Workforce Development
Cities and towns across the nation are reducing their hours or closing pools altogether because they cannot staff enough lifeguards. Reasons for the shortage vary but are related to fallout from the pandemic.
State Sen. Chuck Edwards has proposed a bill that would pay jobless residents for returning to the workforce, either $800 or $1,500 depending on how quickly they become employed.
In many cases, state and local governments have more jobs than applicants. HR departments are fighting employee burnout, rising retirement and competition from the private sector to fill them.
An investigation into the company’s Pierce County warehouse revealed that Amazon is violating state workplace safety laws by requiring employees to work at speeds that exacerbate injuries and lack proper recovery time.
The state announced it would shut down a prison in Susanville that could result in a loss of a quarter of the city’s workforce. Gov. Newsom has pledged to close two of the state’s 34 correctional facilities.
Gov. Laura Kelly has said she was considering removing the state from federal unemployment bonus payments to encourage workers to return to the workforce. Many Republican states are considering withdrawing the aid.
