Staff photo by Clay Schuldt At a luncheon hosted by the new Ulm Chamber of Commerce, state chamber spokeswoman Jennifer Byers said that only the presence of foreign immigrants prevented a labor shortage and sustained the country’s overall population.
NEW ULM — A net loss of domestic migration has negatively impacted the state’s workforce, a Minnesota Chamber Foundation director told the audience at a Chamber of Commerce luncheon Friday.
Jennifer Byers was one of the speakers at the Hot Topics Lunch hosted by the Business Education Network at the New Ulm Country Club.
She said current demographics are not on Minnesota’s side, saying the state has seen a workforce loss since the 1990s as more people leave the state than move out of other states.
“Without (foreign) immigration, we would be a loser population” said Byers. “Immigrants are really important for the growth of the economy.”
The pandemic has hurt the economy, she reported. Minnesota has begun rebuilding, but labor shortages remain. Only three economic sectors have regained jobs lost to the pandemic; Construction, education and professional scientific and technical services.
Large employment gaps remain in manufacturing, trade, healthcare and other sectors. There are around 200,000 job openings in Minnesota. Overall, unemployment has fallen to 2.7%.
The number of job seekers has also fallen. Many people have retired or left the labor market during the pandemic.
Childcare availability is another factor, she said.
Byers said there has been a surge in new company filings, but four out of five of these new companies are not interested in expanding. The person who starts the business is the only employee. Often they have given up another job to become self-employed.
Byers said the Minnesota Chamber’s efforts are focused on creating local business education networks. Many Minnesota communities have local BEN groups. No two BEN groups are the same, as different communities have different needs, but Byers recommended employees become more involved in business education.
“When students have relationships with employers, they can really understand the career opportunities.” She said.
Connecting employers with schools and providing students with employment and career opportunities can help align skills with local needs.
Jeff Bertrang, Superintendent of New Ulm Schools, gave a summary of BEN’s activities since 2018. Bertrang confirmed that BEN is company run but the school would work with employers. Programming, including the CEO in the classroom and the teacher in the workplace, began in 2019 but was put on hold during the pandemic. Bertrang said the district is trying to restart the on-the-job teacher program.
The vocational and technical training center went into operation last autumn. 440 students participate in this institution. Bertrang said the center has been a great collaboration with businesses and the public.
The school is also working on the nursing shortage by partnering with Allina Health. There are already students in training to become certified nursing assistants.
Another speaker, Wendy Anderson, is a new management consultant for New Ulm. She has been advising businesses for more than a decade, helping people looking to start or expand a business, or people looking to exit and sell a business. Your consulting services are provided by the city of Neu-Ulm.
Paul Wessel gave a brief update on the status of economic development in Neu Ulm. He recently took over leadership. He said NUEDC was officially called New Ulm Industries and has been operating since the 1950s. Wessel said the organization had been dormant for a number of years and needed a refresher. NUEDC is renamed New Ulm Business Resource and Innovation Center (NUBRIC).
“Our goal is to support the growth, establishment and maintenance of companies in New Ulm”, said Wessel. “We draw on a global network of venture capitalists, mezzanine financing and angel investment networks.”
The BEN Committee was formed in 2018 to focus on the common goals of empowering the workforce and connecting students with challenging careers in our community.
The committee has paused its efforts during the COVID pandemic but is picking up steam again. BEN is currently looking for additional company representatives who would like to get involved.
This was the first Hot Topic Lunch hosted by the Neue Kammer Ulm in two years due to the pandemic.
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