Illinois: Will County Report Warns Aging Workforce Could Impact Economy

The Workforce Investment Board of Will County, Illinois, has released a report saying that it is time to pay attention and take action on the county's aging and shrinking workforce as the issue could impact the county's economy. The report identifies specific sectors of business and industry in the county where the aging population (50 and older) is more prevalent: education (18.1%), manufacturing (15.2%), healthcare (12.7%), transportation/warehousing/logistics (12.8%), and finance-insurance (12.4%).

Pat Fera, manager of the Workforce Investment Board, notes that the report also includes a number of suggestions to help business and industry prepare for the retirement of Baby Boomers and the labor shortage:

Businesses will be competing more than ever for skilled workers--and the smartest businesses are taking steps to understand what their future workforce will want and likely demand. But there is no ‘one size fits all' strategy that insures companies they can continue to have the workforce necessary to remain competitive in our global economy. They need to assess their current workforce and seek out creative strategies to maintain the knowledge base of their aging workforce while attracting new workers to their industry.

Source: Workforce Investment Board of Will County "Impact of a Maturing Workforce in Will County" (December 2007)

Additional Source: Morris Daily Herald "Boomer retirement will impact Will Co. labor force" (February 14, 2008)