Trending
We've all heard the lament in recent years: No one wants to work anymore. It's become a popular gripe on social media, but in the real world, some are facing a bigger challenge than others.
According to WalletHub's "2022's States Where Employers Are Struggling the Most in Hiring," West Virginia is facing the worst hiring struggling in the country. The rate of job openings in the latest month studied here was 7.6%; while the job openings rate for the most recent 12-month period studied was 7.61%.
"One reason is due to what is called structural unemployment. Simply put, there is a mismatch in the supply of labor and demand for labor based on set of skills. For example, South Carolina needs automakers and plane makers, but if the available pool of labor does not have these skills, there is a shortage of labor," said Miren Ivankovic, an adjunct professor at Clemson University. "Secondly, the COVID virus caused the closure of some K-12 schools, and children were obtaining education from home via their computers, which forced some parents to stay home and leave their job. Thirdly, among some individuals, benefits received via stimulus checks increased their incomes and savings and allowed them to pause their demand to work. Finally, some individuals realized that the labor market is 'hot,' and they can get a better deal somewhere else. This is called frictional unemployment since they resign and then shop for a better job."
"Hot," perhaps, but apparently not for the 44.8% of West Virginians who have chosen not to participate in the labor force, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Lawmakers, policymakers and employers are going to have to face some harsh realities, if we are to crawl out of this mess. Factors such as those mentioned by Ivankovic are not the end of the challenges.
We are the state most dependent on the federal government and more than 17% of Mountain State residents live below the poverty line.
We routinely land at the bottom for our public education. And we have too many elected officials bent on embracing some of the very socio-cultural norms that have perpetuated those struggles for generations, with what seems to be the sole aim of driving us backward as far as they can.
How many more wake-up calls will it take, folks? Or are we content to struggle most just to remain dead last?