SC’s Dirty Little Unemployment Secret
You wouldn’t know it by looking at our state’s 9.5% unemployment rate, but tens of thousands of new jobs were created in South Carolina last year … only to lie dormant as no workers were found to fill them.
In fact, over the last eighteen months, the number of unfilled jobs in the Palmetto State is roughly the same as the current number of individuals drawing unemployment benefits, according to job placement data obtained by FITS.
At the heart of this problem – not surprisingly – is the S.C. Employment Security Commission, which administers a massive job placement network that cost millions of taxpayer dollars to create (including individual offices with bureaucrats and staff in every S.C. county).
Sadly, though, this network is failing miserably when it comes to actually placing people in jobs.
Over the past eighteen months, the ESC’s “One-Stop” network has received 127,055 S.C. job orders – or open positions needing employees to fill them – but has filled only 57,250 (or 45.1%) of these positions.
Exactly 69,805 jobs have been left unfilled, which is interesting when you consider that there are exactly 68,071 people currently claiming unemployment insurance in South Carolina at the moment.
Also interesting is the fact that the network’s ability to fill jobs has declined the more desperate people’s employment situation has become.
Over the last six months, the “One-Stop” network has received 35,839 job orders but placed only 14,386 employees in those jobs, leaving 21,453 positions unfilled.
That’s only a 40.1% success rate, which like everything this agency does is completely unacceptable.
Frankly, the performance of ESC Executive Director Roosevelt Halley, his county-level bureaucrat brigade and the three former lawmakers who “oversee” this outdated, unaccountable and inefficient agency is worse than unacceptable, it’s pathetic.
Without putting too fine a point on it, they would rather absorb massive taxpayer debt via emergency federal loans (while proposing to triple employment taxes on businesses) than actually place people in jobs.
Sadly, that’s typical of the big government approach … keep ‘em dumb, jobless and broke.
While the bureaucrats kick back in their spiffy new “employment security” buildings, of course.
WEB EXTRA:
Sample Of Job Placement Data (Jul-Dec 2008)
Comments
By GnuBerry on January 29th, 2009 at 2:10 am
How does it compare to other states?
By BIN News Editorial Staff on January 29th, 2009 at 2:19 am
Okay, sic(k) willie, we get your pimp point. You are clearly being paid to pimp against the Employment Security Commission.
Your latest wacko rant dovetails majestically with the latest wacko rants from gub’ner sanfraud. Okay, strike the word “majestically.” Insert “preecisely.”
willie, you act like someone who f@rts in an elevator and they gets out at the next floor. Leaving a stink but nothing anyone can grab on to.
By fitsnews on January 29th, 2009 at 2:50 am
BIN-
You always say Sic Willie has no clients … and yet you’re always saying he’s getting paid to pimp things.
Make up your mind, dude.
-FITS
By Red Bank Bar on January 29th, 2009 at 5:13 am
This article is so lacking in elementary logic it could have been written by the Governor. Oh, it was written by the governor desperately seeking to avoid anyone noticing his lack of economic development and job creation efforts?
It’s a sad existance when a y’alls goal in life is to suck up to the worst governor in the United States( well, second worst, I forgot about Alaska).
Gov Marshall’s performance is the one failing miserably.
By Joe on January 29th, 2009 at 7:47 am
Listen to me!!!
Nothing, that state government does, works well. Nothing!
The ESC bureaucrat morons are only one example. I am with you…slam them and slam them hard. But don’t think for a moment that the rest of our government is any better.
By Earl Capps on January 29th, 2009 at 9:16 am
Will, hold the train there.
I serve on the regional Workforce Investment Board, which oversees the One Stop centers in the Charleston metro area, so I can probably talk about this with some degree of authority.
The One Stop centers are partnerships between local WIBs and the ESC. We provide information about openings to those who come to us seeking work, and in some cases we provide training and development resources to those seeking to improve their skills to help them qualify for better jobs.
However, we do not encourage people to seek to fill jobs outside of their abilities and skill sets, nor can we guarantee to find someone to fill every advertised opening. Also, it’s worth noting that when a position is filled, we are not always informed of this, or if it was filled by someone referred by a One Stop center or ESC.
This state has long had a shortage of skilled labor to fill many positions, and that’s often the problem of why jobs aren’t getting filled. We’ve had companies choose not to come to this state, and others leave, because of the lack of skilled workes. The Lowcountry WIB recently set up a welding training program to help retain a defense manufacturer and won national recognition for the program all because the company could not find sixty welders – something that was shocking given the large population in the Charleston area.
