Located in:
- II. Strategic Elements
The Unified or Combined State Plan must include a Strategic Planning Elements section that analyzes the State’s current economic environment and identifies the State’s overall vision for its workforce development system. The required elements in this section allow the State to develop data-driven goals for preparing an educated and skilled workforce and to identify successful strategies for aligning workforce development programs. Unless otherwise noted, all Strategic Planning Elements apply to Combined State Plan partner programs included in the plan as well as to core programs.
- a. Economic, Workforce, and Workforce Development Activities Analysis
The Unified or Combined State Plan must include an analysis of the economic conditions, economic development strategies, and labor market in which the State’s workforce system and programs will operate.
- a. Economic, Workforce, and Workforce Development Activities Analysis
II. a. 1. A. Economic Analysis (A.I -A.III)
The Unified or Combined State Plan must include an analysis of the economic conditions and trends in the State, including sub-State regions and any specific economic areas identified by the State. This must include-
i. Existing Demand Industry Sectors and Occupations
Provide an analysis of the industries and occupations for which there is existing demand.
ii. Emerging Industry Sectors and Occupation
Provide an analysis of the industries and occupations for which demand is emerging.
iii. Employers’ Employment Needs
With regard to the industry sectors and occupations identified in 1 and 2 above, provide an assessment of the employment needs of employers, including a description of the knowledge, skills, and abilities required, including credentials and licenses.
Current Narrative:
West Virginia’s economy can be divided into 11 major sectors: mining and logging; construction; manufacturing; trade, transportation, and utilities; information; financial activities; professional and business services; educational and health services; leisure and hospitality; other services; and total government. Between 2012 and 2022, many of these sectors will see strong employment declines, while others will experience intense growth.
Within the mining and logging sector, notable employment declines are expected in Crop Production, Animal Production, and Forestry and Logging. The long–term trend in employment for coal mining is for an overall decline as well, as advances in extraction equipment lessen the need for more miners. Also, many areas of the state have seen mines play out, or close down as a result of government regulation, safety issues, and a lessening demand for coal from China and other nations. One type of mining, however, oil and gas extraction, is expecting modest employment growth, as exploration of the Marcellus Shale gas field continues.
The greatest employment growth in the construction industry will be found in construction of buildings.
Heavy & civil engineering construction is expecting only slight growth, while the specialty trade contractors sector is to remain basically unchanged 2022.
Employment in nearly all manufacturing industries in West Virginia is expected to continue declining through 2022, with considerable losses in Beverage and Tobacco Product manufacturing, Textile Product Mills, Primary Metal manufacturing, and Electrical Equipment, Appliance, and Component manufacturing. However, four industries, Wood Product manufacturing, Transportation Equipment manufacturing, Plastic and Rubber Products manufacturing, and Furniture and Related Product manufacturing, are actually anticipating employment growth through 2022, albeit slight in some cases.
The major sector of trade, transportation, and utilities appears a mixed bag of employment growth and decline. Growth is anticipated in Health and Personal Care Stores, General Merchandise Stores, Gasoline Stations, Building Material and Garden Equipment and Supplies Dealers, Motor Vehicles and Parts Dealers, Warehousing and Storage, Couriers and Messengers, Transit and Ground Passenger Transportation, and Truck Transportation. However, employment declines are expected in both Merchant Wholesalers, Durable and Nondurable Goods, Furniture and Home Furnishing Stores, Clothing and Clothing Accessories stores, Air Transportation, and Rail Transportation.
The information sector should see employment growth in both Data Processing services, and Broadcasting (except internet). Employment declines are expected in Publishing Industries (except Internet), Telecommunications, and Motion Picture and Sound Recording industries.
The industries within the financial services sector anticipating employment growth include Securities, Commodity Contracts, and Other Financial Investments; Real Estate; Real Estate, Rental and Leasing services. Employment declines are expected in Credit Intermediation and Related Activities, while little employment change is expected in Insurance Carriers and Related Activities.
The professional and business services sector should see slow, steady growth throughout the next few years. Industries within this sector expecting growth include Professional, Scientific, and Technical services; Administrative and Support Services; Management of Companies and Enterprises, and Waste Management and Remediation services.
The educational and health services sector will see growth through 2022, with the majority of employment growth shown in Ambulatory Health Care services, followed by Social Assistance, Nursing and Residential Care Facilities, and Hospitals. West Virginia’s aging population solidifies the need for more health care workers. Educational services should also see employment growth through 2022.
The leisure and hospitality sector is expecting minimal growth in Performing Arts, Spectator Sports, and Related Industries; and Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institutions. Food Services and Drinking Places are expecting more sizeable growth, while Accommodation, including Hotels and Motels should see a slight decline in employment through 2022.
The other services sector should see growth in Private households, as well as Religious, Grant Making, Civic, Professional, and Similar organizations. Repair and Maintenance is expecting little change in employment over the period, while Personal and Laundry Services should expect employment declines.
Employment growth is expected in all three major sectors of government, Federal, State, and Local, through 2022.
