A 2018 EDC reports that companies across a variety of industries have many jobs but are having difficulty finding skilled workers. Additionally, one fifth of the advanced manufacturing jobs in New York State are on Long Island. In the Brentwood Hauppauge area, pharmaceutical manufacturing has been the largest job generator in the region adding nearly 1,200 jobs over the last six years. Employment in the life sciences accounts for 27.7% of the state’s total employment in that sector, and 3.1% job growth in that sector between 2011 and 2017 has far outpaced the state. Pharmaceutical manufacturing, a major player in the life sciences pipeline, has added the most jobs in this cluster. Jobs pay above the regional average and total wages increased 10.7% since 2011.
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics there are significant current and prospective STEAM related workforce opportunities available to youth from a national perspective.
Employment by Major Occupational Group, 2018 and Projected 2028
From a regional perspective, Long Island is among the national leaders in STEAM related workforce opportunities, both in the short- and long-term. In the short-term, the workforce in the Long Island region was set to grow 2.6% (35,900) from the years 2016-2018, the most recent data available from the New York State Department of Labor. As part of this broad landscape, professional, scientific, and technical services were expected to grow 2.5% (2,010) in that timeframe. That 2.5% growth is higher than 68% of all other industries (26/82) in the region (https://www.labor.ny.gov/stats/lsproj.shtm). In the long-term, the workforce in the Long Island region is set to grow 12.3% (176,440) from the years 2016-2026. As part of this broad landscape, professional, scientific, and technical services are expected to grow 13.2% (10,700) in that timeframe. That represents a 528% increase (2.5% growth in comparison to 13.2% growth) in STEAM related industrial growth in the Long Island region over the next ten years, as compared to the previous two years.
-Rebecca Grella, Ph.D.
