Partnering to Enhance Workforce Opportunities in Pinal County
February 2023 Update:
Following the in-person employer roundtable in Casa Grande, LFA and ARIZONA@WORK Pinal County held a second, virtual discussion with employers in the summer of 2022. LFA presented employers with information regarding several ARIZONA@WORK and DES programs that they may be able to take advantage of, including ARIZONA@WORK’s On-The-Job Training (OJT) Program, the State Registered Apprenticeship Program, and DES’ Second Chance Reentry Program.
LFA also began working with ARIZONA@WORK Pinal County to create opportunities for employers in manufacturing and other in-demand industries to connect with local high school students. LFA and ARIZONA@WORK Pinal County are currently connecting with local high schools to host career focused events for students in the spring of 2023.
Where It All Began:
Local First Arizona (LFA) partnered with ARIZONA@WORK Pinal County in the spring of 2022 to address workforce challenges in manufacturing, one of the county’s fastest growing industries and a key component in the expansion of Pinal County’s overall economy. According to ARIZONA@WORK’s 2022 Labor Market Analysis of Pinal County, the manufacturing industry accounted for 12.9% of the county’s economic activity in 2020, contributing more to the county’s GDP than any other industry besides real estate and government. ARIZONA@WORK Pinal County identified manufacturing as a top industry of focus in the region.
LFA and ARIZONA@WORK Pinal County convened manufacturing employers from across Pinal County for a roundtable discussion in Casa Grande. Through that discussion, employers identified talent recruitment as a critical challenge for them and discussed several shared contributing factors. Employers shared the sentiment that they’ve largely exhausted their current local talent pool and are unable to find enough qualified applicants to fill all open positions. Many applicants are unable to progress through the hiring process because they are unable to pass drug tests and/or background checks, leaving employers with a seemingly small pool of talent to recruit from.
Employers agreed that they will need to tap into new talent pipelines in order to fill current open positions and prepare for future openings as their Pinal County facilities expand. They identified local high schools as a potential source of talent that they have historically been unable to fully tap into. Several employers expressed interest in hiring graduating seniors directly out of high school and providing them with any necessary training in-house. However, those employers have largely been unable to directly connect with those students in schools prior to graduation. Employers also expressed a general lack of awareness of resources available to them through ARIZONA@WORK, which could help connect them with, and train, qualified local talent.