WIOA Region 1 Industry Employment Projections 2012–2022 can be found on page 17 http://lmi.workforcewv.org/Unified_State_Plan_ICRUpdate3716pj.2.cover.pdf
Growing industries in Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) Region 1 are scattered throughout various employment categories that fall within the Service–Providing Sector. Both the health services and professional business services sectors contain over one–half of the industries on the list including Ambulatory Health Care Services; Administrative and Support Services; Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services; Nursing and Residential Care Facilities; and Hospitals. Other growing industries are found throughout various sectors including Wood Product Manufacturing, Construction of Buildings, and Oil and Gas Extraction. The greatest declines in WIOA Region 1 are found in the manufacturing sector, with the greatest numeric loss, however, in Mining (except oil and gas).
WIOA Region 2 Industry Employment Projections 2012–2022 can be found on page 18 http://lmi.workforcewv.org/Unified_State_Plan_ICRUpdate3716pj.2.cover.pdf
Growing industries in WIOA Region 2 are scattered throughout various economic sectors with the greatest increase within Service–Providing industries. Both Ambulatory Health Care Services and Nursing Care Facilities are projected to gain employment through 2022. Increases in employment are projected for Construction of Buildings as well as two manufacturing industries: Transportation Equipment and Wood Products. More than two–thirds of the declining industries in WIOA Region 2 are found among the Goods–Producing sectors, with the greatest loss in Mining (except oil and gas), and a significant number in manufacturing, particularly Electrical Equipment, Appliance, and Component manufacturing.
WIOA Region 3 Industry Employment Projections 2012–2022 can be found on page 20 http://lmi.workforcewv.org/Unified_State_Plan_ICRUpdate3716pj.2.cover.pdf
Growing industries within WIOA Region 3 are scattered throughout various economic sectors, the largest increases in the Service–Providing Sector. Ambulatory Health Care; State Government, Excluding Education and Hospitals; and Administrative and Support Services are projected to have the greatest growth. Most declining industries are found in the Goods–Producing sector, chiefly Mining (except oil and gas) and Chemical Manufacturing.
WIOA Region 4 Industry Employment Projections 2012–2022 can be found on page 21 http://lmi.workforcewv.org/Unified_State_Plan_ICRUpdate3716pj.2.cover.pdf
Growing industries in WIOA Region 4 are scattered throughout the various employment sectors, with Ambulatory Health Care Services topping the list. Administrative Support Services and Professional and Business Services are two industries projected for significant growth through 2022. Several manufacturing industries are projected for modest growth. These include Wood Product Manufacturing, Transportation Equipment Manufacturing, and Plastics and Rubber Products Manufacturing. Industry declines are likewise scattered throughout the sectors, with the greatest decline in Chemical Manufacturing.
WIOA Region 5 Industry Employment Projections 2012–2022 can be found on page 22 http://lmi.workforcewv.org/Unified_State_Plan_ICRUpdate3716pj.2.cover.pdf
Nearly one–half of the growing industries in WIOA Region 5 are health–care related, with significant growth in Ambulatory Health Care Services, Nursing and Residential Facilities, and Hospitals. Professional, Scientific and Technical Services and Administrative and Support Services are two industries projected to grow through 2022. Declining industries are scattered throughout the employment sectors, with the most significant numerical decline in Chemical Manufacturing.
WIOA Region 6 Industry Employment Projections 2012–2022 can be found on page 23 http://lmi.workforcewv.org/Unified_State_Plan_ICRUpdate3716pj.2.cover.pdf
Growing industries in WIOA Region 6 include Ambulatory Health Care Services, Nursing and Residential Care Facilities, Administrative and Support Services, and Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services. Declining industries chiefly include Mining (except oil and gas), Primary Metal Manufacturing, and Utilities.
WIOA Region 7 Industry Employment Projections 2012–2022 can be found on page 24 http://lmi.workforcewv.org/Unified_State_Plan_ICRUpdate3716pj.2.cover.pdf
Several industries contained within the list of growing industries in WIOA Region 7 are found within the Health Care sector, and include Ambulatory Health Care Services, Hospitals, and Nursing and Residential Care Facilities. Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services and Administrative and Support Services are projected for growth through 2022. Other growing industries are found in Wood Product Manufacturing; State Government, Excluding Education and Hospitals; Construction of Buildings; Health and Personal Care Stores; and Federal Government, Excluding Post Office. Declining Industries are scattered throughout the employment sectors with the sharpest declines in Credit Remediation and Related Activities; Merchant Wholesalers, Nondurable Goods; and Mining (except oil and gas).
Occupational Demand 2012–2022
Many outside of our state erroneously believe that most West Virginians are employed in the coal– mining industry, but this is hardly the case. Coal mining and other extraction occupations make up only a small part of the entire labor force. Figure 1 shows that the largest employment groups currently are Office & Administrative Support (111,051) and Healthcare Practitioners & Support (78,662).
