Bartow Employer Committee runner-up for top state award

Media release: State Labor Commissioner Mark Butler said today that the
Bartow County Employer Committee has been named runner-up in the Georgia
Employer Committee's Employer Committee of the Year Award for 2012. The
Middle Georgia Employer Committee won the first-place award. Commissioner
Butler presented the awards on behalf of the state committee at its annual
conference held this week in Savannah.

"Sometimes it's difficult to select a clear winner in awards competition and
this is one of those occasions," said Commissioner Butler. "The Bartow
County Employer Committee has had such a successful year that the judges
thought it worthy to make an exception and present a runner-up award for
Employer Committee of the Year. I wholeheartedly agree and congratulate the
Bartow committee for its excellent work."

The employer committee was involved in a variety of activities, including a
regional forum on building a competitive workforce, awarding need-based
scholarships, providing funding for school supplies for at-risk youth, and
participating in an educational community collaboration and various chamber
of commerce partnerships.

The employer committee and the Cobb/Cherokee Employer Committee co-sponsored
a forum entitled, "Georgia's Workforce, Today and Tomorrow: Planning for the
Future." The forum featured a panel of governmental and educational
officials discussing ways to bridge the skills gap in today's workforce by
preparing job seekers through education and training for the jobs of
tomorrow. And, employer committee members met with the local board of
education and chamber of commerce to identify business and industry needs in
preparing the local workforce for the jobs of today, as well as the jobs of
the future.

The Bartow County Employer Committee was one of six area committees to
receive awards at the state conference. Employer committees are groups of
business representatives who maintain a working relationship between
employers and the GDOL. The committees provide input and guidance to the
commissioner and department in the development of policy and legislation, as
it impacts employers and employees. The committees throughout the state work
closely with their local GDOL career centers to promote the department's
services among employers and to identify and recommend ways to meet local
and state employment-related needs.

To learn more about GDOL's employer committees, visit the department's web
site at www.dol.state.ga.us, or call Georgia Employer Committee Coordinator
Vickie Henson at (404) 232-7325.