Is There A Snowplow Driver Shortage In New York State?

One of the things that New York State does well is deal with inclement weather.

Be it a hurricane hitting New York City or Long Island, or multiple feet of snow blanketing Western and Central New York, we New Yorkers take dealing with weather seriously.

However, things may be a little bit different this winter if things keep going the way its currently going at the New York State Department of Transportation.

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According to a report from the Buffalo News, there is looking like there may be a shortage of winter workers this upcoming snow season.

There are hundreds of available jobs at the State DOT across the state, with nearly 100 of them here in the Western New York area.

While state officials say there isn't much to be concerned about, this all brings up the question of why are there so many vacancies. Now, while unemployment has increased slightly over the last month, it is still near historic lows at around 4.7% in August 2022.

I've heard anecdotally from friends and associates that own businesses that there are lots of companies that are looking for workers, but there are just not people in the job market to fill these jobs. According to the Federal Reserve, New York's Labor Force Participation Rate (the percentage of the population that is working or actively looking for work) is around 60% which is the highest it since before COVID-19 shut the economy down.

Let's hope that these jobs get filled soon because it's predicted that some lake-effect snow is already on the way to the area.