Employer Essentials
FCCTC would like to thank you for providing the opportunity to bridge the gap between education and employment. We value every opportunity you provide and view it as an extension of our classroom. Please follow the steps below to partner with us to prepare our students to enter the workforce.
Step 1 Obtain the required clearances. Each employee who will supervise FCCTC students must obtain the following clearances. Please follow the links below. An FBI clearance will be required only if the Co-Op supervisor has lived in the state of Pennsylvania for less than 10 consecutive years.
ACT 34 – PA State Criminal History Clearance https://epatch.pa.gov/home (Choose “New Volunteer Record Check”)
ACT 151- PA CHILD ABUSE History CLEARANCE https://www.compass.state.pa.us/cwis/public/home
ACT 114 – FBI CRIMINAL BACKGROUND CHECK https://www.identogo.com/locations/pennsylvania
Step 2 Complete the following Affidavit. Click Here to fill out the form.
Step 3 Provide a fair wage for the Co-Op job position. A fair wage is defined as at least minimum wage. Co-Op students must be paid a fair wage by law.
Step 4 Provide a copy of the Co-op job description, job application, and application procedures to the CTE Co-Op Coordinator. These materials will be shared with CTE students so that they may formally apply and interview for the available position(s).
Step 5 Sign the Training Agreement after the Student is Hired. A Training Agreement is a standard form/document used for cooperative education program purposes. It must be signed by the student, parent/guardian, employer, and Co-op coordinator. A copy is filed with the school, a copy is kept by the employer at the training site, and the parent may receive a copy. This contract designates the general expectations of the student/employee, and the responsibilities of the school, the Co-op coordinator, and the employer. A new training agreement must be completed each time a student/employee is hired.
Step 6 Set the student’s work schedule. The employer and Co-op coordinator will set the student schedule according to their school/class schedule and according to employer needs.
Step 7 Help ensure student safety on the job. Safety is the responsibility of everyone. The Co-op coordinators, CTE instructors, and employers should work together to ensure that students are safe in their work environments. Please refer to any labor laws for students and employees and safety laws that pertain to your specific industry to be sure that students are safe.
Step 8 Track the student’s job attendance. Attendance is a particularly important record for every school, and cooperative education job experience attendance must be kept accurately and meticulously by the CTE teacher and the Co-op coordinator. Audits may occur yearly for these records, and all student time cards must be kept by the school district for three years. Even though the student is not in the formal classroom, the student is reporting to his/her Training Site, which is the classroom for on-the-job training and cooperative education program purposes.
Step 9 Evaluate the students once per month in conjunction with the Co-Op Coordinator. The cooperative education coordinator will visit each Training Site at least once every thirty calendar days. This visit will be to evaluate the student’s progress and to discuss with the supervisor whether the student is meeting the goals listed in the Training Plan. The student is evaluated on overall job performance, employability skills, mastery, and competency of job skills and duties and the result from the evaluation will determine the student’s classroom grade. The Co-Op coordinator will also work with you to track student progress, develop an improvement plan (if needed), and assist with progressive discipline (if needed).
Step 10 Follow Pennsylvania Child Labor Law. Open this link for more information: PA Child Labor Law.
Step 11 Download and display the “Abstract of The Child Labor Act Hours Provisions” at the Worksite. Click Here to view and download a copy.