Wrangell has work, but the workforce is lacking.
Since the end of September, the Wrangell Chamber of Commerce has been posting its members’ job openings to help get companies staffed and people working.
In the five weeks, three people have come in to fill out applications. Chamber Executive Director Brittani Robbins said despite efforts help get jobs filled, staffing shortages remain due to anything from lower starting wages to unqualified applicants.
But Robbins believes businesses can take steps to make positions more attractive.
“I think, of course, a living wage, full-time hours and benefits are always appealing,” she said. “I haven’t spoken with anyone who’s unemployed, but if I was looking, those would be at the top of my list.”
Open jobs range from clinicians and business managers to bank tellers and tire cutters.
The Alaska Department of Labor reported Wrangell’s unemployment rate at 6.5% in September, up from 5.3% in August, but down from 7.1% in September of 2020. The statewide unemployment rate was 6.3% in September, and nationwide averaged 4.8%.
In Alaska, the number of jobs is up in every industry except in oil and gas, information and federal and state government.
Robbins said the chamber has posted jobs for the school district, both grocery stores, SEARHC, Sentry Hardware, the Marine Bar, Wells Fargo, KSTK, First Bank, the Stikine Inn, restaurant and café, among others. Many of those are still seeing a shortage of workers, she said. “I don’t feel there’s any one type of industry (in Wrangell) that’s any more hard up than any other.”
Among the reasons various employers have cited for not being able to find candidates is housing. If qualified people need to relocate, finding a place to live can be extremely difficult.
“The biggest stumbling block for getting staff is the housing situation,” said Jennifer Dalton, human resources generalist for SouthEast Alaska Regional Health Consortium in Wrangell. “Housing is probably our biggest issue, especially housing that allows animals. It gets a little more challenging if you have a family.”
And whether workers relocate or already live here, Dalton said finding child care has been another challenge, and if it is available the cost becomes another issue.
A smaller workforce in Alaska is a growing problem. Since 2016, an average of 7,000 people a year more have left the state than have moved into the state, according to Alaska Labor Department statistics.
“What are we going to do to engage workers to move here and get locally produced workers to stay here,” Anchorage Economic Development Corp. CEO Bill Popp told the Alaska Journal of Commerce last week.
Wrangell isn’t immune to the outmigration problem. According to an economic conditions report published in 2020 by Rain Coast Data, Wrangell’s population is predicted to decrease by about 200 people over the next 25 years.
One business that isn’t struggling to find qualified hires is the Stikine Inn, restaurant and café, said operational partner Jake Harris. All areas of the company are fully staffed, he said, and they are always accepting applications.
“I’m not sure if any of my recent hires were led here from my advertising on social media, from advertisements in-house, the chamber or otherwise but, to be honest, I find the majority of my success comes from hiring directly from the circles of those that are already employed with my company,” he said.
Since his is a largely seasonal business, Harris tries to keep in contact with the workers who will be returning for summer employment. In the winter, he cross-trains the staff that stays to keep them busy and working as much as possible.
Harris believes next summer will prove to be a bigger challenge in finding seasonal workers, more so than previous two years of the pandemic.
“(Next year) is setting up to be the biggest travel year on record by all data that I’m reading, especially for dynamic, ‘safe,’ independent-style destinations that are off the map like Wrangell,” he said. “We as a business community will have to get creative and put together a plan to be attractive to seasonal workers if we’re to be successful. I’m already starting to look outside at my various connections to get ahead of it.”
Meanwhile, the chamber will continue its efforts to connect applicants with employers, exploring various avenues, Robbins said.
“(A job fair) has been suggested and asked about, so we can see how it might work and then go from there,” she said.
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