Our state faces a serious workforce problem, and we can’t keep ignoring it as something someone else should fix. It’s time to resolve our workforce shortage now. For decades, I’ve worked in the labor and staffing industry, and I see these problems every day. Employers are seeking new employees, jobs are left unfilled, and, unfortunately, there aren’t enough workers to meet the demands. Many of you feel the same way I do. We need to protect our borders.
This country was founded on law and order; therefore, let’s enforce our laws. At the same time, we need to remove people from our country who have committed crimes and are harming our communities. However, taking a position against immigration poses a long-term threat to our economy, even if the negative effects don’t manifest in the immediate future. The loss of working men and women will begin to impact every business and each industry. You’ll hear about them.
We also need to take a hard look at whether our immigration system is keeping pace with the workforce needs of our country. Everyday, I see qualified people who are willing to work and I also see employers who desperately need workers, yet the current system has made it extremely difficult to fix either problem. Whether it is a skilled welder in Mexico who wants to come to America and work, or someone already here who wants to work legally and contribute to our economy, the process has become too complicated and too slow to meet demands. We need to fix this. We need a system that secures our borders, enforces our laws, and gives employers a practical, legal way to access the workers they need.
At QPS Employment Group, we have seen hundreds of open positions. In July, there were over 250 Accelerate average weekly openings — representing professional, white-collar career placements handled by Accelerate Professional Talent Solutions, QPS Employment Group’s specialized professional recruitment division — and over 1,400 skilled average weekly openings. Locating enough qualified candidates to fill those positions remains a daily struggle.
This isn’t unique to QPS Employment Group. Many other Wisconsin employers, in a variety of industries, are vying for the same limited pool of workers. As time goes on, competition among employers will likely increase even further. Consider Wisconsin’s emerging data centers. They provide excellent wages and bring substantial investments to Wisconsin. That’s a great boon for Wisconsin’s economy.
However, data center jobs can draw workers away from other industries by offering significantly higher wages. So when a worker can leave one position and gain $10 more per hour at a data center, many employers will find it difficult to retain their current workforce. We cannot create additional workers overnight. That’s why discussions about immigration must include representatives from the labor industry. We have seen firsthand what happens when a large number of workers depart from a workplace at the same time. Just last year, U.S.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raided Glenn Valley Foods, a meat-processing facility in Omaha, Nebraska. More than 70 workers – approximately one-half of Glenn Valley Foods’ workforce – were detained during the raid. Glenn Valley Foods was left with approximately 30 percent of its workforce. Consequently, Glenn Valley Foods’ production fell by approximately 20 percent compared to its normal levels. Glenn Valley Foods lost the workers they needed to produce their product. And the loss of workers continues throughout the United States.
Workers continue to be lost in nursing homes, manufacturing plants, restaurants, and grocery stores. Additionally, Wisconsin already has an aging workforce. Not to mention, more experienced workers will retire within the next few years. Hence, this begs the question: how will we replace these workers? Where will these replacements come from? In order to address this growing problem and concern, we must educate and prepare future generations. We must encourage young adults to pursue skilled-training careers.
In addition to all of the things we must do to address this issue, we must also realize that immigrants are and always have been a vital part of America’s workforce. Immigrants often fill positions that are critical to America’s economic success.
As we approach midterm elections and the end of the year, we cannot ignore our border security or our immigration enforcement efforts. We must recognize that our enforcement policies and our workforce policies cannot be viewed as two separate issues. If we continue to lose workers faster than we can replace them, eventually the numbers catch up with us. Wisconsin’s labor shortage will not simply disappear. The question is whether we address it before it reaches crisis levels.
