MEEKER I Dustin Allen, an employee with White River Electric Association in Meeker, has successfully completed one of the most comprehensive training programs in the world for power line personnel.
With his completed course, he joins Chris Stanworth (7-1-11), Nathan Pelloni (1-1-12), and Brett Berthelson (4-1-13) as journeyman line workers for WREA.
White River Electric has routinely had great success in “homegrown linemen” over the past years, and this group of young men exemplifies this.
The Merchant Job Training and Safety Program (MJTS) is administered to line personnel in 38 states. MJTS also under contract with NRECA International, Ltd. supplying a Spanish program for use around the world.
The academic program is administered through computers and fax machines for immediate response, including assistance through a website.
Each utility has an acting training coordinator assisting their trainees by administering “closed book” testing. The coordinators manage their own people throughout the training process from rules set by the MJTS and the statewide association people.
In addition, the group completed in excess of 8,000 hours each of on-the-job training with WREA and is now recognized by the U.S. Department of Labor as a line repairer.