CMass Manufacturers See More Hiring In '13
A group of surveyed manufacturers in Central Massachusetts expect to hire more production workers in 2013, with nearly all of that hiring driven by growth, according to a branch of the Worcester-based Massachusetts Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MassMEP).
The survey by the Manufacturing Advancement Center Workforce Innovation Collaborative (MACWIC) of its 60 members said 91 percent of survey respondents indicated that their need to fill the jobs was due all or in part to growth, not attrition. But 82 percent said the inability to find skilled workers is inhibiting their growth strategies.
"The news is filled with conflicting information about the state of U.S. manufacturing," said Jack Healy, MassMEP's director of operations. "One issue that has remained steady is the demand for skilled production workers. We face an aging workforce that is retiring in record numbers – 10,000 per day, nationally. In addition, rapidly changing technologies are increasing productivity and requiring new skills.
"Unfortunately," he said in a statement, "we have a broken pipeline that is unable to prepare replacement workers in sufficient numbers due to low enrollment in vocational programs."
Healy said the MACWIC, in addition to providing training in technical skills, is able to connect member companies with MassMEP-trained individuals that are available for hire. "This is critical because we have seen our state's Gross State Product grow about two and a half times faster than the national manufacturing economy," Healy said, "But the inability to find skilled workers is inhibiting growth. It is estimated that it will cost Massachusetts manufacturers $1.5 billion in lost sales opportunities in 2013."
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