Figure 1: Top 10 Employment Groups 2015 can be found on page 25 http://lmi.workforcewv.org/Unified_State_Plan_ICRUpdate3716pj.2.cover.pdf
Within the last three years (2013–2015), Office & Administrative Support, Transportation & Material Moving, and Healthcare Practitioners & Technical are the occupation groups with the highest demand (see Figure 2 and Table 1). However, if adding Healthcare Support, total job openings for both Healthcare groups jumps up to 7,587 in 2015, making Healthcare occupations the hottest demand occupation group in West Virginia currently.
Figure 2: Occupation Groups with Highest Job Demand 2013–2015 can be found on page 26 http://lmi.workforcewv.org/Unified_State_Plan_ICRUpdate3716pj.2.cover.pdf
Table 1: Job Openings 2013–2015 can be found on page 26–27 http://lmi.workforcewv.org/Unified_State_Plan_ICRUpdate3716pj.2.cover.pdf
Breaking down the data into greater detail, Registered Nurses are in greatest demand currently, with more than 2,000 openings in 2015 (see Figure 3), followed by Customer Services Representatives (1,954), Licensed Practical and Licensed Vocational Nurses (1,871), and Heavy Truck Drivers (1,797). There is also a substantial number of job openings in Automotive Service Technicians and Mechanics (1,289) thanks to recent growth and technological advances in the Transportation industry.
Figure 3: Top 10 occupation with high demand in 2015 can be found on page 28 http://lmi.workforcewv.org/Unified_State_Plan_ICRUpdate3716pj.2.cover.pdf
Over the next ten years, the healthcare and support services industry will be growing rapidly, with a huge demand throughout West Virginia. As projected in Table 2, 6 out of 10 of the highest demand occupations are healthcare–related, such as Personal Care Aides, Registered Nurses, Home Health Aides, Licensed Practical Nurses, Nursing Assistants, and Medical Assistants, with more than 1,200 opening jobs every year. Also, as shown in Table 3, the growth rate for several occupations in the healthcare sector is projected to grow by more than three percent every year.
Table 2: Annual Opening Projected (2012–2022) can be found on page 28–29 http://lmi.workforcewv.org/Unified_State_Plan_ICRUpdate3716pj.2.cover.pdf
Table 3: Annual Job Growth can be found on page 29–30
(iii) Employers’ Employment Needs. With regard to the industry sectors and occupations identified in (A)(i) and (ii), provide an assessment of the employment needs of employers, including a description of the knowledge, skills, and abilities required, including credentials and licenses.
In general, employers assess employees based on three categories: Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities.
A. Knowledge
With fast growing technology and globalized trends dominating the workplace, knowledge is imperative. According to the late management guru Peter Drucker, “Today, knowledge has power. It controls access to opportunity and advancement.” It is always a basic need for everyone. If someone has a better knowledge base, he or she will acquire confidence and work more effectively. That’s why employers prefer their employees to be knowledgeable in order to perform a job properly. Employers are also willing to send employees to advanced training classes, because “An investment in knowledge always pays the best interest” (Benjamin Franklin).
Figure 4: Model Knowledge, Skills, & Ability for Registered Nurse can be found on page 31 http://lmi.workforcewv.org/Unified_State_Plan_ICRUpdate3716pj.2.cover.pdf
With the intensive growth of Healthcare and Social Assistance industries through 2022, the need for education and higher–skill workers is anticipated. Table 4 shows, that for a nurse, therapist, or physician assistant, knowledge of medicine is a must (ranks 86 to 98 out of 100). Fluent English is necessary to understand medical terminology and communicate with patients and medical staff. Customer and Personal Services knowledge is also important for Registered Nurses and LPNs (86 of 100) and Physical Therapists (87 of 100) because of the close relationships formed between nurse and patient.
Table 4: Knowledge Assessment for Top 5 Healthcare Occupations can be found on page 31–32 http://lmi.workforcewv.org/Unified_State_Plan_ICRUpdate3716pj.2.cover.pdf
Similarly, Table 5 shows that Critical Thinking, Problem Solving, and Programming Skills are essential for people working in the computer science field (rank from 70–90 of 100). However, several skills in certain jobs are not evaluated depending on the field and skill value. Table 5 shows only the most required skills that rank from 70 to 100. The higher ranking, the more important the skill.
Table 5: Skill Assessment for Top 5 Computer Occupations (Important Scale: out of 100) can be found on page 32–33 http://lmi.workforcewv.org/Unified_State_Plan_ICRUpdate3716pj.2.cover.pdf
Numerous occupations in West Virginia require licensing. This is to ensure the competency of those practicing these professions, and in many cases the safety of those utilizing their services. There are approximately 110 occupations that require licensure in the State of West Virginia, eleven of which are considered to be in demand. The majority of these demand occupations are found in the healthcare field, such as Physician Assistant, Registered Nurse, Licensed Practical Nurse, Pharmacist, Physical Therapy Assistant, Radiologic Technologist, and Dental Hygienist. The remaining demand occupations that require licensing include Accountant, Attorney, Elementary School Teacher, and Social Worker.