Monday, January 15, 2007
Greater Columbus Convention Center, Columbus, OH
Presented by Mid American Ag and Hort Services, Inc. in combination with the Ohio Fruit and Vegetable Growers Congress, Ohio Direct Agricultural Marketing Conference and National Bramble Conference.
Speakers for this conference know human resource issues and understand agricultural and horticultural businesses.
Program
9:00-11:50 AM - Experienced Supervisor Hiring Workshop - Bernie Erven of Erven HR Services, LLC
Filling key positions with employees who fit and will stay for an acceptable period of time challenges even experienced farm employers and supervisors. Being experienced means that the employers have learned the basics from living the challenges and hit/miss efforts. This basic experience generally results in employers being unaware of and non-users of some of the most effective hiring tools. These are the very tools that will sort applicants with an aptitude for a job from those lacking aptitude, make interviewing more effective, supplement interviewing with other practical selection tools and promote communication with new hires in a legally defensible way without creation of a burdensome employees’ manual. This workshop will be designed to build on employers’ basic hiring experiences and provide new tools that can be used immediately.
10:30- 11:50 AM - What’s New with Labor and Immigration Compliance? - John Wargowsky, Executive Director, Mid American Ag and Hort Services, Inc.
Learn about the newest developments in immigration and labor laws and regulations and where to get more information. Updates on legal workforce issues (worksite immigration enforcement, H-2A and H-2B programs) will be featured.
12:00-1:30 PM - Mid American Ag and Hort Services, Inc. Sixth Annual Meeting and Luncheon - Mike Adolph, President and John Wargowsky, Executive Director
Members and nonmembers are welcome. Learn more about the organization's activities and accomplishments over the past year, plans for the future and interact with other members and employers. Those not purchasing lunch tickets may attend at 12:45 PM for the Annual Meeting.
1:45-2:45 PM - Business Networking and Developing Career Ladders - Dave Boulay - Management Specialist, Ohio State University South Centers
Agricultural and horticultural employers need to recruit and retain a skilled, highly trained workforce. Entry-level workers need opportunities to advance toward positions with more responsibility, skill, and compensation. This interactive session will help employers explore methods to develop career ladders within their own businesses and industries to meet both of these needs.
3:00-4:30 PM - Developing a Safety Recipe - John Wargowsky, Executive Director, Mid American Ag and Hort Services, Inc.
Everyone wants a safe workplace. This session will help each attendee develop a recipe for safety success using ingredients such as employees, safety policies and labor/safety laws. Come prepared to share your successful safety ingredients with other attendees. Qualifies for Ohio Farm Bureau Workers' Compensation Group Rating Program training.
Speakers
Dr. Bernie Erven of Columbus, OH has spent most of his 35-year teaching, extension and research career focusing on employee management and family business relations. He emphasizes practical take-home ideas that managers can start using immediately. His work on important human resource topics has taken him to more than 30 U.S. states and Canadian provinces.
Dave Boulay of Piketon, Ohio is a Management Specialist at the Ohio State University South Centers and serves as Director of a Small Business Development Center. He is completing his PhD in Workforce Development. Research interests are in human resource development specifically with the return on investment for small and mid-sized businesses developing human talent.
John Wargowsky of Delaware, OH has served as the executive director for Mid American Ag and Hort Services since 2001, assisting agricultural and horticultural employers with labor education, regulatory compliance assistance and recruiting needs in Indiana, Kentucky and Ohio. He also serves as director of labor services for the Ohio Farm Bureau Federation where he oversees regulatory compliance and food safety programming.
Mike Adolph of Hartville, OH has been employed with K.W. Zellers and Son, a wholesale vegetable and annual bedding plants operation, since 1993. He is the current president of Mid American Ag and Hort Services and controller for K.W. Zellers and Son where he oversees human resource, employee benefits, accounting, food safety and government regulations.
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