County Adds Huge Layer of Bureaucracy to its Hiring Process

Talk about lipstick on a pig!
Tom Green County is one of the LOWEST paying counties ANYWHERE for its size. Most of the blue collar employees of the county have to be on gov assistance just to make ends meet! And now you're going to make it even more difficult to obtain one of these low paying jobs?
Did anyone bother to ask WHY Tom Green County is only the second county in Texas to do this?
The fact this program has been around since Clinton and its only come this far should make anyone question it!
The sheer fact Lord Obama was involved with it should make us run the other way by itself!
Respect and thanks to all the county employees and especially the Severely under paid Sheriff's office and for the work you all do for a county government that doesn't appreciate you as they should.
There are some of us that do appreciate all you do for what little you receive.

LOL..... Well they can expect the unfilled positions to start stacking up unless they hire the older folks in the community because starting in about 1985, Democrats and Liberals began passing laws that started preventing schools from teaching core educational courses. Those that actually did graduate after 1985 don't possess math skills, don't have a clue about geography or history and mostly don't know how to utilize basic common sense........ But even more stupid is that a person can get a convenience store clerk job and make close to double for what a job pays working for Tom Green County yet they're going to make trying to get that job even harder, though they'll be going broke if they do pass the test and get one of those jobs..............

I read the article and felt something was off. First of, why would geography be considered a core work skill, applicable to all jobs? And why would heavy hitters in Economic Development and job creation and higher education, etc. be so enthusiastic about adding a hurdle to the county hiring process. So I went to the Work ready website. Here is their about page. https://www.workreadycommunities.org/index/about . This doesn't seem to be about a new way to screen potential county employees.
First thing I noticed is the three factors include workplace documents (not documentation), applied math, and graphics (not geographic) literacy. Second, it seems is providing assessment tools to evaluate workers for the skills and skills gap needed by local business and industries. Not sure how effective it will be in the end, but it seems we have been given a very limited and somewhat inaccurate picture of what this whole NCRC program is about. Don't really know what information was handed out by the commissioners court but the city has a much better explanation here http://www.cosatx.us/departments-services/economic-development . A simple google search and basic reporting/journalism would have made for a better, more accurate and informative story.

Conchosoft, I agree that there is a lot of gobbledygook on much much of ACT's NCRC website and the information they contain. I've read a lot of their stuff since this story came out. Here is what I see so far. ACT grew big developing assessment exams for college entrance. These standardized tests were supposed to be a predictor of how ready you were for college and they became part of the admissions process. ACT is try to extend this into general employment process. Why waste time and money on interviews, reference checking, proficiency testing, etc. when our 3 section certification will tell you everything you need to know about the job seeker. Need a new busboy or waitress or housekeeper? our assessment (can't really call it a test) will tell you every thing you need to know. Right now most of the biggest employers in San Angelo have signed on, and a lot of highly recognized names are there. Look at https://www.workreadycommunities.org/TX/451/businesses for a current list. That's the majority of jobs in the county. There is more information that needs to come out but this could potentially affect everyone looking for a job in Tom Green County.

Want employees with better qualifications? Pay better wages! The shortest distance between two points is still in a straight line.

Mr. Jim Turner, I realize gaining acceptance into San Angelo's high society requires proper genuflecting towards silly programs with good intentions implemented regardless of outcomes. And it's easy to ruminate like the cows do about how the program as presented by Mr. Yantis Green is "faulty" journalism because his narrative deviates from the true course of rectitude from where the City fathers demand our obedience (or ass kissing, whichever term fits).

This NCRC program, as presented on the Tom Green County agenda, is a bureaucratic hurdle placed upon county HR and will harm county recruitment efforts. From the agenda (link here):

"14. Consider adopting a 'recommended' status for participation in the WRC initiative and develop a policy encouraging Elected Officials and Department heads to use the National Career Readiness Certificate (NCRC) as a prerequisite for employment with Tom Green County. (Roland Pena, Sara Lamog, Commissioner Bacon)"

Clearly a fulltime-employed government body "encouraging" bureaucrats to use the NCRC as a "prerequisite for employment" means that if you want a job at the county, you better take that test!

It will be easier to apply for welfare and live sitting on the couch making $25-30,000 in welfare benefits watching re-runs of Oprah than to apply to be a prison guard at the county jail. The former's job description is probably much easier to accomplish, and the latter requires a TEST. Do you need to take a 3-part test to qualify for Medicaid or a Lone Star Card?

Remember welfare is your competition for $10/hour jobs, especially in a city with 3-percent unemployment.

We're talking about outcomes.

The program is for data mining so that the Economic Development Industrial Complex in town can have a bullet point on a Powerpoint slide about skilled labor that they can then forward to pickle factory owners during a cold call about their buying a lot in the industrial park.

Thank goodness we still have suck-ups in and around local government and other journalists who will fall for an unproven program through Americorps that really is purposed to give ACT, a big corporation, another book of business. It's corporate welfare, doled at at a rate of $45 per applicant for prison guard in Tom Green County paid for with our tax dollars (or with the credit card the feds have issued by China).

Well Joe, I find myself in a situation here. I really, really agree with your reply "Cheerleading for the Deep State is not our forte" I did not read the original report. I hope Tom Green County doesn't fall for the idea that one must pass a test to get a job. I worked for a company for several years and helped that company grow. I left, and several years later the company was struggling again, and I was encouraged to return. I went in for an interview to find out that I had to take a test before the interview. I took the ridiculous test. In the interview I was told I would not fit with the company's new business model. Some people interview well, and don't perform. Some people don't test well and become super employees.