The shortage of manpower is coming home - here’s how to keep small businesses in Birmingham alive

What causes labor shortages for small businesses in Birmingham?

Lack of manpower = big problems across the country. How serious, you ask? Well, it was published in the Alignable study 60% of small businesses in the United States still cannot find workers to fill vacancies. It is also worth mentioning: smallbiztrends discovered that the United States small businesses lost 120,000 jobs only during April 2022, which is responsible for the difficulties in maintaining the growth of operating costs and competitive wages. Meanwhile, medium and large enterprises had a total increase of 247,000 jobs.

We caught up with the Alabama Partnership for Economic Development (EDPA) and the Birmingham Business Alliance (BBA) to take a closer look at this national issue through a local lens. Why are there currently 26,000 vacancies in our region?

Main conclusions:

• The labor market is HOT—The set of talents is competitive and those who are looking for a job are ready to change companies as needed for a better job and quality of life.
• Birmingham’s labor force participation rate is lower than the national average, which experts believe could be a consequence of health care, childcare and access to transportation.
• The current pandemic and supply chain problems are bad news for finding top, personal talent.

“Talent has been an important issue for businesses in Alabama for years, large and small, but it has become increasingly urgent with the ongoing pandemic, supply chain problems and an increasingly remote workforce.

—Miler Girvin, Executive Vice President for Innovation and Talent, EDPA

Small business owners in Birmingham are talking

On our LinkedIn we contacted small business owners in Birmingham to hear just so how they were affected by labor shortages.

Most believe that the biggest problem is finding employees. This result was not a big surprise, considering that we saw companies like Great Harvest Bread Co. in Trusville, they cite labor shortages as one of the reasons for their closure.

There have been several closures of local small businesses, including:

We have also seen delayed opening / reopening, such as:

“We hope to reopen the Highlands as soon as we have enough team members. We are looking for bartenders, servers, server assistants and maitres. Pardis and I, and all our staff, are eager and excited to reopen the Highlands.

—Frank Steat, owner and head chef, Highlands Bar & Grill

Resource shortage management resources

If you are a business owner who feels the pressure of these constraints, we have a few resources to share - all with the aim of alleviating the labor crisis and helping small businesses in Birmingham thrive.

“Small businesses are the lifeblood of our community. Every business has to start somewhere, and that is why BBA is dedicated to helping companies start, grow and thrive in our community. From the reactivation of our Chamber of Commerce to our hands-on education program, our team is waking up every day ready to support small businesses in Birmingham. ”

-Emily Jerkins Hall, President and Chief Operating Officer, BBA

You can continue to support local businesses

How has the lack of manpower affected your favorite small businesses in Birmingham? We want to hear from you @ BhamNov.