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Manufacturing slips to second-largest employer in Hutchinson as officials warn of worker shortages
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Summary
Economic development director Miles Sebold said manufacturing employment has declined from about a third of local jobs in 2019 to roughly a quarter today, that Hutchinson now ranks behind education and health services, and that McLeod County exports about 5,200 workers each workday amid broad workforce shortages.
Miles Sebold, economic development director for the city of Hutchinson, said manufacturing has declined from its long-standing position as the city's top employer and now ranks second behind education and health services, creating persistent hiring challenges for area manufacturers and other sectors.
"Just in the last few months, manufacturing has dropped off...it used to be the number 1 biggest employer in Hutchinson...and now it's not. Now it's number 2," Sebold said, estimating roughly 1,800 local manufacturing jobs. He said manufacturing still accounts for about "24 and a half percent" of jobs in Hutchinson versus about 10.7% for Minnesota and about 9.7% nationally.
Sebold attributed a large share of the local decline to long-term downsizing at major employers. He cited Hutchinson Technology — which he said employed about 3,800 people on its campus in the 1990s and now employs fewer than 100 — and the disappearance of Hutchinson Manufacturing as drivers of the change.
The local labor force has remained largely flat, Sebold said. "Since 2010, we've gained about 200 workers in Hutchinson," he said, adding that the town's slow labor growth and the retirement of baby-boom cohorts have produced a sustained shortage of workers. "For every 90 workers that we have in Hutchinson, we have a 100 jobs open," he said.
Sebold also described commuting patterns in McLeod County: about 7,400 people live and work in the county, roughly 6,300 workers commute in (including to employers such as 3M), and about 8,500 county residents commute out. "On a net basis, we're exporting about 5,200 workers every workday," he said, with many commuting to western Twin Cities suburbs.
He warned of downstream effects on schools and local budgets: comparing 2000 and 2024 population pyramids, Sebold said fewer children are entering local schools and estimated that losing 824 students would represent more than $8,000,000 in lost state funding at roughly $10,000 per pupil.
Sebold emphasized manufacturing's outsized wage role locally — "the average weekly wage in the manufacturing sector is about $1,575 a week" — and argued that creating high-paying manufacturing jobs remains central to sustaining retail and service demand in Hutchinson. He listed top local challenges as workforce shortages, childcare shortages and housing shortages that together constrain hiring and retention.
The presentation included statistical comparisons and demographic charts; Sebold said some declines trace to company relocations overseas and pandemic-era retirements. No formal decisions or votes were recorded in the episode; Sebold said upcoming segments will address childcare and housing in more detail.
