Graduates are climbing their way to better jobs

Starting electric line workers earn $18 to $20 an hour.
By PETER H. MILLIKEN
VINDICATOR STAFF WRITER
YOUNGSTOWN -- FirstEnergy Corp. is seeking a few good electric line workers with both brains and brawn, and Youngstown State University is delivering some highly qualified candidates.
"It's a great opportunity for young people who want to make a good living," said Jim Beam of East Palestine, one of 11 members of YSU's first electric utility technology associate degree class, which graduated Saturday."We're in need of 450 trained, highly skilled line personnel," over the next 10 years at FirstEnergy, said Paul Harkey, Youngstown area manager for Ohio Edison -- a division of FirstEnergy. About half of FirstEnergy employees are eligible to retire in the next five years, he noted.
Besides being involved with the program at YSU, FirstEnergy is a partner in similar two-year associate degree programs that train line workers at four other colleges in Ohio and one in New Jersey.
"The probability of their being hired is very good," said Cathy Deka, supervisor of FirstEnergy's Power Systems Institute. To date, First Energy has hired 92 percent of the graduates of the other programs, she said. Starting salaries for FirstEnergy line workers are $18 to $20 an hour, she added.
About the program
Students in the YSU program take math, science, writing and general education courses, along with first aid, CPR and technical electrical courses. Course work is divided between the YSU campus and a lab at Choffin Career Center, with a pole climbing yard in Smoky Hollow. Students also obtain Class A commercial driver's licenses.
Between the two school years, students get a paid 10-week field experience with FirstEnergy, which included considerable overtime last summer because of the need for storm damage repairs.
Before they enroll and pay tuition at YSU, students are screened in orientation sessions and in a two-week pole climbing course to be sure they don't fear heights and have the strength and endurance to do the job.
The job requires reliable attendance, punctuality, strict adherence to safety rules and the willingness to work outdoors at all hours in all kinds of weather, Deka said.
"You have to be aware of your situation. You're working around a lot of live wires," Beam said.
YSU is offering this program because technological changes in the past decade have made a high school diploma insufficient for many entry level jobs, said Cynthia Hirtzel, dean of the College of Engineering and Technology.
"It benefits the community through retention of jobs. It benefits the students because it provides them an entry-level job with a wage that they can live on, and it provides the companies with the work force that they need," Hirtzel said of the university program.
The graduates
Members of YSU's first graduating class in electric utility technology range in age from 20 to their mid-40s.
"For me, this comes naturally. I enjoy working outside and enjoy doing this type of work," said Tom Martinelli of Youngstown, a member of the graduating class who said he is in his 40s. Martinelli is used to working outdoors, having been a line worker for two local cable TV companies and having worked in construction.
Mark Halsey, a former Cleveland Electric Illuminating Co. lineman, who is the lead instructor in YSU's program, acknowledged that the job is demanding.
"You're handling 40- to 50-pound cross arms. It's not easy, but it's not extremely hard. But it's not for everybody either," he said.
milliken@vindy.com