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Health & Fitness

U.S. Department of Labor presents certificate of completion to MWRD machinist Noel Maldonado

MWRD machinist apprentice Noel Maldonado received a certificate from U.S. Department of Labor representative Harry Dispensa.

 

After completing 6,000 hours of on-the-job training and required coursework at Prairie State College in Chicago Heights, Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago (MWRD) machinist apprentice Noel Maldonado received a certificate of completion from U.S. Department of Labor representative Harry Dispensa.

Dispensa presented the certificate to Maldonado during the MWRD Board of Commissioners meeting on Dec. 6, and thanked the MWRD’s Apprenticeship Program Committee for their efforts in providing guidance and ensuring standards were met and that Maldonado successfully completed his classroom and on-the-job training.

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Current committee members include Joseph M. Pijanowski, Directing Business Representative of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers Local 126; Edward Jankun, Machinist Foreman and Maldonado’s supervisor; James McNamara, Master Mechanic; and Scott Morishita, Employee Development Manager.

In Aug. 2008, Maldonado was appointed to the position of Machinist Apprentice at the MWRD. He had previously worked as a storekeeper for the MWRD.  “We are all very proud of Noel,” said Jankun. “He was committed from the start and did everything that was asked of him.”

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“I worked in the storeroom where I was on the back line and didn’t really feel like I was a part of the overall mission,” said Maldonado. “Now I’m on the front line and very involved. I feel very accomplished and thankful to my supervisors for believing in me.”

Maldonado completed his classroom and technical training at Prairie State College in Dec. 2010 and completed 6,000 hours of on-the-job training, acquiring skills necessary to perform machinist duties. Maldonado works at the Stickney Water Reclamation Plant in Cicero.

Commissioner Cynthia M. Santos, chairman of the Committee on Pension, Human Resources and Civil Service, said “I am very proud whenever our employees succeed in their chosen paths,” said Commissioner Santos. “Noel is only the third person to complete the machinist apprentice program. It takes commitment and dedication to complete such a rigorous course of training.”

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