Item 24 - Regional and Unified Local Workforce Plan for PY 2021-24

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Despite the declining jobs, advanced manufacturing is a priority in the Orange RPU due to the number of jobs and the impact on the local economy, given the sector’s total gross regional product (GRP) of $23.8 billion. This sector represents approximately 10% of the county’s total GRP. The advanced manufacturing sector has highly specialized and growing advanced manufacturing subsectors in Orange County. Medical equipment and supplies manufacturing had a concentration in the Orange County region five times higher than typical regional areas, with a location quotient of 5.43. Medical equipment and supplies manufacturing also increased jobs by 12% between 2015 and 2020, bringing the total employment in 2020 to 19,776. Other healthy and growing subsectors in the region are semiconductor and other electronic component manufacturing (LQ 3.28), audio and video equipment manufacturing (LQ 4.89), semiconductor and Other Electronic Component Manufacturing (LQ 3.28), and Manufacturing and Reproducing Magnetic and Optical Media (LQ 3.12), aerospace product and parts manufacturing (LQ 1.95). Manufacturing companies will need a skilled worker pipeline to fill jobs in these specialized subsectors and retirement positions. The sector has an aging workforce regionally and nationally. Workers 65 and older represent 6.7% of the workers, and 24.6% are between 55 and 64. Recruiting and retaining a high- quality workforce for new technology- driving positions will be necessary for manufacturing innovation. There are multiple opportunities at various entry points for individuals with a high school diploma, a certification program, or a 2-4 year college degree. The Healthcare sector has 158,224 full and part-time jobs. The average earnings per job in 2020 was $77,496. There were 11,248 private and public healthcare establishments in the Orange County region in 2020. The industry growth between 2017 and 2020 was 5.4%, above the state’s growth percentage of 5.2%. The expected change between 2020 to 2030 is 18.2%, with a gain of 28,832 jobs. The sector contributes $15.5 billion in GRP, 9% of the county’s total GRP. The healthcare sector comprises several related subsectors and supporting industries that include ambulatory health care services, hospitals, and nursing and residential facilities. The healthcare sector is growing and continues to be a stalwart industry throughout the pandemic. Healthcare is one of the few recession-proof industries, with registered nurses being the top posted occupation between January 2020 to 2021 22. The sector will likely continue to be a driver of economic activity given the rapidly aging Orange County population, increasing the likelihood that many residents will require more health care and support services. 22 EMSI Labor Market Analytics, 2021, www.economicmodeling.com. 118 3,771 16,793 18,540 23,942 22,688 6,192 0 5000 10000 15000 20000 25000 30000 14-18 19-24 25-34 35-44 45-54 55-64 65+2020 Jobs2020 Industry Sector Age Breakdown Source: EMSI, Labor Market Analytics, EXHIBIT 1