Columbus Regional
Workforce Analysis
Executive Presentation
February 2014
Project Objectives
Through interviews with project stakeholders, SSG and Columbus 2020 identified the following objectives
for the comprehensive workforce analysis:
2

Identify and evaluate the various labor sheds that are present in the 11-county region

Define, in detail, the size, key attributes, and workforce trends within each labor shed

Assess underemployment, unemployment, and those not in the labor force through analysis and workforce
surveys

Define key deficits and surpluses within the local labor supply and the impact on key economic sectors

Assess the impact of organized labor in the region

Conduct employer interviews to understand their perspective of the regional workforce

Compare the Columbus Region nationally and to a select group of competitors (metro areas and national
averages)
Report Sections
The comprehensive report is organized into eight sections. Those sections are highlighted below:
Overview of Data Sources
Labor Shed Identification
Workforce Trends & Attributes
Underemployment & Labor Force Participation
Occupation/Skill-Set Surplus & Deficit Analysis
Organized Labor Climate
Competitive Benchmarking
Employer Interview Results
3
Overview of Data Sources
SSG gathered data from a variety of sources, all of which can be classified into four categories:
SSG’s Internal
Data Sources
Online Workforce
Survey
Primary Research
Employer
Interviews
4
Labor Shed Identification
Labor sheds were identified and drawn using a
combination of quantitative and qualitative
data from individual surveys, employer
interviews and internal databases. SSG
identified the following five labor sheds, all of
which contain Franklin County.



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
5
Franklin (represented by the light blue
counties)
Marion-Logan-Union
Morrow-Marion-Delaware-Knox
Licking-Fairfield
Pickaway
Key Workforce Attributes
Each labor shed was profiled based on key workforce attributes. Those attributes included relevant demographic data,
economic indicators, and occupation & industry trends. The following table provides a basic snapshot of each labor shed.
Labor Force
Labor Force
Participation
Median
Household
Income
2.23%
1,416,379
77.74%
$48,277
1,960,381
2.72%
1,045,188
78.24%
$48,877
Morrow-Marion-Delaware-Knox
1,730,267
2.86%
929,043
79.19%
$48,525
Licking-Fairfield
1,847,983
2.66%
986,465
78.21%
$47,049
Pickaway
1,537,868
2.97%
826,492
78.52%
$47,415
Population
Population
Growth
Franklin
2,698,952
Marion-Logan-Union
Labor Shed
6
Education Attainment Trend
7
Readily Available Workers
SSG quantified the number of readily available workers in the region by using the following equation. The table below
provides the results.
# of Unemployed
+
# of Underemployed
+
# of Those Not in Labor
Force, but willing to re-enter
Candidate Classification
Number of Underemployed Workers
8
=
Readily Available
Workers
#
217,008
Part-Time, Prefer Full-Time
76,487
Non Permanent, Prefer Permanent
49,805
Overqualified for Current Position
90,717
Unemployed Workers
65,651
Not Participating, But are Willing to Re-enter
43,968
Total
326,627
Graduate Surplus & Deficit Analysis
The following graph shows the number of graduates in each program of interest relative to the corresponding entry-level
jobs. A percentage over 100% suggests there are more graduates in the Columbus region than there are job opportunities.
Graduate Surplus/Deficit
500.0%
Columbus
National Average
450.0%
400.0%
350.0%
300.0%
250.0%
200.0%
150.0%
100.0%
50.0%
0.0%
TRANSPORTATION
AND MATERIAL
MOVING
9
PRECISION
PRODUCTION
MECHANIC &
REPAIR
TECHNOLOGIES
COMPUTER AND
INFORMATION
SCIENCES AND
SUPPORT
SERVICES
LEGAL
PROFESSIONS
BUSINESS
MANAGEMENT,
MARKETING, AND
RELATED
SUPPORT
SERVICES
PHYSICAL
SCIENCES
BIOLOGICAL AND
BIOMEDICAL
SCIENCES
HEALTH
PROFESSIONS
AND RELATED
PROGRAMS
ENGINEERING
TECHNOLOGIES
ENGINEERING
MATHEMATICS
AND STATISTICS
Graduate Surplus & Deficit Analysis - Continued
The following graph shows the surplus (or deficit) of graduates in each program of interest relative to the corresponding
entry-level jobs. A positive number suggests there are more graduates in the Columbus region than there are job
opportunities.
Graduate Surplus/Deficit
ENGINEERING
1,033
HEALTH PROFESSIONS AND RELATED PROGRAMS
980
ENGINEERING TECHNOLOGIES
285
MATHEMATICS AND STATISTICS
167
BIOLOGICAL AND BIOMEDICAL SCIENCES
88
PHYSICAL SCIENCES
-5
LEGAL PROFESSIONS
-119
COMPUTER AND INFORMATION SCIENCES AND SUPPORT SERVICES
-1,035
BUSINESS MANAGEMENT, MARKETING, AND RELATED SUPPORT SERVICES
-1,285
PRECISION PRODUCTION
-1,937
MECHANIC & REPAIR TECHNOLOGIES
TRANSPORTATION AND MATERIAL MOVING
-5,000
10
-2,860
-3,879
-4,000
-3,000
-2,000
-1,000
0
1,000
2,000
Competitive Benchmarking
SSG constructed a custom national benchmark model that scores and ranks all 186 metropolitan statistical areas of the
United States with a population greater than 250,000. The scoring is based on weighted workforce variables that
measure Labor Availability and Labor Cost. The following table shows those communities that score above average in
both Labor Availability and Labor Cost categories, as well as the six competitive markets previously identified by
Columbus (in green).
TOTAL INDEX
LABOR
AVAILABILITY
LABOR COST
AZ
117.3%
123.9%
101.9%
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Marietta
GA
115.8%
123.6%
97.5%
Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford
FL
114.8%
118.7%
105.6%
Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater
FL
113.3%
116.5%
105.8%
Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Pompano Beach
FL
112.3%
117.5%
100.3%
Indianapolis-Carmel
IN
111.9%
115.7%
103.0%
Columbus
OH
111.3%
116.0%
100.3%
Pittsburgh
PA
110.7%
114.4%
101.8%
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos
TX
110.6%
115.9%
98.4%
Salt Lake City
UT
110.5%
114.3%
101.6%
Charlotte-Gastonia-Rock Hill
NC-SC
109.3%
113.4%
99.6%
San Antonio-New Braunfels
TX
108.2%
108.7%
107.0%
Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin
TN
107.9%
109.3%
104.6%
Oklahoma City
OK
107.3%
106.0%
110.2%
Cincinnati-Middletown
OH-KY-IN
106.9%
110.2%
99.0%
Louisville-Jefferson County
KY-IN
100.8%
98.9%
105.1%
MSA
STATE
Phoenix-Mesa-Glendale
A score of 100% in any category is considered average. The higher the index, the more favorable the score.
11
Labor Availability







