THE CASE OF THE VANISHING WORKFORCE

Abstract

The global energy industry finds itself halfway through the first decade of the twenty-first century facing a problem for which it was unprepared: the exodus of skilled and professional workers and a dearth of potential replacement candidates. In the United States, Europe, and Japan, very large numbers of workers are approaching retirement age. The low birth rates that followed the large Baby Boom generation mean that fewer replacement workers are available. More and more, utility operators have come to see the loss of skilled knowledge as a human capital problem that has been described as reaching crisis proportions. City Power, like a growing number of large municipally owned public utilities, finds itself forced to design and implement an entirely new approach to human resource planning. This case identifies some of the aging workforce and population diversity issues shaping utility strategic planning.