PRINTER'S NO. 4070
No. 825 Session of 2008
INTRODUCED BY BELFANTI, DiGIROLAMO, DeWEESE, PHILLIPS, McCALL,
SURRA, EACHUS, PYLE, RAMALEY, LENTZ, BUXTON, CASORIO,
DePASQUALE, GIBBONS, McGEEHAN, SHIMKUS, BOYD, CAPPELLI,
MUSTIO, ARGALL, BEYER, BISHOP, BRENNAN, CALTAGIRONE, CARROLL,
COHEN, DONATUCCI, EVERETT, FAIRCHILD, FRANKEL, FREEMAN,
GEIST, GERBER, GODSHALL, GRUCELA, HARHAI, HELM, HORNAMAN,
KING, KORTZ, KOTIK, KULA, MAHONEY, MANDERINO, MANN, MANTZ,
McILHATTAN, MELIO, MENSCH, R. MILLER, MOYER, MUNDY, MURT,
PAYNE, QUINN, READSHAW, REICHLEY, ROSS, SANTONI, SIPTROTH,
SOLOBAY, SWANGER, VULAKOVICH, WALKO, J. WHITE, WOJNAROSKI,
YOUNGBLOOD AND YUDICHAK, JUNE 26, 2008
INTRODUCED AS NONCONTROVERSIAL RESOLUTION UNDER RULE 35,
JUNE 26, 2008
A RESOLUTION
1 Recognizing the Pennsylvania Chapter of the Helmets to Hardhats
2 program and commending its service to this Commonwealth,
3 members of the military and veterans.
4 WHEREAS, Helmets to Hardhats is a national, nonprofit
5 initiative to help active military or reserve members and
6 veterans transition into good-paying, skilled employment
7 positions in the building and construction trades; and
8 WHEREAS, The Pennsylvania Chapter of the Helmets to Hardhats
9 program is administered by the Pennsylvania State Building and
10 Construction Trades Council, which works closely with the
11 national Helmets to Hardhats program, other national
12 construction and apprenticeship programs and Commonwealth
13 agencies; and
1 WHEREAS, Pennsylvania was the first state to begin its own
2 Helmets to Hardhats program to provide further assistance,
3 guidance and opportunities to servicemen and women entering the
4 program; and
5 WHEREAS, Soldiers leaving the United States Armed Forces have
6 served their country with great distinction and are deserving of
7 opportunities that help them to quickly reenter civilian life
8 and become experienced and productive workers; and
9 WHEREAS, Helmets to Hardhats offers a much-needed service to
10 this Commonwealth, as the unemployment rate for veterans has
11 remained significantly higher than the unemployment rate for
12 civilians; and
13 WHEREAS, Through the Helmets to Hardhats program, members of
14 the military and veterans are able to find sustaining employment
15 in the building and construction industries, receiving full
16 credit for skills or trades they may have learned in the
17 military or training through a network of apprenticeship
18 programs offered at no cost to eligible applicants; and
19 WHEREAS, Both apprenticeships and employment placement
20 offered by Helmets to Hardhats provide good wages and benefits,
21 which are increasingly harder for workers to find; and
22 WHEREAS, The apprenticeship program provides numerous
23 opportunities in locations throughout Pennsylvania in order to
24 help military members and veterans attend classes and training
25 while working and earning income; and
26 WHEREAS, Helmets to Hardhats apprenticeships are recognized
27 educational programs, which allow individuals to utilize
28 benefits such as the Montgomery GI Bill and other service-
29 related, educational funds to boost their income during training
30 above the average training wage, and earn a college degree; and
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1 WHEREAS, The Helmets to Hardhats program maintains a solid
2 reputation working directly with hiring managers in order to
3 ensure that hard-working participants are channeled into quality
4 jobs as well as placing reliable, highly trained workers into
5 occupations being vacated by aging and retiring workers; and
6 WHEREAS, The construction apprenticeship system is a
7 worldwide model for training workers and the proven success of
8 Pennsylvania's Helmets to Hardhats program has caused a number
9 of other states, including Washington, New Jersey and Indiana,
10 to look to Pennsylvania's program as a model for their own
11 similar initiatives; therefore be it
12 RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives recognize the
13 Pennsylvania Chapter of the Helmets to Hardhats program and its
14 administrators, the Pennsylvania State Building and Construction
15 Trades Council and its partners and commend their contributions
16 to the Commonwealth.
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