We are going into the second quarter of the never-ending campaign season, and all we are hearing from the candidates is "free this, free that, free everything." They are talking about free college tuition, free medical care, free phones, free energy and all kinds of other free stuff, all courtesy of your government.
Of course, we know that nothing is free. There is no such thing as a free lunch. It just appears to be free because someone else is paying for it. I will admit the ABC/ Construction and Maintenance Education Foundation (CMEF) Craft Training program is not free. I used the headline just like politicians use their words to get your attention. Now that you are reading this column, I hope you will continue to read another couple of paragraphs to find out about this almost free training program.
The CMEF is based on community funding and very low registration fees. The industrial contractors, their clients, and the process and chemical plants designed a system to make sure that tuition costs would not be an impediment preventing workers from attending training. ABC and the Houston Business Roundtable (HBR) implemented a plan over 20 years ago to jointly fund the best training program in the country. The system ensures that those companies that benefit the most from a skilled workforce would absorb the cost of the program. The program is wrapped up with a simple agreement called the Training Contributor Agreement (TCA).
All ABC/CMEF asks of contractors is to agree to follow the terms of the TCA. The TCA is recognized by both HBR and East Harris County Manufacturers Association members who represent the owner community. Once the TCA is signed, a contractor can take advantage of all the program services provided by CMEF. Essentially, the only thing the TCA requires of a contractor is to ask all their clients to support the CMEF training program by paying $0.06 per workhour performed on a project jobsite. If a client agrees to pay, the contractor collects the money and remits it to CMEF. This process does not cost a contractor a single penny. The pool of money is used to support the training and workforce development programs for the industry. All the contractor has to do next is send their employees to get educated and trained -- at a greatly reduced fee.
Why would the client agree to support industry training and agree to the TCA agreement? For the same reason they demand a trained, quality workforce to build their facility: They will not accept anything less than a skilled workforce to build and maintain their plants. By agreeing to participate in the TCA, they are assured that the cents-per-workhour funding goes directly to CMEF and is used specifically for training. The owner groups have representatives overseeing the funding and budgets of CMEF. They know where their TCA money is going and how it is being spent.
What is the incentive for the contractor to become a TCA contributor? (Almost) free training. By simply asking their clients to participate in a TCA, they can take advantage of the world-class training offered by CMEF.
The annual Construction Career Expo, an expo that draws over 400 high school students and introduces them to many construction career facets, is a workforce development program supported by funds from the Training Contributor Agreement.
CMEF is one of the biggest users of the NCCER certified and standardized curriculum and offers outstanding classes at its campus in La Porte, Texas, and at numerous area community colleges. The only expense the TCA participant will incur is a small registration fee when a student shows up to class. This also lets the owner-client know that they take craft training seriously. As one TCA participant told me, this is a no-brainer. It solves his problem of providing a skilled workforce for his clients at very little cost.
For more information about the TCA program, contact Russell Hamley at (713) 523-6222 or r.hamley@abchouston.org.