Workforce

Staffing Challenges Spur Another Look at Four-Day Workweeks

School districts think shorter weeks could attract more teachers, while one Colorado city hopes they can help address chronic staffing shortages at its police department.

  • By Elizabeth Daigneau

States See Record Low Unemployment Across the US

Black women, young people and people with disabilities are among the workers benefiting.

  • By Casey Quinlan, Stateline

Automation Risks Creating a Two-Tier Workforce of Haves and Have-Nots

COMMENTARY | As workplaces welcome more automated processes, staff members must adapt to modern skills to thrive in a tech-centric environment.

  • By Siddhartha Bandyopadhyay, The Conversation

Inside One State's Effort to Build New Workforce for Broadband Expansion

States nationwide are struggling to find enough workers to reach federal goals of expanding high-speed internet to every home this decade. New Mexico wants to fix that by ramping up trainings and apprenticeships.

  • By Megan Gleason, Source New Mexico

County Wants to Employ Ex-Offenders and ‘Break the Cycle’

A unique jobs website lists available Shelby County government jobs for people with arrest or conviction histories in an effort to fill job vacancies and reduce recidivism.

  • By Elizabeth Daigneau

Skills-Based Hiring: How the Public Sector Can Use It to Their Advantage

COMMENTARY | Government can’t compete with the private sector in pay, but placing a greater emphasis on practical skill sets could give it an edge.

  • By Melissa Barker

Celebrating Public Service—and Public Servants

COMMENTARY | Government is asked to solve our toughest and most intractable problems. That’s why we need to celebrate the people who make a difference through government service.

  • By Bob Lavigna

New State Efforts to Address Workforce Shortages

As governments continue to struggle to fill public sector jobs, states are getting creative—from the first-ever public service law to allowing DACA recipients to become police officers. Plus, more news to use from around the country in this week's State and Local Roundup.

  • By Elizabeth Daigneau

Report: Laid Off Fossil Fuel Workers Need Support

COMMENTARY | As the energy landscape shifts toward renewables, a survey of laid off fossil fuel workers documents the challenges they face.

  • By Julie Light, Futurity

States Vote to End Subminimum Wage

Advocates for people with disabilities see progress in leveling pay and ending work segregation.

  • By Rachel Gottlieb

Cities Look to Solve the Construction Labor Shortage

Under a new program with the Labor Department, a dozen cities will work with federal experts to come up with plans to find much-needed infrastructure workers.

  • By Kery Murakami

How an Auditor Shortage Could Hurt Local Governments

Fewer auditors have led to a lag in financial reporting and is threatening to translate into more costs for governments.

  • By Liz Farmer
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As Government Employees Work From Home, People Find Services Curtailed

Everything from pandemic policies to security concerns is causing agencies to reduce in-person services, including licenses and permits.

  • By Alec MacGillis, ProPublica

Three C-Suite Roles That States and Cities Need

COMMENTARY | The private sector offers a glimpse into new leadership roles that can help state and local governments foster a better work environment.

  • By Alisha Powell Gillis

Can Performance Pay Help States and Cities Hang onto the Best and Brightest?

After years in which compensation tied to performance was considered a “failed experiment,” workforce pressures are bringing it back to the table again.

  • By Katherine Barrett & Richard Greene

Oregon Provides Child Care Support for Construction Workers

The program subsidizes child care in an effort to bring more workers into the construction trade.

  • By Kery Murakami

The Other Digital Divide

Jobs using technology are more common in some parts of the country than in others, according to a recent study. The divide is leading to a widening wage and skills gap.

  • By Kery Murakami

Key Steps in Creating a Diverse Broadband Workforce

COMMENTARY | States urgently need to identify and build robust workforces now or risk being left behind.

  • By Scott Jensen, Kelly Rogers and Kate Finnerty

States With Legal Pot Consider How to Protect Cannabis Workers

In some states, so-called labor peace agreements have figured prominently in efforts to set up legal pot marketplaces.

  • By Leigh Giangreco, Stateline

L.A. School District Workers Demand Historic Raise During 3-day Strike

Teachers in the nation’s second-largest school district joined bus drivers, cafeteria workers and paraprofessionals in a “sympathy strike,” resulting in over 65,000 personnel absences and bringing classes to a halt.

  • By Nadra  Nittle, The 19th

State Cyber Workforce Challenges Reaching ‘Crisis Levels’

By marketing themselves better and adapting to remote work, states can attract and retain more cybersecurity workers, a new report suggests.

  • By Chris Teale