AlphaGovFor expanding employers and site selectors, workforce is often the first question and sometimes the deciding one: can this region staff the operation now and over the next several years, and at what wage? Economic development organizations that can answer with clear, sourced evidence are better placed to compete. A credible labor-market analysis answers six questions.
1. Where will the workers come from?
A labor market rarely follows county lines. Define the laborshed, the area from which a site can realistically draw workers, using commuting patterns and typical drive times. The Census Bureau's Longitudinal Employer-Household Dynamics (LEHD) data, available through its OnTheMap tool, show where people who work in an area live and where residents commute to work.
2. Are the right occupations present?
Employers hire for occupations, not industries. Translate the project's staffing plan into occupations and estimate how many people in the laborshed already work in them. The Bureau of Labor Statistics' Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) program publishes employment and wages by occupation for states and metropolitan areas.
3. How competitive is the market?
Look at who else employs those occupations, recent hiring activity and announced projects that will compete for the same workers. The BLS Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW) provides employment and wages by industry for counties. Job-posting data can show current demand, with the caveat that postings are not the same as hires.
4. Are the wages competitive?
Compare the employer's planned pay with the local wage distribution for each occupation, not only the median. A wage that is competitive for an entry-level role may not attract experienced technicians or supervisors.
5. Is there a pipeline?
Count recent completions in relevant programs at community colleges, universities and training providers using the Department of Education's IPEDS data, and talk with institutions about their capacity and willingness to build customized training. Workforce boards and state labor-market information offices can add apprenticeship, training and local detail that national datasets miss.
6. Who is available beyond the employed workforce?
Unemployed workers, people outside the labor force who could be drawn back, recent graduates and transitioning service members can all expand the available pool. The Census Bureau's American Community Survey provides labor force, education and commuting characteristics for local areas.
Know the limits of the data
- Small-area data may be suppressed to protect confidentiality, especially in rural counties or concentrated industries.
- Published data lag by months or more, so pair them with conversations with local employers.
- Survey-based estimates for small areas carry margins of error. Present ranges where precision is uncertain.
- Commercial datasets are useful but should be checked against public sources, with their methods explained.
Present it for the decision
Site selectors work quickly. Lead with a short summary of availability, competition, wages and pipeline for the occupations that matter, show the source and date for every figure, and keep the detail in an appendix. Being candid about constraints, and about how the region will address them, builds more credibility than a uniformly positive profile.
AlphaGov provides workforce intelligence and labor-market analysis and economic development and site readiness research for economic development organizations, workforce boards and public agencies.