The Marcus Shale exploration in downtown Pittsburgh will address the status of jobs in Pennsylvania.
On Thursday, October 14, three keynote speakers will discuss the staffing challenges facing firms that are part of the Marcellus Shale exploration at an event in Downtown Pittsburgh. “Recruit and Hire a Safe and Productive Workforce” will take place at PNC Park’s Hall of Fame Club from 8:00 a.m to noon.
While many industries are struggling with job creation and high unemployment, companies involved with Marcellus Shale development find themselves with the opposite dilemma – high demand to fill a variety of jobs, but difficulty finding and identifying qualified people to hire for these positions. This situation is expected to continue, as exploration in the Marcellus region is expected to generate more than 200,000 new jobs by 2020.
Marcellus Shale, an extensive formation of shale found predominantly in New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio and West Virginia, contains significant and largely untapped natural gas reserves. Energy companies are not the only ones impacted by the hiring boom – many companies that support the exploration and drilling stand to prosper as well: engineering firms, trucking companies, equipment manufacturers, scientists – even restaurants and other hospitality services.
The event’s speakers will each focus on a different area:
Anne Naqi, Director of Human Resources Operations at EQT, will discuss recruiting issues and the specialized job roles that exist within Marcellus Shale activities. She will address the challenge of finding qualified candidates and will detail recruiting resources and techniques to help organizations find individuals to perform these often tough-to-fill roles.
Glenn Downer, Vice President of Behavioral Science Technology, Inc. (BST), will examine the importance of implementing a safety culture. He will detail the components of such a culture, how it supports employee retention and satisfaction, and how it fosters a sustainably safe workforce.
Kevin Klinvex, Executive Vice President and Co-founder of Select International, will offer best practices on how to identify and hire candidates who will successfully contribute to an organization. He will also address the legal defensibility of various hiring tools and processes, a segment that is sometimes overlooked.
“The Marcellus Shale exploration will provide great job growth for this area, at a time when it’s desperately needed,” said Klinvex. “But this growth needs to occur in a controlled, deliberate way. Companies need to be sure they’re hiring dependable, safe workers who will positively contribute to their organization for many years.”
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