The Maine Labor Force Analysis Project
Over the past two years, the Center for Business and Economic Research at USM has been conducting a detailed analysis of Maine’s labor force. The study, early results of which were reported in the Summer 1999 to Winter 2000 issues of Maine Business Indicators, provides the most detailed picture of a state’s labor force available in any state. The project is funded by the Maine Department of Economic and Community Development, and has three purposes:
To assist in business attraction efforts by providing an accurate and detailed profile of the workforce available in Maine
To assist current Maine businesses identify trends that will help them improve their human resource policies
To identify connections between education, training, and economic development that can improve Maine’s current and future workforce
The undertaking is designed to analyze the labor force across the state. The state was divided into 17 regions based upon the Maine Department of Labor’s labor market areas. Two areas, Waterville and Presque Isle/Caribou, served as prototypes. These areas were the subject of the reports previously published in the MBI. To date, data collection and analysis have been completed for the following regions: Waterville, Presque Isle/Caribou, North Central, Northern Aroostook, Bangor, Somerset County, Lewiston, and Augusta; two more, Portland and York County, are nearing completion. Data are currently being collected for the remaining seven regions, with reports on them due out over the course of the coming spring.
The labor force assessment project consists of three major data components:
1. An extensive array of published data from the U.S. Census, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, and the Maine Department of Labor, as well as many other sources, has been assembled. These data describe population, employment, educational resources, and quality-of-life measures of interest to businesses seeking to relocate or expand. CBER’s own long-term economic and population forecasts are also included.
2. A mail survey was sent to employers in each region to assess their perspectives on current conditions of the labor force. The survey included questions pertaining to skill levels, training, the ease of hiring workers, and the types of benefits offered.
3. A random-sample telephone survey of approximately 400 households in each region was conducted. This survey explores various facets of current occupational situations, including rates of pay, patterns of self-employment, the extent of underemployment, incentives to change jobs, and employees’ educational and training experience.
Once complete, the data from almost 7,000 household survey responses, and over 2,000 employer survey responses, will have been collected for the entire state.
All data from the surveys plus all of the published data assembled for each region have been placed in an online database that can be accessed through MaineBusinessWorks. For each of the regions, a report has been prepared that provides both an executive summary as well as a detailed analysis of the employer and household survey results. These are also available online through www.MaineBusinessWorks.org. The analyses highlight characteristics of the labor force in each region relevant to economic development and business-assistance decisions, particularly those aspects affecting job mobility, recruitment, skills, and training needs.
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Labor Force Analysis Regions |
Regional Economic Development Organization Partners |
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1. Waterville |
Mid-State Economic Development Corporation (MSEDC) |
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2. Presque Isle/Caribou |
Northern Maine Development Commission (NMDC) |
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3. Northern Aroostook |
Northern Maine Development Commission (NMDC) |
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4. North Central |
Eastern Maine Development Corporation (EMDC); Northern Maine Development Commission (NMDC) |
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5. Bangor |
Eastern Maine Development Corporation (EMDC) |
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6. Augusta |
Kennebec Valley Council of Governments (KVCOG) |
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7. Washington County |
Eastern Maine Development Corporation (EMDC) |
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8. Hancock County |
Eastern Maine Development Corporation (EMDC) |
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9. Penobscot Bay |
Eastern Maine Development Corporation (EMDC) |
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10. Somerset County |
Kennebec Valley Council of Governments (KVCOG) |
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11. Franklin County |
Androscoggin Valley Council of Governments (AVCOG) |
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12. Lewiston-Auburn/Oxford Hills |
Androscoggin Valley Council of Governments (AVCOG) |
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13. Western Border |
Southern Maine Economic Development District (SMEDD); Androscoggin Valley Council of Governments (AVCOG) |
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14. Mid-Coast |
Coastal Enterprises, Inc. (CEI) |
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15. Portland |
Southern Maine Economic Development District (SMEDD) |
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16. Piscataquis/Western Penobscot County |
Eastern Maine Development Corporation (EMDC) |
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17. York County |
Southern Maine Economic Development District (SMEDD) |
A key component of this study has been the partnership — illustrated by the table above — between CBER and the regional economic development organizations. Each of these organizations has assisted with the administration of the employer surveys in their areas. Together with the Department of Economic and Community Development, the regional development organizations have formed a steering committee that has guided the project and will work with CBER to make the information gathered available online.
When the current project is finished in the summer of 2001, reports will be published on each of the 17 regions, and the online database will be complete. In addition, two statewide reports will be published. One will show the entire state of Maine in the same format as each of the regional reports. The other will compare each of the 17 regions with one another and with the state as a whole to permit each region to benchmark its performance against other areas. Plans are to update the data once information from the 2000 Census becomes available next year, and for the data to be updated periodically thereafter. The content and functionality of this online database will continue to evolve based upon the feedback of a Beta test group, the Labor Force Analysis Project Advisory Group, the systems administrator of Maine Business Works, and input from other users.
The Labor Force Analysis Project is already providing information to support market research and opportunity analysis. CBER staff and Richard Kelso, formerly with the Mid-State Economic Development Corporation and one of the key originators of the entire labor force assessment project, are currently offering workshops on how to access and navigate the database. These workshops also explain how to effectively package data for targeted prospects.
For more information on these workshops or the online database, contact Scott Robinett, MIS manager at CBER, (207) 780-4410, srobin@usm.maine.edu.
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