ABC Keystone

By: G. David Sload, ABC President-CEO

It is hard to believe that we have already moved into the second quarter of 2019. As we look back at the first quarter, we look to our guiding principles to see if we are providing the membership with the value and the tools needed to help them succeed. After all, this is a member-driven association, and we need to make sure we have a good balance of advocacy, member-to-member networking, education and training.

Progress in the world of advocacy is hard to measure. As we started a new legislative session at the State Capitol several firsts occurred. This season, we have seen a number of our members’ Representatives and Senators taking key positions in leadership or chairing important committees. Hopefully, this will help us push our agenda when it comes to apprenticeship reform, licensing, and anti-PLA legislation. Only time will tell, however. Our members’ participation in ABC PA Free Enterprise Day helped to solidify our message.

When it comes to member-to-member networking, the first quarter saw 1,207 total members attend seven different events. With a variety of different events and venues, we strive to cover a broad spectrum of our membership. We thank the members that attended and value the feedback that we get at the end of each event. We have several events to host during the last three quarters: Apprentice Graduation, the Golf Outing, the August Summer Mixer, Excellence in Construction Awards, and don’t forget the free quarterly Regional Construction Wake-up Call Events.

On the education and training front, we hosted 523 member students in a variety of safety and management education classes. This did not include the 354 apprentices that also train monthly. Keystone relies on the members’ needs to determine what education and training we provide. If there is something that you need, and you can’t find it on our website, please let us know. Chances are that if you need it, some other member does also.

Last but certainly not least – the members tasked us with expanding our workforce development efforts. While we may not see some of the dividends for several years, we have made great strides. During the first quarter, we had an impact on 1,215 students and educators through building tours and career awareness events. This has led us to new articulation agreements and new groups participating in pre-apprenticeship programs. You will see a number of adult pre-apprenticeships begin in the second and third quarters, providing members with some good entry-level employees.

Hopefully, you were able to take advantage of at least one or more of the benefits mentioned above. Again, please let us know how we are doing. Are we meeting your needs? Are there things you would like to see that we are not offering? Your input is paramount to the success of the Keystone Chapter.

May 7, 2019