A new Wisconsin Employer Survey conducted by Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce (WMC) indicates the state’s workforce shortage has become an emergency, as 86% of businesses are struggling to hire workers. WMC, the combined state chamber and manufacturers’ association, conducted the survey during the first three weeks of June, and respondents cited several factors.
When asked why they were having trouble hiring workers, a plurality — 35% of businesses — said unemployment benefits are too generous, 30% blamed a lack of applicants with the proper skills, and 26% blamed an overall shortage of people. In addition, 85% of employers said they support ending the $300 pandemic-related unemployment enhancement, and while that’s not a universal view, WMC called on Gov. Tony Evers to act.
“It is time for Gov. Evers to connect the dots on this major issue for our economy,” says Kurt Bauer, president and CEO of WMC. “Hundreds of Wisconsin businesses just barely survived months of government-mandated lockdowns, restrictions, and limited capacity. Now, many of those same businesses face another serious government-imposed burden in the form of overly generous unemployment benefits that have created a full-blown workforce emergency.”
The survey also indicates that businesses are not struggling to hire due to a lack of trying. Nearly 80% said they plan to increase the number of employees in the next six months, seven in 10 businesses plan to raise wages at least 3% in 2021, and more than one-quarter of businesses plan to raise wages by more than 4%.
Bauer also called on the state to address long-term challenges by retaining young Wisconsinites after they graduate from high school, attracting people from outside the state to live and work here, and training people who need “upskilling” for the family-supporting careers already available. Nearly three quarters of employers (73%) believe the state should fund a talent-attraction campaign.
