Matchmaker, Matchmaker, What’s Wrong With My Job Skills?

There are job openings all over the United States. There are also people looking for jobs. It seems simple to match them up and the country will be working again. But, a new Brookings Institution study points out why the matchmaker’s job is a little more complicated than that.

 

The study found that the people living near the job openings don’t necessarily have the relevant education or training to get them. The report looks at education, job openings, and unemployment in the 100 largest U.S. metropolitan areas over a six-year period. In these areas, 43% of job openings typically require at least a bachelor’s degree, but just 32% of adults age 25 and older have earned one.

 

The study found that unemployment in metropolitan areas is significantly worse when the workforce’s educational background does not match up with employers’ requirements.

 

On a scale where the higher the ranking the better off you are, Boston ranked 11,^th fared best in New England.  The three Connecticut areas included were: Bridgeport-Stamford ranked 19^th, New Haven ranked 26^th, and Hartford ranked 43^rd. Providence had the lowest New England ranking at 83^rd.