In late July, Grays Harbor and Pacific counties kicked off a study to figure out why so many people in the region aged 25 to 54 aren’t working.

Grays Harbor County has the largest prime age employment gap in Washington, which is 15% above the national average. Last fall, Greater Grays Harbor, Inc. (GGHI) scored a $500,000 “recompete” grant to study the problem and start to develop strategies to combat it. Recompete is a one-word substitution for “Economic Development Administration’s Rebuilding Economies and Creating Opportunities for More People to Excel program.”

GGHI has teamed up with Grays Harbor County Public Health, Grays Harbor College, Pacific County, the Pacific Mountain Workforce Development Council (PACMTN) and other stakeholders in the region for what’s officially known as the “Washington State Coastal Counties Initiative Recompete Pilot Program — Strategy Development Grant.” Grays Harbor County Public Health Director Mike McNickle is the Recompete Plan Coordinator.

This initial study sought to understand the conditions that led to the region’s high prime age employment gap. The grant application stated, “For the past 30 years, the area has experienced continuous economic decline, high unemployment rates, growing poverty, and increases in drug addictions, behavioral health challenges, crime, and a growing homeless population.”

According to GGHI CEO Darrin Raines and Director of Business Development Loretta Thomas, the survey yielded results they weren’t expecting, while McNickle said he didn’t know what to expect.

“Some of the findings were surprising,” Raines said. “Talking with Mike and his team and some of the findings they’ve had on similar type studies it’s not surprising. It’s very similar to what they have in their work. We’re excited we have some data,we can start the planning phase in January. It’s a very thorough, well-done draft.”

“I think some of it is a lot different than what we thought people were going to say,” Thomas said.

“We had a great time doing the report. I didn’t know what to anticipate. With the number of women who responded, obviously the prime age employment gap for them clearly is flexibility and lack of childcare,” McNickle said. “We’ve had that childcare issue come up several times in our community health assessments. Clearly that’s one of the biggest barriers, especially for women. If you think about it, for the men too, if they’re single fathers they’re probably going to experience the same thing.”

The draft Recompete Project Report includes data and information gathered in three phases — direct public responses to the survey, informant interviews with stakeholders including employers, and focus groups. The data collection period ended on Oct. 31.

The survey resulted in 378 responses, with 78% coming from the target population in Grays Harbor County and 21% of the responses from the same population in Pacific County. Seventy-six percent of the respondents identified as female.

The top five barriers to employment for the respondents were: 1) childcare; 2) lacking the experience needed for a given position; 3) pregnancy, nursing, or maternal leave policies; 4) the need for alternative work schedules; and 5) lack of training and education needed for a given position.

The top five industries that appeal to the respondents are Retail Trade, Healthcare or Social Assistance, Public Administration, Accommodation and Food service, and Manufacturing.

On the business side of the equation, 93% of employers who responded to the survey indicated that they have positions that do require a college-level education or another type of specialized training and 80% of those employers said they have trouble recruiting for positions due to the nature of the region, competitive pay, and lack of candidates that meet minimum requirements.

The draft report indicates a disconnect between employers and prospective workers when it comes to what the employer needs and wants in a worker versus the skill level of a potential hire, along with resources available to businesses to help prospective and current employees.

“We want to try to help close that gap. Loretta is a specialist in trying to get people into those jobs. We have other groups like (PACMTN) and others that can really help in the area,” Raines said.

Thomas added, “The funding is limited and that’s where a lot of those gaps are coming from when you’re talking workforce development. You can’t just walk into the college and say I need these skills to work for (The Port of Grays Harbor), and go to the college and get those skills. That’s not how it works. The training dollars are limited.”

One of the other disconnects the study revealed is the lack of knowledge unemployed workers have when it comes to available opportunities, education and training, and services like resume writing.

“On the job training is really helpful, when you can place somebody in employment, and the employer is willing to bring in somebody who doesn’t have all of the skills, but they will do on the job training programs where the employer can get 50% of the wage they pay out to help get that person trained up,” Thomas said. “That still requires funding to do that.”

Thomas added that perhaps Grays Harbor College could tailor educational tracks to match the needs of employers and that the creation of shorter certification periods could help.

The initial study has concluded the region faces a persistent and historically rooted employment gap; childcare and workplace flexibility are the most significant barriers to employment; a mismatch exists between job seeker interests and employer requirements; employers experience major hiring and retention challenges; the region needs expanded training, education, and career navigation supports; many job seekers lack basic needs stability, hindering workforce participation; the “Benefit Cliff” discourages re-entry into the workforce; community engagement strategies require refinement; employers demonstrate strong willingness to partner in future recompete efforts; targeted investments in childcare, training, and job quality represent the most promising opportunities for impact.

As for what to do about these issues keeping people out of the workforce, the report recommends expanding childcare access and affordability; developing local education and training pathways aligned with employer needs; increasing access to job navigation and career support services; addressing basic needs and workforce stability through integrated support services; improving job quality to enhance recruitment and retention; addressing the benefits cliff through advocacy and policy coordination; strengthening community outreach and engagement methods; supporting employer expansion and “shovel-ready” projects; and developing a comprehensive, data-informed regional workforce strategy.

“As we start the planning phase in January, we’ll come up with a lot of these answers with a bigger group of stakeholders,” Raines said. “We’re going to identify funding needs to build more public health programs, that’s part of your community development, just like childcare, just like your medical facilities, just like infrastructure.”

“From a public health perspective, everything is public health. Bad employment leads to bad health, leads to mental health, leads to potential substance use,” McNickle said. “How do we get more childcare available, how do we get training to the people who need it, how do we communicate, what are the avenues, how do we get to you in a way you understand and have access to? Obviously, we’re not doing it well. What is the best method of communication?”

