Image: Huron County Courthouse
Huron County’s Director of Human Resources says that there is an issue with the county finding and retaining staff.
Lara Vanstone made a presentation to the county council on Wednesday, sharing a staff report that demonstrated that it’s an employee’s market, and that efforts needed to be considered for addressing staffing shortages.
Vanstone says that even if all youth retained within Huron County and worked for local businesses and governments, there would still be a shortage.
She says that there should be efforts made to recruit potential employees from outside the region.
Vanstone also shared that with local employers, namely with staff working in homes for the aged, there are higher instances of employee burnout, and higher costs for overtime pay.
She added that one point of concern was that in 2020, they found that approximately 28% of staff were looking to retire between 2022 and 2024 because of the demographic shift in current employees.
Human Resources is also concerned that in their findings, 27% of staff would readily consider a job elsewhere.
The department’s findings also showed that smaller employers in the county needed help with meeting targets with equity, diversity, and inclusion.
Vanstone did share some more positive news – that the “Great Resignation” is starting to change into a “Great Retention” as workers who had left are now returning to their previous jobs or industries.
Members of council shared that an ongoing conversation had to do with the ability to work remotely, or with 4-day work weeks.