices in Warwick. The layoffs are due to acquisition of Brooks Eckerd by Rite Aid.

With yet another tragic workplace shooting in the news, many employers are asking how they can prevent such an incident.

On Wednesday October 10, 2007, Asa Coon, a Cleveland high school student, shot two teachers and two students. Coon then turned the gun on himself, committing suicide.

According to the Chief of Trauma Surgery at Metro Health Medical Center, “You do not expect a teacher to get shot in the line of work.” Dr. Jeffrey Claridge added, “It’s unacceptable.”  Michael Grassie was recovering after surgery for a gunshot to the chest, according to Dr. Claridge. The bullet narrowly missed Grassie’s spine and heart.

While nothing will completely eliminate the risk of workplace violence, there are some steps that employers can take, according to OSHA, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration.

Fellow students say that Coon repeatedly made threats against students and the school. Several classmates reported the threats to the principal, according to student Rasheem Smith in an appearance on the CBS “Early Show.” According to Smith, Principal Johneita Durant apparently didn’t take the threats seriously. Principal Durant was “too busy” to meet with the students and other parties, in the days leading up to the shooting.

Asa Coon was a “Goth” who often wore black clothes and a trench coat to school. Other students say that he often accessorized the outfit with an empty gun belt strapped to his leg.

Coon was an atheist who was beaten by another student on Monday, after an argument in which Coon said, “F*** God.” Coon was suspended from school following the fight, and returned on Wednesday.

Coon had a history of violent behavior and threats – both warning signs of workplace violence. In 2006, the court ordered Coon to attend counseling after he slapped his mother. When he did not cooperate, Coon was removed from the home and placed in an interim shelter. While there, he attempted suicide, according to The Cleveland Plain Dealer newspaper. Eventually, Coon was placed in a detention center and transferred to a mental hospital, where staff suggested that he might be bipolar.

When Coon was released to home detention, he enrolled at SuccessTech, a magnet school for gifted students and those with problems. At SuccessTech, Coon frequently clashed with students and teachers.

Although the school district has portable metal detectors, none of them were in use at SuccessTech on Wednesday. The armed security guard on duty did not deter Coon from brining two pistols and a duffle bag full of knives to class with him.

The school is housed in a 4 storey building along with the administrative offices for the school district. Classes are conducted on floors one and three, while the administrative offices occupy floors two and four.

The head of Cleveland Metro Schools plans to meet with Mayor Frank Jackson to present a new plan for school security on Friday. Classes are cancelled until Monday.

The Virginia Tech massacre remains the greatest workplace tragedy of the year. On April 16, 2007, an assailant armed with semi-automatic weapon and “enough ammo to start a war” chained the doors of a campus building shut. Seung-Hui Cho killed a total of 32 students and staff on the sprawling campus, and wounded 17 others before turning his gun on himself as police closed in.  Cho had murdered two people in a nearby dorm earlier in the day. Some have criticized university officials for not closing the campus and the police for dismissing the original paid of homicides as “a domestic dispute.” It’s particularly puzzling that initial reports from police labeled the incident a “murder-suicide” when both victims were shot, but no gun was found in the room.

Seung-Hui Cho exhibited a number of signs that OSHA, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, has identified as warning signals of workplace violence. He had a history of irrational crushes on women he hardly knew, bordering on obsession. His stalker-like behavior and irrational jealously towards these casual acquaintances was out of proportion to actual events. Cho was a loner who isolated himself from all social contact. He had fits of rage and showed an unhealthy interest in weapons. He had a history of mental health problems, but was not receiving treatment for them.

The EEOC recently settled a sex discrimination suit against an Ohio auto dealer for $2.3 million, charging that the dealership refused to hire even the most highly-qualified women. 

Thirty-nine qualified female auto sales people were denied jobs at 11 dealerships owned by Jeff Wyler, including Jeff Wyler Eastgate, Inc. of Cincinnati. The suit alleged that the dealerships refused to hire any women for auto sales positions, acting as an integrated unit.

A consent decree under the settlement requires the auto dealerships to make job offers to the class members. In addition, the company will institute an equal employment opportunity program for which managers will be accountable. It will also introduce manager training in the anti-discrimination requirements under the law.

It is disturbing that women still face the barriers and stereotypes they faced 40 years ago when Title VII was enacted,” according to EEOC Regional Attorney Jacqueline McNair. “We are pleased that the parties in this case reached an amicable resolution with important training and policy change provisions.”

This suit was unusual because the employer refused to hire women, but apparently complied with the other portions of anti-discrimination laws.

Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits discrimination based on race, color, national origin, religion or sex. Under this law, employers may not discriminate in hiring, training, promotions, discipline, benefits, compensation, or termination against any of the protected groups.

Despite the fact that this law is more than 43 years old, many companies still discriminate against women. Often, such discrimination is paired with discrimination based on race, color or nationality.  For example, Woodward Governor in Illinois recently paid $5 million to settle two class action suits alleging discrimination at its plants in Rockford and Rockton. The company is based in Fort Collins, Colorado.

According to promotional material issued by the company, Woodward Governor is “the world’s largest independent designer, manufacturer, and service provider of energy control solutions for aircraft engines, industrial engines and turbines, power generation, and process automation equipment.” Woodward has approximately 1,100 employees at the Rockford and Rockton plants.

The Illinois plants are just two of 25 facilities worldwide including Australia, Brazil, China, Indian, Japan, Korea, and Poland. The company also has 10 plants in the U.S.

The company recently settled a suit that the Woodward Governor Company discriminated in pay, promotions and training against African-American, Hispanic and Asian employees, as well as women. These actions violate Title VII, as well as the Equal Pay Act, which requires that women be paid the same amount as men for work that is substantially the same.
In filing the consent decree, Judge Philip Reinhard of the U.S. District Court for Northern Illinois established a $2.4 million settlement for the minority employees. The award covers all minority employees who worked at the company’s Rockford or Rockton plants since May 1999. The judge established a separate $2.6 million fund to be shared by female employees who worked at Woodward Governor’s Illinois plants since June 2002.

The decree also authorizes the appointment of Nancy B. Kreiter to oversee Woodward’s implementation and compliance with the decree. Kreiter, of Chicago, has provided similar decrees with other EEOC lawsuits on sex discrimination against Mitsubishi Motors and the Dial Corporation. Kreiter will provide annual reports assessing Woodward’s compliance with the decree.

Woodward must implement a procedure for investigating complaints of discrimination under the agreement. In addition, the company must train all employees regarding the discrimination laws and the complaint procedure. It will report the results twice annually to Kreiter, the EEOC and the attorney representing the plaintiffs. These reviews must include information on promotion decisions, compensation and job training for employees.

These severe restrictions have led some pundits to the conclusion that Woodward Governor’s actions were especially severe.

All of the companies mentioned in this article deny any wrongdoing.