From a healthcare worker standpoint, McNickle said that there are plenty of opportunities for specific skillsets that don’t require college degrees.

“My conversations with the two major hospitals, they’re looking for programs like X-ray technicians, phlebotomy or lab work, all these other things that you don’t need a four-year degree or medical degree,” McNickle said. “There’s a lot of need in those areas. It’s hard to get (people to come here), so why don’t we grow from here? We need all these specialty things.”

Regardless of occupation or desired line of work, McNickle said it will be important to meet people where they are in life.

“Scenario: I’m a single mom, I’m 32 years old, I have three kids, I’m struggling already, where’s my opportunity to go get training during the day? There isn’t one,” McNickle said. “What am I going to do with my kids? If there was training where I could go at night or on the weekends when someone could watch them. You have to meet them where they are or it’s not going to work.”

“Employers need to come to the table, too, in all of this,” Thomas added.

The Grays Harbor region isn’t the only community in Washington participating in recompete initiatives. In August of 2024, the Economic Development Administration (EDA) announced that the U.S. Department of Commerce had awarded $35 million to the North Olympic Peninsula Recompete Coalition (NOPRC) to reinvigorate the economy on the North Olympic Peninsula. That federal funding is being administered by the U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA) through the Distressed Area Recompete Pilot Program, which was created based on legislation authored by former Rep. Derek Kilmer (D-6th District).

The NOPRC has organized their efforts into four buckets, which echo the issues in Grays Harbor and Pacific counties — barrier removal (transportation, job training, childcare, food, healthcare, etc.), job skills training, job creation and industry revitalization, and investing in remote and rural areas.

At the Dec. 16 Grays Harbor County Commissioners meeting, District 1 Commissioner Georgia Miller took a moment to commend those who gathered the data and drafted the report.

“Mike McNickle and his team, I just want to say kudos to you, they did in six months what was probably never going to be completed and that is the public interviews and assessments to find out why we have this huge unemployment gap in Grays Harbor County,” Miller said. “Overwhelmingly the root cause is childcare. I just want to thank you for your work, hopefully this will put us in position for Phase 2 funding for the recompete project.”

However, as we’ve seen with other federal grant programs and funding, there is no guarantee Grays Harbor and Pacific counties will ever see another dollar from the Department of Commerce or the EDA. Regardless, efforts to tackle the issues identified in the study will continue unabated.

State and federal funding also affect infrastructure projects and yet there are several on tap for the Grays Harbor area, along with the possibility of private ventures such as Westport Golf Links. According to Raines, there is tremendous potential for job growth in the next few years.

“The north and south beaches, Ocean Shores and Westport, looking at the stabilization of the shorelines will build long-term sustainability where there will be future housing, additional businesses, more growth, we know that’s coming. Those projects are critical for the future of that area. The Port of Grays Harbor has continued expansion providing a lot of jobs, not only short-term, but long-term,” Raines said. “The Westport Marina, that is a project we need state and federal funding for, that supports an industry that’s in the Top 10 in the United States bringing in and shipping out seafood. The modular building facility in SouthShore Mall, that’s a futuristic business with robotics that’s going to be something that’s going to need skilled labor. East County is starting to see a lot of growth and a lot of opportunities in the Elma, McCleary area. Montesano is destined to grow as well.”

According to Raines, inflation and state legislation has hurt small businesses in the region. In some cases, family businesses have gone under because the next generation doesn’t want to carry the torch. Conversely, Raines said the GGHI is a big proponent of entrepreneurship.

“They’re struggling. Inflation over the last few years has really hurt small businesses. Some of the legislation that’s been passed in the last two biennia has crippled the ability for small businesses to stay sustainable and grow,” Raines said. “Some of them have the ability, or they’re family owned without any succession plan and they’re ready to retire, who’s going to buy the business and take it over. We’re also trying to promote entrepreneurship and try to get these young folks to take a gamble and try a business idea they may have. There’s a lot of opportunity and training available to help set somebody up who wants to do that. Small business is a real concern and it’s a top priority for us.”

Raines said the Grays Harbor region is a prime location for larger businesses to relocate, which would lead to job creation.

“We try to market Grays Harbor as a great place to live and do work, we have great schools, we have good quality of life, you’ve got recreation you can’t find anywhere else,” Raines said. “We want people to realize you’ve got a golden opportunity here.”

And when it comes to opportunities, there has been a recent push to keep young people in the area as they graduate from school. As for the future of the Grays Harbor workforce, Raines said that he is encouraged by the work being done by Career Technical Education (CTE) programs in the schools.

“One of the things I am pleasantly surprised (about) is the CTE programs in the schools. They’re trying to start some of these programs and work with students on trying to become electricians, pipe fitters, welding, carpentry. We have some great CTE programs in the Grays Harbor County school districts,” Raines added. “One thing I always try to preach is that we’re focusing on the prime age employment gap with this grant, but we need to do some preventative maintenance, work with high school students and get their thought process changed. There are opportunities here.”

Thomas added, “We have access to apprenticeship programs. Talking about career fairs, we used to do a lot of career fairs and we need to get back to that. Hands-on career fairs are really popular. How do we get kids to stay here? We have to have opportunities.”

Raines and Thomas also mentioned that many traditionally blue collar careers have incorporated high tech into their processes and that students interested in technology may not be aware of those opportunities.

“We’ve got to get some hope in this community. I think it’s missing. There’s not a lot of hope. Hope is important, especially for kids who might be in a tough economic situation at home,” McNickle said. “They’re going to be focused on how I get out of here or what around here is going to help me.”

The next steps in the Recompete Project include a steering committee meeting in January and then meetings with additional stakeholders, which will lead to the strategic planning phase.