The other alternative is to recruit from out of state to fill jobs, but if they’re not high enough on the career chain and offer high enough salaries, nobody is going to relocate. Those who do relocate fuel the rampant growth of many of our urban areas, which is another problem we’re facing – metro areas with suburbs with uncontrollable growth and inner cities with 20 or 30 percent unemployment and underemployment rates.
The Governor’s beef with the ESC may have legitmate points, but before you go shooting at the One Stop program, why don’t you take a minute to talk with those of us who can actually tell you something about it first?
Especially someone you know – like me?
By Silence the Noise on January 29th, 2009 at 9:19 am
Joe.
The ESC commissioners ARE the government….
I thought it was illegal for the legislature to both make AND execute the law…..hmm FITS?
By Elmo on January 29th, 2009 at 9:48 am
I would wager that it might be simpler, cheaper, and more effective to just construct a web page where the jobs and job applicants are all listed by county and by town.
By Randy on January 29th, 2009 at 9:51 am
Bull Shit.
By Earl Capps on January 29th, 2009 at 10:18 am
Will, as a further comment, the Workforce Boards, which oversee the One Stop Centers, are oversighted by Governor Sanford’s Department of Commerce.
Quoting the SCDoC website:
“In South Carolina, the Workforce Division of the South Carolina Department of Commerce is committed to ensuring that South Carolinians have the education and training necessary to fill the most in-demand jobs. The division works with a diverse array of public and private partners to carry out this objective, and all of the division’s activities are designed to achieve this goal.
“Matching the needs of business for skilled workers and the training, education and employment needs of individuals, the Workforce Division seeks to provide customers timely information and services through a “One-Stop†system. The One-Stops assist in finding appropriate training for adults and enable smooth coordination with industries, education and economic development allowing customers to get the information and services they need. Adults are empowered to obtain the training they find most appropriate through individual training accounts. This system ensures that all state and local programs meet customer expectations.”
(http://www.sccommerce.com/scworkforce/workforcedevelopment.aspx)
By Brian McCarty on January 29th, 2009 at 11:07 am
Something I learned from Cal II years ago, there often appears a simple answer to a complex problems, and most of the time its wrong. You got to do the work to get the real answer. In a political question such as unemployment issues, that includes talking with and listening to people who you might not always agree with. It certainly demands some homework before firing off at the hip. The Governor’s approach is wrong, just dead wrong. When he has the first Republican elected to the House since Reconstruction from York County calling him on not being a gentleman in his approach, it is the Governor at fault. Frankly, Mark Sanford invokes Carroll Campbell but does not have an one hundredth of Campbell’s political skills. Campbell knew a leader persuades people to do what he wants them to. A leader does not wine, bitch and send his minions after people for not doing his will. Perhaps the Governor should take the time to read Dale Carneigie’s How to Win Friends and Influence People. Perhaps then his well intentioned ideas might finally have a chance to come to fruition.
By Earl Capps on January 29th, 2009 at 12:09 pm
Elmo, your suggestion might be a good idea, except lots of employers want to keep their names undisclosed so as to channel applicants instead of having them harassing their staff about their application and resume submittals.
Also, a lot of people looking for work are employed and disclosing their names might get them fired.
Since I do HR for my company, I get a steady stream of calls from people who submitted applications who are totally confident that 1) they are the only qualified candidates for the job and 2) even if we have a hiring freeze, there has to be room for one more.
By hawk on January 29th, 2009 at 12:18 pm
Earl,
As someone who recently had interaction with the ESC – the “recruiters” they hire or employ have no initiative at placing anyone – unless the person “Exactly” fits their “cookie cutter” job description they walk away and turn away good talent.
My company attempted to use the recruiters at the ESC and found them lacking in creativity and drive. They are true “state” employees – do their job go home –
IF the ESC wants to fix not only this problem or their image they need to place all recruiters on an incentive based salary OR place them on a quota system ie performance based. Until then they will not refer people unless they are an exact fit. Their methods frustrated my company so we didnt use a single candidate they sent. Our on site recruiters filled the openings long before the ESC recruiters could grasp the real picture.
By Republican Swamp Fox on January 29th, 2009 at 12:46 pm
Earl Capps has spoken.
