Workforce and Employment

Available Workforce

Baltimore County is home to over 423,480 workers in a metropolitan region with a workforce of 1,384,725. This highly interconnected region - where nearly half of employees working in the County live in surrounding jurisdiction and half of County residents work in other jurisdictions - provides a skilled workforce to Baltimore County businesses. Our interconnected metro region enables Baltimore County businesses to attract human resources from the highly educated greater Baltimore/Washington community. The diversity of our County and region influences the diversity of our businesses. As you will see, many different kinds of businesses call Baltimore County home.

Source: Md. Dept. Labor, Licensing and Regulation 2010

Well Educated

• 27,300 bachelor's and 15,600 master's degrees awarded annually in the Baltimore Metropolitan Area
• Over 6,000 bachelor's and master's degrees awarded annually in Baltimore County
• 216,430 or 40 percent of County residents have an associate's degree or beyond (age 25+)
  • 32,434 Associate's Degrees
  • 107,802 Bachelor's Degrees
  • 76,194 Graduate /Professional degrees

Source: Census ACS 2005-2009 5-Year Estimates/MHEC Data Book 2011       

Strength in Business Diversity

One of the keys to Baltimore County's success is its business diversity. Offering an abundance of employment opportunities, industry sectors are balanced, with services representing 70 percent of employment, manufacturing 7.1 percent , and trade, transportation, and utilities 19 percent . Of services, the education and health sector is the largest at 16 percent. Major employers such as AAI, Alpharma-USPD, BD Diagnostic Systems, Severstal North America, Black and Decker world headquarters, GM Powertrain, McCormick & Co., GE Middle River Aircraft Systems, PHH, Procter & Gamble, Toyota Financial Services, and T. Rowe Price, all maintain large scale operations in Baltimore County. In the public sector, headquarters for the Social Security Administration (SSA) and Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) employ more than 16,000 people.

In keeping with national trends, the manufacturing industry continues to contract in terms of employment, even as the average manufacturing wages in the County increase, reflecting the loss of low-end manufacturing jobs. Baltimore County continues to maintain a solid regional manufacturing base, traditionally centralized in the eastern, and southwestern and north central areas of the County. Industry initiatives focus on retraining and upgrading of skill levels and improving capability and product linkages across the manufacturing spectrum. Important sectors of the County's manufacturing employment are biotechnology, with companies such as BD Diagnostic Systems and Pharmaceutics International, and defense/high technology with companies such as Lockheed Martin, AAI, and GE Middle River Aircraft Systems.

Wages By Place of Work 2010

Note: Percentages may not total 100% due to rounding. Maryland Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation, Division of Workforce Development, 2010

Employment by Industry (with percent of total employed)

Source: “Employment and Payrolls,” 2001 and 2010 Annual Averages, Maryland Dept. of Labor, Licensing and Regulation.
U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employees on Nonfarm Payrolls by Industry. 2001 and 2010.

Employment Growth

Baltimore County's employment base has grown by more than 14,513 net new jobs from 2002 through 2008. Baltimore County has surpassed Baltimore City as the second largest job center in the state. Baltimore County workers are transitioning well into the new economy, with an unemployment rate of 7.4 percent in 2009. Baltimore County remains consistently below the national average for unemployment. 

Employment and Unemployment by Place of Residence (2011)

Sources: Maryland Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation 2011 averages
Bureau of Labor Statistics: Current Population Survey. May, 2012

Workforce Training

Below is a sampling of programs that both Baltimore County and Maryland can offer businesses. For further information and a complete listing of programs, view the Contact links below.

Baltimore County Department of Economic Development

Building Business/Educational Partnerships
Locating and training a qualified workforce has become the number one issue for business in this economy. Recognizing the importance of this issue, the Department of Economic Development has dedicated a staff position to work with businesses, educational and training institutions, and other County agencies to identify the current and future workforce needs of employers in Baltimore County. The Department works with many partners to develop new training programs, effectively market existing programs and encourage productive links between business and education. These partners include the Office of Workforce Development (OWD), the Baltimore County Public Schools, the Community College of Baltimore County (CCBC), the County Executive’s Advisory Board on Higher Education, the Maryland Business Roundtable for Education and local colleges and universities.

