Workforce diversity is a competitive advantage in Ramsey County

Diversity is one of Ramsey County’s biggest strengths, and it is reflected in the latest workforce research. A recent webinar exploring five top workforce trends indicates Ramsey County is home to Minnesota’s most diverse population of prime working-age adults – ages 25 to 44. The county also boasts an overall diversity index of 67.4. In the webinar presented by Erin Olson, Senior Director of Strategic Research for RealTime Talent, Olson explained the index refers to a 67.4% chance that two residents picked at random would be from different race or ethnic groups.

“Diversity is our competitive advantage here in Ramsey County,” Olson said. “We are the youngest county on average statewide and have the most diverse population of all Minnesota counties. That translates into the most diverse workforce of any county statewide as well as the most diverse population of young people under the age of 25.”

Within Ramsey County, the diversity index is highest in the city of Saint Paul. Both the city and county’s workforces are more racially and ethnically diverse than the Twin Cities 7-County Metro observed as a whole. For example, 13.5% of employed Saint Paul residents identify as Black and 15.6% as Asian compared to 9.3 and 8.3%, respectively, in the larger metro.

Examining diverse worker representation in career clusters

Workforce data layered across larger occupational clusters, such as health sciences, human services, and manufacturing, continues to show greater diversity within Saint Paul and Ramsey County. Similarly, in each cluster, Ramsey County suburbs also demonstrate greater diversity than the MSP Metro.

“Health science, human services, and manufacturing all have overrepresentations of Black, indigenous, and people of color talent in their workforce, and manufacturing also has a local overrepresentation of Hispanic and Latine talent,” Olson noted. “Although manufacturing is so highly concentrated in suburban Ramsey County, the diversity of that workforce in the suburban manufacturing industry sector is significantly lower than in the city of Saint Paul – even beyond what would be expected based on overall demographics of the population locally.”

Clusters with underrepresentation of Black, indigenous Asian, and American Indian talent include public administration, education, the arts, and finance, despite public administration careers and educational services. When examining the Hispanic and Latine populations, there is an overrepresentation of talent in the manufacturing career cluster, both within Ramsey County and Saint Paul, as compared to the overall workforce participation rate. 

As Ramsey County Workforce Solutions strives to strengthen the county’s workforce, assessing changes in demographics, migration and commuting behaviors is essential for personalizing workforce development and achieving the best results for employers and individual workers while supporting more workplace diversity efforts.

While employment trends across industries continue to bring new challenges and opportunities to Ramsey County, Workforce Solutions can offer assistance to employers and job seekers. Email us at employerservices@co.ramsey.mn.us today! Explore more workforce demographics in Ramsey County here and sign up for the Workforce Innovation Board, Youth Works!, and Job Seeker newsletters to learn more about workforce shifts in Ramsey County.