working , but smaller or newer companies are pushed aside and are unable to do business or grow and many have had to shut down . This will limit the number of new people doing well and hurt the diversity of the industry in the future .
In the other scenario , of large amounts of overtime , we see employee burnout , related family issues and an overall decline in the quality of the products being built . Also , after the increase in pay due to the overtime hours goes on for so long , it often becomes expected . When those hours are cut back , the employees cannot survive on the regular time hours , causing pressures within the company and at home .
Finally , almost all companies are trying to hire new employees every day , but they don ’ t have the time or personnel to train unskilled workers . The result is that unskilled workers won ’ t last long because they can ’ t do the job , and they are therefore unable to see themselves in the field long-term .
JL : Working harder in and on our business . Investing in marketing to future employees as opposed to future guests . Having conversations with elected officials and giving them real feedback on what the business community needs .
Has the pandemic made workforce development more challenging ? If so , how ?
ML : In addition to the issues already discussed above , the private / public entity “ Career Source ” has not been open as normal . Although they are still helping residents find jobs , the work search requirement to receive unemployment continues to be waived by the Governor , resulting in fewer opportunities to place residents in available jobs . This should be changing as the economy continues to re-open , but these issues have adversely impacted CareerSource ’ s efforts .
JL : Yes . People are encouraged to stay home and are provided an income by the government as opposed to earning an income by working .
Ten years from now , do you think technology will be helpful or not in terms of addressing the challenges your industry is facing today ?
ML : Tech has been changing this industry in many ways and will certainly do so in the future . Some of the things we see are the development of higher performing products that require skilled workers to install . However , other tech addresses this by taking some of the skills needed and automating them to allow lesser trained people to do [ the work ]. Tech has also changed the planning , permitting and inspection elements . We are now completing electronic plans instead of paper , and they are viewed more and more often on laptops or tablets , with electronic submissions for permits , digital calls for inspections and results . Even in inspections we are beginning to see the use of drones . I expect to see more automation in planning and inspection , beyond what we see today , to speed up projects and bring down costs . We will need trained people to fill these roles .
JL : Technology helps and hurts as it evolves in our industry . Processes will get easier but we still need people . People are the heart of our business , people and food is our passion , we need people more than we need technology .
Greg Blosé is proud to serve as the volunteer editor for EVOLVE . He is the President & CEO of the Palm Coast-Flagler Regional Chamber of Commerce . Learn more at PalmCoastFlaglerRegionalChamber . com .
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MARCH 2021 | 31 |