Home Economy Economic Activity PBN Summit: Demographics, political trends difficult for R.I. workforce

PBN Summit: Demographics, political trends difficult for R.I. workforce

By

Christopher Allen

-

02/13/2025

PANELIST Nora Crowley, third from the left, speaks during Providence Business News' 2025 Workforce Development Summit on Thursday. With her on the panel, from left, is Ara Millette, director of talent acquisition at Brown University Health; Amy Grzybowski, New England Institute of Technology vice president of workforce development and community relations; Katharine Amaral, director of programs and community partnerships for the nonprofit Junior Achievement of Rhode Island Inc. Moderating is PBN Editor Michael Mello, standing. / PBN PHOTO/MIKE SKORSKI — PANELIST Nora Crowley, third from the left, speaks during Providence Business News' 2025 Workforce Development Summit on Thursday. With her on the panel, from left, is Ara Millette, director of talent acquisition at Brown University Health; Amy Grzybowski, New England Institute of Technology vice president of workforce development and community relations; and Katharine Amaral, director of programs and community partnerships for the nonprofit Junior Achievement of Rhode Island Inc. Moderating is PBN Editor Michael Mello, standing. / PBN PHOTO/MIKE SKORSKI

PROVIDENCE – Rhode Island employers and stakeholder organizations struggling to train, recruit and retain talent in today’s economic and political climate will be trying to do more with less in the effort to match the workforce pool to the jobs in demand. Tighter balance sheets and funding uncertainty on the federal level come at an

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PROVIDENCE – Rhode Island employers and stakeholder organizations struggling to train, recruit and retain talent in today's economic and political climate will be trying to do more with less in the effort to match the workforce pool to the jobs in demand. Tighter balance sheets and funding uncertainty on the federal level come at an inopportune time for the state, according to the panelists at Providence Business News’ 2025 Workforce Development Summit on Thursday morning at the Providence Marriott Downtown. Ara Millette, director of talent acquisition at Brown University Health, said the nonprofit health system has roughly 2,000 job openings and is still experiencing “persistent staffing shortages” in the areas of nursing, diagnostic imaging and respiratory therapy, among others. In response, Brown Health offers between 300 and 500 paid internships annually, advising employers to consider an internship program as a mutually beneficial and “budget neutral” option. But many smaller employers lack the financial resources and time to train staff on their own, said Nora Crowley, deputy director for the R.I. Department for Labor and Training. The state benefited significantly from unprecedented federal dollars during the previous four years, investing between $30 million to $40 million annually on workforce development programming, she said. “Really, the risk now is the scale in drop [in funding] from the federal resource side,” she said. “That money is no longer there." The dual challenges of an aging workforce and only marginal success in persuading younger people to enter the labor market earlier in their lives means employers and the state must invest more in what has been called the new "lost generation," who without a targeted intervention "will attach to meaningful wage growth later in life," Crowley said. In addition to technical training, which is often the nucleus of workforce development, fostering the soft skills within the next generation workforce must not be overlooked. “We’ve seen a lot of young folks who aren’t familiar with basic workforce communication,” said Amy Grzybowski, New England Institute of Technology vice president of workforce development and community relations. “This is something that needs to be taught explicitly in the classroom now. Because the numbers aren't matching.” Prioritizing investments in youth-oriented workforce development will be required, particularly for the construction, health care and manufacturing jobs of the future. The institution recently dropped its tuition rates for skilled trade degrees by 47%. But Grzybowski said with the squeeze on external funding, organizations will need to find more creative ways to make up the difference, such as offering internal apprenticeships, internships and mentorships to bring younger generations into the fold. “Students need to have these experiences outside the four walls of their schools and their homes,” she said. By 2030, there will not be a single baby boomer under 65 in Rhode Island. And the current population of younger Rhode Islanders set to enter the workforce that year is not enough to replace them, said Katharine Amaral, director of programs and community partnerships for the nonprofit Junior Achievement of Rhode Island Inc. But Crowley said other demographic trends could provide an opportunity. The state’s total population grew about 4% between 2013 and 2023, according to the most recent U.S. Census. Approximately half of the growth was attributed to foreign-born arrivals. The push by the Trump administration to root out so-called diversity, equity and inclusion programs in both the public and private sectors should not dissuade employers from contributing to workforce training initiatives to tap this resource. If you feel there is no moral argument to do so, consider the financial justification, Crowley said. “Our talent pool is becoming more diverse,” she said. “There are people coming to this state who are bringing immense talent. You have a vested interest in tapping into that." Christopher Allen is a PBN staff writer. You may contact him at Allen@PBN.com.