Labor Scalability
Target Occupation Presence
Target Occupation Growth
Education Attainment
Target Age Groups
Household Income Distribution
Post-Secondary Graduates
Labor Costs




Median Household Income
Cost of Living
Housing Costs
Target Occupation Wages
Competitive Benchmarking - Continued
The following table shows how the Columbus MSA scores against each competitive market in each sub category that
measures Labor Availability & Labor Cost.
MSA
Atlanta, GA
Austin-Round Rock, TX
Charlotte-Gastonia, NC-SC
Cincinnati-Middletown, OH-KY-IN
Columbus, OH
Indianapolis-Carmel, IN
Louisville, KY-IN
Miami-Fort Lauderdale, FL
Nashville, TN
Oklahoma City, OK
Orlando, FL
Phoenix-Mesa-Glendale, AZ
Pittsburgh, PA
Salt Lake City, UT
San Antonio, TX
Tampa-St. Petersburg, FL
12
LABOR
SCALABILITY
TARGET
EDUCATION
ATTAINMENT
TARGET AGE
GROUP
TARGET
HOUSEHOLD
INCOME
COLLEGE &
UNIVERSITY
GRADUATES
MARKET COST
INDICATORS
AVERAGE
MARKET
WAGES
154.3%
138.4%
136.5%
108.5%
115.8%
123.6%
94.7%
153.5%
117.3%
110.3%
148.8%
150.5%
114.3%
115.7%
141.5%
150.2%
109.3%
116.5%
108.9%
101.0%
108.0%
104.3%
94.1%
99.2%
101.0%
98.1%
104.3%
101.8%
104.1%
106.5%
94.0%
99.9%
105.3%
110.9%
104.3%
99.0%
104.6%
101.5%
99.7%
100.1%
104.5%
101.8%
104.5%
100.3%
95.6%
104.6%
101.1%
96.1%
100.9%
103.7%
101.7%
101.2%
101.5%
98.5%
100.4%
94.5%
100.7%
99.6%
98.2%
100.7%
98.4%
109.0%
101.3%
97.5%
200.0%
121.1%
116.9%
134.9%
152.6%
158.6%
74.2%
190.1%
115.5%
114.6%
157.8%
200.0%
184.3%
129.1%
118.0%
153.0%
95.4%
93.0%
101.6%
96.9%
102.0%
107.1%
107.4%
97.5%
103.4%
108.1%
108.4%
103.9%
103.6%
97.8%
108.7%
108.9%
98.5%
100.6%
98.8%
99.9%
99.6%
101.2%
104.1%
101.4%
105.0%
111.0%
104.5%
101.0%
101.0%
103.2%
106.3%
104.5%
Employer Interview Summary
SSG interviewed 71 employers in the 11-county region. Despite the use of a questionnaire, the interviews conducted by
SSG were designed to be more informal, free-flowing and relaxed, especially with high-ranking executives. Typically, most
interviews lasted between 45 minutes to one hour. In addition to other qualitative and quantitative measures, the
respondents were asked to rank the categories in the table at right on a 1 to 5 scale, with 5 being most favorable. The
table shows the average scores.
Employment Size
Less than 50
50 to 99
100 to 249
250 to 499
500 or More
County
Delaware
Fairfield
Franklin
Knox
Licking
Logan
Madison
Marion
Morrow
Pickaway
Union
13
Responses
14
10
20
10
16
Responses
5
5
26
4
5
3
3
4
4
5
7
Labor Criteria Rankings
General applicant flow for available positions
3.2
Availability of skilled workers
2.7
Availability of unskilled workers
3.6
Worker productivity
3.8
Worker reliability
3.6
Soft skills
3.1
Worker reading, writing, and math skills
3.4
Teamwork skills
3.7
Flexibility/adaptability to change
3.5
Critical reasoning skills
3.1
Education attainment of applicants
3.5
Experience level of applicants
3.1
Employee turnover
3.6
Employee absenteeism
3.5
Employee attrition
3.6
