Hancock County’s location places it in proximity to large labor pool

March 28, 2016

Hancock County’s central location, between the Gulfport-Biloxi and New Orleans Metropolitan Statistical Areas, places it in proximity to a large labor pool that is available to new and expanding industries.   

Approximately 300,000 of these workers live within a 25-minute drive to Port Bienville Industrial Park, and more than 650,000 workers live within a 45-minute commute.  

A 2014 labor pool assessment by The Pathfinders examined the area’s workforce quality, availability, costs, experience and skills that a new or expanding employer can expect in the Hancock County region. The Pathfinders study finds that Hancock County is an excellent source for meeting an industry’s workforce needs.

Among its key findings:

• The Hancock County labor shed has a household population of approximately 1,401,500; a civilian labor force of approximately 603,800; and a pool of approximately 30,600 unemployed persons actively seeking work. 
• A new or expanding employer will be able to attract employees from an additional pool of about 111,800 underemployed workers. 
• The median pay rate of the underemployed workers in the labor shed is $19.50 per hour, and their median desired pay rate is $21.30 per hour. 
• Underemployed workers are willing to commute an average of 30 miles to a new job, in contrast to their current average commute of 24 miles. 
• 37 percent of the underemployed and 12 percent of unemployed who are actively seeking work have bachelor degrees or higher. 
• The median desired pay rate of the unemployed workers who are actively seeking work is $12 per hour. 
• Approximately 16,200 unemployed individuals in the labor shed who are not actively seeking work would consider re-entering the workforce. 
• In total, the Hancock County area has approximately 158,600 available workers for new or expanding businesses.

The study found that of the 111,800 underemployed workers, one-third have  experience in information technology with an average of 10 years experience working in that field. That finding shows the impact of NASA’s Stennis Space Center on Hancock County’s workforce. The center is home to numerous government agencies as well as some of the nation’s top aerospace companies, including SpaceX, Aerojet Rocketdyne, Lockheed Martin and Rolls-Royce North America.

The large and varied workforce on the Mississippi Coast, alone, supports  20,000 manufacturing jobs, 23,000 military-related jobs, 4,400 aerospace related jobs, 3,200 welding jobs and 1,300 manufacturing/aircraft maintenance and rehab organization (MRO) jobs.  Career tech programs at the high school and community college levels are offered in support of all of these occupations, while three major universities have a large presence in Hancock County and serve those who wish to pursue advanced degrees in support of local industry needs.  

The Mississippi Gulf Coast and New Orleans MSA provide a wealth of support to industries, not only in existing jobs but also in recruitment, screening and customized training.  For more information on how Hancock County can be of service to your industry, please contact Janel Carothers, Development Officer, at jcarothers@portairspace.com.