BRATTLEBORO-The basic structure of any local economy is built upon a continual stream of new workers entering the work force to replace those who are winding down their careers.
This is something that the Brattleboro job market, with its diverse and distinct business community and work force, is currently struggling with, according to several people who are working on the issue at the local and state levels and spoke with The Commons about their perceptions of the local economic landscape.
According to recent data provided by the Vermont Department of Labor, top three industry sectors make up the job landscape in Brattleboro:
• Manufacturing (1,206 jobs, which is 35% more concentrated than the state average regionally).
• Health care and social assistance (2,425 jobs, which is 45% higher than the rest of the state)
• The retail trade (1,069 jobs, a figure that generally matches other regions in the state).
These numbers also don't account for the music and arts scene in Brattleboro, as most of that economy is reflected in self-employment statistics.
There are also plenty of places hiring - restaurants such as Echo and The Works, grocery retailers such as Aldi, Hannaford, and the Brattleboro Food Co-op, and other employers.
Statistically, according to VDOL, there are 1.8 job openings for every job seeker, but underneath that seemingly healthy statistic is a thornier issue: Young people aren't replacing the workers who are aging out of the workforce.
"It's our declining demographics that is the problem in terms of sustaining the businesses we have, let alone talking about growing businesses in the future," said VDOL Interim Commissioner Kendal Smith.
"So we have to fix that foundation before we can get too creative in terms of what else would be nice," she said. "We need to have more people so that the businesses that are currently here can stay. And then, if we can get past that piece, then we can get a little more aspirational."
The labor market currently isn't growing, either; according to VDOL: Since 2010, the Brattleboro labor force has declined by nearly 1,000 workers, or about 14%.
While other areas have rebounded slightly from the Covid pandemic lows of 2020–21, the trend likely reflects the demographic issue: Windham County is aging, Smith said.
"For a state our size, that does have an impact," she said. "If you are in a more metropolitan area that is, like, a temporary blip that people rebound from. But for Vermont, it's meaningful."
Where are the young workers?
"The whole state of Vermont, not just Brattleboro and Windham County, needs young people," said Kate O'Connor, executive director of the Brattleboro Area Chamber of Commerce. "Especially Windham County, because we're aging rapidly, and our population has stayed the same for decades."
O'Connor observed that "if you talk to people who are in the trades, like electricians and plumbers, that's what we need, because the population of people who are doing these jobs are getting older, and who is going to come in underneath?"
Emilee Hobbs, interim general manager of the Brattleboro Food Co-op, said when it comes what the local job market will look like, "younger people choose to stay around here and keep their careers in this area and realize that you can have a healthy, great career path in this area, and you don't need to look elsewhere. I think that's my hope for this area."
One part of the problem of young people not staying in the area is the current housing situation in Brattleboro.
O'Connor said there is a definite correlation between the shortage of housing for workers, and the shortage of workers for many jobs in Brattleboro,
"Part of Brattleboro's problem is there is a huge housing problem so when people find a job here - they get offered a job at the hospital or somewhere- they can't find a place to live."
What's ahead?
When asked her hope for the future of the job market in Brattleboro and Vermont, Smith said she "really would like to see us kind of close that workforce gap, where we do have enough individuals to sustain our businesses because we still overall have a lower labor force participation rate than we did pre-pandemic."
While she said "there's actually more population here than before, the conundrum is, we still aren't at our peak labor force participation rate."
"So I'd like to see us be a place where young people can stay and they can find jobs that are of interest to them so we have a kind of an industry, variety, or mix, depending on what you professional interests are," Smith said.
She noted that those jobs should offer a range: "from the introductory level jobs through the mid-career/mid-profession jobs, up through the senior leadership jobs."
Many people within the town and across the state are working on these issues, O'Connor said.
The result of some of that work is Vermont JobLink, a website where people can search for a job that fits their preferences. The site is a joint effort of workforce development organizations (ReSOURCE, HireAbility Vermont, Northlands Job Corps Center), state higher education (Community College of Vermont and Vermont State University), and state government agencies (VDOL, the Vermont Agency of Education, and the Vermont Department of Children and Families Economic Services Division).
In addition, job seekers who stop by the regional Vermont Department of Labor's Brattleboro office at 28 Vernon St., Suite 410 can receive employment counseling, including potential consultation about job preferences, help brushing up a résumé, or a mock interview.
Besides the Brattleboro Area Chamber of Commerce, Brattleboro Development Credit Corporation (BDCC), Southeastern Vermont Community Action (SEVCA), and the Downtown Brattleboro Alliance are working together to help new businesses and owners get off to a good start and they are also working together on how to spread the word that businesses are hiring.
"I think that there's a lot of good organizations and people in this town who are working collaboratively together to look at what the economy of our town is and fill in the gaps and really help the people that want to take part in the economy, whether it is growing a business, starting a business, or keeping a business here which is all about jobs," O'Connor said.
This News item by Dashiell Moyse was written for The Commons.