If you desire you can listen this episode on Spotify.
“Where are all the skilled workers?” We hear this often—they’re hard to find these days.
The pandemic shined light on worker shortages across all sectors. While the hospitality and light manufacturing industries were hit the hardest, we expect to see a quick recovery as things continue to open back up.
The trades face a different problem: there was already a shortage of over a million workers going into 2020. Pandemic closures and economic impacts only made it worse—and unlike other industries, recovery won’t be so quick.
If you’re a business that’s having significant trouble finding skilled tradesmen, don’t lose hope: you can still find skilled workers.
Main Takeaways:
🛠 The skilled trade shortage was around before COVID and will continue after
🛠 COVID didn’t create a bigger skilled worker shortage…only accelerated it
🛠 Many people haven’t yet returned to work for a variety of reasons
🛠 Baby boomers are retiring early which only makes the shortage more acute
🛠 Possible solution: partner with a travel staffing company to find workers
Timecodes:
⏰ 0:00-4:02 | An extreme labor shortage that we’ve never seen before
⏰ 4:03-10:37 | How COVID plays into the shortage…and how it doesn’t
⏰ 10:38-15:10 | COVID going away will not solve the skilled trade challenges
⏰ 15:11-17:54 | Retiring baby boomers are taking their expertise with them
⏰ 17:55-22:06 | Fourth Industrial Revolution changing skills required for workers
⏰ 22:07-25:26 | The trade gap is our generation’s great challenge
⏰ 25:27-27:33 | Have a plan to solve your staffing problems?
Quotes:
💬 “In conversations with many of our clients…the shortage is the worst they’ve seen in their careers.” Tim Raglin
💬 “There are some things that were existing prior to COVID. It’s not all COVID. And it’s not all going to go away as we rebound from COVID.” Tim Raglin
💬 “At least half the states are now ending [extended unemployment] benefits, which whether you agree with it or not, is going to require people to go back out into the workforce.” Brett Elliott
💬 “You can’t keep the businesses running if you don’t have the individuals” Brett Elliott
💬 “God created us to work, and I think we feel better about ourselves when we’re working, as long as it’s safe to do so.” Brett Elliott
💬 “There is a huge pool of available workers out there, we just need to continue to look for opportunities to get them back in the workforce.” Tim Raglin
💬 “It’s well-documented that prior to 2020, the shortage was over a million workers.” Brett Elliott
💬 “Math is math, and the math shows that the number of baby boomers that are going to leave the workforce over the next five years is more than the people coming behind it.” Brett Elliott
💬 “Some of the more experienced baby boomers are reluctant to go get that advanced education and training.” Tim Raglin
💬 “It looks like there is more focus and emphasis on pursuing skilled trades as a career path for the next generation.” Tim Raglin