7. Associations Thrive - Anton Ruesing, Executive Director of FTI, on Bringing Contractors and Training Directors Together

How do you find meaning and camaraderie in your work? Associations Thrive host Joanna Pineda interviews Anton Ruesing, Director of the Finishing Trades Institute (FTI). Anton introduces FTI, and shares how a dead car battery led him back to the International Union of Painters and Allied Trades (IUPAT). He also shares what FTI and the IUPAT are doing to attract apprentices, make training better, and foster good relations in the industry. Anton discusses:

• The yearly Finishing Industries Forum, which brings contractors and Training Directors together 
• Helping Hand, a program of the IUPAT for members who are suffering from substance abuse or at risk for suicide
• The Big Build at the National Building Museum
• Rollers, spray rigs, and Virtual Reality training

References:

• Finishing Trades Institute
• International Union of Painters and Allied Trades
• IUPAT’s Helping Hand program
• The Big Build at the National Building Museum