Lee County’s manufacturers will soon have a more skilled and better trained workforce, thanks to a new $75,000 grant awarded to Lee County Industries (LCI).

The NC Rural Economic Development Center (Rural Center) selected LCI as recipient and administrator of the New Generation Careers grant to provide career training and on-the-job experience to young adults who have a barrier to employment. Twelve other communities in the state were also chosen.

“LCI is proud to have been chosen to administer this grant and will do our very best to meet the needs of Lee County,” said LCI executive director Meg Moss.

The Rural Center’s mission is to develop, promote, and implement economic strategies to improve the quality of life for rural North Carolinians. Putting a special focus on individuals with low to moderate incomes, the center’s goal is to equip rural leaders to succeed in today’s business climate.

“This grant will help us train and place local young people in manufacturing jobs across the county,” Moss explained. “We are extremely excited about this opportunity to support business and economic development here at home.”

How it will work: LCI will provide manufacturing skills coursework, career readiness training, social media instruction, interview instruction, job placement and/or paid work experience, and case management for 60 young adults ages 18-30 in Lee, Chatham, Moore, and Harnett counties. Each participant must have a barrier to employment.

The “barriers to employment” requirement doesn’t mean the participant must have a disability, Moss noted. Other examples of employment barriers include being a single parent, having been in foster care at any point in life, no or poor work history, having been laid off, or simply having a low income.

Statewide, the New Generation Careers grant is expected to serve 700 young adults and place 500 in jobs or apprenticeships. Locally, LCI’s initiative will train 60 young adults and place 30 in jobs.

To apply for the program, young adults must submit a full application form and proof of a barrier to employment. Applications are available at LCI, located at 2711 Tramway Road in Sanford, and the Division of Employment Security, located at 1909 Lee Avenue in Sanford. Completed applications must be received at LCI by September 25, 2012. Selected candidates will be notified by phone and will begin coursework on October 15, 2012.

This grant solidifies LCI as a leader in providing support and training for Lee County’s manufacturing industry. Last year, LCI teamed up with Tyson Foods to offer a 15-week internship program that led to gainful, trained employment for eight local workers with disabilities.

For more information on LCI’s training opportunities or to find out how LCI can work with your business to increase skilled employment and decrease turnover, contact Moss at 919-775-3439 ext 209 or Shirley Rijkse, Director of Special Projects and Careers, at 919-775-3439 ext 208.

Eighteen of Lee County’s residents with disabilities are gainfully employed thanks to a temporary internship program that introduced potential team members to Tyson Foods’ Mexican Original plant.

Mexican Original was among several area businesses that welcomed Lee County Industries (LCI) clients, putting eight of them to work in its Sanford plant for the federally-funded 15-week program. “Through the internship program, Mexican Original saw the level of support that LCI provides to its clients, including helping them learn and perform their job responsibilities,” says Meg Moss, LCI’s executive director.

Therefore, when the company needed full-time labor for second and third shifts, LCI was on the top of the call list for potential candidates, said Shayne Bevier, human resources manager at Mexican Original. A total of 18 LCI clients have been hired since February, he said.

“Over the last year we were able to find qualified team members who just wanted an opportunity,” Bevier said. “This has proven to be an excellent opportunity for Mexican Original to show its dedication to the residents of Lee County.”

LCI’s clients weren’t given any preferential treatment, though. “They went through the interview process just like any other candidates,” says Ginny Connolly-Manhardt, director of careers and rehabilitation at LCI. Once hired, the clients also had to meet the same production standards as every other worker.

However, there is one unique service that LCI provides its clients: A dedicated job coach who accompanies clients to job interviews and helps them get up-to-speed on all aspects of their positions — all paid for by LCI. The coach also works one-on-one with clients to help them with the social aspects of working on the line, Moss notes. When the client is ready, the job coach moves on to work with other clients.

And Mexican Original did more than just hire LCI’s clients. “Shayne Bevier and his assistant, Susan Gomez, were instrumental in helping establish a culture that welcomes workers from LCI and helps them feel comfortable,” Connolly-Manhardt says.