By fitsnews on January 29th, 2009 at 12:59 pm
Earl,
With all due respect, a 40% placement rate at a time when people are literally tripping over themselves to try and find work pretty much speaks for itself.
-FITS
By "Reality Bites" on January 29th, 2009 at 1:12 pm
Dale’s sequel >> How to Lose Friends and Influence Enemies << is AWESOME.
By Todd on January 29th, 2009 at 1:21 pm
Earl: My experience was the same as Hawk’s.
By Earl Capps on January 29th, 2009 at 1:33 pm
Hawk – One Stop and ESC people just throw people out there. They don’t have the resources, training, client relationships or incentives private recruiters have.
A private recruiter is usually field-specific, works contacts in a given profession to find prospective candidates and has clients in that field. They have training and qualifications in their profession and they’re paid on a commission basis. I used to work for a headhunter firm, so I know this.
The One Stop and ESC people are generalists with no ability or resources to reach out for candidates, such as trade publications and professional networks, or specific industry knowledge. They fill everything from fast food to warehouse to construction trades and they often won’t be able to fill needs as fast as a private recruiter, or as well, for a more skilled or advanced position.
FITS – if you’re concerned about the performance of the One Stop Centers, then you need to write a posting blasting the Governor for his administration of Department of Commerce and not confusing them with ESC.
As to the 40% – if you throw the numbers out there without trying to understand what they mean, such as determining how many of those jobs are part-time or “executive pay” insurance sales scams, employers who fail to report they filled an opening (as an HR person, I’m guilty of that mistake more than once), etc., it’s going to look bad.
But again, that’s an issue for Governor Sanford and his administration to address, not ESC.
Back to the ESC issue, there is not a lot of incentive to push people to actually accept employment and get off the unemployment gravy train until it runs out. I’ve hired a lot of people who said they were out of work so long because they really didn’t see a need to work until the money ran out. That is a legitimate issue which hasn’t been raised.
One Stops make referrals, but we can’t make anyone get off their dead ass, get back to work and stop leeching off the unemployment system. Apparently, it’s not politically correct to address that issue.
By baker on January 29th, 2009 at 2:18 pm
So, the Governor oversees the “one-stop” program? Is this at odds with Will’s reporting?
By Earl Capps on January 29th, 2009 at 3:47 pm
Baker – he still raises questions both about the ESC and One Stop system that are worth asking. I won’t say he is completely wrong. The ESC needs to open up and we need to reform how people are being held accountable for job seeking. We also need better coordination of data and resources, especially in the current economic situation.
By SC Southpaw on January 29th, 2009 at 6:30 pm
There is a problem that you illuminated with your photo. Our job seekers lack the job skills of the open jobs. Additionally, there is a geographic mismatch (jobs in urban areas, unemployed in rural areas). Of the two, the lack of necessary skills is the bigger. The governor has done a good job attracting new industry. Unfortunately, the industries with the largest job losses don’t have workers with transferable skills. We need to move the conversation to resolving this instead of the endless blame game that gets everyone nowhere.
By fitsnews on January 29th, 2009 at 6:45 pm
Hmmm … so to recap …
1- our workers are stupid
2- our primary work placement program can’t place them
3- there’s confusion as to the oversight of our work placement agencies
4- our unemployment rate is skyrocketing and we’re having to borrow federal money to cover benefits
Basically, a total clusterfuck that’s failing to do the job and screwing the taxpayers over in the process.
Again, how is this different from anything else SC government does?
-FITS
By Cosmo Kramer on January 29th, 2009 at 9:58 pm
Brian and Earl: Thanks for some of the most insightful comments in quite some time.
By hawk on January 29th, 2009 at 11:09 pm
Earl –
“One Stop and ESC people just throw people out there. They don’t have the resources, training, client relationships or incentives private recruiters have” – ie they dont know what they are doing as recruiters then – they need motivation to get ANY candidate they have placed – I know several state jobs that have been open for months because the state recruiters have no motivation to fill the jobs. My corporate recruiters (work in corp HR) had a filled open reqs within 30 days – and could use the same resources that ESC use. But one more thing ESC/OS has a monopoly on ALL state job openings. ALL candidates must go through them – how can they suck that badly at filling job openings??? MOTIVATION – they have none. If they place 4 candidates or 400 their pay will be the same.
My suggestion is – place them on a quota system – fill x jobs within x time or YOU will be looking for a job. THAT is motivation. Instead they come and go as they wish wasting state money and resources by not filling jobs.
