Marking the latest push to address a shortage of available workers in Eastern Iowa, Cedar Rapids officials are preparing to unveil a new workforce recruitment initiative in the coming weeks. In an interview with the CBJ following a developer and contractor luncheon hosted by the Cedar Rapids Metro Economic Alliance Tuesday at the DoubleTree convention […]
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Marking the latest push to address a shortage of available workers in Eastern Iowa, Cedar Rapids officials are preparing to unveil a new workforce recruitment initiative in the coming weeks.
In an interview with the CBJ following a developer and contractor luncheon hosted by the Cedar Rapids Metro Economic Alliance Tuesday at the DoubleTree convention complex, Cedar Rapids Mayor Tiffany O’Donnell said the new program, which she termed a “growth initiative,” will be launched by the end of June.
The workforce recruitment program will involve collaboration with several area mayors, Ms. O’Donnell said, and will comprise a new campaign designed to bring new workers to the Cedar Rapids area.
While declining to provide additional details, Ms. O’Donnell said the new initiative would involve expanding on “some of the work that the state is already doing around workforce development, but drilling it down to our metro area.”
In remarks to the group of about 240 attendees, Ms. O’Donnell highlighted a number of development initiatives in the Cedar Rapids area, both from existing companies and newcomers, including $100 million-plus projects for BAE Systems, Sub-Zero and FedEx, which have brought hundreds of jobs to the community.
“As you know, Cedar Rapids is the driver of this regional economy,” Ms. O’Donnell said. “We take that role very seriously and are committed to living up to that expectation by putting more talent and resources on the plate.”
She also highlighted one of the challenges such growth brings – the need for more workers.
“We cannot talk about our business development growth without talking about the people that we need for all those jobs,” she said. “So while we attract employers, we must simultaneously talk about attracting and retaining employees as well, as Cedar Rapids becomes an increasingly desirable place for businesses to locate, our constrained labor market can be a limiting factor, and we are acutely aware of that.”
Other significant development projects under way, including the Greenway project, the Lightline project, and multi-use developments such as Loftus Lumber, First and First West and the Parkway West housing development at Westdale Town Center, will improve the city’s quality of life as well as helping to meet the city’s ever-growing housing demand, Ms. O’Donnell said.
After the meeting, Ms. O’Donnell said she believes the city’s recent growth can be sustained with continued cooperative efforts between the public and private sectors.
“I keep thinking that eventually it will slow down,” she said. “We've not seen it yet. And I think that's a real credit to the city in terms of our financial health. I'm extremely optimistic because we have such a great story to tell. And at the end of the day, affordability is everything. I hope we can continue to tell that story about being affordable, that not only can you make a living wage here, but we're also going to give you a quality of life, and you're going to be able to have an affordable house.”