Workforce Adviser Says Labor Shortages Will Outlast Hiring Cycles

Employers that treat worker shortages as a passing phase of the hiring cycle are misreading a long-term decline in the supply of labor, Jerry Rubin said in an interview published by Providence Business News on October 13, 2026.

Rubin, a fellow with the Eastern Bank Foundation and a senior adviser to Harvard's workforce research project, has worked in workforce development for more than 40 years and co-wrote "Help Wanted: How to Find and Keep Talent in a Forever-Tight Labor Market."

He pointed to annual population growth of 0.3%, the weakest since the 1960s, a labor force participation rate of 61.4% compared with 67.3% in the early 2000s, and projected labor force growth of 0.4% a year, against 2.6% in the 1970s.

Rather than waiting for ideal applicants, Rubin said companies should recruit from what he called "untapped talent" — including immigrants, people of color and people with disabilities — by working with community groups and rewriting screening practices that filter candidates out.

He also urged employers to improve job quality through pay, benefits, gain sharing, training, career paths and employee ownership. Small companies can act without large budgets, he said, because owners can ask workers directly what they need and test changes gradually.

This story was first reported by Providence Business News.