Airport Jobs e-UDPATE: Feature story

AIRPORT JOBS e-UPDATE:
News for employers

SIDA Test Preparation: Protecting your company’s investment

Airport Jobs e-UPDATE, August 19, 2003



	Rae Stacy helps administer a SIDA test at Sea-Tac.

For airport employers, ensuring prospective employees pass the SIDA (Security Identification Display Area) test is an essential step in hiring or promoting people. With an increasing number of airport positions being filled by immigrants and refugees living in the Sea-Tac area, many employers are taking advantage of the SIDA Test Preparation Course offered by Airport Jobs to protect their investment in hiring and badging new staff.

The SIDA test is relatively easy for native English speakers, but can present a significant challenge to non-native English speakers. One employer reported that of eight applicants hired to fulfill a new contract, 100% failed the SIDA test three times – meaning they were unable to receive the security badges they needed to start work. The applicants missed an entry-level opportunity, and the employer experienced serious difficulty fulfilling its contract due to the last-minute nature of the test failures.

In response to these challenges, Airport Jobs worked with the Sea-Tac Airport Security Director, the Airport Training Center, and South Seattle Community College (SSCC) English-as-a-Second Language (ESL) Instructors to develop and implement a SIDA Test Preparation Course for non-native English speakers. Since its inception in Spring 2003, the course has proven to be a boon to both employers and job-seekers alike.

Test preparation provides tangible benefits to employers
The experience of one employer, AirServ, has been typical of many. With Airport Jobs as their only source of candidates, AirServ opened interviews in July and was able to hire nearly 40 cabin cleaners and several lead positions to fulfill their new contract to provide aircraft cleaning services for United Airlines. The SIDA Test Preparation Course offered by Airport Jobs was crucial in getting a number of them ready to go to work.

Says Brian Ferguson, HR Manager for AirServ at Sea-Tac, “We referred six new hires who did not speak English as their first language to prepare them for SIDA testing. These individuals worked with the SSCC instructors for a relatively short time, and all six were then able to pass the SIDA test. This quick assistance made it possible to put all the individuals we hired to work.”

A positive experience for prospective employees
The course provides lessons in vocabulary, basic computer use, test-taking tips, and the opportunity to practice generic testing on computers. Students first meet with an instructor for an evaluation to assure they have English skills sufficient to benefit from training, and a lesson program is then developed to fit their individual needs. Judi Johnson, one of the SSCC Instructors who helped develop the course curriculum notes, “sometimes just an hour of tutoring can make the difference between passing or not passing the SIDA test.”

Few people have seen the benefits of the SIDA Test Preparation Course for prospective employees as clearly as Rae Stacy and Joseph Lee, who help administer the test at Sea-Tac. “Before the referrals and tutoring were available, many more people failed,” says Stacy. “Their frustration level was higher – some people were close to tears. Since we’ve been able to refer them, when they come back and pass, they’re ecstatic.” Lee agrees, adding “When they pass, they are joyful and excited to go to work. It sets a better tone for their jobs – it tells them that there are people who care, and people who will help them.”

Course ready to accomodate new employers, employees
“We hope to work with many airport employers and their new employees who may need assistance with language issues of the SIDA Training and Testing,” says Ruth Westerbeck, Program Manager of Airport Jobs. “I encourage employers to contact me about referring newly hired employees for SIDA test preparation classes. This can speed the hiring and badging process and assure that language issues don’t prevent new hires from starting work.” Ruth can be contacted at the Airport Jobs office at 206-835-7506.

Employer partners:
Peruse the list of airport employers listing their employment opportunities with Airport Jobs.

Trends in traffic:
Take a look at the weekly number of job seekers seeing your employment listings last month within a little historical context.

Port JOBS:
Learn more about Port Jobs, the non-profit that developed and operates Airport Jobs.