From our Team to yours, we hope that you are enjoying the Holidays with your loved ones near and far. If you’ve had a little too much excitement, step back and do some light reading. We hope that you gain some space and perspective from The Point Blog’s most viewed posts of 2023.
Ahhh, the Holidays. It’s the most wonderful time of the year, or is it? It can also be a pretty stressful time of the year with work, end of the year class celebrations, Church Christmas plays, basketball practice, moving the elf, wrapping gifts, extra cooking, Christmas parties, new family dynamics ad infinitum. With all the hustle and bustle, it never seems like there is quite enough time or space to pack it all in. Our 2023 Theme: An Abundance of Space feels out of reach some days depending on my perspective.
Enter the flu… God knows exactly what you need when you need it, although I am not always ready and willing to accept the circumstance. My bouncy little boy was down for the count last week, and it gave me some “space” to slow down and really settle into my body. All the Holiday stress that I had been shoving down was able to rise to the surface and instead of distracting myself with busyness, I had to actually feel what I had been numbing with all the activities.
It turns out that when I slow down, there is more room for creative energy and thoughts to flow. I got married in October, and we want to start new traditions for our family. Being trapped (did I say trapped?) in the house for a week gave me the abundance of space that I needed to think about what some of those traditions might become. We have decided that this year we are going to have a Birthday party for Jesus on Christmas Eve instead of opening any gifts and really lean into our reason for the season.
I am also learning to take up space and say no to things that don’t support my values. When I say yes to something, I am saying no to something else. Being the people pleaser that I am, this is easier said than done, but nonetheless I am practicing and there is growth occurring. Since joining the Horizon Point Team, the ladies have helped me to learn that it is essential for your well-being to create room for the people and things that matter the most.
Here at The Point Blog, we have been writing a series. Last month, I gave an overview of What’s Affecting the Labor Force Participation Rate? Lorrie followed that up with When Working Costs too Much concerning the benefits cliff and Taylor took a closer look at Baby Boomers Retiring-How do we fill their shoes? This week, I am going to take a deeper dive into some of the reasons that males (age 25-54) are evaporating from Labor Force Participation and some possible solutions for our future workforce.
The Labor Force Participation Rate is defined as those who are actively looking for or seeking work. According to Male Labor Force Participation: Patterns and Trends there are multiple reasons that males of prime age aren’t seeking employment. Among those reasons are a shift in U.S. industry structure, a decline in male educational attainment, delayed family formation, the rise of substance abuse, and heavy use of video games.
How can we address the deficit and encourage male workers to get back into the workforce? Read what the Demographic Drought research has to say about solutions to our workforce future.
Recruit beyond traditional demographics-HR directors will need to look into recruiting people that normally would have been overlooked as candidates to fill vacant positions.
Reskilling, upskilling, and alignment-Companies can’t assume they’ll be able to find the right talent. Instead, they must build that talent base for themselves. By working with higher ed to build programs that meet the needs of the job market, offering upskilling or reskilling opportunities to current employees, and providing on-the-job training for new recruits, businesses can close or at least narrow their talent gaps.
Retain students and employees-Colleges and universities must focus on retention, not just enrollment. Similarly, businesses must focus on retaining current employees, not just hiring.
In conclusion, we need to value people more. At Horizon Point, we offer a two-day intensive workshop uniquely designed to help business and community leaders examine workplaces of the past and present and explore high-impact solutions for creating workplaces and a workforce for the future. Learn more about our Illuminate content, here.
What is the Labor Participation Rate and how does it impact employers and the economic outlook?
According to OECD.org, “The labor force participation rate is calculated as the labor force divided by the total working-age population. The working age population refers to people aged 15 to 64. This indicator is broken down by age group and it is measured as a percentage of each age group.”
There are many factors impacting the Labor Market in 2023 including the benefits’ cliff, boomers exiting the workforce, the rate of working-aged males declining, women leaving the workforce by the millions and the decline in fertility rates.
One reason some workers are deciding not to work or to stay in low paying jobs is the Benefits Cliff. The benefits’ cliff occurs when an increase in someone’s pay triggers a greater loss in public assistance such as food, healthcare, childcare and housing. This happens because public assistance does not gradually decrease as income rises. Instead, it “drops off a cliff” at a certain income. This leaves prime candidates stuck between a rock and a hard place. Some may be quick to fault those not participating because of this or not participating fully (working less than full time in order to keep their benefits), but these individuals are making an economic decision and a wise one at that.
