The Apprentice Becomes a Partner

For 51 years, Pendleton Electric has been hooking up homes and businesses all over Umatilla County. You can hardly drive more than a block or two in the Round-Up city without passing a building they've installed their wares in.

But after five decades the company, founded by owner Kevin Hale's father, is preparing for a leadership change in a big way. Not to another Hale, but to Corey Anderson, a former company electrician who turned a workplace injury and a significant learning curve into the professional opportunity of a lifetime.

How did it happen? A blend of bad luck, good luck, Hale's vision, and his belief in Anderson.

Kneecap—and career?—shattered.
The world changed for both men when Anderson fell 20 feet from a ladder to a waxed concrete floor, shattering his kneecap, breaking his thumb, and severing his Achilles tendon—and possibly ending his career.

The injury was so severe that Anderson was incapable of performing the duties of an electrician for an extended period of time, and maybe permanently, according to Fred Payton of SAIF Corporation's Baker City office, who worked with Pendleton Electric on Anderson's claim.

Hale knew that the electrical trade wasn't considered the most compassionate industry for injured workers. "No doubt in my mind, 10 to 15 years ago he would not have been able to continue his career in the trade," Hale says.

Fortunately for everyone involved, Hale saw a future in management for Anderson.
"Corey had potential; he was a great employee with good people skills," Hale says. "I didn't want to lose the chance for him to continue in the trade and as a part of our company. We look often to developing employees in-house, and to take care of our people and resources, so I saw it as an opportunity for him to be retrained."

Anderson had five years of training and experience as an electrician, possessed strong knowledge of the trade, and was hardly new to the business, but he had little hands-on experience from the operational side.

The EAIP difference
Hale started him on light duty work in the office where he learned how to estimate projects and perform other administrative tasks. In the process, he utilized funds from the Employer-at-Injury Program (EAIP) to help set up the office to accommodate Anderson's injuries.

Not long after Anderson began his recovery, the company had a need for a project manager/estimator, and Hale felt Anderson would be well-suited for it. Knowing Anderson is a quick learner, Hale assigned him to work with senior estimator Kirk Tullis.

"It's a tough transition—I did it myself," Tullis says. "I've trained a couple other guys from the field. Some have a knack to pick it up and learn it, and some don't. Corey has it, plus the knowledge and the desire."

Hale says EAIP was critical to making Anderson's transition successful. "The potential was there, but this is something we couldn't have done without SAIF," he says.

If not for EAIP, says Payton, "I think Kevin would have lost his employee."

Hale agrees. "SAIF has a system that allowed us to take what could have been a negative and turn it into a positive," he says.

Hale's effort also mitigated the cost of Anderson's workers' compensation claim, which could have been much higher, according to Payton.

Back on the ladder
As Anderson learned more of the business, Hale decided to sell him the company. In a remarkably short time, the one-time apprentice is now partial owner of Pendleton Electric. With full ownership just around the corner, Anderson acknowledges how fortunate he is.

"In the old days, I would have been a throwaway," he says. "Kevin made it possible for me to continue in the industry."

And he hasn't just continued, he's climbed—all the way to the top of the ladder.

Special thanks to SAIF employees Greg Hadden, Fred Payton, and Rand Rietmann for their assistance with this article.