Help Wanted: Smyth County, Virginia (cont.)

Regional action

Since 2003, manufacturing operations in Smyth County such as Epoch Composites, pictured above, have increased their employment by an average of 18 percent. The local unemployment rate is now regularly below 5 percent.

Smyth County also is taking action regionally to address workforce issues. Neighboring Washington County is experiencing similar workforce shortages, and industry managers from both counties have pulled together to develop answers to the problem.

The counties together are looking at joint efforts to recruit more students from high school into advanced manufacturing technology training programs and to promote manufacturing as a career with high-paying jobs and advancement opportunities. A highly selective “manufacturing academy” is one idea being considered by the joint group.

Many local companies also are experiencing difficulty in filling middle- and upper-level management, engineering, and other professional positions, so a “return to roots”marketing program – targeting area natives who have moved away – is planned to attract them back to the region.Many young adults in the 25- to 40-year age range who left Smyth County after high school or did not return after college would take the chance to return home if they knew that good employment opportunities existed.

Other initiatives include the upgrading of equipment (the Smyth Career and Technology Center will soon purchase state-of-the-art robotic welding equipment), training scholarships, and a possible regional training center for advanced manufacturing technology.

Looking long-term

In response to the needs of existing industry, Smyth County has proposed a multi-targeted approach to prepare its students and adults for the workforce needs of the 21st century. The long-range objectives are to increase the total employed workforce in the county from the current 14,400 persons to 16,500 persons by 2012, and to increase the per capita personal income of Smyth County residents from 63.5 percent of the state average to 80 percent of the state average by 2012.

Smyth County has been fortunate to have strong, viable employers that were able to fill the void left by the loss of 11 manufacturers. Since 2003, the remaining 26 manufacturing operations in Smyth County (including two new ones) have increased their employment by 18 percent and are continuing to grow. The current manufacturers are concentrated in the transportation, defense and building components industries, rather than furniture and apparel. The average weekly wage is higher in manufacturing than in any other sector of the economy in Smyth County. The local unemployment rate is now regularly below five percent, and the proportion of jobs in manufacturing is rising, not falling.

However, Smyth County’s existing industries continue to face severe economic challenges in the competitive global economy. Local economic development efforts must be focused on existing industry needs, especially in preparing the labor force with the skill sets necessary for employers to increase productivity and remain competitive. For example, companies spend a great deal of time and money on training, so finding ways to reduce training costs can be more important to a company than a one-time incentive grant or an equipment loan.

If existing employers are not satisfied with the local workforce, then business expansions will be hindered, and a locality will have a difficult time convincing new companies to locate in the community. Economic development truly must go hand-in-hand with workforce development, and workforce development must be driven by employer needs.

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