American businesses of every size, across every industry, are reporting unprecedented challenges filling open jobs. There are now half as many available workers for every open job across the country. Joining us to discuss the labor shortage problem is Neil Bradley, executive vice president and chief policy officer of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.
Bradley says this has gone from a problem to a crisis. There is a record high of over 10 million open jobs across the country right now. The number of open jobs grew by 800,000 in a single month.
This is a multifaceted issue, he says. This issue existed before the pandemic but only got worse after it. There is also a skills gap for those returning to the workforce. Congress has provided millions of dollars to train these people and give them the skills they need to find work again. State lawmakers are being urged to focus on employer-led job training programs. These are the best programs to make sure people have the skills needed to get a job.
You can learn more about this effort at https://www.uschamber.com/
