Help wanted

In the weeks and months following Trainor Glass Co.'s closure, we have received many emails from former Trainor employees expressing their concerns about the situation, sharing their stories, or asking for assistance finding new employment. 

Among them, one in particular stood out. It reads: “I do not think we need to worry about innovative thinking or approaches to glass and glazing within construction. This doesn’t die with a company name. This innovation and approach lives within the people who work it day in and day out. … The people are the expanded mind. The people think outside of the box and have an attitude of anything can be achieved if you work hard to truly figure it out. These people will continue to work with high standards and excited hearts for building ... hopefully, no matter where this change takes them.”

Written by a former Trainor employee who had moved on prior to the closure, this email draws attention to our industry’s most valuable asset: the people. And as Garret Henson, vice president of sales for Viracon, says here, “It is imperative that our industry retains this talent.”

Market conditions remain difficult, but if you can hire new employees, do so, says Jeff Dietrich, senior analyst for the Institute for Trend Research. “We’ll see milder than normal growth [in the economy], but you need to be planning for it, hiring for it,” he said at the most recent Glazing Executives Forum. “This is an opportunity to hire talented people and take the time to train them.”

And with the number of experienced glass professionals currently looking for work, chances are that training could be minimal.

If your company is among those considering new hires in 2012, I would encourage you to visit jobs.glassmagazine.com to review hundreds of resumes from qualified candidates. There is a fee for this service; for more information please contact Jeff Smith at jsmith@glass.org.

Those of you looking for employment can create an account and post your resume on the site at no charge. You can also view available jobs and create alerts to notify you when a specific type of position opens up, for free.

I know several companies have already hired former Trainor employees and other talented people who lost their jobs in this downturn. My hope is that this will continue, both for the individuals and our industry at large.

Chase is editorial director of Glass Magazine. Write her at jchase@glass.org.