Workforce shortages: Options aren’t surfacing
BY TIM BRADNER State legislators in Juneau are searching for ways to alleviate a short- age of labor across several industries that could threaten the state’s econ- omy. Shortages, particularly in craft skills, could blunt the benefits that new federal infrastructure programs could bring. Without enough workers, projects will be delayed and will cost more. The Senate Labor and Commerce Committee has held extensive hear- ings on workforce shortages and has found a picture that isn’t pretty. There’s not a lot of options for the Legislature, however. More training can, and will, be funded but the real problem is that there’s not enough people coming into the workforce who want to work in the extractive industries. The problem particularly affects industries like oil and gas, mining and construction along with fisheries, timber, tourism, but health care as well as public employers like schools, police and firefighters are experienc - ing shortages as well. Sen. Jesse Bjorkman, R-Kenai, chairs the Senate committee, asked in her hearings whether expanding state tax credits for industry contributions to local training centers. Those do help when they are available, Kara Moriarty, CEO of the Alaska Oil and Gas Association, told the committee. They can be targeted to occupations where companies need workers. A problem with tax credits, Mori- arty said, is that the state reduced them when revenues are tight. That creates uncertainties for companies and training providers. The overall problem is broad, deep, and complicated, however. Underly- ing much of it is an aging workforce across several industries and chal- lenges experienced in recruiting and training replacements for those retir- ing. Common themes are emerging. One is that, coming out of the pandemic, workers and particularly young ones
Photo Courtesy MAPTS Programs like MAPTS are critical to both attracting and training young Alaskans for future careers in resource development industries including mining.
have become used to working online, which doesn’t fit well in traditional industries that are hands-on. Young people also appear less en- thusiastic about working at remote sites, and in camp environments where they are away from families, even with rotating shifts. “These are seen as negatives,” that hamper recruitment, Moriarty said. More disturbing is a national trend where fewer young people see a future in extractive resource industries. “There’s a real shift in public sen - timent. Young people sense they can no longer have a long career in indus- try,” Moriarty said. National media coverage of the transition to renewables and away from traditional energy is mainly re- sponsible for that perception. Moriarty cited this telling sign: Enrollment in university petroleum engineering, a telling example, is at a low point in U.S. universities. “There were 400 new petroleum engineering graduates in the U.S. last year. That’s an 87 percent drop from 2017,” she said.
Meanwhile, specific jobs most in demand across industries are similar, which creates a lot of competition for those skills. Engineers of all kinds, equipment operators, diesel mechan- ics, electrical and instrument techni- cians are short of supply, as well as those with other skills. The Alaska Industry Support Al- liance is also concerned about the number of job applicants to its mem- bers who fail mandatory drug tests. Moriarty said there’s concern for high turnover that has reached 24 percent yearly for some support com- panies. “There’s so much competition that we may be stealing from each other,” she said. Deantha Skibinski, executive direc- tor of the Alaska Miners Association, echoed much of what Moriarty told the Senate committee, but she added that small communities near operat- ing mines often lack quality housing and childcare. These quality-of-life issues can encourage workers who do hire on to locate their families out of state.
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The Alaska Miner
Spring 2023
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