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For Oregon Job Outlook, Today's Blessings May Create Tomorrow's Challenges

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Oregon is experiencing continued job growth and record low unemployment. However, as KLCC’s Brian Bull reports, there’s challenges ahead.

The Oregon Employment Department has released figures confirming what appears to be a rosy picture, at least for now.

“So Oregon’s total employment is expected to grow by about 246,000 jobs, and that’s about a 12 percent increase over a 10-year period," says Gail Krumenauer, Senior Economic Analyst for the OED.  "We’re looking in between 2017 and 2027.”

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The catch, says Krumenauer, is that these factors can make it hard for Oregon businesses to fill vacancies. And it’s expected that within the decade, one out of five new jobs will be in healthcare, adding to the need.

“Especially when you consider that for every one new job created, there will be another nine jobs that businesses will need newly trained workers to replace those who are retiring or leaving the labor force.”

Krumenauer says businesses can help relieve hiring challenges if they highlight job opportunities in the years ahead.

Copyright 2018, KLCC.

Brian Bull is an assistant professor of journalism at the University of Oregon, and remains a contributor to the KLCC news department. He began working with KLCC in June 2016.   In his 27+ years as a public media journalist, he's worked at NPR, Twin Cities Public Television, South Dakota Public Broadcasting, Wisconsin Public Radio, and ideastream in Cleveland. His reporting has netted dozens of accolades, including four national Edward R. Murrow Awards (22 regional),  the Ohio Associated Press' Best Reporter Award, Best Radio Reporter from  the Native American Journalists Association, and the PRNDI/NEFE Award for Excellence in Consumer Finance Reporting.
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