Understanding The Labor Market: What’s Happening in Massachusetts and Berkshire County

1. Understanding The Labor Market: What’s Happening in Massachusetts and Berkshire County Presented by: Bob Vinson LMI Works April, 2013

2. Today’s Topics • Reviewing Popular Labor Force Measures and Misconceptions • Reviewing State and Local Labor Market Developments • Reviewing Structural Factors: How Different are the Berkshires? • STEM: what is the Impact on the Berkshires

3. Labor Force Measures • What do they really tell us? • Are they misunderstood? • What are the common misperceptions? • Why does it matter?

4. The Unemployment Rate • Myth: the rate only includes people who are collecting unemployment • Reality: the rate is based on a monthly survey of 60,000 households

5. How Is It Measured? Three mutually exclusive groups: • Employed • Unemployed • Not In the labor force

6. What Does It Measure? • Measures unutilized labor not underutilized labor • Does not measure income or job quality • UR= U/LF • LF= E/E+U

7. Employed • Worked at least 1 hour during survey week • Worked 15 hours or more unpaid in family business • Did not work during survey week due to vacation, illness, industry dispute, weather • Excludes, military, volunteers, under 16 • Multiple job holders—count once

8. Unemployed • Not worked during the survey week • Actively engaged in job search- attend job fairs, contact employment and career centers,send out resumes- reading news adds alone does not count • Exempt from search if expecting recall • Must be immediately available to take job

9. Out of the Labor Force • Those not employed or unemployed • Reasons not in the labor force: • Child Care /Family Responsibilities • School • Illness/Disability • Discouraged • Retired

10. Who’s Unemployed? Another perspective-- Categories • New Entrants • Re-Entrants • Job Leavers • Job Losers Who among these 4 groups are collecting Unemployment Insurance? UI Claimants--about one half the unemployed

11. Employment vs Jobs • What’s the difference? • Employment: Where people live • Place of Residence--includes self employment and contract work • People with multiple jobs- count once • Measures Economic Well Being of a Community

12. Jobs • Where people work! • Where employers are located • Indicates strength of local economy • Does not include self employed, 1099’s • Does include multiple job holders

13. Is This Difference Important? • Living in Pittsfield, working in Springfield • Counted as employed In Pittsfield • Job is counted in Springfield

14. Unemployment and Job Vacancies December 2007 7,700 4,400 1.75

15. State and Local Labor Market Developments

16. Recent MA Trends February 2012—February 2013 • Job Gains +57,600 (1.8%) Is this noteworthy? YES • February 2013 employment level (3,318,500) finally surpassed pre-recession peak (3,304,000) (April 2008) • We are still below February 2001 level by 67,000 • WHY? • Recession 2007 – 2009: lost 136,000 jobs • Recession 2001 – 2003: lost 207,000 jobs

17. Recent MA Trends: Sector Changes February 2012—February 2013 • Job Gains +57,600 (1.8%) • Health and Social Assistance +4,900 • Accommodation and Food +11,500 • Professional and Technical +9,500 • Retail +4,100 • Temp Services- +7,900

18. More on Jobs Good Producing sector: • Construction: Up 4,500 • Manufacturing: Down 2,900 • Most manufacturing lob loss occurred between February 2012 and August 2012 NOTE: in February 1984, Manufacturing had 676,000 jobs Caution on Month-to-Month changes

19. Massachusetts Labor Force February 2012 – February 2013 Unemployment Rate (Seasonally Adjusted) 6.7 to 6.5 Employed: + 5,200 Unemployed: – 5,400 (226,700) Labor Force: - 200 Total Unemployed • February 2012: 232,100 • February 2010: 300,000 • February 2008 157,000 (UR 4.6) NOTE: U.S. rate has fallen from 8.3 to 7.7

20. UI Claimant Information February 2012 – February 2013 Initial Claims: fall 1,450 Continued: fall 5,700 February 2013 Claims Levels • Initial: 35,100 • Continued: 115,100 • February 2009: 166,900 • February 2008: 104,900

21. Berkshire Unemployment Rates Rates are seasonally unadjusted

22. Berkshire Unemployed Persons

23. Berkshire UI Claimants

24. Industry Employment Trends: Berkshire County 2011 3rd Quarter - 2012 3rd Quarter

25. Job Structure of Massachusetts and The Berkshires

27. Size Class Distribution: Massachusetts and The Berkshires

28. Statewide Distribution of Establishments and Employment by Size Groups  March 2012

29. Berkshire WIA Distribution of Establishments and Employment by Size Groups, March 2012

30. Commuting Patterns

31. Berkshire WIA

32. STEM Considerations

33. STEM Issues to Ponder • Defined as occupations but determined by industry structure • Why? Industries are where people work; occupations are what people do. • And, STEM occupations are concentrated in a subset of industries

34. What does this mean for The Berkshires? • Small employment in STEM-related industries • Occupations requiring at least a Bachelor’s Degree operate in Regional and National labor markets; not local markets • Very limited access to 4 year or graduate STEM programs in Berkshires. Will require partnerships and relationships that go beyond Berkshire • What are local STEM needs that do not require a Bachelor’s Degree?

35. STEM Industry Review

36. Berkshire Manufacturing: 2011

37. ……………and….. That’s All Folks!