Don't Call It a Phaze!
HILDALE, Utah, July 6, 2017 (Newswire.com) - Since the company started out back in 2003, Phaze Concrete has managed to maintain a fairly consistent trajectory. From the days when they were pouring concrete in driveways and residential properties in Utah, a lot has changed.
One thing that never changed, though, is their commitment to employee development. The company has been vocal about their support and encouragement of every member of staff on their payroll reaching their full potential; whether it's giving them the skills and experience they need to make a career for themselves on the building site, or helping them make up for lost opportunities.
Because, in one of the most forward-thinking moves made by a trades-based company, Phaze Concrete has implemented their own GED program. Under this program, apprentices — and family members of employees — are able to complete their General Education Development certificate while continuing to earn a living for themselves.
"We don't want our employees simply to come to work and earn a paycheck and go home," said a company representative during a recent interview.
"We want them to come and have a valuable experience, learning transferable skills that can improve every aspect of their life. Registered apprentices, regardless of their age, will have the opportunity to complete their GED, if they have not received a high school diploma or equivalent. Phaze provides the GED readiness course that is available to all employees and family members of our employees."
It's not a particularly common provision for a construction company to offer their apprentices a pathway to allow them to easily catch up on the certificates they may have missed out on at school; but what's the motive for Phaze?
Their representative recently laid things out. "When employees make the commitment to the apprenticeship program, Phaze Concrete makes a commitment to them to give them the most well-rounded industry training available. Doing the right thing has been an important value for the Phaze team, often going the extra mile to make sure customers get what they expected and have an active involvement with solutions to the daily challenges and hurdles of today's construction industry.
"Our crews work hard as a team to keep commitments and schedules while traveling across the nation to deliver the quality the industry has come to expect from us." Last year, Phaze partnered with the Department of Labor's Department of Apprenticeships to put together a new program which incorporates practical and theoretical work, helping young people to gain the skills and knowledge they need to succeed on the construction site.
The Department of Labor, in particular, recognizes Phaze's apprenticeship program as one of the 37,000 available in the nation. Currently, twenty-six construction workers are enrolled in the cement mason apprenticeship; these training schemes aren't delivered as part of a union-based package, but rather to anybody who would like to improve their prospects, regardless of age.
At the G-20 Labor and Employment Ministers' Meeting in May 2017, the U.S. Secretary of Labor, Alexander Acosta, was explicitly supportive of this particular kind of training program; likewise, the White House Office of American Innovation is currently funneling a lot of resources into nurturing and promoting apprenticeships.
With President Trump's election vows concerning the construction and manufacturing industries; namely, to bring back jobs, stimulate the economy to create demand, and promote a more self-sufficient era for the United States, it's no surprise that such an emphasis on apprenticeships is being made.
For Phaze, though, it's obvious that career development for their employees is less an obligation as handed down by the powers-that-be, and more of a mechanism to thank their employees for all of their hard work which has helped the company secure several large-scale projects, including construction of several Walmart stores as well as massive commercial properties and parking garages.
For this concrete laying company, the sky is the limit. By creating an inclusive environment where their employees feel as though they're part of a team, completely committed to safety, and keeping their work environment professional and safe, they're creating better opportunities for themselves every year. Thanks to these efforts, they now have an unusually high EMOD (Experience Modification) rating of 0.72 percent. It might be many things, but it's not a phase!
Source: Phaze Concrete