Vermont Business Magazine Governor Peter Shumlin today joined with the Vermont Department of Labor (VDOL) to highlight survey results focused on the perception of Vermont’s economy and job market by recent graduates and incoming seniors at St Michael’s College in Colchester. One concerning finding from the survey is that almost 40 percent of students who left or plan to leave Vermont following graduation cited a “reported lack of job availability,” contradicting the fact that Vermont has thousands of job openings and the nation’s fourth lowest unemployment rate.
“Perceptions are important,” Shumlin said. “Employers around the state, especially in Chittenden County, are clamoring for the exact graduates who are leaving our state because they think there are no jobs for them. The drumbeat from those who constantly criticize Vermont’s economy and job market is having a negative impact on our ability to retain young people and help our employers find the workers they need. We have to work to change this perception.”
At the VDOL’s job fair in mid-September, 91 Vermont employers accepted the invitation to set up and recruit for workers.The companies in attendance included some ofVermont’s largest employers, including Cabot, Ben & Jerry’s, Dealer.com, General Dynamics, Green Mountain Power, Mylan, Perrigo, Revision, Rhino, UTC, UVM/UVM Medical, VNA, and various state government agencies.
VDOL staff met with each employerto tally of their current job openings.“With just those 91 employers, there were more than 2,000 openings, and we had some employers hiring people right on the spot,” said Labor Commissioner Annie Noonan.
VDOL’sEconomic & Labor Market Information Division partnered with Saint Michael’s College (SMC) toconduct the surveyof 2015 graduates and incoming seniors this summer. The findings provide insight into students’ internship activities,interest in working in Vermont after graduation and what factors influence that decision, and impressions about Vermont as a place to live and work. Results include:
· 39.8%of graduates saidthat they were staying in Vermont post-graduation.When asked what influenced them to stay in Vermont after graduation, 34.4% stated it was due to “Job Availability.”The next most cited reason was the “Vermont experience” at 28.1%. Some students said they were staying because they were Vermonters themselves or had family members in the area (21.9%), and 15.6% said it was because theirpartneror friends werestayingin Vermont.
· When those students who did not stay in Vermont were asked why they left, 36.6% said was because of “reported lack of job availability.”Other factors were:43.9% said they ‘wanted to move home,’ 7.3% said they were continuing their education; and 9.8% said they were interested in living in a different location.
· When the current senior class were asked if they were planning on staying in Vermont after graduation, 24.5% said they were, but 38.1% said they were not because of "reported lack of available jobs." Other factors influencing their decision were post-graduate work and “other” at 16.7% and 26.2% said they want a “different location.”
· Over85% ofrespondinggraduates stated that they felt their study and experience at SMC gave them a competitive advantage in the job market.
· 75.8% of the SMCgraduate-respondents said that they had completed an Internship prior to graduation. Approximately60% of those internships werereportedlywith educational institutions or non-profit organizations, 7.4% with governmental agencies, and32.6% withprivate firms or ‘other.’
· Both responding groups reported strong positive viewsforVermont’s: social scene, natural amenities, political climate and as a favorable place to raise a family. Thequestion with the most favorable response was“Do you consider Vermont a favorable place to be happy?” – 89.9% of respondents responded either “definitely” or “very much”.
The Governor highlighted the importance of work experience for students, and called upon Vermont employers to provide internships, apprenticeships and work opportunities for Vermont's students. "Studies show that paid internships and work experiences, more than 60% of the time, lead to job offers with that employer or a similar employer, and therefore, help to build the workforce 'pipeline' for the future.”
The Governor noted that the State puts more than $350,000 annually into high school and college students' internship programs. In addition, he announced that the Vermont Department of Labor just won a $2.9 million federal grant to increase apprenticeship opportunities with employers in the fields of health care, advanced manufacturing, and information technology.
"Vermont is a wonderful place to live, work, play and raise a family,” the Governor said. “We need to ensure that we continue to help our business community and job seekers connect to fill the jobs of today and of the future.”
The results reported only represent the opinions of the participants and not necessarily those of other SMC or other Vermont college students.The Vermont Department of Labor will be examining the results from this first survey, determining revisions, and potentially expanding it to other colleges in Vermont during this upcoming year.
A full summary report will be completed in November 2015 and will be available online at VTLMI.info. Any questions about the survey can be directed to Mathew Barewicz, E&LMI Chief at the Vermont Department of Labor (802-828-4153or [email protected]).
Source: State of Vermont 9.24.2015