Well before the pandemic, workforce development was a priority for members of the Roundtable. But the talent crunch has increasingly become the top priority as well as challenge for member companies – similar to companies spanning industries, regions, and sizes in Massachusetts as well as many markets across the country. Since the start of the pandemic, Roundtable members have convened multiple times to discuss trends, best practices, and new resources to overcome this shared challenge. More importantly, the Roundtable has recognized how important it is to invest in strategies, systems, and infrastructure to attract, retain, develop, and diversify talent in Massachusetts to avoid the threat of losing talent as people and jobs increasingly become mobile and remote.

In early February, the Roundtable held one of such convening – bringing together members and experts from member companies to consider labor market data presented by Undersecretary Jenn James of Workforce Development followed by an economic outlook from Secretary Michael Heffernan of Administration & Finance.

Undersecretary James provided an overview, comparing data from 2019 to data in September 2021 and November 2021. In 2019 (pre-pandemic), Massachusetts had a full economy with as many as 3.67 million people working and a very low number of people unemployed and collecting unemployment insurance benefits. Approximately 18 months into the pandemic and around the time federal UI benefits were ending, Massachusetts tracked not only fewer people working with an increase in the number of unemployed individuals but also a big jump in the number of unemployed people not looking for work (roughly 64,000). As many members have experienced, people have removed themselves from the labor market – and members are experiencing the impact of this from employee churn, early retirement, caregiving responsibilities, and more.

The tightening labor market feels even more acute, especially given:

  • The loss in population growth
  • Reduction among immigrants due to limited visas processed, travel restrictions, past federal policies
  • Surge in hiring demand
  • Individuals removing themselves from the job market
  • Skills mismatch as well as need to upskill underemployed individuals

Since Undersecretary James’ presentation, the Roundtable has continued to share resources with members to introduce or reintroduce tools in the toolbox for members to access and implement to meet hiring demands now and in the near future like the launch of the Massachusetts Apprentice Network – a growing network of employers and other stakeholders committed to leveraging effective apprenticeship models to hire 1,000 apprentices over the next five years in Massachusetts. Upon gathering survey responses from members on talent needs and gaining feedback from the Education & Workforce Development Task Force, we look forward to uncovering more resources based on member feedback and needs to hire talent and untapped talent today.