Virginia: Older Dominion Project Releases Survey, Starts Workgroup on Aging Workforce

The Older Dominion Project (ODP), a non-profit initiative by Virginia businesses, government, foundations, and non-profits to help Virginia ride the age wave created in 2007, has released its ODP Residents' & Business Leaders Studies, indicating broad interest across both Virginia's residents and businesses in starting to prepare now for the coming demographic tsunami. Businesses, in particular, are aware of and concerned about the attendant workforce issues:

Business leaders see the aging workforce and impending retirement of aging baby boomers as an issue for Virginia. Sixty-five percent (65%) of Virginia business leaders say the "aging workforce" is a serious issue facing the entire economy--with a third (35%) saying it is a "very serious issue." Two in five (41%) feel the aging workforce is a serious issue for their own organization. In addition, two-thirds (65%) feel that the retirement of a large number of workers in the future is a serious issue for the economy and a third (35%) feel this issue will have a significant impact on their company. Half of business leaders (47%) feel their organizations are prepared to accommodate older workers today. Yet, two in five business leaders (42%) say they are prepared when it comes to knowledge transfer (from one generation of workers to the next).

The surveys were released at an ODP meeting in which five workgroups were organized to tackle the identified issues. As described in the ODP Work Group Initiatives, Workgroup No. 4 is the Workforce Readiness Work Group. This group is charged with "putting plans and policies in place . . . to accomodate these new workforce realities."

Source: Older Dominion Project Press Release (March 27, 2008)

Additional Source: ODP video of ODP presentations (March 27, 2008)

Virginia: Study Finds Rural Communities Short of Younger Workers

According to 2006 population estimates by age and gender developed by the Demographics and Workforce section of the University of Virginia’s Weldon Cooper Center for Public Service, younger Virginians (18-24) are concentrated in or near college or university towns and, after college graduation, in localities--typically cities--with the largest range of employment opportunities. Accordingly, workforce development strategies targeted to available human resources will be required to meet the needs of employers in rural areas.

Qian Cai, director of the Demographics and Workforce Section, who prepared the estimates, notes that "[w]hile small and rural communities may offer certain dimensions of a high quality of life, the absence of employment opportunities presents significant disadvantages to these communities in attracting younger workers.” At the other end of the workforce, the percentage of Virginians at pre-retirement age (55-64) continues to grow--now 11% of the current population, compared to less than 9% six years ago.

“Communities facing the largest retirement challenge already tend to have a higher proportion of elderly citizens,” says Cai, “because the younger population leaves in search of work, the older resident population ages in place, and many who left when young tend to move back for retirement.” In Mathews County, for example, 11 out of every 100 people aged 65-69 moved in from elsewhere (as compared to the state average of three out of 100).

Source: University of Virginia News Release (March 14, 2007)

Virginia: Hampton Roads Area Needs To Plan for Aging Workforce

According to John W. Whaley, deputy executive director of economics for the Hampton Roads Planning District Commission, a rapidly aging population in Hampton Roads will cause a slowdown in the growth of the region's labor force and standard of living. In a presentation to commission members, Whaley said the percentage of older people in the region's population would increase as the baby boomer generation ages into retirement. Also, there are fewer younger people due to low birth rates and more older people due to longer life expectancies.

Officials in Hampton Roads must take action to face the impending shortage of workers, he said, suggesting that companies and policymakers should find ways to retain older workers. He also recommended that cities in Hampton Roads should encourage the in-migration of young people from other areas of the country, if not the world.

Source: Hampton Roads Daily Press "Growth of region's work force may ebb" (December 21, 2006