By Dennis Quick
Senior Staff Writer

Until recently, MeadWestvaco found it difficult to recruit hourly workers to its Summerville lumber mill.

To qualify for the mill’s entry-level jobs, applicants needed a high school diploma or a General Educational Development certificate.

That disqualified some potential workers from the mill’s entry-level jobs, which start at $10.16 an hour, said Sandy Madison, an employee relations representative in MeadWestvaco’s human resources department.

Those lacking a high school diploma or GED still could have possessed the skills and acumen necessary for working in the lumber mill, Madison said.

And considering the region’s high school dropout rate of more than 40%, those requirements limited MeadWestvaco’s hiring pool.

To expand that pool and find skilled workers, the lumber mill dropped its education requirements and incorporated the WorkKeys job skills assessment program offered through Trident One-Stop Career Center in North Charleston.

Applicants lacking a high school diploma or GED certificate will be considered for employment if they agree to participate in WorkKeys.

In the five months since MeadWestvaco began using WorkKeys, eight employees have been hired and another four hirings are pending, Madison said.

Of the mill’s roughly 180 employees, 102 are full-time hourly workers, Madison said. The mill wants to hire about 28 more hourly workers and is relying on WorkKeys to help achieve that goal.

Skills assessment

WorkKeys is a job skills assessment system created by the Iowa-based American College Testing Program. For about $1,700, a certified profiler visits a company’s work site to determine the skills employees need to perform their jobs successfully. Potential employees are then tested to see if they have those necessary skills.

Tests include applied math, applied technology, observation skills, reading for information, locating information, listening skills, writing ability and teamwork skills. Applicants pay $10 for each test and can take them either at the One-Stop Career Center, the Venture Industries Adult Center in Summerville or the Berkeley Educational Center in Moncks Corner. If the applicant is hired, MeadWestvaco reimburses him or her for the tests after a 90-day probationary period.

Tests are tailored to meet a company’s specific job needs. In MeadWestvaco’s case, a group of lumber mill employees worked with Trident One-Stop Career Center’s Bernard Chisolm, who assessed the employment needs to customize the WorkKeys tests for the mill.

Continuing education

WorkKeys is not a substitute for a high school diploma or a GED, Madison said. Applicants who pass WorkKeys tests and are hired by the lumber mill are expected and encouraged to achieve a GED certificate. To that end, the lumber mill has a learning center to help employees brush up on their computer and academic skills.

Employees realize that the more educational credentials they accumulate, the higher they can rise within the company.

“The program opens doors,” Madison said. “Once applicants become employees, they see opportunities.”

WorkKeys also will be used for employees seeking to hone their skills for mid-level and upper-level positions at the mill, Madison said.

Dennis Quick is senior staff writer at the Business Journal. E-mail him at dquick@charlestonbusiness.com.

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