Availability
Approximately 12,257 Toombs County residents participate in the labor force. Current unemployment at 4.9% (596). Over 4,000 residents commute out of the county for work.
The Georgia Department of Labor defines the Toombs County Employment Area as (8) counties, including Appling, Candler, Emanuel, Jeff Davis, Montgomery, Tattnall and Treutlen Counties. Toombs area unemployment stands at 4.6% (2681) as of June 2021.
The blended labor force makes for a pool workers within various drive times as follows…
•15 minute radius – 7,050 labor force, 485 unemployed, 6.9% unemployment rate
•30 minute radius – 23,525 labor force, 1,080 unemployed, 4.6% unemployment rate
•45 minute radius – 53,121 labor force, 2,291 unemployed, 4.3% unemployment rate
The Toombs County area features a diverse, highly skilled, non-union labor force with strong work ethics.
Toombs County has exceptional technical training to meet the needs of multiple industry sectors. Thanks to our easily accessible technical training options, the Toombs County region produces a robust, talented, and reliable technical workforce.
Southeastern Technical College (STC), Vidalia, provides numerous educational opportunities including associate degrees, diplomas, or technical certificate of credit programs; adult education classes; or non-credit continuing education courses. The institution provides workforce, customized training and basic research to support local industries. STC is also the provider of Georgia QuickStart job training services to businesses.
For more than 40 years, QuickStart has provided customized workforce training free-of-charge to qualified businesses in Georgia. Today, the program is one of the state's key assets for supporting new and expanding industries. QuickStart delivers training in classrooms, mobile labors, or directly on the plant floor.
Other opportunities for attaining higher education include Brewton-Parker College, Mount Vernon; East Georgia State College, Swainsboro; Georgia Southern University, Statesboro; Ogeechee Technical College, Statesboro; and South Georgia State College, Douglas.
The Authority is looking towards the future with a focus on talent retention and workforce development. The Authority and local large employers (Georgia Power, Memorial Health Meadows Hospital, Southern Nuclear - Plant Hatch, Trane Technologies, Dot Foods and Chicken of the Sea) recently contracted with the Carl Vinson Institute of Government (CVIOG) to facilitate development of a local workforce development strategy, the Greater Vidalia® Workforce Development Strategy 2021 . Effective workforce development practices can help provide good jobs for residents, help students transition from education to career, retain talent in the community, reduce poverty and improve community outcomes.