All LCI’s clients have ever asked for is the chance to prove that they can do the job just like traditional workers, Connolly-Manhardt points out. LCI encourages more local businesses to follow Mexican Original’s lead in encouraging and welcoming employees with disabilities.

Tyson Foods is the nation’s second leading tortilla producer. The company’s Mexican Original operations produce seven to nine million pounds of tortillas per week at plants in Fayetteville, Arkansas; Portland, Indiana, and Sanford, North Carolina.

New job opportunities will be available soon to local residents with disabilities thanks to a federal grant recently awarded to LCI Inc.

The $200,000 grant was provided under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 — more commonly known as the “Stimulus Bill” — to preserve and create jobs across the nation.

LCI, which serves people with disabilities in Lee and surrounding counties, received funding for two major projects.

The first provides on-the-job training for jobs currently in high demand. Under the grant, which officially begins Aug. 15, LCI will pay the training wage for up to 15 weeks for new employees with disabilities and provide additional assistance throughout the training process.

“We work with both the business and the trainee,” says Meg Moss, executive director of LCI. “We help the business determine what the training goals are for each individual and then we provide a range of support to the trainee.”

If the trainee is hired at the end of the training period, LCI is authorized to continue providing consultation for another 90 days.

Under its second grant award, LCI is working with Innovate, a new product development company focused on products designed to enhance independence for people with disabilities. Already, the company has developed The Wheel Deal, an innovative fabric bag providing storage for people using wheelchairs.

Innovate is led by local business consultant Bob Jones, a lean manufacturing specialist who is serving as managing partner. Jones has applied the latest engineering and manufacturing practices to the new enterprise.

Under the partnership, Innovate designs products based on insight from clients who use wheelchairs. LCI clients with disabilities then test the products and participate in sales and distribution.

“Developing the products is extremely important, but this company offers a much wider range of benefits for LCI’s clients,” says Moss. “Our goal is to help people with disabilities move into more-independent employment and this company gives all of our clients a place to develop skills and begin that important transition.”

Each of the projects received about half of the total grant made to LCI. Stimulus funds under this particular federal program were distributed from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to state vocational rehabilitation offices. The North Carolina Division of Vocational Rehabilitation, one of those state offices, made the award to LCI based on proposals submitted.

Groups like LCI helped more than 2,300 people with disabilities across the United States become successfully employed during the 2008 fiscal year. That’s important, Moss believes, because only 36 percent of people with disabilities were employed — compared to more than 80 percent of people without disabilities.

“We’re thrilled to get help from this grant,” she says. “We couldn’t pursue this opportunity without the financial assistance and the grant will allow us to generate more income for the future. That means helping more clients enjoy a better, more-independent life.”

LCI Inc. was recognized recently with a SHARP Award, presented by state labor officials for LCI’s exemplary workplace safety and health management system.

The commendation, named using an acronym for the Safety and Health Achievement Recognition Program, is awarded by the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration. It recognizes small employers nationwide who create and maintain an exemplary safety and health management system.

Officials from the North Carolina Department of Labor traveled to Sanford for a ceremony marking the occasion. During the presentation, safety consultant Roger Griffin presented a certificate to LCI associate director, Sue Marshburn.

To qualify, companies must undergo a rigorous hazard identification survey and correct any hazards identified. They also must conduct an exemplary health and safety management system, reduce workplace injuries below the national average and agree to notify state officials when new potential hazards are introduced into the workplace.

Once SHARP recognition is awarded, companies are granted a one-year exemption from scheduled OSHA inspections and may be eligible to have the exemption extended for up to two more years.

Workplace safety has always been a primary concern at LCI, according to associate director Sue Marshburn, who monitors the company’s occupational safety program. While she’s very happy about receiving the SHARP award, Marshburn said it’s simply another logical step in LCI’s ongoing goal to protect people who are so valuable to the company’s success.

“We’re committed to safety throughout the entire organization, on and off the industrial floor,” she said. “We’ve already been recognized by the state Department of Labor for working eleven years without an accident and we participate regularly in workshops conducted by the Mid-State Safety Council.

“Our people and our reputation are very important to us.”