Organized Labor Assessment
The following graph shows the unionization rates, both public and private, for each competitive MSA as identified in the
Competitive Benchmarking Section.
Unionization Rates by MSA
50.0%
43.4%
45.0%
40.0%
36.6%
34.4%
35.0%
33.6%
30.5%
30.0%
25.1%
25.0%
20.3%
21.7%
23.3%
20.0%
14.2%
15.0%
14.1%
18.1%
11.3%
10.5%
9.9%
10.0%
5.0%
0.0%
4.1%
4.2%
4.9%
5.2%
5.7%
5.8%
3.6%
2.6%
2.8%
2.6%
3.8%
3.5%
Austin, TX Phoenix, AZ
Total Union Rates
Salt Lake
City, UT
11.5%
11.8%
7.4%
8.9%
5.6%
3.9%
Charlotte, Nashville, TN Atlanta, GA Orlando, FL
NC
14
6.8%
6.0%
14.4%
6.8%
5.4%
3.6%
Tampa, FL Indianapolis, Cincinnati,
IN
OH
Private Union Rates
Public Union Rate
Oklahoma
City, OK
Columbus, Louisville, KY
OH
Organized Labor Assessment - Continued
The data in the graph below was generated from responses to the online workforce survey. SSG asked all participants
their attitude towards unions. 74% of respondents have no opinion of or do not support unionism.
Opinion of Organized Labor
40%
37%
37%
35%
32%
32%
30%
25%
20%
22%
21%
20%
15%
13%
14%
12%
15%
14%
14%
10%
8%
8%
5%
0%
Completely support union
membership
Usually would support union
membership
No opinion on union membership Usually would not support union
membership
Total Population
15
Union Members
Non-Union
Strongly oppose union
membership
Key Findings & Conclusions
Throughout the course of the project, SSG identified the following challenges and opportunities present in the Central
Ohio region.
Challenges:

Lack of vocationally trained workforce (post-high school); Employers are shouldering the burden

The post secondary education system isn’t keeping up with the demand for IT talent, Precision Production, Maintenance & Repair Talent, and Logistics

Negative perception of career potential in the Advanced Manufacturing and Logistics industries

There is an $10.00/hr. wage threshold for unskilled workforce talent

There will be as many people exiting the workforce as there will be entering the workforce in the next 10 years

There is a generational divide present in the workforce

The region’s organized labor statistics vary greatly from the attitudes of the workforce and opinions of employers

Market wages are slightly above average compared to the competitive locations
Opportunities

The labor force in the region is relatively fluid and staffing a qualified workforce at market wages is feasible throughout the region.

There is a wage gap of $14.00 - $16.00/hr. and a salary gap of $43,000-$47,000 among the underemployed

It would take a wage of $17.00 - $19.00/hr. or a salary of $50,000-$54,000 to entice the majority of those not in the labor force to re-enter

The workforce characteristics strongly supports each of the target industries

Abundance of engineering talent in the region
16
For additional information
please contact:
Site Selection Group, LLC
8300 Douglas Ave.
Suite 700
Dallas, TX 75225
(214) 271-0580
www.siteselectiongroup.com