Duke Energy

Spring into 2023

“With 2023 well underway, we are excited to continue our great work in Florida with our economic development partners. This year, we are bringing you new resources and programs, industry updates and many more exciting announcements!”

– Marc Hoenstine
Duke Energy Florida managing director of economic development

Florida is springing with workforce growth

What makes economic development professionals in Florida itchier than spring pollen and high allergens? Claims that the sunshine state doesn’t have a sufficient workforce. A common misconception about this state is that we don’t have the workforce necessary for large industrial companies. However, that couldn’t be further from the truth.

It’s no secret that Florida is growing, and people are moving here by the thousands every week. The U.S. Census recently announced that Florida is the fastest-growing state in the nation (source). Additionally, Quicken Loans published a report on the 20 fastest-growing cities in the U.S. – it’s no surprise that Florida had more cities on that list than any other state (six out of the 20, in fact!) (source).

As the state’s population is growing, so is our workforce. These future Floridians are no longer just retirees – young professionals, families and an organic population growth are making up a large portion of the droves of people moving to the sunshine state. In 2022, Florida ranked #1 nationally for attracting and developing a skilled workforce (source). Clearly, we are doing something right!

"Florida’s labor force is more malleable than people think."

– Ben Friedman, Duke Energy Florida research

Highlights:

Better-educated residents are shaping the state’s labor force
Opportunities for service workers with soft skills to move into higher-paying manufacturing jobs
Flexibility is key to fueling Florida’s labor market
Our robust service industry is equipping workers with skills that are the envy of workforce recruiters

So, what is Florida’s labor force? The easy answer is that it’s over 9.5 million (about 500k more than pre-covid) people across the state working in traditional industries like tourism and healthcare, but increasingly in advanced industries like finance, manufacturing and logistics. Getting under the hood, answering who is Florida’s workforce becomes more complicated.

The most important detail is noting that Florida is a transplant and immigrant heavy state. According to the 2021 American Community Survey, 21% of the state’s population was born outside of the U.S. – the third-highest percent in the country. In fact, only 36% of Floridians were born in the state. That’s the second-lowest percentage of state-native residents in the country, only after Nevada.

What do these non-local residents mean for the local labor force? First of all, people who move to Florida tend to be better educated. Twenty-nine percent of native Floridians have at least a bachelor’s degree, but 31% of Florida residents who moved from abroad and 37% who moved from another state can say the same. There’s been a spillover effect with more residents moving to the state, increasing Florida’s overall education levels. Although Florida has a historic education gap compared to the rest of the country, this is rapidly changing partly because of new residents.

The second benefit of new residents coming to Florida is that their children become the future workforce. From 2015 to 2021, the number of K-12 students, public and private, across the country was flat, with a 0.2% growth rate. By comparison, Florida saw an increase of 4.8% more K-12 students in its schools. As much of a cliché it is to say, “the children are our future,” today’s kids are today’s fry cooks and shelf stockers, tomorrow’s entry-level workforce, and 10 years from now, the workers running the state.

So, what are the workforce opportunities that exist in the economy? The education pipeline and migration figures are sensible long-term solutions, but companies need workers fast. In one simple diagram, this is how Florida’s labor market works:

Source: https://j2jexplorer.ces.census.gov/

The typical response to this chart is that it looks like rainbow spaghetti and the text is the size of ants. The chart itself is the Census Bureau’s J2J (Jobs to Jobs) Explorer, and it shows how workers in Florida changed jobs in 2021 and moved between different NAICS categories.

It’s possible to figure out more specific information, such as jobs manufacturing workers held before getting jobs at factories. Unsurprisingly, the largest groups of manufacturing workers came from other manufacturing jobs and administrative services (i.e., temp workers), but the following largest categories make the data more interesting: Retail trade and accommodation and food services.

Source: https://j2jexplorer.ces.census.gov/

So, what are some of the possible implications? For starters, service sector jobs and Florida’s tourism industry are an underexamined source of manufacturing workers. A career path in the service sector can offer movement between various fields. Young workers in the service industry can learn the soft skills that can help them move into higher-paying manufacturing jobs. For example, operating machinery and chopping vegetables both involve plenty of manual dexterity.

Florida’s labor force is more malleable than people think. Dismissing a community as lacking adequate workers or industries when taking a macroscopic spreadsheet view could be easy, but evidence suggests that workers are more flexible than is commonly thought. Manufacturing worker recruitment might have some of its biggest successes at fast food restaurants and large retailers.

Resources to help you grow

Duke Energy Economic Development Grants – Economic development grants are back! Grant applications will be open April 3rd through May 5th, so now is the time to start thinking about how your community can utilize grant funds this year. We will email more information at the beginning of April and host a webinar to field any questions about the process.

Social Explorer – We’re happy to announce that we have acquired access to licenses for our partners to use Social Explorer this year. Social Explorer is a simple tool that lets users access community economic and demographic data for their communities. If you ever have to answer questions like “what’s the median household income in my city?” or “how many children under 18 live in my county?” let Social Explorer help you. The tool compiles data from the U.S. Census Bureau and puts it in an easy-to-use graphical interface. Training sessions will be available for those who want to set up an account.

Research Scholarships – We are proud to announce Duke Energy will be offering an economic development research training scholarship in partnership with FEDC and C2ER. The scholarship will cover the cost of attending either C2ER’s applied or basic economic research course. For more information about the program and to apply, email ben.friedman@duke-energy.com

Partners are shining bright

Congratulations to Laura DiBella on her appointment to Florida’s Secretary of Commerce and President & CEO of Enterprise Florida, becoming Florida’s first female Secretary of Commerce!

Congratulations to Adrienne Johnston on her recent appointment to be the President and CEO of CareerSource Florida!

Julie Dennis became a grant specialist in disaster recovery after Hurricane Michael destroyed her parents' home. Her vision is a focus on helping communities improve.