When she lost the job she’d had for 39 years, one woman turned to advanced technology training to keep her competitive in the modern manufacturing workforce
By Diane Page | Machine tool technology student, Greenville Tech
As a teenager, I was anxious to get into the workforce. So before I could even finish high school, I went to work for Steel Heddle, a company that made components for manufacturing cloth.
When I applied for the job at age 18, the supervisor tried to talk me out of it. He said the work was hard, and the environment was dirty. He was right, but I got the job and I enjoyed the work, and before long, I was moving up and making money. I eventually earned my GED, and continued to advance until I became a lead set-up operator and supervisor, taking home a comfortable salary.
I had been with Steel Heddle for 39 years when my world shifted. At work one day in 2012, we were told that the company had been sold. I was losing not only my livelihood but also the people I spent every day with, who over time had changed from co-workers to family.
Even though I had spent many years in the workforce, I wasn’t old enough to collect Social Security. And I wasn’t ready to retire. But while I had been working at Steel Heddle, manufacturing had changed. Many jobs had gone overseas while I had been employed, and the ones that came back required a higher skill level. It wasn’t enough to have learned on the job. If I were to find a position in manufacturing, I would need credentials to back my skills up.
The manufacturing environment had also changed. The shop floor was no longer dirty, and the work, though still challenging, required more brainpower than anything else.
Thanks to the Trade Adjustment Act, I was able to change course and enroll at Greenville Technical College. Some people, including my oldest daughter, thought that I should find a new field while enrolling in college for the first time in my life at the age of 58. But working with my hands and running machinery came naturally to me, and I had observed people using computer numerical control (CNC) equipment. Now I wanted to be one of those people.
Two years into the machine tool technology program, I have just a couple of classes to go until I graduate. I’ve loved learning new skills – especially how to read blueprints, make a precision part from stock metal, and even write the code to program CNC machines.
I’m older than many of my classmates, and the majority of them are males, but I feel completely comfortable in the classroom, and I’ve earned the respect of my fellow students because my measurements are precise and my work is within tolerance. I haven’t just managed to keep up – I’m really proud to say that I’ve excelled. I’ve made all A’s and B’s in my program, and right now, I have a 3.75 GPA.
Opportunities in manufacturing are strong, and the job I’m preparing for is considered one of the strongest. In this area, there are more than 5,400 machinist positions, and the number is expected to increase by 1.6 percent over the next four years. A wave of retirements creates even greater opportunity for people with the right credentials. In fact, I’m hearing that almost a quarter of the machinist workforce will retire in the near future, so I’m hoping that I can be one of the people who enters the workforce at the right time with the right skills to fill a position.
Starting over at the age of 58 isn’t something I ever imagined myself doing. And I have to say that I shed more than a few tears at the prospect. But now that I’m on my way to a second career that should pay me even more than the first, I’m grateful for the unexpected push that brought me back to school. Graduating from college with a set of skills that employers need now means a lot to me. Manufacturing certainly played a big role in my past, but it’s changed and I’ve changed with it. Now I’m proud to be on my way to becoming part of the future of manufacturing.
