Debunking "People Just Don't Want to Work" as a labor shortage argument in the United States.
For #WorkforceWednesday let's debunk the labor shortage argument: "𝙋𝙚𝙤𝙥𝙡𝙚 𝙅𝙪𝙨𝙩 𝘿𝙤𝙣'𝙩 𝙒𝙖𝙣𝙩 𝙩𝙤 𝙒𝙤𝙧𝙠" in the United States. Personally, I've met very few people who aren't interested in generating value and working toward a common goal. And for sure there are a few uninterested but I feel it is not what is causing the almost 10mio unfillable openings we have at the moment.
But I don't want to talk feelings, I want to talk total numbers, based on data collected by reliable sources. Based on 2021 census data, BLS data, pew research & statistica, here are the numbers:
🧔 332mio people in the USA
👩🦰 198mio people 18-64 years old of working age
👨🦲 56mio people 65+ years old at retirement age
👩💼 154mio employed people (full-time and part-time)
🚶♂️ 99mio not in the labor force
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📊 44mio gap between employed & people 18-64
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🚨 2mio incarcerated (in prison)
👩🦽 10mio disabled 18-64 unable to work (~1mio unemployed but looking with about 20% hire rate for those trying to work)
🪂 1.2mio in the armed forces (thanks for your service)
👩🎓 15mio adults in school & post-secondary education (more women than men)
👨👧👦 11mio homemakers (1 in 5 are men now)
🏌 49mio people in retirement
These numbers don't leave many people remaining in the workforce and this is not an exhaustive list of the reasons people are not participating in the labor force. Would love to see your primary sources for other labor data in the comments.
🌟 And what is the answer for employers trying to fill empty seats? What are creative and new ways that you can engage people and attract non-traditional talent pipelines? What ways are you bridging your skills gap? Would love to hear it in the comments!
Until next time, ask yourself:
𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗪𝗜𝗟𝗟 𝗶 𝗔𝗨𝗧𝗢𝗠𝗔𝗧𝗘 𝗻𝗲𝘅𝘁?
WILL HEALY III
AMIP Cincy
#WILLAUTOMATE
#work #workforce #recruiting #hiring #talentacquisition #skillsgap #apprenticeships #education #leadership