Employment

SouthEast Alaska Regional Health Consortium’s new Vintage Park Campus is seen on its opening day of Dec. 19, 2023. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire file photo)

SEARHC raises mimimum base pay for ‘direct-hire’ employees to $25 an hour

Spokesperson says change affects about 16% of employees.

 

The Alaska State Capitol is seen on Thursday morning. (Photo by James Brooks/Alaska Beacon)

Alaska’s working population loss casts long shadow over legislative session

As the Alaska Legislature convenes in Juneau, the state population is on the minds of lawmakers. For the 11th consecutive year, more people moved out… Continue reading

 

An Eaglecrest Ski Area lift operator helps skiers on Dec. 20. A study published earlier this month states the average wage of $13.06 for Eaglecrest lift operators and attendants is 25% below the average at U.S. ski resorts. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire file photo)

Study: Eaglecrest wages effectively 40% below average at U.S. resorts

Higher cost of living cited as significant factor; staff says Juneau’s allure helps attract workers.

 

A worker uses machinery while working on the construction site of Central Council of Tlingit and Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska’s revived Haven House on July 31, 2023. (Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire file photo)

State: ‘Modest’ job growth likely in Southeast in ‘24, but shrinking workforce a long-term concern

Report predicts 1.4% regional growth, with wide variances by industry, compared to 1.7% statewide.

A worker uses machinery while working on the construction site of Central Council of Tlingit and Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska’s revived Haven House on July 31, 2023. (Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire file photo)
A board at the University of Alaska Anchorage Student Union, seen on Nov. 16, 2022, holds notices of employment opportunities. Alaska’s minimum wage is set to rise on Jan. 1 to keep up with inflation, and an initiative campaign is underway to bring about faster increases. (Photo by Yereth Rosen/Alaska Beacon)

Alaska minimum wage increases next year; additional hikes proposed in ballot initiative

Alaska’s minimum wage will increase on Jan. 1, 2024 from $10.85 to $11.73 an hour, in accordance with a law put in place by a… Continue reading

A board at the University of Alaska Anchorage Student Union, seen on Nov. 16, 2022, holds notices of employment opportunities. Alaska’s minimum wage is set to rise on Jan. 1 to keep up with inflation, and an initiative campaign is underway to bring about faster increases. (Photo by Yereth Rosen/Alaska Beacon)
Workers install drywall and other material in a house needing repair in Haines following a landslide in 2020. (Michael S. Lockett / Juneau Empire File)

State job satisfaction study shows homes are fun to design, not build

Drywall workers in Alaska among unhappiest workers in 79 professions, architects the happiest.

Workers install drywall and other material in a house needing repair in Haines following a landslide in 2020. (Michael S. Lockett / Juneau Empire File)
A network of pipelines, seen on Aug. 23, 2018, snakes through a portion of the Greater Prudhoe Bay Unit on Alaska’s North Slope. The oil and gas industry has more impact on Alaska’s economy than any other industry, a new study finds. (Photo by Yereth Rosen/Alaska Beacon)

Oil and gas companies have outsized economic impact on Alaska, says industry study

The oil industry packs a bigger economic punch than any other industry in Alaska, according to study findings presented on Wednesday at an industry conference… Continue reading

A network of pipelines, seen on Aug. 23, 2018, snakes through a portion of the Greater Prudhoe Bay Unit on Alaska’s North Slope. The oil and gas industry has more impact on Alaska’s economy than any other industry, a new study finds. (Photo by Yereth Rosen/Alaska Beacon)
The riverfront in Kotlik, a Yup’ik community of about 600 people, is seen in 2009. Kotlik, on the north end of the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta, is one of the communities in the Kusilvak Census Area. A new study published in the Lancet found that Alaska Natives in the Kusilvak Census Area have the nation’s highest rate of death from intentional self-harm or interpersonal violence. (Photo provided by the Alaska Division of Community and Regional Affairs)

Alaska construction employment statistics show uneven post-pandemic recovery, wage deflation

Employment in Alaska’s construction industry had not yet returned to pre-COVID-19 levels as of the end of 2022, even though the industry was damaged less… Continue reading

The riverfront in Kotlik, a Yup’ik community of about 600 people, is seen in 2009. Kotlik, on the north end of the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta, is one of the communities in the Kusilvak Census Area. A new study published in the Lancet found that Alaska Natives in the Kusilvak Census Area have the nation’s highest rate of death from intentional self-harm or interpersonal violence. (Photo provided by the Alaska Division of Community and Regional Affairs)
This May 2020 photo shows an open sign illuminated on a Juneau business. Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development reports the state has added jobs but has not yet returned to pre-pandemic levels of employment. (Peter Segall / Juneau Empire File)

Alaska gains jobs but doesn’t reach pre-pandemic levels

Numbers still lagged what they were before the pandemic, per state report.

This May 2020 photo shows an open sign illuminated on a Juneau business. Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development reports the state has added jobs but has not yet returned to pre-pandemic levels of employment. (Peter Segall / Juneau Empire File)
A crane sits in the city-owned Aurora Harbor on Nov. 6, there for a project to repair the docks. The construction industry was one of the few in Southeast Alaska which wasn't dramatically impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, according to state economists. (Ben Hohenstatt / Juneau Empire File)

Southeast Alaska’s economic recovery expected to be slow

When will tourists come back?

A crane sits in the city-owned Aurora Harbor on Nov. 6, there for a project to repair the docks. The construction industry was one of the few in Southeast Alaska which wasn't dramatically impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, according to state economists. (Ben Hohenstatt / Juneau Empire File)