Shaheen Leads New Hampshire Workforce Development Summit
New Hampshire businesses facing critical shortage of trained workers
Presentations from state and federal resource providers, education officials and Granite State companies using innovative strategies to recruit and retain workers
Partnership with New Hampshire Business and Industry Association, New Hampshire College and University Council, Community College System of New Hampshire and University System of New Hampshire
(Concord, NH) – Responding to New Hampshire’s ongoing workforce challenge, Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), the lead Democrat on the U.S. Senate Committee on Small Business & Entrepreneurship, today convened the New Hampshire Workforce Development Resource Summit in Concord to examine innovative strategies and training programs to help businesses find, train and retain Granite State workers.
Shaheen was joined by a cross section of New Hampshire business leaders, education officials and federal and state resource providers for an in-depth discussion on the workforce development challenges facing New Hampshire, including an aging workforce, a skills and education gap, the opioid epidemic, affordable housing and child care.
“The common concern I hear – no matter where I travel in New Hampshire – is almost always related to workforce development challenges. Small business owners tell me: they have job openings, they want to hire and grow, but they struggle to find workers with the right skills or training for the job,” said Senator Shaheen. “Tackling our workforce challenge will take innovation, collaboration and new ideas from government, educators and the business community to equip workers with the right skills to fill the high-quality, high-paying jobs of New Hampshire’s future. Failing to address this challenge will harm New Hampshire’s ability to retain, attract and grow businesses and will have long-term effects on the state’s economy and our quality of life.”
In the coming years, New Hampshire’s economy will experience a wave of people leaving the labor force. This decline won’t be offset by a sufficient number of younger workers entering the labor force. The economy of the future will be driven by advanced manufacturing, healthcare and information technology.
Summit attendees also heard from New Hampshire small businesses that are using a mix of benefits, incentives and profit-sharing to recruit and retain workers.
Today’s participants included:
- New Hampshire Business and Economic Affairs
- University System of New Hampshire
- New Hampshire Businesses for Social Responsibility
- NEMO Equipment
- W.S. Badger Company
- Cirtronics
- Electronic Imaging Materials
- DriveBrand Studios
- Fidelity Investments
- New Hampshire Auto Dealers Association
- Appalachian Mountain Club
- New Hampshire Small Business Development Center
- New Hampshire Job Corps Center
- New Hampshire Department of Education
- New Hampshire Vocational Rehabilitation
- New Hampshire Manufacturing Extension Partnership
- Community College System of New Hampshire
- NHWorks
- ApprenticeshipUSA
- Stay Work Play
- Claremont MakerSpace
- Sanborn High School
- New Hampshire Housing Finance Authority
- Impact Monadnock
- SkillsUSA
- New Hampshire Sector Partnership Initiative
Senator Shaheen’s New Hampshire Workforce Development Resource Guide is available HERE.
