GUEST BLOG: The Help Wanted/Workers Skill Mismatch
Guest Author
By Andrew McGough. Andrew is the Executive Director of Worksystems Inc. (WSI). Before working at WSI, Andrew was the Chief Operating Officer at Southwest Washington Workforce Development Council.
As the new Executive Director of Worksystems, Inc., I am honored by Sam’s request to contribute to his Blog. It is no secret that Oregon’s economy has been struggling in recent years. While some broad economic indicators imply that we have turned the corner, it is important to consider some underlying information before breaking out the champagne.
Many people do not make the connection between family prosperity and business success. So, I commend Sam’s efforts to keep the issue of family prosperity and business success in the spotlight by his site visits to 100 businesses in his first 100 days in office and working 100 hours this summer at Portland’s most common and lowest paying jobs.
WOULD YOU LIKE FRIES WITH THAT? Although the region has created over 40,000 jobs from June 2003 to June 2005, the majority of the new jobs (approximately 18,000) pay less than $30,000/year ($33,950/year is considered a poverty wage for a family of four). Over two thirds of the new jobs pay less than $45,000, and after losing over 20,000 high wage jobs (those paying $45,000+), only about 12,000 new high wage jobs have been created.
Service industries have and will continue to demonstrate the strongest growth over the next decade. Although many service sector jobs pay low wages, service jobs such as health care offer consistent growth and career ladders in a variety of occupational categories. Capturing the higher-end service jobs, however, is increasingly dependent upon the level of education and training found within the regional workforce.
IN WITH THE NEW… We are fortunate to have a growing, increasingly diverse, relatively younger and more highly educated population. In fact, the Portland metro-area continues to have one of the nation’s highest net in-migration rates for young, single, college-educated residents, a demographic that fosters economic growth in sectors in which education plays a key role.
In-migration, however, is insufficient in numbers to replace the increasing numbers of workers who will be retiring as the baby-boom generation completes its working life.
HELP WANTED/WORKERS SKILL MISMATCH - The most recent employer survey conducted by the Oregon Employment Department found that 33% of the region’s employers cited a shortage of skilled workers as an obstacle in finding qualified job applicants. As the economy heats up, it is anticipated that this shortage will grow.
Nationally, college degrees have stagnated, while the need for college is projected to double in the next decade. In Oregon, we rank 46th in the nation for postsecondary credentials per 100 students, and 49th for community college students returning for a second year. An estimated 480,000 Oregonians are at the lowest literacy level – nearly 14% of the population.
Locally, Employers project increasing requirements in several areas, including computer software, English and Spanish language skills, basic reading and math, problem solving, interpersonal communication and work ethic. Employers also cite increasing need for employees with supervisory, management, and leadership skills, a need expected to grow as the baby boomers reach retirement age.
SEE JANE RUN - Our ability to find qualified local workers to fill retirement openings, and meet the increasing skill demands of local employers , depends largely on the success of the region’s educational and training institutions and our ability to align our economic development, education and workforce development efforts.
While taxes, transportation, and shovel ready sites all play a role in the development of the regional economy, in my opinion, the talent and experience of our workforce will be the determining factor in whether we can sustain meaningful growth and thrive in the global economy.
Posted by Guest Author on August 11, 2005
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Filed Under 100 Hours, Front Page, Jobs & Economy, Workforce
Comments by site visitors
Is it supply or demand?
Truly, the lack of a talented workforce is really supply side problem. The 30-40% dropout rate of high school students in Oregon creates a shortage of workers who are eligible to work in higher paying occupations.
As mentioned in Andrew's comments above, there is plenty of demand for highly qualified employees.
The questions are: 1) Can we continue to educate our children the same way we've done for the last 60 years and expect them to be ready for the changing demands of the employment marketplace?, 2) If not, what can government do, with its limited resources to focus on those children that are at risk for dropping out of high school?, and 3) Should the government focus on educating 90% of our children, or should it only focus on the 40% of kids at risk?
The way I see it is that government should focus its limited resources on the lower 40% of our children and engage in public/private partnerships to provide education for the remaining 60% of students.
Simply stated: Until we graduate more students from High School, we will not solve the demand for highly skilled workers.
Is there enough political energy to change how we educate our children, or will the status quo continue to rule?
Posted by: Kevin B. Dull | Aug 18, 2005 3:52:00 PM
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Andrew,
Congrats on your new position as Executive Director of Worksystems, Inc.
Thanks for the guest blog entry. I am happy to have been appointed by Mayor Tom Potter to the Board of Directors of Worksystems, Inc. I look forward to working with you. From my position on the Board I will pursue funding for programs that show real results helping Portland area residents move up the salary ladder. We have a lot of work to do...
Sam
Posted by: Sam Adams | Aug 14, 2005 5:36:49 PM