Tapping into the talent pool
Labor shortages have concerned recycling firms since before the COVID-19 pandemic rocked the U.S. workforce in 2020, and the recycled materials industry workforce, like those of many industries, is aging. According to data shared by the U.S. Census Bureau in December of last year, workers age 55 and older have been the fastest-growing age group in the labor force for more than two decades, making up 24 percent of the U.S. workforce in 2022, up from 10 percent in 1994.
Industry Initiatives
The last few years have seen a concerted effort by the recycling industry to tap into the pool of emerging young professionals. Some companies have established technician training programs, while others work directly with colleges and trade schools to offer internship opportunities to students. The Recycled Materials Association (ReMA), headquartered in Washington, has developed its own career awareness program, Recycling Jobs Day, bringing together member companies with local students training in fields relevant to the industry.
Recycling Jobs Day
In November of last year, the association hosted its inaugural Recycling Jobs Day at Nunez Community College in Chalmette, Louisiana. Panelists attending this year’s ReMA Convention & Exhibition in Las Vegas, April 13–16, discussed the success of ReMA’s first Recycling Jobs Day program and ways to recruit young professionals into the recycling sector.
Shannon Fertitta, executive director of ReMA’s Recycling Industry Operating Standard (RIOS) certification program, moderated the session, which included commentary from panelists Stephanie Hajducek, founder of Taft, Texas-based nonprofit This One’s for the Gals; Winston Jarrott, regional general manager for EMR’s New Orleans operations; and Julie Rexford, director of science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics (STEAM) at Nunez Community College.
Event Details
Rexford said a family connection helped ReMA select Nunez Community College for the first Recycling Jobs Day. The college has a coastal restoration and environmental studies program, which initially flagged for participation. Upon further examination, the faculty realized the event could apply to multiple programs at the school.
- Transcends numerous departments on campus, from heavy equipment to electrical to business
- Featured on-campus panel discussions with representatives from Louisiana-based tire recycling company Colt Inc. and metal recycling company EMR
- Included guided facility tours at EMR and Colt, giving students tangible examples of a day in the life of a recycler
Fertitta shared her experience: "I was thrilled to participate. I come from an electronics recycling background, and there are countless opportunities in the electronics recycling space. Winston was able to come in and talk about the opportunities with metal recycling, and [Kyle Vincent of Colt] was able to talk about the boundless opportunities in tires, so there were a lot of lively conversations and a lot of really thoughtful questions from the students as well."
Impact and Outcomes
According to ReMA, the first Recycling Jobs Day resulted in 91 percent of the attendees indicating they were "a little to a lot" more interested in pursuing a career in the recycled materials industry after the event. Jarrott attested to this success and shared that EMR had a handful of engaged and interested potential candidates following the event.
"The fact that we could bring the students in, and we could actually see their reaction to seeing a real workday—you don’t get that at a job fair," Jarrott said. "You can see who’s interested and who’s not, who’s asking questions, who’s bored already. That’s invaluable information that you can’t really replicate."
Raising Awareness
One of the challenges Recycling Jobs Day attempts to address is the lack of knowledge about recycling as an industry. Panelists emphasized the importance of early exposure and education about career opportunities in the sector.
Hajducek’s nonprofit, This One’s for the Gals, works to help young women and girls with career exploration and workforce development in the construction, energy, manufacturing and maritime industries. "We talk to girls about careers not a lot of people talk to girls about, from skill trades to STEM [science, technology, engineering and math] and everything in between," she said.
Fertitta added: "Starting as early as not just high school, not even middle school, going even to elementary school. Getting in there really, really early is just critical. Kids that young, even in elementary age, are already hungry and interested and want to know how they’re going to change the world."
Rexford shared that some students hadn’t known about EMR’s facility just 15 minutes down the road from Nunez Community College prior to Recycling Jobs Day. "That’s one of the big hurdles: educating people on what we do as an industry and as a company," Jarrott said. "People drive by us every day and don’t know what we do behind our gates, so breaking that barrier was very exciting for us."