Next, we have the mass exodus of the baby boomers. Boomers made an economic decision to remain in the labor force during the great recession, causing them to begin exiting the labor force much later than historically anticipated. Now, boomers are retiring at a staggering rate. While we are still living in a work world created by the boomers, they are no longer the primary contributors. According to PEW Research Center, the number of baby boomers exciting the labor force has grown by about two million since 2011. Then, from 2019 to 2020 the numbers jumped by 3.2 million.
Why does this matter? Well, this group is often vacating higher level positions in their companies and the transfer of knowledge can be a challenge. Not to mention boomers aren’t being replaced at the same rate of exit and some who are retiring are passing down tremendous amounts of wealth to their children. This creates children that more than likely won’t be filling their parents’ shoes.
According to The Demographic Drought by Emsi male millennials are the next group that are in sharp decline in the labor force. Males have been AWOL since 1980. With boomers having such wealth, it left men not taking on the responsibility of getting a job until after 20 or moving out of their parents’ home either. Another economic decision. Add in the opioid epidemic, and males of prime age are being taken away from the market. Also, among the Millennials, there has been a shift from full-time work to part-time work. The reason for this says Lightcast in The Demography Drought is video games, yes video games!
Men aren’t the only ones we are looking at here. According to the latest Women in the Workplace Study by Lean In and McKenzie & Company, women are demanding more from work and are leaving their companies in order to get it. Some are referring to it as the “Great Breakup”. In addition, childcare prices are soaring and quality care is a challenge to find. That leads to women taking on the majority of the child care responsibilities. Again, this is another group is making an economic decision. Paying for quality childcare is often more expensive than bringing home a paycheck to cover it, so women are opting out. One report found that from 2020 to 2021 mothers took on the majority of child care responsibilities, spending an average of 7.1 hours per day caring for their children.
Finally, BLS.gov shares that population is the single most important factor in determining the size and composition of the labor force. So, what does that mean for the downward trend in US Fertility Rates? There is a growing number of childless US adults who don’t expect to ever have children. Again, are they making an economic decision not to have children? What impact does this have on the future of the Labor Force Participation Rate? Evidence would point to the conclusion that it will continue to decline under these circumstances.
Many people are making decisions based on a variety of factors, including the economics of working, to opt out of the labor force or not opt for full time participation. What does this mean to our macroeconomic situation? And what does this mean for employers? In order for people to opt to enter and remain, we will all have to think about how to weigh costs and benefits of such decisions.
Who among us has not needed a second chance in life? Have you been extended that grace? In my life I have been given chance after chance and have needed that opportunity to fail and to learn from those failures. When prisoners are released they are told that they cannot carry a fire arm and will not be eligible to vote but most times are not warned of the invisible barriers that exist in finding a job, housing or transportation. For example, you are good enough to buy a car but you cannot sell cars for a career. You must obtain housing but most will not rent to you due to your criminal record.
On June 29th Lorrie, Mary Ila and I attended the first Reentry Leader Conference in Birmingham at the Hyatt Regency Wynfrey. As a subject that is near and dear to my heart, I was excited to hear about ways to help employers afford people a second chance. We have so much untapped talent and potential in Alabama and in the world. Studies show that 77% of our population is justice involved, that’s 32% more than the percentage of people who have college degrees. Depending on state, there are between 2-4 open jobs for every one person available to take that job in the industrial sector. Connecting those jobs to reentrants is critical. Of the 9.7 million reentry each year, only 8% can find employment.
This is where Reentrycenters.com comes in. They equip participants with must haves such as affordable housing, food, transportation to appointments and counseling and most importantly good jobs. They even offer a free mobile bank for reentrants. Local Auto plants like Mercedes near the Reentry centers employ these workers.
During the 2nd chance employer Leader Session, Donny Jones from West Alabama Works shared about Building Hope West Alabama. Their passion is to “provide hope, help, and opportunity to people that are justice involved.” This program “connects justice-inolved individuals with meaningful jobs, as well as the job skills and educational credentials they need for long-term success.” Schnellke is one of the employers hiring people who are justice involved. They believe that everyone deserves a second chance.
Chief Justice Sue Bell Cobb was the keynote speaker. She became judge at 25 and now runs RedemptionEarned.org. It is an effort to help worthy incarcerated adults to become productive citizens. Alabama has one of the highest percentages of the aging population incarcerated. Out of the 4002 total parole hearings in 2022 only 409 were granted parole.Their mission is “to identify, assist, and represent worthy individuals who have spent decades behind bars, demonstrated they are transformed, and earned parole or work release.”
At Horizon Point we have a people first mindset. We believe that people are a company and community’s greatest asset. As one of the ladies speaking put it, which one of us has not made a mistake that needed forgiveness? How can your organization help to give “people” an opportunity after they have been held accountable for their actions? Afterall, don’t we all need a second chance?
Need inspiration? Read more from The Point Blog here:
