ST. MARYS - An industrial committee under the St. Marys Area Chamber of Commerce held a meeting Wednesday to address the employee shortage in Elk County.
Committee chairman Lance Mohney said every employer has the same problem. They need workers.
Mohney said the committee started in January after the chamber took on a lot of new members.
He said they started kicking around ideas on how to help the community thrive, specifically manufacturing.
The committee reached out to 110 manufacturing companies in St. Marys, Ridgway and Johnsonburg, in the hopes of energizing the community to fix the problem of not being able to attract qualified workers to fill jobs.
Officials from about 34 of those 110 companies were in attendance Wednesday, brainstorming ideas.
"Every taxpayer is affected by whether or not we're successful," Mohney said. "If you own property, the value is either going to increase or decrease based on how successful we are here today and with follow-up meetings."
The CEO of the Keystone Powdered Metal Company in St. Marys, CJ Kogovsek, believes the issue is that the community has been declining in population. He said things have been declining since 2009.
"Today, the job availability is expanding," Kogovsek said. "So we have kind of a perfect storm, a declining population and expanding opportunities. That's what has brought us together."
Mohney said Elk County is unique for its dynamic manufacturing, centered around powdered metal and carbon.
But if those manufacturing positions can't be filled, the future of the industry doesn't look bright.
"What we're also trying to do is position ourselves for down the road because there's some suggestion that we'll be between 8,000 and 10,000 jobs short in 25 years from now, and that's just manufacturing jobs," Mohney said.
Officials also said the problem could be the area, because younger generations are moving away toward bigger cities.
"This is a problem today but it'll be a crisis tomorrow," Kogovsek said.
A foreman with Phaztech Inc. said he enjoys his manufacturing job because it's different every day.
"It's a different item, different piece of material and you only got one chance to make it right," Donald Eckerd said.
Committee members said they hope Wednesday's meeting will get the manufacturing companies to start working together to make a change.
To apply for some of the available jobs, click here.
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