Maine has almost recovered jobs misplaced early within the COVID-19 pandemic, however there was a marked shift away from well being care and authorities employment to industries together with development and enterprise providers.
About three-quarters of 90,000 individuals who obtained unemployment advantages returned to work within the remaining three months of 2021, however 16 p.c of them took completely different jobs or ended up in numerous fields, in accordance with Maine’s Middle for Workforce Analysis and Data.
“There was a restoration of jobs near the place we have been in 2019,” Mark McInerney, director of the middle, mentioned. “However we’ve seen some fairly dramatic shifts.”
The typical variety of jobs was solely 0.3 p.c decrease than the 2019 common, however participation in Maine’s labor drive is down due to the state’s getting old inhabitants and retirements moved up through the pandemic, he mentioned. It leaves the state with close to record-high job openings.
In a latest report, the middle adopted staff who obtained unemployment advantages from the start of the pandemic in April 2020 by means of December 2021. Most have been compelled to depart their job due to layoffs or different pandemic-related cutbacks, so the job hopping doesn’t mirror the “Nice Resignation,” throughout which individuals voluntarily left jobs in droves, he mentioned.
The commonest sector shifts have been from lodging and meals providers — one of many industries hit hardest by the pandemic — to retail commerce and well being care and social help, which is primarily nursing and residential care services. Retail commerce staff who shifted sectors have been probably to be reemployed within the well being care and social help and the lodging and meals providers sectors.
“The shifts will not be attributable to at least one issue,” Erin Fenton, senior financial analysis analyst with the middle, mentioned. “It might have been they have been searching for a little bit extra stability, maybe it was higher wages.”
Nonetheless, there are two job openings for each one unemployed job seeker, McInerney mentioned. Maine’s unemployment price has steadily trickled down to three p.c in June, down from a excessive through the pandemic of 9.1 p.c in April 2020. The speed was 3 p.c or decrease for all of 2019.
Skilled and enterprise providers, development and personal academic providers every noticed 5 p.c extra jobs in comparison with 2019. Skilled and enterprise providers noticed the very best numerical improve of 4,500 jobs.
Different sectors noticed the variety of jobs drop in comparison with 2019. Well being care and social help, which is primarily nursing and residential care services, was down 3.9 p.c and had the biggest numerical lower in jobs, minus 4,100. Authorities jobs, each on the native and state degree, have been down 3.2 p.c.
The leisure and hospitality sector, which was the toughest hit for a lot of the pandemic however which is recovering strongly, nonetheless has 3.5 p.c fewer jobs, down 2,400, as some companies in the reduction of hours and employed fewer individuals.
McInerney mentioned the info can assist decision-makers within the state direct labor coverage, particularly in variety, fairness, inclusion and accessibility packages in communities the place the financial restoration prior to now two years lacks fairness.
“This analysis can assist shut gaps,” he mentioned.
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