Workforce
State and local governments face a tight labor market and a competitive disadvantage with the private sector. But salaries aren’t the only issue, with cities, counties and states all grappling with training, retention, remote work and increased union activity.
Half the state's D.A. offices can't hire enough attorneys, with some vacancies remaining open for years.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a law last month that will make it easier, quicker and cheaper for refugees, asylum seekers and those with special immigrant visas to get professional licensing.
While many employers do allow workers to take time to go vote, there is no state law that requires the allowance. For some, keeping politics out of the workplace is, legally, the simplest choice.
While many who can are working from home, those that have returned to an office space have found it difficult to stay six feet apart. Some companies find sensors and plexiglass aren’t strong enough to overcome human nature.
Many rideshare drivers were relying on their gig work as their primary source of income, and then the pandemic forced many to stop working. As COVID continues, many worry how much longer they can survive.
More than 7,200 out of 8,500 state employees continue to telework, providing the state an opportunity to shrink its office footprint, and potentially saving $1.2 million annually in Bismarck office rental payments.
With increasing child care and distance learning demands, thousands of women are dropping out of the national workforce. Many are concerned over the lasting impact their leaving will have on the makeup of the workforce.
To offset the COVID-induced deficit California enacted furloughs for state agencies, including the Employment Development Department. If workers hadn’t had to take time off, 62,000 more claims could have been processed.
A new report from Forrester finds governments lack an employee experience that fosters a productive and resilient workforce. How the public sector responds during COVID could change the worker dynamic, however.
Although they reported more debt, financial concern and greater perceived health risks, Black American state and local government employees were overall more positive about their work during COVID-19, according to a report.
This year’s election will require more than 1 million workers to assist voters. The pandemic was expected to suppress the number of volunteers, but innovative and creative recruiting drives have boosted the supply.
The state’s current jobless claims technology uses 60-year-old computing language and cannot manage taking in new claims and processing payments simultaneously. Lawmakers hope to update the system with next year’s funds.
Last week, the Employment Security Department answered questions about the department’s security glitches, increasing employer taxes and repaying the $576 million lost in the spring’s unemployment fraud.
The state is still down 39 percent in employment since February, the slowest recovery of all the 48 contiguous states since August 2019. Only Hawaii has a worse job decline than New York.
The state’s labor department accidentally overpaid on 30,000 unemployment claims during July, totalling $280 million. To compensate, the state cut workers’ weekly payments until the extra pay was returned.
A recent poll showed that only 39 percent of likely voters would approve California’s Proposition 22, which aims to keep gig workers as independent contractors instead of full-time employees.
At first, the transition to remote work was exciting. But as the distancing continues, many workers struggle with their mental health, job satisfaction and motivation. But some introverted workers are thriving.
The Federal Reserve found that workers with jobs that can be done by machines are experiencing layoffs at a greater rate with the pandemic. Workers of color are especially hard-hit by this trend.
Remote government work can have many benefits, as the last several months have shown. But whether state IT agencies should recruit more remote workers, regardless of where they live, remains an open question.
A new study from the National Association of Realtors identified which areas of the country were likely to continue working remotely after the pandemic subsides. Delaware County, Ohio, had the eighth highest score.
Gov. Jared Polis has signed an executive order to prioritize diversity and equity within the state workforce. The move is the first step in improving what critics have called a problem within the Polis administration.
With increased COVID safety concerns, more workers seek assistance from labor unions, which have their own challenges. Organizing workers is easier in-person and many unions face financial shortfalls due to widespread layoffs.
New York City has rescinded its threat to lay off 22,000 city workers as Mayor de Blasio works to find other funding sources to offset a $9 billion deficit. But some city workers worry that furloughs might happen anyway.
Due in part to three new Amazon fulfillment centers, the state’s economic development has increased by 4 percent from the last fiscal year. But the projects are investing in technology and automation, not new jobs.
Before the pandemic, state officials were receiving about 200 workplace safety complaints each month. During the pandemic, that has increased to more than 200 every week. Many of them are COVID-related.
Big cities like San Francisco and New York have suffered as companies flee. But secondary markets like Dayton can leverage their exceptionally low costs, great infrastructure and higher quality of life to gain market share.
State legislators proposed a $100 billion stimulus plan that would increase weekly unemployment benefits for unemployed workers, but the legislative session is ending before the extra support has been formalized.
Many workers foresee working from home to be a long-term situation and working from the kitchen table isn’t suitable any more. So how do you create an office without returning to work? By introducing the backyard commute.
While workers and customers are contracting COVID-19, legally it is hard to prove exactly where the person contracted the virus. So far this detail has protected businesses, but some think it’s time for that to change.
Many minority communities have grown to rely on the independent contract work flexibility of ride-sharing and delivery apps, so classifying workers as full-time would actually be detrimental. “It’s not good for folks of color.”
Pushed by unions, Virginia, Oregon and California aren’t waiting for federal guidance any longer and are creating worker protection rules to prevent the spread of COVID-19 while on the job.
