U.S. Chamber Calls Worker Shortage

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The United States Chamber of Commerce today called the shortage of workers across the board – from high skilled to low skilled – a significant threat to continued economic growth.

"Unemployment in some sectors of the economy is approaching zero," said Randel Johnson, Chamber vice president for labor policy, in written testimony to the House Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee holding hearings today. "There can be no economic growth without the workers to drive the economy forward. Congress needs to examine and develop a course of action to overcome this barrier to continued American prosperity."

The Chamber cited Census Bureau data that estimates the nation will need an additional 20 million workers to sustain economic growth between 2000 and 2026. Employment demand is projected to outstrip workforce growth, the Chamber noted.

With the Center for Workforce Preparation, a non-profit affiliate, the Chamber has worked to address key labor shortage issues, including: workforce development, training and education, and easing immigration quotas for high-skilled workers.

"The worker shortage is creating an urgent situation for the U.S. economy," Johnson said. "It throws into question our ability to keep growth industries on our shores, retain the talent to stay competitive in the 21st century, and generate the taxes to support our national infrastructure."

The Chamber applauded Chairman Hoekstra and the subcommittee's efforts to highlight the problems caused by a shrinking labor pool, inadequate job training, and a lack of appropriate education skills. The U.S. has a serious mismatch between the skills and education of recent graduates and the needs of employers, the Chamber's testimony pointed out.

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce is the world's largest business federation representing more than three million businesses and organizations of every size, sector and region.

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