Narrative: II. a. 1. A.

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 2014 and 2024, many of these sectors will see strong employment declines while others will experience moderate growth. All industries of the mining and logging sector are forecasting declines, with the most notable employment declines expected in Animal Production, Forestry and Logging, and Mining (except oil and gas). All industries of the construction sector are forecasting slight declines. Employment in manufacturing industries in the state are expected to continue declining through 2024, with the most considerable losses in Beverage and Tobacco Product Manufacturing. However, three industries, Wood Product Manufacturing, Non-metallic Mineral Product Manufacturing, and Miscellaneous Manufacturing are all anticipating slight employment growth through 2024. The major sector of trade, transportation and utilities appears a mixed bag of employment growth and decline. Growth is anticipated in Motor Vehicle and Parts Dealers, Electronics and Appliance Stores, Building Material and Garden Equipment and Supplies Dealers, Health and Personal Care Stores, Transportation and Warehousing, Air Transportation, Support Activities for Transportation, Couriers and Messengers, Warehousing and Storage. The most notable employment decline in this industry is expected in Food and Beverage Stores. The information sector should see employment growth in both Motion Picture and Sound Recording Industries and Data Processing, Hosting, and Related Services. Employment declines are expected in Publishing Industries (except internet), Broadcasting (except internet), Telecommunications, and Other Information Services. All industries within the financial services sector are forecasting declines. The professional and business services sector should see steady growth through 2024. Industries within the sector expecting growth include Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services; Administrative Support and Support Services, Waste Management and Remediation Services. The educational and health services sector overall will see growth through 2024, with most employment growth in Ambulatory Health Care Services, followed by Health Care and Social Assistance. West Virginia’s aging population as well as the opioid epidemic solidify the need for these services. Employment in Educational Services is forecasting a slight decline. The leisure and hospitality sector anticipates minimal growth in Performing Arts, Spectator Sports, and Related Industries; Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institution; and Amusement, Gambling, and Recreation Industries. Accommodation and Food Services, Accommodation including Hotels and Motels, and Food Services and Drinking Places should see a decline through 2024. The other services sector should see growth in Personal and Laundry Services. Repair and Maintenance; Religious, Grantmaking, Civic, Professional and Similar Organizations; and Private Households should expect minor declines. Employment decline is expected in all major sectors of government, Federal, State and Local, through 2024. The Division of Research, Information and Analysis of WorkForce West Virginia produces both short-term and long-term occupational and industry projections. Short-term projections are produced annually, and long-term projections are produced biennially. Figure 1: WIOA Region 1 Industry Projections 2014-2024 (Contains top five growing and declining industries by Annual Growth Rate.) Growing Industries in Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) Region 1 are scattered throughout various employment categories that fall within the Service-Providing Sector. The health services sector contains the greatest numeric growth of the industries on the list including Nursing and Residential Care Facilities; and Hospitals. Other growing industries are found throughout various sectors including Couriers and Messengers; Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services; and Personal and Laundry Services. The greatest declines in WIOA Region 1 are found in the mining (except oil and gas) sector, and Food and Beverage Stores.

Figure 2: WIOA Region 2 Industry Projections 2014-2024. (Contains top five growing and declining industries by Annual Growth Rate.) 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 and Residential Care Facilities are projected to gain employment through 2024. Slight increases in employment are projected for Amusement, Gambling and Recreational Industries; Personal and Laundry Services; Electronics and Appliance Stores; and Warehousing and Storage. More than two-thirds of the declining industries in WIOA Region 2 are found among the Goods-Providing sectors, with the greatest loss in Mining (except oil and gas), and Food and Beverage Stores.

Figure 3: WIOA Region 3 Industry Projections 2014-2024. (Contains top five growing and declining industries by Annual Growth Rate.) All growing Industries within WIOA Region 3 are found in the Service-Providing Sector. Nursing and Residential Care Facilities; Hospitals, and Administrative and Support Services are projected to have the greatest growth. Modest declines in WIOA Region 3 are scattered throughout various economic sectors.

