Hartford Business Journal

10 Hartford Business Journal • September 21, 2020 • www.HartfordBusiness.com By Joe Cooper jcooper@hartfordbusiness.com F rom late March to early August, Capital Work- force Partners' (CWP) new call center received some 6,000 inquiries from people wanting help with re- sume and cover-letter writing, and finding employment opportunities. The significant demand for job- placement assistance reflects the negative impact coronavirus has had on Connecticut's economy, where the official 10.2% unemployment rate is believed to be much higher. But it's minority populations in particular that are being hit hardest by the pandemic's economic fallout, labor data shows. So, as more focus is being placed on racial equality amid the nationwide Black Lives Matters protests, Black and Hispanic populations are actually falling further behind economically in Connecticut because they're em- ployed at a higher rate in industries most impacted by COVID-19. Hartford area nonprofit leaders, par- ticularly those focused on workforce development programs for minorities, and others say state lawmakers must do more in the upcoming legislative session to address the widening eco- nomic disparities among racial groups. Until that happens, however, nonprofits are being relied upon — even as their funding streams remain under intense pressure — to address job-readiness gaps exacer- bated further by the pandemic. "We never stopped [providing our services] because the people need us more than they ever have," said Kim- berly Staley, chief administrative of- ficer of Capital Workforce Partners, a workforce development board that connects people to career training and job-placement opportunities. Pandemic's impact on minority employment Minority populations have been hit harder economically from the start of the pandemic. During the first two months of the health crisis in the state, 14.5% of African-Americans and 13.9% of His- panics filed for jobless benefits, com- pared to 11.2% of white residents, according to unemployment claims data. That's likely a result of minor- ity populations, labor data indicates, occupying at higher rates jobs in the retail, hospitality and food services industries, which were slammed by COVID-related shut downs. Additionally, almost 23% of Connecticut's Native American residents filed for unemployment during that period as Mohegan Sun and Foxwoods Resort Casino tempo- rarily closed in April and May. The contrast among racial groups is even more apparent when looking at municipal unemployment statistics. In Hartford, where 38% of resi- dents are Black and more than 45% are Hispanic, the unemployment rate stood at 17.6% in July, according to the state Department of Labor (DOL). The jobless rate in other cities with a larger percentage of Black and brown residents was 11.8%, 15.1% and 15.2% in New Haven, Waterbury and Bridgeport, respectively. Those numbers are well above the state's overall 10.2% unemployment rate. Connecticut's economy is being hit hard by the pandemic because the state over the last decade added many low-wage jobs that are suscep- tible to the health crisis, according to UConn economist Fred Carstensen. That trend accelerated with the onset of the Great Recession. A 2019 report by the Office of Policy and Management found that Connecticut over the prior decade lost a net 45,400 jobs in higher-wage industries (insurance and finance jobs that pay in the $70,000 range), while it gained a net 10,000 positions in lower-wage industries (hospital- ity, logistics and tourism sectors that pay in the $30,000 range). "Connecticut has become the Flori- da of the Northeast, with a concentra- tion on hospitality, tourism, elder care and logistics," Carstensen said. "And the nature of those jobs is, you can't do them from home. They are contact jobs, so it's a double whammy." Workforce recovery initiatives Workforce development needs to be a key focus for lawmakers in the upcoming legislative session, Carstensen and others say. The state does have worker train- ing programs, but they are limited in the number of people they serve, Carstensen said. As a result, many nonprofits have been relied upon to fill the gap, but it doesn't make for a robust, coordi- nated strategy. CWP is one of the few workforce development groups in Connecti- cut eyeing a regional approach to In-demand jobs Some say CT's workforce development efforts need to focus on upskilling people for the in-demand, well-paying jobs like the ones listed below. These Hartford County job postings were published from July 19 to Aug. 7. Job Median Occupation openings hourly earnings Registered nurses 1,731 $38.01 Heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers 1,713 $22.50 Software developers, applications 1,355 $45.08 First-line supervisors of retail sales workers 978 $22.68 Computer occupations, all other 858 $45.47 Accountants and auditors 710 $34.92 Computer systems analysts 507 $42.73 Financial managers 489 $66.30 Source: Capital Workforce Partners DIVERSITY INC. CT minorities hit hardest by COVID-19- induced recession, as nonprofits urge focus on workforce development Urban League of Greater Hartford CEO David J. Hopkins said job training and workforce development programs will be increasingly important as minorities have been hit hardest economically by COVID-19. PHOTO | CONTRIBUTED

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