State of the Workforce
Herkimer, Madison and Oneida Counties

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Retail

Key Factors

Retail and customer service jobs are the largest in terms of numbers in the region. The dominant retail workforce issues are retention, recruitment, education, and training. Key national workforce issues impacting the region include the following:

• The retail industry has a large demand for workers. In an increasingly diverse society, multi-lingual employees are desirable. Retailers are customer service-driven and need workers to speak the languages of their customer base. Limited English Proficiency (LEP) is a problem. Workers may speak the language of customers, but lack basic English language and literacy skills.
• Retail is increasingly driven by high-end technology that requires advanced skills. Employers recruit job candidates from community colleges and universities and train incumbent workers to upgrade their skills for career advancement.
• Larger retailers prefer employees with a high school education. In the retail grocery industry, employers increasingly seek graduates of college and university, junior and community college, and technical institute programs in food marketing, food management, and supermarket management.

Policy Actions

The retail sector is often the “first job” for many populations including youth, adults re-entering the labor force, long-term unemployed individuals and refugees. The WIB is working with employers and service providers to ensure that low-cost basic skills instruction is being provided that allows retailers to choose from a qualified workforce.

WIB will work with retailers to assess interest in short-term, low-cost basic skills training for new hires that could fit within existing WIA OJT parameters. The WIB sees this as a viable alternative to the traditional method in which employees learn by termination how to conduct themselves on the job.

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