Figure 4: WIOA Region 4 Industry Projections 2014-2024. (Contains top five growing and declining industries by Annual Growth Rate.) Growing Industries in WIOA Region 4 are all found in the Service-Providing Sector and include Waste Management and Remediation Services; Administrative and Support Services; and Professional, Scientific and Technical Services. Industry declines are found mostly in the Service-Providing sector, with the greatest decline in Food and Beverage Stores.

Figure 5: WIOA Region 5 Industry Projections 2014-2024. (Contains top five growing and declining industries by Annual Growth Rate.) Top growing industries in WIOA Region 5 are health-care related, with the most growth in Social Assistance and Nursing and Residential Care Facilities. Declining industries are scattered throughout the employment sectors with only slight losses through 2024.

Figure 6: WIOA Region 6 Industry Projections 2014-2024. (Contains top five growing and declining industries by Annual Growth Rate.) The Industries in WIOA Region 6 projecting the greatest growth are found within the Service-Providing Sector. Health- care related industries including Ambulatory Health Care Services; and Social Assistance make up the greatest numeric change in employment in the region. Some decline is expected in the manufacturing sector; however, the greatest numeric decline is expected in Management of Companies and Enterprises.

Figure 7: WIOA Region 7 Industry Projections 2014-2024. (Contains top five growing and declining industries by Annual Growth Rate.) All Industry growth in WIOA Region 7 through 2024 is found in the Service-Providing Sector, with the greatest numeric growth occurring in Social Assistance. Declining industries in the region are mostly found in the Service-Providing sector, including Food and Beverage Stores, with one exception being Mining (except oil and gas).

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 2014 and 2024, many of these sectors will see strong employment declines while others will experience intense growth.

All industries of the mining and logging sector are forecasting declines, with the most notable employment declines expected in Animal Production, Forestry and Logging, and Mining (except oil and gas).

All industries of the construction sector are forecasting slight declines. Employment in manufacturing industries in the state are expected to continue declining through 2024, with the most considerable losses in Beverage and Tobacco Product Manufacturing. However, three industries, Wood Product Manufacturing, Non-metallic Mineral Product Manufacturing, and Miscellaneous Manufacturing are all anticipating slight employment growth through 2024.

The major sector of trade, transportation and utilities appears a mixed bag of employment growth and decline. Growth is anticipated in Motor Vehicle and Parts Dealers, Electronics and Appliance Stores, Building Material and Garden Equipment and Supplies Dealers, Health and Personal Care Stores, Transportation and Warehousing, Air Transportation, Support Activities for Transportation, Couriers and Messengers, Warehousing and Storage. The most notable employment decline in this industry is expected in Food and Beverage Stores.

The information sector should see employment growth in both Motion Picture and Sound Recording Industries and Data Processing, Hosting, and Related Services. Employment declines are expected in Publishing Industries (except internet), Broadcasting (except internet), Telecommunications, and Other Information Services.

All industries within the financial services sector are forecasting declines.

The professional and business services sector should see steady growth through 2024. Industries within the sector expecting growth include Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services; Administrative Support and Support Services, Waste Management and Remediation Services.

The educational and health services sector overall will see growth through 2024, with most employment growth in Ambulatory Health Care Services, followed by Health Care and Social Assistance. West Virginia’s aging population as well as the opioid epidemic solidify the need for these services. Employment in Educational Services is forecasting a slight decline.

The leisure and hospitality sector expects minimal growth in Performing Arts, Spectator Sports, and Related Industries; Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institution; and Amusement, Gambling, and Recreation Industries. Accommodation and Food Services, Accommodation including Hotels and Motels, and Food Services and Drinking Places should see a decline through 2024.

The other services sector should see growth in Personal and Laundry Services. Repair and Maintenance; Religious, Grantmaking, Civic, Professional and Similar Organizations; and Private Households should expect minor declines.

Employment decline is expected in all the major sectors of government, Federal, State and Local through 2024.

Occupational Demand 2014-2016 Many outside of our state erroneously believe that most West Virginia workers 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. As a matter of fact, Construction and Extraction Occupations rank sixth among the top ten employment groups in 2016. Figure 1 shows that the largest employment group is Office and Administrative Support Occupations (112,304). This is followed by Sales and related Occupations (70,984), Food Preparation and Serving-Related Occupations (65,030), Healthcare Practitioners and Technical Occupations (56,950), and Transportation and Material Moving Occupations (52,878) rounding out the top five.

