Broward County

As president and CEO of WorkForce One in Broward, Mason Jackson holds a front-row seat on the economy. First, his good news: Mass layoff notices in Broward are down significantly from last year. Temp hiring is up. “The staffing industry is beginning to say, ‘The phones are ringing again,’ ” Jackson says. The bad news: Healthcare employment has softened a bit, and only government is growing. His agency has 60,000 people registered looking for work with the largest single block being construction laborers.

“The staffing industry is beginning to say, ‘The phones are ringing again.’ ” — Mason Jackson, president and CEO, WorkForce One in Broward [Photo: Eileen Escarda]

With one forecast showing unemployment not getting down to 6.5% for three years, the question, says Bob Swindell, interim president and CEO of the Greater Fort Lauderdale Broward Economic Development Alliance, is how to accelerate job growth. Access to capital and permitting delays stand out as obstructions in the way of hiring.

No one is sitting idly by: The alliance this year makes its carefully planned big push to lure corporate and regional headquarters to Broward. Jackson, meanwhile, sees Broward as the epicenter for clearing and rebuilding Haiti. A cluster of wireless companies in Broward shows “great promise,” Swindell says.

But it’s a step at a time for most businesses. Debbie Hanley, owner of KAM Specialties, which supplies specialty metal parts to aerospace companies, was able to keep her head count at around 11 following a 2008 fire that destroyed her business. She hopes to add a couple of employees when her new facility is completed, even though major customers have cut back and some smaller customers have gone out of business. “We’re holding our own,” she says.

People to Watch

» Now in the fifth year of his third turn as director of Broward’s only deep-water port, Port Everglades, Phil Allen is building a container terminal, renovating four cruise terminals, building a bridge and revamping a petroleum yard, creating hundreds of jobs in construction. Cargo volume is off 20%, but spokeswoman Ellen Kennedy says Allen’s sentiment is “let’s just push forward with the master plan.” All told, 932 construction jobs are being created.

Port Everglades, which has several construction projects under way, is home to the two largest cruise ships in the world.

This year also will see the arrival of Royal Caribbean’s Allure of the Seas, which along with Royal’s Oasis of the Seas is the largest cruise ship in the world. Port Everglades built a $75-million terminal last year that will serve as homeport for the two ships, which can accommodate 5,400 passengers each.

» Bergeron Land Development owners Ron M. Bergeron and son J.R. Bergeron, through their Fort Lauderdale-based Bergeron Emergency Services, have been laying out their plan to clear and rebuild Haiti. The firm can carry projects from site-clearing to design and construction. Meanwhile, it has a $100-million contract to widen four miles of I-595 through central Broward that will mean hiring 50 to 60. The company has started building a 15-acre recycling center to handle Broward County construction, demolition and plant debris.

Business to Watch

» Spherion is a bellwether for the employment outlook. The Fort Lauderdale-based staffing company reports that employers are calling for more temps and increasing worker hours, two precursors to full-time job growth. Employers remain cautious about adding workers, but “the employment picture definitely looks brighter in 2010,” says Spherion Staffing Services branch manager Paula Franco.

The company’s monthly survey of Florida workers also finds rising confidence in the economy, the ability to find a job and in the viability of employers.

Who’s Hiring

Tags: Southeast