Cook County manufacturing apprenticeship meant to be ‘concierge service’ connecting workers with jobs

With Cook County launching a new apprenticeship program meant to connect manufacturers with potential employees, Roger Badun said he sees benefits for his employer, Mi-Jack Products Inc.

“Having that talent to choose from” will be a benefit, Badun, manager of technical training for Mi-Jack, said Tuesday. “It’s very difficult to find people who have a good fit for your organization.

It’s a theme running across many industries, with companies having trouble finding job applicants, and it’s particularly acute in manufacturing, Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle said Tuesday in Markham, where she launched the Cook County Manufacturing Apprenticeship Accelerator program.

“As the name suggests, this program will accelerate talent acquisition for manufacturers and accelerate career pathways for individuals seeking a career in manufacturing,” Preckwinkle said.

The county’s Bureau of Economic Development created the program and is working with the nonprofit Skills for Chicagoland’s Future, which will work directly with employers to meet their talent needs and provide supportive services to apprentices during their first 90 days of employment, according to the county.

Services include career counseling, transportation assistance, professional attire and referrals for childcare, according to the county.

Tuesday’s kickoff took place at the John J. Lanigan Sr. Training Academy in Markham, directly across the street from Mi-Jack Products.

The training academy is used to provide training for new hires as well as an apprenticeship program Mi-Jack operates. Currently, four seniors from Bremen High School are close to finishing a 10-week program at the academy, where they’ve learned basics of electricity and hydraulics and learned to operate a forklift, Badun said.

If you’ve ever driven Interstate 80 near the split with the Tri-State Tollway, you have probably noticed to the north of I-80 some of Mi-Jack’s work.

The company’s biggest product, literally, are enormous rubber-tired gantry cranes that are used to load and unload shipping containers at shipping ports and railway intermodal terminals, and the company “has an international footprint,” Preckwinkle said.

She said the apprenticeship accelerator will provide Cook County manufacturers with a “concierge service” to identify and screen job candidates.

Preckwinkle said the program will be a boon for employees who are able, under an apprenticeship, to learn a skill while at the same time earning a wage.

It will also help county manufacturers fill jobs, she said.

“Many manufacturers struggle to meet their talent needs,” Preckwinkle said.

The program is funded with $810,000 in American Rescue Plan Act money from the county, she said.

The program will run through April 2026, according to the county.

Badun said the training center has operated since early 2018. It’s named for John “Jack” Lanigan Sr., who founded the business in 1954 in his Dolton home. He worked for the city of Chicago as an electrician after returning home after World War II, having served in the Pacific.

The business, Mi-Jack, is named for his sons, Michael and John “Jack” Jr., and is part of a larger company called Lanco.

Mi-Jack has a pre-apprenticeship program and Badun, leading event attendees through the training center Tuesday, said “it’s interesting to watch the kids be interested in the trades again.”

Apart from the program at Mi-Jack, the four Bremen seniors are, separately, learning welding, he said.

Badun said when he was in high school in the 1970s, programs such as auto shop and woodworking were still in place, giving students the opportunity to explore building and manufacturing trades.

“Slowly the shops have gone away from our high schools,” Badun said.

Through the pre-apprenticeship program at Mi-Jack, “we try to let the kids who aren’t bound for college explore other opportunities.”

“We still need plumbers, we still need electricians,” he told the group. “Not everybody can be the person behind the keyboard. This gives them a place to start.”

During last fall’s pre-apprenticeship program, five students went through and three ended up working for Mi-Jack, Badun said. The program is eight hours per week over 10 weeks.

“It’s rewarding to try to get kids to do things I wanted to do,” he said.

He said that Mi-Jack would like to expand its apprenticeship program, noting there are many jobs his company needs to fill.

“We need assemblers, we are looking for field service mechanics,” he said.

mnolan@southtownstar.com