LIMESTONE, Maine — A dilemma has haunted rural Maine for decades: how to ensure there are enough workers to grow business and industry.
The question drew about 25 Aroostook County leaders to Limestone Tuesday for a discussion with Maine Department of Labor Commissioner Laura Fortman, hosted by the Loring Development Authority.
The challenge is tricky, because attracting workers is only part of the answer. Services that sustain them — transportation, child care, housing — need to be in place, too. Communities across Maine face those challenges, Fortman said. But some argued The County isn’t ready for a huge industry boom because it lacks that support network.
“One of my biggest fears is explosive growth, because we’re not prepared for it,” Limestone Town Manager Edward Pocock III said. “There’s been years of stagnation, lack of policies, roads not being improved. It’s a much bigger issue than just simply labor.”
Attracting and keeping workers is a vicious circle in rural areas. As much as communities and groups like the Loring Development Authority try to lure industry north, companies won’t set up shop without a solid labor force, and people can’t work if jobs don’t come.
Most graduates of the Loring Job Corps Center, which is still operational after 28 years despite threats of closure earlier this year, would likely stay in Aroostook County if they had jobs to go to, said Roger Felix, the center’s business engagement coordinator.
County entities are working to meet the challenges. The Northern Maine Growth Initiative aims to draw new Mainers to the region and provide them with housing and other resources.
In the wake of an extreme child care shortage, the Aroostook County Action Program has expanded services and Northern Maine Community College will soon open a child-care center.
To help overcome transportation challenges, the Aroostook Regional Transportation System launched its Workforce Connector, which takes people from home to work and back.
But Spud Speedway co-owner Troy Haney pinpointed a growing and unique need: veterinarian care. Rural Mainers lack access to pet health providers, causing some to travel south or even to neighboring Canada for care.
“We’re struggling as communities to even fill the service jobs, whether it be ambulance, fire, police. But good luck finding a vet that’s available to take the new family dog,” Haney said. “That’s a real problem, if you’ve got to drive to Brewer to get a vet.”
Some employees have left the area because they couldn’t find a vet, a representative from the Defense Finance and Accounting Service said.
It was the first time Fortman had heard how seriously the need for veterinarians affects employees.
Collaboration and education build a strong workforce, and apprenticeships and alternatives to four-year college degrees are gaining traction statewide, she said.
The key is tuning young people in to what’s out there for them, she said. Communities need to find a way to create a “pipeline of interest” among young people for industry close to home.
“How do we help people find their passion and thrive there? How do you capture these young people and let them know what’s possible?” Fortman said.
Tuning kids in to technology is vital, Loring Development Authority board member Tim Crowley said. Some places bring elementary school kids into industrial sites to spark their interest early, LDA President and CEO Jonathan Judkins said.
Registered apprenticeships and supporting the trades are among the labor department’s top priorities, Fortman said. Of the workforce money that is coming to Maine, 10 percent of it must be spent on apprenticeships.
Fortman believes the County is collaborating well but needs to “toot its own horn” more, she said after the session.
“You’ve got higher [education] working with businesses and identifying needs and addressing them as a group. I think that’s exciting and absolutely necessary in order to be successful,” she said. “But we’ve heard here that Aroostook County has a great quality of life and that there are opportunities here. People need to know about them.”
