Page 42 - MetalForming May 2012

Workforce Development\GR Spring & Stamping
MetalForming/May 2012 www.metalformingmagazine.com
“This company cares about what employees think and provides opportu- nities for them to grow,” says Bradley Meulenberg, tooling-build department lead. “I got married three months after I started here, and the company chair- man visited me personally and gave me a wedding card.”
we had been able to do previously.” Jonaitis began at the company in 1976 in an entry-level position, moved on to secondary operations— now called the value added depart- ment—eventually led that depart- ment. In 2001 she took on the newly created position of training manager. “I started at the bottom and worked my way up,” she says. “I like conducting the orientation and per- forming one-on-one and group train- ing. You can see the light bulb turn
on, and that is fun to watch.”
Life Long Education classes— some elective, some mandatory— are held several times each month, all related to improving the company’s key performance indicators: quali- ty, cost, delivery, safety, morale and environmental. Some classes target specialty technical areas such as welding, automation, and terms and conditions.
Homegrown Talent Recognized
New hires are paid commensu- rate with experience, and receive rais- es based on performance, compe- tency and training progression.
“We are not a company that sticks by seniority,” explains Dulyea. “We are performance-based.”
Pay ranges remain competitive but allow press operators to earn sig- nificantly more than their starting hourly wages, sometimes in as little as two to three years, depending on an associate’s ability and contribution to the company. Many GRS&S tool- makers have earned journeyman sta- tus at the company, and wage pro- gressions reflect such achievement. And 12 of the company’s engineers began as interns and have graduated to become program managers, with two having earned master’s degrees while employed at GRS&S.
The company prefers to promote from within whenever possible.
“Twelve years ago GRS&S hired me for setup in the assembly department. Within two years I was the lead with seven people under me,” says Troy Hendges, value-added department lead. ”I went to school at night for industrial maintenance, which the com- pany covered. Now I run an assembly department and oversee 150 people.”
Forty-five percent of salaried associ- ates were promoted from their start- ing positions at GRS&S, and four of eight senior-staff associates were pro- moted from within the company. Currently, 50 percent of the hourly workforce has been promoted to higher positions with higher wages. Also, each year, performance reviews lead to wage adjustments. For exam- ple, in 2012, 70 percent of associates have received 5 percent wage increases, 15 percent received adjust- ments from 6 to 10 percent, and 5 to 10 percent of employees received higher adjustments, according to company officials.
Benefits and wages at GRS&S are competitive with similar Western Michigan businesses. Benefits include 401(k) matching, medical and life insurance, holiday and vaca- tion pay, attendance bonuses, and gain sharing—paid quarterly—based on company profitability.
When GRS&S describes itself as a performance-based company, it is performance that determines pro- motions and layoffs, according to Dulyea.
“Seniority has its place for vaca- tion time,” he explains. “But at GRS&S, when layoffs occur we will
Pressroom Mini-Company at GRS&S
Officer: Pressroomsupervisor
Quality Officer: Quality associate assigned to interact between the press depart-
ment and its external customers, thus becoming familiar with parts and issues. Tooling Officer: Toolroom lead, works in close concert with the press department
lead, ensuring close communication.
Engineering Officer: Engineer assigned to work with the press department to
improve communication and reduce production-launch issues.
Scheduling Officer: Pressroom scheduler interacts closely with the other officers
to minimize communication problems.
These officers meet weekly to discuss issues and solve problems, ensuring that the press department looks ahead to achieve its goals. Additionally, the entire press department mini-company meets weekly to review corporate information, review mini company KPI scores, review quality and safety issues from the prior week, conduct any necessary department training, and break up into small groups for problem-solving.