"Really good jobs:" MATC Oak Creek 'Heavy Metal Tour' pushes to fill manufacturing positions
OAK CREEK -- If you or someone you know is looking for work, there's a great opportunity for you. FOX6 News is told there are plenty of good-paying jobs available in a couple of job sectors.
"It's eye-opening," said one Cudahy High School student.
Wide-eyed high school students say they like what they see.
"I'm excited to start doing this, you know, get ready for life," said the student.
Friday, October 21st, the event involved dozens of high school students at Milwaukee Area Technical College's (MATC) Oak Creek Campus, for what's known as the "Heavy Metal Tour."
"What we're trying to do is expose high school students to the opportunities in manufacturing," said Dr. Mark Felshein, vice president of the MATC Oak Creek Campus.
Dr. Mark Felsheim is is vice president at the campus, where he explains the event is part of a concerted effort to attract students to a large pool of potential employment.
"There are really good jobs. I don't think people realize the good jobs that are available in manufacturing," said Felsheim.
First, those people need to know what the work entails.
"They might talk, like you can get all this money if you take this job but people don't experience it so when they don't experience it they're just like OK whatever. When you come here, and they explain it, it's way more fun how it is. It's like all these experiences you can get, it makes people more drawn to it because it's not just this boring dead end job," said Lakita Madlock, South Milwaukee High School student.
Meanwhile at Milwaukee's Manpower Group headquarters, the founder and CEO of Milwaukee-based Mindful Staffing Solutions, Reginald Reed, Jr., addresses another job sector suffering a shortage of employees.
"This is an effort to economically stabilize Milwaukee, through leveraging the workforce demand in construction," said Reed.
Reed brings together contractors, community organizers and potential workers in the search for construction staffing solutions.
"If we aren't able to produce enough workers, then how does any other market move forward? Construction is responsible for the infrastructure for every other growing market," said Reed.
"It's definitely going to be something. I'm going to pursue in my future so it kind of gives me a look to, you know, what comes after the whole high school steps," said a Cudahy High School student.
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