This, along with a contracting center at Eastwood Mall, a 20-minute drive from the north end of Youngstown, is the hub for GM’s new workforce that is counting on seven-day-a-week shifts to make its EV batteries. . .
Recruitment is as difficult as anywhere in the country, Coviello said of the chamber. The business community advocates for jobs even as industries seem to compete for the same workers, and workforce training efforts are trying to prepare more potential employees for advanced manufacturing jobs that are more complex than in the old factories.
“Recruitment is going exceptionally well,” said Brooke Waid, a spokeswoman for Ultium Cells. “We have a lot of interest.”
Of the “thousands of applicants,” about 200 have been hired, Waid said. That should go up to 600 by the end of the year, and ultimately hit 1,200.
Some in Lordstown say the company is picky about hiring.
But Waid emphasized that Ultium Cells is ready to train the right people and no prior manufacturing experience is necessary.
“We’re looking for soft skills,” he said, “and we’re looking for leadership.”
Production employees will be paid between $15 and $22 an hour, depending on experience and skills, Waid said. The company also pays a quarterly bonus and offers benefits on the first day of employment, he said.
The starting wage at the Lansing Ultium Cells factory is expected to be $22.50 per hour, or $900 per week. That $46,800 annual pay is about 5 percent higher than the average manufacturing salary in the area.
At Lordstown, the pay range is higher than at many other manufacturing sites now that General Motors has closed its $30-an-hour plant, said Sumell, the Youngstown State professor.
–
