U.S.-based Bill Marsh Auto Group is offering “free college” education as part of a new benefit to its employees and their families, the company announced in September via a LinkedIn post.
The Degrees@Work program is a new partnership between Stellantis and Strayer University — an online higher learning institution in the U.S. Employees and their immediate family members can earn an associate, bachelor’s, or master’s degree through the school.
“Declining enrolments, especially at community colleges, driven by ever-increasing tuition and burdensome student debt threaten to exacerbate the growing skills gap,” said Bill Marsh Auto Group Partner Bill Marsh Jr. in a blog post.
The program is considered a win-win for the dealer group and its employees: the first benefiting from a great retention tool, the latter from free education while earning a paycheck.
“For us, it’s a huge competitive advantage to retain good people and provide an in-house talent development program to attract the best candidates who may have otherwise never considered a career in the automobile business,” said Marsh.
As the automotive industry continues to struggle with a lack of talent and employees, dealers and associations are looking at new and innovative ways to improve the issue.
