Rural towns face public-sector worker shortages that will only increase; some residents are doing the work of many

To fill service gaps, some older rural residents have
multiple jobs. (Adobe Stock photo)

Small towns across the United States are short on people, money and a younger workforce, which leaves many older rural residents doing the work of two or three people. When older residents retire, rural communities are hard-pressed to "find and afford" new workers for a range of public-sector positions, reports Jon Kamp of The Wall Street Journal. "The challenge. . . faces small governments scattered around the U.S., and often leaves those still there to pick up the slack."

The rural labor conundrum affects states as big as Texas and as small as Maine. "In Texas, roughly two-thirds of cities with 3,000 to 5,000 residents are missing a finance director. . . . Other city employees who might not have financial-management experience often end up filling in, said Bennett Sandlin, the Texas Municipal League's director," Kamp writes. "Cities [may then] go without audits, raising the chances of uncorrected bookkeeping errors, he said." In tiny Ashland, Maine, one 65-year-old resident "runs the town’s sports programs, drives Little Leaguers to away games, cleans the town office, takes seniors out for meals. . ."

Since rural populations tend to be older, the pressure to attract and keep younger residents will only increase as baby boomer employees age into retirement. "Local officials and government associations in many states say they face a persistent challenge to find qualified employees who want to work in a small town’s office," Kamp explains. "Small-town officials say they face particular hurdles when it comes to offering competitive salaries to compete for workers."

Rural labor shortages can mean loads of work for older residents still wanting to work, but it can also mean services close or consolidate. "Limestone, Maine, is a small town abutting Canada’s New Brunswick border, closed its ambulance service many years ago, contracting it out to the nearby city of Caribou for less money. Last year, the police department closed," Kamp reports. "Limestone's interim town manager, Alan Mulherin, said that without police regularly nearby, there is more speeding and drug activity." Maine state and county police now answer calls in Limestone.