Key Stakeholder Perceptions of the Michigan Food and Agricultural Sector Workforce Development System: A Qualitative Study Using Grounded Theory Laura Bogardus Clemson University August 13, 2014

Key Stakeholder Perceptions of the MI Food & Agricultural Sector Workforce Development System Introduction Literature Review Method Results Implications / Future Research

MI Food & Ag Workforce Development System Introduction Global Food Protection Institute, Battle Creek, MI Clemson Comprehensive Examination Component Grounded Theory, Qualitative Study – Preliminary – Part of a Larger Study

MI Food & Ag Workforce Development System Literature Review About the Food & Agriculture Cluster in MI – 2 nd Strongest Industry Cluster: Food & Agriculture – $91.4B Annual Economic Impact, 923,000 Jobs – : 90,000 Food & Ag Jobs (10% increase) – 47% Food Processing; 30% Farming; 22% Wholesale/Retail No Coordinated System for Supplying Workers – Food Processing & Manufacturing; Farm Workers – Domestic, Seasonal, Migrant Workers – High School & Below; Tech Certificate (1 to 2 Yr deg); 4 Yr and up

MI Food & Ag Workforce Development System Method Stakeholder Perceptions – Staffing & Placement, Employer Associations, Unions – Education, Government, Industry, Workers, Foundations Research Plan Developed Proposal Approved by Committee, IRB, GFPI Research Plan Implementation

MI Food & Ag Workforce Development System Method Grounded Theory – Exploratory, Iterative Generative Questions – Your involvement? What’s working? What’s not? What issues need to be addressed? By whom? Why? – List of Organizations, Stakeholders Associations, Unions, Staffing & Placement Agencies 90 Prospective (28 Assoc; 20 Other; 34 Staffing; 8 Union) 45 Contacts – Interview Protocol & Questions – Stakeholder Contact – & Phone 30 Subject matter experts interviewed 10 Assoc; 5 Other; 12 Staffing; 3 Union)

MI Food & Ag Workforce Development System Method Core Concepts Identified 1.Public perceptions of the industry 2.Increasing use of technology in work processes 3.Traditional nature of industry 4.Links between education tiers, industry 5.Domestic, seasonal, migrant farm worker issues

MI Food & Ag Workforce Development System Method / Results Links between Core Concepts and Data 3.Traditional Nature of Industry Low use of Internet job postings, government work supports Frustration with labor regulations High use of local networking to find workers Gender, race, age of farmers, owners 4.Links Between Education Tiers, Industry ONET and SOC codes do not sync with Career Cluster curriculum Enrollment up in higher ed 5.Domestic, Seasonal, Migrant Farm Worker Issues Few staffing agencies Fewer domestic workers and fewer migrant workers Improvements in housing, coordinated efforts to recruit migrants

MI Food & Ag Workforce Development System Method / Results Key Analytic Strategies – Coding, Memoing, Diagrams New Observations, Revisions, More Data Core Concept(s) Identified, Detailed Report combined, sent to Michigan Dept. of Agriculture and Rural Development (MDARD)

MI Food & Ag Workforce Development System Implications / Future Research Further research to validate this limited qualitative study Study best practice examples / innovative solutions – MSU Agriculture Technology Inst. / FFA of Michigan – Apprenticeship Development – FFA / K-12 programs and Industry – Industry Partnerships – New methods for farm worker recruiting and onboarding Reconcile ag industry data and jobs data Develop job posting tool

MI Food & Ag Workforce Development System Implications / Future Research QUESTIONS?