JEFFERSON CO., Pa. (EYT) – The skilled labor shortage which has been an issue around the world seems to be hitting our local area as much as anywhere else.
According to a poll by Gallup, 45% of employers worldwide say they can’t find employees with the required skills.
The same lack of skilled labor affecting employers from Germany—which estimated a lack of labor is costing their economy about 30 billion euros a year in GDP growth, to Korea, where the government has continued increasing the quota of foreign workers over the last few years—is affecting employers in our area, as well.
Spencer Sturgeon, Recruiter for Miller Fabrication Solutions, of Brookville, said finding everything from trained welders to machinists has become difficult.
Sturgeon told exploreJeffersonpa.com, “I think there’s just not enough skilled labor. From my personal perspective, about ten years ago there was so much push to go to college, and no push for skilled labor, it left us with this shortage now.”
Clarion County is also affected by the lack of skilled labor.
According to Bruce Reed, owner of SIC Metals & Fabrication LLC and CARGOMAXXX Aluminum Trailers, in Clarion, difficulty finding and keeping skilled labor is definitely a problem for industries in our area.
“We’ve had a very difficult time. We kind of pride ourselves that we’re one of the top paying places locally, but it just seems like people don’t want to work. So many just don’t pan out or don’t have the skills or the mindset to continue employment,” said Reed.
According to Reed, even finding people with the skills his companies require is difficult, as many welding programs don’t even cover welding aluminum, as their company requires.
“We’re a very specialized company and do lots of industrial welding, but most of the applicants we get are severely undertrained. We have to get them training, and quite recently it’s hard to find people who are even willing to do the training,” Reed added.
Kris Johnson, Business Manager at Deets Mechanical, said they are having the same issue in Venango County.
“I don’t think it’s a regional thing, though, I think it a national thing, based on the fact that unemployment is so low,” explained Johnson.
“There’s this big push for everyone to go to college, but we’re encouraging people to attend trade school and vo tech programs, even in high school.”
Another Venango County business expressed the problem encountered with finding skilled labor, as well.
Wendy Wenner, Office Manager and Controller for Hards Fabrication and Welding, in Seneca, noted that they would like to add a second shift, but simply can’t find the workforce to do so.
“We can find welders, but to find the machinists that can run the big equipment in our shop, there’s just no one trained for it. It’s just so high-tech and specialized, you have to have someone specially trained for that type of machine,” Wenner noted.
The problem appears to be increasing statewide based on recent labor statistics data.
According to the most recent data available from the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics, the number of job openings rose to 7.5 million on the last business day of March 2019, with the largest increases in transportation, warehousing, utilities, construction, real estate, and rental and leasing.
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