March 24, 2023 / Commuting, Workforce

Trend alert: Having a formal remote work policy.Image

Georgia Commute Options (GCO) shared the results of their latest Remote Work Survey with three key findings:

  1. There is a strong demand for a hybrid, flexible future: employees prefer to work from home, on average, 3.6 days per week.
  2. Commuting is a top barrier for in-office work: two-thirds of respondents reported their commute as a key factor impacting their willingness to go into the office.
  3. Return-to-office plans are becoming clearer: 63% of organizations now have a formal remote work policy.

See how employees’ and employers’ preferences have changed over the last 2.5 years and more information about commute trends on GCO’s website.

March 1, 2023 / Criminal Justice, Economics, Education, Equity, General, Health, Housing, Policy, Workforce

The State of Black GeorgiaImage

“The State of Black Georgia is an educational tool and call to action for Black Georgians, public and private sector stakeholders and the general public that can inform civic engagement, non-profit organizations, elected officials, businesses, policy makers, grass roots organizations, philanthropists, faith-based organizations, researchers, advocates, and other key stakeholders. Together, we can promote inclusive economic development, influential partnerships, and implementation of best practice models that foster overall improvement in conditions for Georgia’s Black residents and the state as a whole.”

From the report:

  • The median wealth of Blacks will fall to zero by 2053 if no action is taken.
  • The percentage of Georgia Black students failing to read at third-grade level was 36%, a 25%
  • increase over the pandemic.
  • Approximately 50% of the inmates admitted in the Georgia Department of Corrections in 2021
  • were Black, yet Black Georgians make up 32% of the State’s population.
  • Fifty-four percent of infant deaths were Black children.
November 29, 2022 / Health, Workforce

Long covid leading to more workers with disabilitiesImage

From Liberty Street Economics

  • Approximately 19% of individuals infected with COVID now have long COVID, possibly leading to the 1.7 million increase in working-age people reporting a disability since 2020.
  • Symptoms of long COVID include fatigue, brain fog, and muscle/joint pain. However, explicit tests for long COVID do not exist, making it difficult to confirm a diagnosis.
  • With the increase of disable workers employed, work place accommodations such as avoiding physical exertion or taking rest breaks have become necessary.
  • It is likely that disabled workers suffering from long COVID and the necessary accommodations will be a constant element in the future of the workplace.
September 13, 2022 / Basic Needs, Economics, Policy, Workforce

Unprecedented decline in child poverty rates attributed to government safety net programsImage

A new report from Child Trends (also covered in the New York Times) evaluates the biggest factors contributing to the unprecedented 30-year trend of decreasing child poverty. Key findings point to governmental safety net programs as key drivers.

Further, the US Census Bureau released pandemic-era child poverty estimates (through 2021) this week, saying “the new data show the significant impact the expansion of anti-poverty programs during the COVID-19 pandemic had on reducing child poverty.”

Additional recent studies, including from our partners at DataHaven in Connecticut found that food scarcity and child poverty rose after safety net programs ended.

What does that mean for social sector leaders?

First, the scale of government interventions offer opportunities to have the greatest impact. But blanket policies will always leave some households falling through cracks: immigrants, mixed-status and undocumented households, families that are newly navigating human services, digitally disconnected, underemployed, housing burdened, and others. Our role then, is (1) advocate for expanded policies and educate officials of the impact; and (2) find and directly serve the families that are left behind.

Second, the new philanthropic role of counties and cities distributing ARPA funds offers an opportunity, and maybe a model, to (1) build relationships with elected officials and (2) provide guidance in funding and programming decisions that have systemic impacts.

June 17, 2022 / Workforce

Three rural Georgia counties lead the nation in job postings growth.Image

Emsi Burning Glass recently released a report analyzing the shifting trends in rural and urban job postings. They found:

  • 3 of the top 10 counties in the nation with the highest growth in job postings were in Georgia. Madison, Putnam, and Franklin Counties ranked 2nd, 4th, and 5th, respectively.
  • 90% of the top 50 counties with the highest growth in job postings were rural.
  • Rural jobs have experienced major growth in high-tech skills.
  • Remote work has allowed for traditionally urban opportunities to move outside of urban areas.
  • Job growth in rural areas has supported wage growth.
January 6, 2022 / Policy, Workforce

The Georgia Restaurant Association serves an important purpose: advocating for the needs of restaurants in Georgia which make up the second largest public industry in the state.Insight

The Georgia Restaurant Association (GRA) is one of the newest restaurant associations in the US. The GRA was created 19 years ago to advocate, educate, and create awareness about restaurants in the state. The Georgia restaurant industry is the second largest public sector employer with more than half a million workers in nearly 19,000 locations. GRA’s President & CEO, Karen Bremer, recently spoke to Metro Atlanta CEO about supporting the restaurant industry during the pandemic. Karen remarked that the pandemic initially devastated restaurants, but they have adapted to stay open while keeping employees and customers safe. Further, the GRA has advocated for pandemic-relief legislation at the state and federal level to keep Georgia’s restaurant industry thriving.

