CCW Report: Opportunities in Global Commerce – Middle Skill Jobs at LA Basin Air and Sea Ports

Although a substantial proportion of economic activity in Los Angeles Basin will remain disrupted until COVID-19 vaccines are widely distributed, certain sectors of the economy are projected to be a significant source of well-paying, middle-skill jobs through 2024, particularly jobs involved in the global supply chain at the  Los Angeles Basin’s air and sea ports. By completing a year or two of postsecondary education, specialized training, or a transfer program, area residents can enter occupations that are in demand, pay at least a living wage, and do not require a significant investment of time or money.

Community colleges in the region offer noncredit awards, certificates, and associate degrees in many areas that provide the necessary training for the 11 target occupations in port-related transportation industries.

Challenges, Recommendations & Next Steps

Technology will be one of the greatest driving forces of evolution in transportation and warehousing, as it provides the ability to operate at higher levels of efficiency and speed with better safety. Oftentimes this will augment the capabilities of workers and allow them to perform their jobs better; however, we must also be careful to steer community college graduates and potential workforce entrants towards middle-skill and higher-skill occupations (jobs requiring more than a high school education) that will be less susceptible to displacement. Some low-skill jobs in the industry could eventually give way to robotic and full-scale automation, forcing workers to upskill or find employment in new sectors.

Another challenge present in these industries is the high replacement rate that has become common for lower-skilled, blue collar occupations. At the ports, workers employed in jobs such as freight, stock and material movers or stockers and order fillers often do not last long before transferring out of the occupation and searching for new opportunities, leading to a constant demand for labor in these positions. With a shortfall of qualified entrants into the labor market, filling vacancies has often been difficult for employers. In time, automation may be utilized by employers to solve for the high turnover issue, but in the short-term understaffed crews can lead to delays and inefficiency at a time when transportation and warehousing is expanding.

As such, a key recommendation is to engage with industry associations, such as the Pacific Maritime Association (PMA) and labor unions, such as the International Longshore and Warehouse Union or the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (and others), represented at the ports as much as possible in the coming months and years to ensure that modernization is implemented at the San Pedro Bay Ports in a manner that is beneficial for workers and employers, and enhances long-term job security and market competitiveness. Through a collaborative approach, these bodies can work toward a sustainable adoption of automation and technology in the port environment. Strengthening the synergy between industry associations, labor unions, and community colleges can create benefits for all sides, namely a steady supply of workers with the cutting-edge skills needed by the ports, a globally competitive operation with the ability to process cargoes and goods efficiently and effectively, and a clean and green port complex supporting good paying and stable jobs for the region.

Furthermore, as a global hub for international business and trade, the Ports of Los Angeles, Long Beach and LAX will continue to play a dominant role in the global economy.  As the nation’s top-ranking customs district with over $428 billion in total two-way trade with the world and the top California destination for foreign direct investment (FDI) with over 5,113 foreign-owned establishments, Los Angeles will need more workers trained in international business and trade in the coming years. As more international companies continue to explore near-shoring options, community colleges need to equip students with the technical skills to work with international firms.

With the coming modernization, a number of below middle-skill occupations will be at risk, including the ones identified as vulnerable in this report. As a degree of displacement is likely even in the best-case scenarios, retraining and upskilling will be key for community college programs. The introduction of technology has the potential to require and create a diversity of skills and daily task requirements among workers in port-related industries, and the ability to oversee and interact with technology will become essential for success. Training community college students for the ports of the future, which are expected to become more digital, modern, efficient and environmentally conscious than ever before, will ensure there is a steady supply of qualified graduates to fill positions that are increasingly demanding higher levels of proficiency. Existing community college programs can increase their emphasis on these skills, or create new, short-term certificate programs to upskill the existing workforce, and workers displaced by the pandemic.

Providing awareness about employment opportunities is also a critical operation as shortfalls in labor supply currently exist for all four cohorts of the highlighted target occupations.  It is clear that jobs are available and ready to be filled. A concerted effort in marketing the opportunities available in the growing port sector, along with the necessary certification programs or degree paths that provide qualification for these opportunities, could increase the number of entrants into applicable programs in the Los Angeles Basin. Workers who lost their jobs in industries hit hardest by the pandemic could benefit from this information, which could mobilize them to pursue promising career paths that offer stability and a living wage.

Engage with CCW

After clicking the link near the top of this page to read the full report, please explore this website.  CCW works with the community colleges and industry partners, to help establish work-based learning partnerships and pathways, to enable conversations about scale and content of college programs to meet the hiring demand in industry.  In addition the CCW partner portal serves as regional infrastructure to efficiently connect students and employers, so they can share job leads, work-based learning opportunities and resumes, on a Salesforce community platform.

CCW brings LA’s Industry, Talent, and Community Colleges together to be more demand‐driven, industry responsive, future‐forward and adaptive.

Start by asking a question and we are happy to point out ways you can use CCW to your advantage:

Reach out to:   claire.anderson@laedc.org