By James the Foot Soldier on January 30th, 2009 at 12:40 am
fitsnews – your recap has one glaring omission:
#5 – South Carolinians fraudulently collecting guv’ment checks. All they have to do to continue collecting their guv’ment check is apply to a job they have no qualification for so they have no fear of becoming employed.
It’s not hard to spot these welfare kings and queens: these are the folks you see at any bank cashing checks from all the work they’ve done “on the side”.
Exhibit A: the mayor of a small town in South Carolina that had his mayoral paycheck made out to his wife so he could keep receiving his social security disability checks.
By Todd on January 30th, 2009 at 8:46 am
James, the FS: It’s not spelled guv’ment. It’s giv-a-mint. Sheesh, as Sic would say.
By Cooter Brown's Intern on January 30th, 2009 at 12:57 pm
Actually, it’s Gubmint
http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Gubmint
By Earl Capps on January 30th, 2009 at 1:31 pm
Hawk – while I get the point, your comparison is apples to oranges. I used to work for a headhunter firm. We had advertising budgets as well as knowledge of the industries and disciplines we were recruiting for. We could find someone to fill an opening only if it was in our field.
The One Stop and ESC people aren’t given the time or support to learn these things, nor the resources to draw people in with the skills to meet the needs of clients. Unlike a recruiter firm, they rely on taking whoever happens to walk in the door and try to plug them into whatever positions come their way.
An incentive system might help, but where is the money going to come from to pay those incentives? The employers? The state? If you were to start charging employers, then a public agency would be competing with the private sector, right?
You pay a headhunter thousands of dollars to find a candidate, hundreds to run classified ads in papers and online, but you pay nothing to One Stop or ESC. In the end, you get what you pay for. That’s also one reason the state uses them.
I’m not questioning your claims because you seem to know what you’re talking about, instead of politicized ramblings that have little or no foundation in the real world. As an HR person, I have been in those situations too. But if you’re looking for the One Stop and ESC system to provide headhunter-quality service with no incentives and staff who are paid far less than headhunters, you’re not going to get it.
You’re welcome to drop me an email if you have concerns about the leve of service you’re getting from a One Stop center – earl@earlcapps.org. Maybe I can help you, as a local WIB board member, or I will forward it to someone who can.
By Jarrett Edwards on January 30th, 2009 at 11:00 pm
I completely agree that there is something messed up at the One Stop workforce centers. I am college educated, with no criminal record, I have submitted numerous applications through these centers and have never received one interview. I suspect that they might not be sending my applications and/or resumes to the companies.
By Monkeydarts on February 23rd, 2009 at 9:33 am
Don’t worry, Obama’s going to put laid-off computer techs back to work building bridges in “shovel-ready” projects in Michigan and New Jersey. All you really have to worry about is driving over those bridges in the future.
By Sokino on February 23rd, 2009 at 10:46 pm
First off, dept of commerce does not over see the workforce centers. The doc oversees the workforce investment act and trade adjustment assistance act (both federal programs) that are partners in the one stop centers. Further, the boards (mentioned above) that (supposedly) oversee the one stops is an error. There are local boards that over see the wia and taa programs, but they don’t run the one stops, again they are just a partner. All the one stops in south carolina are operated in a bureaucratic rats nest with many being led by esc. The south carolina workforce system is a very complicated system and cannot be easily understood.
By C. Brooks on January 31st, 2010 at 4:12 am
I agree with Hawk about the issue with ESC. I know this for a fact b/c I have work with, for, and against the agency under the Workforce Investment Act. ESC workers are not as well trained nor have the knowledge of wealth to perform like headhunters. They have no incentive at assist citzens of this state with finding work. ESC is always saying on the news, “We are a referral agency.”
Actual the DOC and ESC are really battling each other $. Now that DOC hold the federal dollars for WIA & TAA. That leaves ESC just as a partnter agency with the actual physical sites for citzens in these programs to report to.
I use to be one of the individuals, who completed the OneStop Report and what everyone here is forgetting is that there are thousands of SC citzens, who have the knowledge to do their own self-directed job search and they never report to ESC b/c of the bureaucrats there.
Mark Sanford is right many of our state agencies are doing a duplication of services and some like ESC and DOC need to be revamp from the ground up. Once they are rebuilt, performance measures, accountability, & goals need to be set for these agencies. The need to be run more like a business, not a nesting place for fat cats, who do nothing, but practice nepotism.