April 23, 2021 / Education, Workforce

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Of the 43,353 Career, Technical and Agricultural Education (CTAE) credentials earned in the 2018–2019 school year, only 16% were aligned with workforce demand. (GPEE’s Top 10 Issues to Watch in 2021)

February 26, 2021 / Early Childhood, Workforce

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A new study finds that an additional 90-100K Georgia children could be covered by CAPS subsidies over the next three years, allowing thousands of parents to continue and advance in their work and education, if the following are enacted:

  • Under the current setup of CAPS at 50% of the state’s median income (SMI), an additional $198million would cover almost all families who can and want to take advantage of CAPS, realizing that the bar set is very restrictive in its current state.
  • Increasing the SMI to 85% (in line with federal recommendations) would cover thousands of additional families and fill a major gap in workforce development for return-to-work parents among others. This can be done for an additional $340 million.

(Metro Atlanta Chamber, GSU’s Georgia Policy Labs)

January 13, 2021 / Economics, Equity, Hispanic, Workforce

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In a new fact sheet from the National Women’s Law Center, we’ve learned that:

  • Women represented 111% of the 140,000 net jobs lost in December (men gained 16,000)
  • More than 2 in 5 of the 12.1 million women’s jobs lost between February and April have not yet returned
  • The overall unemployment rate among women (6.3%) masks even higher rates for Black women (8.4%), Latinas (9.1%), 20- to 24-year-olds (9.3%), and women with disabilities (11.4%)
January 12, 2021 / Early Childhood, Education, Equity, Policy, Postsecondary, Workforce

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Georgia Partnership for Excellence in Education (GPEE) released its “Top 10 Issues to Watch in 2021” report, which includes:

  1. Equity – the imperative for recovery to success
  2. Funding – essential for achieving equity
  3. Early learning – the foundation for an inclusive economic recovery
  4. Delivery of instruction – new approaches to learning
  5. Teachers – professionalism, pay, and preparation
  6. Accountability and assessments – the opportunity to rethink and get it right
  7. Parent engagement– positioning families as partners
  8. Post-secondary completion – a pathway to prosperity
  9. Georgia’s workforce pipeline – creating equitable access and opportunities
  10. Reinventing education in Georgia – a call for leadership and collaboration
November 30, 2020 / Operations, Workforce

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Before he pandemic, Georgia commuters worked an average of 0.8 days per week from home. By April, that number reached 4.6 days, and remained at 4.4 through October. The latest survey results from Georgia Commute Options show a desired future of 3.2 remote days per week, with most executives anticipating changes in this direction. [webinars] (Georgia Commute Options)

October 19, 2020 / Basic Needs, Early Childhood, Education, Workforce

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A large share of low-income clients are parents — especially moms — with school-age kids having incredible difficulty finding jobs that allow working from home. Unclear return-to-school plans and timing add to job search barriers. (Family Advancement Ministries)

October 1, 2020 / Early Childhood, Education, Equity, Operations, Workforce

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A lack of publicly accessible and detailed cradle-to-career pipeline data from state agencies (e.g., CAPS, CTAE eligibility and enrollment by race, geography, industry and otherwise) makes decision-making, planning, and evaluation around equity nearly impossible. (Metro Atlanta Chamber)

August 27, 2020 / Economics, Equity, Workforce

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62% of Black-owned businesses are not prepared to go more than 3-4 weeks without revenue. 96% of Black-owned businesses are sole proprietorships with either 1099 contractors or no other staff, limiting the available support they qualify for. [webinar] (Atlanta Wealth Building Initiative)

August 22, 2020 / Basic Needs, Economics, Equity, Workforce

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“The rapid adoption of remote work and automation could accelerate inequalities in place for decades. Economists say the resulting ‘K’ shaped recovery will be good for professionals—and bad for everyone else.” [article] (Wall Street Journal)

August 21, 2020 / Education, Health, Mental Health, Workforce

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Access to computers and internet supports (1) virtual learning, (2) job seeking and workforce development, and (3) access to telemedicine and mental health services (Mental Health America of Georgia)

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June 9, 2020 / Economics, Hispanic, Workforce

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41% of Black-owned business closed between February and April. 32% of Latinx- and 36% of immigrant-owned businesses also shuttered. (Axios)

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