April 1, 2022
Colloquium Topic: The Demographic Drought: How a Lack of People Will Change How We Look at Labor
The US is suffering the beginning stages of a sansdemic: a lack of people to do all the work that needs to be done. Between 2011 and 2021, nearly every county in the US saw declines in its working-age population. The 2020 census shows that 16 states saw net population decline over the past years—the worst numbers since the Great Depression.
Employers and higher education are already feeling the pain but the people shortage is only projected to get worse. So how did we get here? What are the economic ramifications? And is there anything we can do about it?
As lead author of The Demographic Drought, Hetrick answers these questions by analyzing past, present, and future workforces. From baby boomers to millennials to the 2020 Baby Bust, we track the rise and fall of America’s population and labor force participation rate. We also outline how employers and higher educational institutions can survive the sansdemic when it hits in force.
Colloquium Speaker: Ron Hetrick
Ron Hetrick is Senior Labor Economist and Director of Staffing Products at EMSI Burning Glass. With 30 years' experience in labor economics, he is considered to be a leading expert in the current state of the U.S. labor market.
Ron is passionate about educating companies concerning the labor world that surrounds them. He started his career at the Bureau of Labor Statistics in Washington D.C. where he provided analysis for then Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan, the Council of Economic Advisors to the President, Congress, and numerous Fortune 100 companies and trade associations. He then took on the roles of Chief Advising Economist and Director of Market Analytics teams for the largest staffing company in the U.S. before joining EMSI Burning Glass, where he serves as the product director for all staffing products and data.
Ron presents economic and corporate data findings to large companies, trade associations, and local governments, often keynoting conferences on trends in the labor market.
He publishes frequently and has been quoted by NBC, CNN, Bloomberg, the Wall Street Journal, Forbes, and numerous other nationally syndicated news agencies. He holds a bachelor's degree from Ohio University and a master's in applied economics from the University of Central Florida.