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The Great Resignation aside, older Americans remain a powerful force in the labor pool, and by 2030, the federal government projects that 1 in 4 workers will be over the age of 55.
The contributions of older workers are certainly felt in San Bernardino County, where nearly 30% of the population qualifies for AARP membership, despite a median age that is 5 years younger than the national average. According to Census data, the county is home to nearly 475,000 men and women between the ages of 50 and 69.
For many, these are prime working years, underscored by Bureau of Labor Statistics data showing that more than 70% of Americans in their 50s are currently employed. The labor force participation rate among 55-to-74 year olds, meanwhile, has remained around 40%, even with the early-retirement buzz surrounding the Great Resignation.
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The Advantages of Older Workers
From Columbia University Public Health
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Older workers are skilled and experienced.
Older workers stay in their jobs longer and take fewer days off.
Older workers have a strong work ethic.
Older workers retain a company’s knowledge and networks.
Any perceived technology gap can be overcome.
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The best teams are multi-generational.
Older workers play a critical role in training the next generation of workers.
Older workers provide customers with consistency and personal attention.
Older workers attract more workers.
Older workers are part of the business brand.
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San Bernardino County’s job market was surging as 2022 drew to a close, led by continued growth in the logistics sector, professional services, government, education, healthcare and construction. Unemployment dropped a half percentage point in December, as the Inland Empire continued to lead Southern California’s post-pandemic employment recovery. For the year, the county’s unemployment rate fell to 4.2%, the lowest since 2019 and the third lowest since 1990. | |
Helping employers find workers | |
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William Sterling
WDB Chair
The U.S. added 517,000 jobs in January, far exceeding expectations while showing, once again, that career opportunities abound for those willing and able to work. The issue, for many businesses, isn’t the availability of jobs, but the availability of workers, and that’s where Workforce Development comes in.
At WDB, we have a full team of Business Services Specialists available to help employers fill positions. Programs such as On-the-Job Training (OJT) provide businesses with resources they can use to hire and retain qualified employees. Especially in a tight job market, these kinds of programs and services can be the difference between business success and failure.
If you have positions to fill, check us out. If you know of other employers struggling to fill positions, please send them our way. Our Business Services team is a click away.
As always, thank you for the opportunity to serve you. Together, we are helping to make San Bernardino County one of the most robust economic and employment centers in the country.
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Success Story: Retaining workers in a tough hiring market | | |
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Eric Goodman, President of Mountain View Services Inc. in Redlands
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As the only private employer in California that delivers both food and medical supplies to intermediate care facilities across the state, Mountain View Services Inc. in Redlands has been busier than ever since the early days of the pandemic. That would be a challenge even with full staffing, much less the 20 job openings Mountain View has been unable to fill due to the labor shortage.
“My payroll is actually higher than if we were fully staffed because of all the overtime we’re paying,” said Eric Goodman, President of Mountain View. With the help of WDB’s On-the-Job Training Program (OJT), Goodman hopes to chip away at the vacancies he now has while providing career-advancement opportunities for the company’s loyal employees. Using OJT, which pays up to one-half of an employee’s salary while being trained for a new position, Goodman trained two employees for higher-paying positions, keeping them both at Mountain View.
One 10-year employee, a single mother of two living with her parents, was planning to look for another job. The training she received through OJT kept her on board, which “worked out great” for both the employee and the company, goodman said.
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My first job was working at a ski store in Southern California. We sold skis, clothing, boots and other ski supplies. My primary job at the shop was waxing customers’ skis, which involved scraping off the old wax and putting on a fresh coat. I learned two important lessons from my experience. First, it really wasn’t a hard task, and it surprised me people would pay for a service they could easily do on their own. I learned the importance of being self-reliant and doing things myself. Secondly, providing good customer service meant working with a variety of people and treating everyone with respect. It was a small town, so you would often bump into your customers in other places! | |
Connecting Employers and Job Seekers | |
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Local employers will participate in several hiring events at the County’s America’s Job Centers of California (AJCCs) in the coming weeks:
Thursday, February 16: West Valley AJCC, 9650 9th St., Suite A, Rancho Cucamonga. 9 a.m.-noon. Register here.
Thursday, February 23: High Desert AJCC, 17310 Bear Valley Rd., Suite 109, Victorville. 10 a.m.-1 p.m. Register here.
Thursday, March 2: East Valley AJCC, 500 Inland Center Drive, Space 508, San Bernardino. 9 a.m.-noon. Register here.
Thursday, March 16: West Valley AJCC, 9650 9th St., Suite A, Rancho Cucamonga. 9 a.m.-noon. Register here.
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WDB hosts free virtual seminars throughout the week to help job seekers on topics such as interviewing skills, resume building and navigating the employment resources available during the pandemic. If you know of anyone who could use this valuable assistance, a calendar of upcoming sessions is available here.
In the meantime, here are some upcoming events and release dates:
Wednesday, February 22: WDB General Board meeting, 8:30-10:30 a.m., 290 North D Street, Suite 600, San Bernardino.
Wednesday, March 1: WDB Executive Committee Meeting, 8:30-9:30 a.m., 290 North D Street, Suite 600, San Bernardino.
Friday, March 10: California EDD releases its January jobs report and industry-by-industry wage and employment data for 1990-2022.
Friday, March 10: Bureau of Labor Statistics releases its February U.S. jobs report.
Wednesday, March 22: WDB General Board meeting, 8:30-10:30 a.m., 290 North D Street, Suite 600, San Bernardino.
Friday, March 24: California EDD releases its February jobs report.
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Visit our YouTube channel to view archived videos of our Business Services webinars, such as this one on labor law. | | |
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Click here to catch up on past editions of Workforce Update, WDB’s monthly e-newsletter and labor market intelligence report.
If you know others who would like to receive this timely and important information, please invite them to join our mailing list at info.workforce@wdd.sbcounty.gov.
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WIOA Title I-financially assisted programs or activities are an equal opportunity employer/program. Auxiliary aids and services are available upon request to individuals with disabilities. For federal funding disclosure information, visit: wp.sbcounty.gov/workforce/ffd/. | | | | |
