This construction worker was building a home in Niskayuna last summer.
ALBANY - Inflation is across the board and it’s here to stay, according to a recent poll of upstate business executives by the Siena College Research Institute in cooperation with the New York State Business Council.
Among those queried, 36 percent said they planned to raise prices this year, according to the poll, which was discussed Tuesday during a Siena/Business Council webinar.
“That’s double the number we have seen in any of the other years,’’ said Research Institute Director Don Levy.
This is the 15th annual Business Leader Study conducted by Siena.
The Research Institute interviewed 611 CEOs of upstate companies from Nov. 10 to Feb. 11.
That included leaders from the service, manufacturing, engineering and construction, retail, wholesale/distribution, food and beverage sectors.
The survey took place before the invasion of Ukraine, as the nation and world appeared to be emerging from the worst of the pandemic and attendant business shutdowns.
And that has brought its own challenges, including the struggle in almost all sectors to hire and retain enough employees.
“The ‘Help Wanted’ signs are out,” Levy said, regarding findings that 78 percent of respondents have trouble recruiting and 88 percent are raising pay in order to get and keep enough workers.
Moreover, some sectors, such as manufacturing or construction, just aren’t seeing enough young people in the job pipeline to quickly fill the openings they have.
“More than likely we’re stealing them from another manufacturer,” Dave McLaughlin, plant manager at Ravena’s LaFargeHolcim cement facility.
“This survey shows employers still see challenges ahead, especially concerning workforce needs," said Heather Briccetti, the Business Council’s president & CEO.
Business leaders also repeated the longstanding litany of complaints about doing business in New York, with its heavy regulations and high taxes -- along with some tacit critiques of the numerous government efforts to help.
"Give me a creative welder, or good skilled carpenter, or a plumber, or an electrician and I can do the kinds of things that put us in a global marketplace faster than all of the educational processes or doctoral degrees that you could ever possibly, that you could hand out,” said one survey respondent.
"The only advantage of doing business in New York State would be because we have a semi-educated workforce. Our school systems are pretty good,” said another who is in the wholesale industry.
Many of the participants have seen the pandemic increase demand for their product or service and a third expect to emerge from the pandemic stronger than before.
Rick Karlin covers the environment and energy development for the Times Union. Has previously covered education and state government and wrote about natural resources and state government in Colorado and Maine. You can reach him at rkarlin@timesunion.com or 518-454-5758.