By Thomas Gnau

Staff Writer

DAYTON — An inability to find skilled workers is stifling economic growth in Dayton, business representatives said Friday at a Sinclair Community College symposium.

Voting via remote-control transmitter, most of the roughly 60 local entrepreneurs and executives indicated that the lack of qualified workers is a problem.

Thirty-five percent indicated that the shortage is stifling growth “very much,” while another 42 percent said it was slowing growth “somewhat.”

Thirteen percent of respondents at the Ponitz Center meeting were undecided, and 10 percent felt the issue was not a problem.

Called by leaders of Sinclair and Montgomery County commissioners partly in response to an Aug. 21 Dayton Daily News story, most respondents at the session also agreed that finding workers with the right technical skills and a willingness to work were ongoing problems.

The Aug. 21 story quoted Rob Baker, manager of Behr Thermal Products’ Dayton plant. He said he needed 55 production workers immediately, but was having trouble finding candidates who could pass a drug test, read at an 8th-grade level or were willing to work eight hours a day on their feet.

The Behr jobs available are unskilled positions with starting hourly wages of $11.65, he said.

“We really need to have a conversation with businesses,” said Steven Johnson, president of Sinclair, which since 2009 has served 4,600 workers who lost their jobs in the recession.

“We’ve basically given up on finding skilled workers,” said Steve Staub of Vandalia’s Staub Manufacturing Solutions. He said he has taken to hiring former auto technicians from Walmart who are reliable and are willing to train to perform his company’s work.

He said he tries to follow the advice of Iams founder and area benefactor Clay Mathile: “Hire for attitude and train for skill.”

Bill Linesch, human resources vice president for Premier Health Partners, said Premier has 500 openings for a wide ranges of jobs and a hunger for reliable workers.

“Our No. 1 reason for termination is absenteeism,” Linesch said.

Derek Maddox, a deputy for operations at SAIC’s local offices, said he has 50 openings in computer science and engineering and hardware engineering. But as a defense contractor, he has additional requirements that make finding the right people even tougher.

“All of my employees must be U.S. citizens and they must be eligible for a security clearance,” he said.

The problem isn’t getting easier, said John McCormick, a senior principal with Heapy Engineering, a Kettering mechanical engineering firm.

“As technology advances, we require more and more skilled workers,” he said.

Johnson said he hopes to hold more meetings with local businesspeople on the topic.

Contact this reporter at (937) 225-2390 or tgnau@DaytonDailyNews.com.