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W O R K F O R M E / S P R I N G 2 0 2 5 26 A large "Now hiring" banner hung outside the Nichols Portland manufacturing plant on a heav- ily traveled road near the Port- land-Westbrook line for weeks on end this past winter. The sign was a small, yet tell- ing, indicator of what manufac- turing facilities all over Maine are facing. With an employee base that is aging out of the workforce, manufacturers are going all out to hire and train new workers to take their place. Nichols Portland, which man- ufactures components for fuel, oil and hydraulic pumps, will hire and train anybody with the right attitude and desire who walks through the door. The company last year hired an extra human resources employee so staff could make more connec- tions with Career and Technical Education (CTE) programs, high schools and community colleges to raise awareness about what they do and the employment opportunities they offer. S t u d e n t s , t e a c h e r s a n d school administrators are tour- ing the plant in large numbers so Nichols Portland can show them "here we are, here's what we do," said general manager Frank Walton. On this particular day, Wal- ton has signed two more retire- ment forms from employees who are ready to hang it up after years on the job. They've put in their time and ready to retire, an increasingly common occurrence that's being played out across Maine. "If I had 20 of the right people walk in the door today, I would hire them," Walton said. "We're going to hire you for fit and train you for skill. We've got lots of opportunities." Plenty of opportunities John Lewis, a managing partner of Synergy Workforce Solutions workforce development consult- M a n u f a c t u r i n g Building awareness for future workforce As an aging workforce approaches retirement, companies look to bridge the "awareness gap" B Y C L A R K E C A N F I E L D P H O T O / C O U R T E S Y O F W A S H I N G T O N C O U N T Y C O M M U N I T Y C O L L E G E A welding student at Washington County Community College.