Identifying Business Needs
The Department can assist businesses in identifying their training and educational needs, and can refer companies to local resources for the training. Department staff also convenes periodic focus groups in different industry sectors to gather information on the specific employment needs of those industries. Another goal of the workforce development effort is to link businesses with schools and universities to encourage collaboration and build relationships resulting in local graduates remaining in Baltimore to work for local companies.

Developing New Programs
The Department assists local schools and training institutions in identifying new programs that can be developed to meet the specific needs of industry in this region. Past efforts included the establishment of an Industrial Maintenance Technology Program at Sollers Point/Southeastern Technical High School and the development and refinement of programs to train workers for the interactive technology industry in the region at CCBC, UB, and UMBC. The Department of Economic Development also works closely with training institutions to devise effective methods of marketing under-subscribed training programs in critical needs industries.

Workforce Development

The Workforce Development Business Services unit actively develops customized business solutions in response to shifting labor market demands.

New and Expanding Business

• Assistance with Recruiting a Skilled Workplace
  Recruiting can be a costly and time-consuming endeavor. The OWD saves you time and money by matching your employment needs with qualified employees. Workforce Development works with a diverse candidate pool. Candidates possess skills that range from professional trades to high-level executives and have experience in a vast array of industries.
  
  Services are tailored according to your business needs. Initiatives range from job postings to customized recruitments that may include advertising, administrative support, resume screening, candidate pre-screening, applicant basic skills assessment and coordinated events.

• Workplace Training and Education
  Workplace training is a critical component of business success and a valuable retention tool. In many instances, OWD invests funding to offset the extraordinary costs of training new employees and upgrading worker skills.
  
  Customized and on-the-job training project funds are based on availability. Projects are subject to a review of training curriculum and analysis of projected impact on competitive position, increased productivity, gains in market share and profitability.

• Career Development
  Workforce Development can promote your company's internships and on-the-job training opportunities to motivated candidates through our Workforce Development Resource Centers. Job seeker career development is supported for training opportunities in fields relevant to today's labor market demands. Our candidates have transferable skills and industry specific training that will prove to be an asset to your organization.

Business Downsizing

Downsizing your workforce is an unfortunate situation for both the business and affected employees. With Workforce Development as a key partner on the Maryland Dislocated Worker Unit Rapid Response Team, your organization has access to an excellent resource.

• Workforce Development is prepared to effectively assist your business and provide dislocated workers with information about outplacement, reemployment and skills enhancement services.
• Outplacement services are customized to each company's circumstances and may include:

On-site Information Sessions and Resources

• Professional seminars with a focus on job search techniques, resume development, and interview skills
• Career counseling for individuals and groups
• Skills enhancement information and funding assistance
• Industry specific job matching and recruitment initiatives

Maryland Department of Business and Economic Development

• Maryland Industrial Training Partnership (MITP)
  The Maryland Industrial Training Program provides grants to companies for the development and training of new employees. Firms locating or expanding in Maryland are eligible. MITP reimburses companies for eligible costs of training programs that are customized to the work process. The level of funding provided is negotiated between the company and the Maryland Department of Business and Economic Development, with specific cost sharing items delineated in a training grant agreement. Training programs are designed according to the company’s specifications. The training may be conducted by vendors or by company staff. The company determines the location of the training.
  
  Maryland’s training professionals can also introduce grant recipients to a network of public and private resources for assistance in determining staffing and training needs, developing training plans, and procuring effective and cost efficient training.

• Partnership for Workforce Quality (PWQ)
  The PWQ provides matching skill upgrade training grants and support services targeted to improve the competitive position of small and mid-sized manufacturing and technology companies.  PWQ grants are used to increase the skills of existing workers for new technologies and production processes, improve employee productivity and increase industry employment stability.  PWQ matching grants are made directly to companies as well as through a number of manufacturing, software industry and ISO 9000 consortia programs working in cooperation with DBED.

Contacts

• Maryland Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation:410-230-6001
• Baltimore County Workforce Development Council: 410-887-2450
• Baltimore County Department of Economic Development: 410-887-2450
• Baltimore County Office of Workforce Development: 410-887-2450
• CCBC Workforce Development: 410-869-0296
• Maryland Business Roundtable for Education: 410-727-0448

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Revised May 18, 2012

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