DES MOINES, Iowa- County and regional economic development groups, trying to attract new business, could get some key data soon.
The state's going to study every Iowa county this July, taking a close look at the available labor force. The studies aim to identify how many potential employees there are, their education, wages, skills, as well as the current Semployees have now, and what they'd like to have.
The Iowa Economic Development Authority and Iowa Workforce Development are behind the effort.
Studies will be conducted on a biennial basis, with half the state receiving the study in year one and the other half receiving the study in year two.
“I strongly believe no other state is doing as much as Iowa to enable our economic development partners, our current employers and those companies considering investing here,” Gov. Reynolds said. “The partnership to provide these studies is a prime example of that. In Iowa, we’re continuing to build on our successes and do everything we can to power potential for Iowans.”
“This new program will ensure all areas of the state have access to data sources on workforce characteristics, revealing meaningful insights into the availability of labor,” IWD Director Beth Townsend said.
“We could not be more excited to provide Iowa’s communities the most comprehensive labor data available in the marketplace through this partnership,” IEDA Director Debi Durham said. “We take pride in the benefits of doing business in Iowa, which will now include this valuable data on Iowa’s workforce.”