Employers in Michigan’s Great Southwest continue to struggle trying to find workers… and many potential workers continue to be skeptical about returning to a regular, fulltime job. That’s the odd quandary described today by Kinexus leaders in their periodic media briefing about employment at all levels in Southwest Michigan.
Two months ago, there was widespread speculation that once special pandemic unemployment benefits ended in September, there would be a rush back to the labor force by many idled former employees. That did NOT happen.
Kinexus Vice President Al Pscholka says there was no influx of people looking for work in September. In fact, the labor force in the three-county Southwest Michigan region is still down more than ten percent from pre-pandemic levels, from about 143,000 to 129,000 workers.
Pscholka says the shrinking labor force is increasingly plagued by two factors that may be permanent problems: poorly educated workers that are difficult to train and an aging workforce, as young people continue to leave the area for perceived better opportunities.
Kinexus officials shared a stunning statistic: There are 91 per cent more job openings in the region than pre-Covid. People who want to work should have their choice of several jobs. And employers are willing to train new workers who possess basic skills that can be developed while on the job. However, the two don’t seem to be getting together in the current employment environment.
Kinexus invites both employers and job seekers to use MIWorks as a problem-solver on both sides of the employment equation: finding workers and finding the right job.
