News

IKORCC Grayson Training Center Breaks Ground on Expansion

April 19, 2023/in Apprenticeship, News /by Hannah Erwin

Grayson, KY— With the growing need for construction workers in and around Kentucky, the IKORCC Joint Apprenticeship and Training Fund is expanding their Grayson Kentucky training facility.

A groundbreaking ceremony was held on April 18, 2023, at the Carpenter’s Union Training Center at 574 Carpenters Way, Grayson, KY 41143 to launch the expansion. The event hosted apprentices, state and local officials, keynote speaker Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear, local business owners, and IKORCC labor representatives.

“Today is an investment in creating more high skilled workers….it’s also a 5 million dollar investment in Grayson Kentucky.,” Governor Beshear told the crowd of nearly 110 attendees. Read more

IKORCC Magazine

January 3, 2023/in News, Special /by Hannah Erwin

2022 was a BIG year for the Indiana Kentucky Ohio Regional Council of Carpenters. Take a look at our annual magazine for a letter from EST Mike Kwiatkowski, hub updates, […]

Carpenters Union Donates to Local Career Technical Programs

October 28, 2022/in News /by Hannah Erwin

Friday, October 28, 2022, Indiana Kentucky Ohio Regional Council of Carpenters Representative Jon Parman and the Ohio Joint Apprenticeship’s Director of Education Dan Sustin presented a $5,000 grant from the Regional Council to the Building Trades program with Knox County’s Career Center (KCCC).

KCCC’s program currently has 20 juniors and 20 seniors. Students in the class visited the IKORCC training centers in Columbus and Richfield for their annual open-house events this year. As the representatives delivered the check, students from the class presented both Parman and Sustin plaques to thank them for their partnership and dedication to preparing students like themselves for the workforce.

The grant money for the schools is intended to be used for additional training, such as new equipment to keep up with the upcoming work to the Central-Ohio area. Some systems, such as cleanrooms, are expected to be utilized in the upcoming projects in the area including at the Intel mega-site and the newly announced Honda Battery Plant.

In August, Parman and Ohio Joint Apprenticeship Area Coordinator Aaron Gunderman provided two additional $5,000 grants to Ashland County West-Holmes Career Center Construction Trades program and the West Holmes High School Building Trades program.

“We need this next generation,” Gunderman said. “The fact that there is just so much construction work coming…We want to help steer these young people in the right direction. We want to show them all the career opportunities they have in construction.”

The council is expected to continue with select grants for schools with strong carpentry programs within the region.

2022 Election – IKORCC Endorsements

October 11, 2022/in News, Politics /by Hannah Erwin

“Educate. Agitate. Organize.” Those are the words United Brotherhood of Carpenters founder Peter J. McGuire spoke about the key tenets to build and maintain our union. Each year, the Indiana Kentucky Ohio Regional Council of Carpenters meets with current and potential legislators to educate them of Carpenter’s Issues. It is imperative to our mission to protect our members rights on the job and fight for other issues that impact how they work. Read more

IKORCC Hosts Appreciation Lunch at Yellowbud Solar Project

September 22, 2022/in News /by Hannah Erwin

WILLIAMSPORT, OH – On September 15, IKORCC leadership and staff took to the Yellowbud Solar Project to host an appreciation lunch for the workers. All union workers were invited to stop by one of the three setups onsite for their lunch made by The Scioto Ribber. For the over 220 IKORCC carpenters onsite, staff handed out shirts and tumblers to thank members for their work on the project. Nearly 500 trades workers in total on the job picked up lunch during the event.

“The Yellowbud luncheon was to thank those IKORCC members working onsite. They took the classes, came to work with a good attitude, and got the job done! This job is a perfect example of what the UBC does; we train, we show up with a can-do attitude, and we get the job done!”, IKORCC Director of Ohio Anthony Holbrook said of the event.

Thanks to IKORCC members’ professionalism and productivity, IKORCC Contractors, like Kiewit, are committing to using union carpenters and millwrights to complete their solar projects.

“The UBC’s performance both with safety and productivity has been outstanding,” David Marko Kiewit’s Labor Relations Director spoke about the IKORCC’s presence at Yellowbud.

Marko wrote the IKORCC to commend the performance reported on the Yellowbud Solar Project in Ross and Pickaway counties near southern Ohio.

The productivity of the solar energy work at the Yellowbud site is just one example of IKORCC’s ongoing efforts to continue learning from emerging industries and adapting to the needs of contractors.

Nearly $14 billion are projected to be invested in Indiana, Kentucky, and Ohio by the federal government due the Inflation Reduction Act being passed at the federal level. This legislation is expected to invest that money into large-scale power generation and storage in clean energy, including solar.

To date, IKORCC training centers have taught over 10,000 solar training hours and expect to more than double that by next year to keep up with the demand from contractors bidding on these new solar projects across the region.