Roughly a third of the 119,000 jobs lost during the recession in Connecticut have been recovered, but at glacial pace, according to data from the Connecticut Department of Labor (DOL).
“Employers have been extremely reluctant to hire,” said Patrick Flaherty, an economist with DOL. But what is most frustrating, Flaherty said, is that employers are posting job openings but not actually “pulling the trigger” on hiring an employee.
“They”™re looking for just the right people with just the right skills,” Flaherty said. Meanwhile, there”™s a large population of unemployed people who could fill the job if they had the extra training. To combat the issue, legislators expanded the state”™s jobs bill during the special session last month, expanding businesses”™ edibility for two new hiring programs, among other initiatives. Now available to businesses with up to 100 employees instead of 50, STEP UP subsidizes training and salary expenses for new hires and the Small Business Express (EXP) program provides revolving loans, new hire grants and tax credits for hiring new employees.
“The goal, is to obviously get more people hired,” said state Sen. Anthony Musto (D-Bridgeport, Trumbull and Monroe). “I don”™t know if the state is good at creating jobs but we”™re trying to foster the environment for (businesses) to move and grow in Connecticut.”
Some $130 million has been allocated to fund the programs, aiming to give employers valuable employees, the unemployed a job and the state more people off unemployment and paying taxes.
“Companies are afraid to take on the expense of training,” Musto said. “We”™re trying to share the risk with companies who don”™t want to hire someone new ”” or a veteran ”” who requires training.”
To date, 156 Connecticut employers have used STEP UP and collectively hired 277 people. For businesses approved to use EXP, more than 550 new jobs will be filled with at least 830 jobs retained.
Taking advantage of reduced training costs and the tax credits available for new hires, Bridgeport-based AnMar International, a vitamin manufacturer founded in 1995, recently hired three new employees, growing their workforce to 17 people.
During the height of the recession the company froze salaries to avoid layoffs and didn”™t hire any new employees for a couple years. Since 2009, however, the company has hired five employees, including the recent three using STEP UP.
“It”™s a great tool for small businesses,” said Kathleen Ledford, AnMar”™s office and customer service manager. “I don”™t think we would have hired all of them within that time span without it.”
Through STEP UP, roughly 90 percent of AnMar”™s training costs will be reimbursed for the employees”™ first six months. The new hires were all unemployed and two were recent college graduates.
Jessica Jahr, hired as a new lab technician, was able to start working days after graduating from Western Connecticut State University, joining the ranks of the lucky few college graduates who find work in their field after gradating.
Connecticut”™s unemployment rate was estimated at 7.8 percent as of May 2012, with the seasonally adjusted labor force increasing 0.3 percent that month for the first time in four months of declining numbers.
After more than two years since the job market in Connecticut has turned around, Flaherty said it was vital for programs to be created to speed up the job growth.
“The labor market isn”™t functioning like it should,” Flaherty said. “At the state government, (they”™re) trying to create programs to let (people) have a chance.”
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