Figure 8: Pie Chart of Top 10 Occupational Groups 2014-2016. (Pie chart is divided into ten sections and contains employment numbers for these largest occupational groups.) The years 2014 through 2016 have seen high demand for Office and Administrative Support Occupations. Customer Service Representatives and Production, Planning, and Expediting Clerks have ranked high among In-Demand occupations for West Virginia employers. Additional occupation groups ranking high on the list include Healthcare Practitioners and Technical Occupations, containing Registered Nurses and Licensed Practical and Licensed Vocational Nurses, and Transportation and Material Moving Occupations such as Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers; Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand; and Drivers/Sales Workers.

Figure 9: Occupational Groups with Highest Job Demand 2014-2016. (Bar graph reflecting demand for workers within Occupational Groups for the three-year period of 2014-2015-2016.)

Within the last three years (2014-2016), Office and Administrative Support, Transportation and Material Moving, and Healthcare Practitioners and Technical are the occupational groups with the highest demand. However, if including Healthcare Support with Healthcare Practitioners and Technical, healthcare-related occupations rank first with the most job openings in West Virginia during this three-year period.

Figure 10: Top 10 Demand Occupations in 2016. (Bar graph reflects the top 10 occupations requested by employers through WorkForce West Virginia in 2016.)

Breaking down the data into greater detail, Customer Service Representatives are in greatest demand currently, with 1,752 openings in 2016, followed by Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers (1,165); Medical Assistants (1,112), Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers (978); and Driver/Sales Workers (976). Rounding out the top ten are Registered Nurses (895), Nursing Assistants (760), Retail salespersons (728), Licensed Practical and Licensed Vocational Nurses (672), and Security Guards (613).

Figure 11: Job Openings by Occupation Group 2014-2016. (Table shows 22 Occupational Groups and the number of job openings within these groups for the years 2014-2015-2016.)

Occupations in demand through the year 2024 are scattered throughout various occupational clusters. Sales and Related Occupations, Food Preparation and Serving-Related Occupations, and Office and Administrative Support Occupations make up over one-half of the top ten occupations by total annual openings. These clusters include such occupations as Cashiers; Retail salespersons; Combined Food Preparation and Serving Workers; Waiters and Waitresses; Office Clerks, General; and Customer Service Representatives.

Figure 12: Annual Openings by Occupation 2014-2024. Table displays ten occupations with a high number of Total Annual Openings between 2014 and 2024. Includes Estimated and Projected Employment.)

Nearly all the top ten occupations ranked by annual growth rate are contained within four occupational clusters: Computer and Mathematical Occupations; Education, Training, and Library Occupations; Healthcare Support Occupations; and Personal care and Service Occupations. These clusters include such occupations as Occupational Therapy Assistants; Home Health Aides; Statisticians; Information Security Analysts; Personal Care Aides; Skincare Specialists; Health Specialties Teachers, Postsecondary; and Nursing Instructors and Teachers, Postsecondary.

Figure 13: Annual Job Growth Rate for Select Occupations 2014-2024. (Table contains top ten occupations by Annual Growth rate for the years 2014-2024.)

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). Table 1: Model Knowledge, Skills, & Ability for Registered Nurse (Table 1 shows the top Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities needed for Registered Nurses.) With the intensive growth of Healthcare and Social Assistance industries through 2022, the need for education and higher—skill workers is anticipated. Table 2 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 2: Knowledge Assessment for Top 5 Healthcare Occupations (Table 2 assesses the knowledge needed for the top five healthcare occupations.) Similarly, Table 3 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 3 shows only the most required skills that rank from 70 to 100. The higher ranking, the more important the skill. Table 3: Skill Assessment for Top 5 Computer Occupations (Table 3 provides skills assessment for the top five computer-related occupations.) 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 in-demand occupations. The majority of these In-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 in-demand occupations that require licensing include Accountant, Attorney, Elementary School Teacher, and Social Worker.