How big will the Gen Z ‘problem’ be in Charlotte? Here’s what the data says.

CHARLOTTE — Imagine thousands of potential employees vanishing into thin air.

That’s the prospect many metro areas are facing, thanks to the demographic shifts taking place in the American workforce.

Between the relatively small size of Generation Z, declining birth rates and low immigration totals, experts say the tight labor market of the Covid-19 era is likely to stick around for the long term — even if there is a recession.

“This is a difficult time,” said William H. Frey, senior fellow with Brookings Metro at the Brookings Institution. “This is really a time of flux. Even two or three years from now after the pandemic questions get answered, this will still be with us. This slow-growing, diverse young labor force that needs to be attended to.”

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In the nation’s 100 largest metro areas, the size of Gen Z is, on average, about 3.6% smaller than the millennial generation — translating to gaps of at least 10,000 potential employees in 58 of those metros.

In the Charlotte metro, when comparing the number of those ages 10-24, which roughly corresponds with Gen Z, and those ages 25-39, which covers the bulk of millennials, there is a gap of more than 38,500 people. That’s according to an analysis of U.S. Census data by The Business Journals.