Where the Workers Are

It may have been a lack of data, not a lack of workers, that doomed a second call center in central Maine. No one knew how many workers were likely to respond to the “Help wanted” ads, so one company – L.L. Bean – dropped plans to open a call center in Fairfield after another company – T-Mobile – announced plans to open a bigger center there. Are there enough workers for both? Maybe, but no one knows for sure.

University of Southern Maine economist Charlie Colgan did an extensive survey of workers and employers in 17 regions throughout the state between 1998 and 2000. The survey went beyond the traditional labor market statistics, principally the number of people of working age and the unemployment rate, to gain a broader look at the state’s labor force. A key element was information about underemployment – people working in jobs that pay less than they’d like, require fewer skills than they have or, likely, both. That survey is now outdated.

The Maine Bureau of Labor is currently fixing that. Working with the State Planning Office and Department of Economic and Community Development, the department is collecting a more comprehensive set of workforce data in one place. An overriding goal is to better understand how many people are underemployed in Maine.

As John Dorrer, head of the bureau, explains Maine’s workforce, like that of the rest of the world, is changing and those changes need to be factored into analyses of how many workers are potentially available. Rather than simply looking at population, the new analysis factors in issues such as labor force participation – does a region have a lot of students who may want to work part-time or seasonally – and age – are there retirees who want to work part-time, for example. Seen this way, the state’s labor pool is likely larger than it appears.

This information will better help state and local officials present potential employers with a real picture of a region’s labor market. Another factor is wages, which differ by region. Are there a lot of jobs that pay $10 an hour in a region? If so, a new employer will likely want to pay more to get the best employees.

While the state is compiling better information, employers may be able to help as well. By knowing what attracts different kinds of workers they may be able to find more available than they think. For instance, a company may attract higher quality workers if it hired two part-time employees who are skilled but put a premium on flexible or shorter hours.

Better understanding the motivations and desires of Maine’s workers would help employers improve performance. Combined with the state’s update of available workers, there may be the need for less guessing over such an important issue in the future.