TUCSON, Ariz. (13 News) – The latest economic study released by the University of Arizona Economic and Research Center shows that job growth in Pima County is lagging behind the Phoenix area, the state as a whole, and even the nation.
While Phoenix and the state are hovering around 2.2% and the country at 1.7%, Tucson and Pima County are sitting at .09%.
Part of the issue is, the decision made decades ago when Tucson was chosen to be Arizona’s tourist destination and Phoenix was picked to be the business center.
It has played out that way but Tucson has been left at a disadvantage jobs-wise because the service and hospitality industry do not pay as well and generally don’t spill over to fuel the rest of the economy.
Now, the announced merger between the Tucson Metro Chamber and Sun Corridor is meant to better even the balance.
“You know a fist is stronger than five fingers alone,” said Laura Shaw, a senior vice president with Sun Corridor. “That’s really how we’re looking at this merger.”
Tucson was hit hard during the pandemic four years ago as American tourism ground to a halt and the community lost more than 20% of its hospitality jobs. It was a signal that Tucson needs a better diversity of jobs, especially well-paying jobs.
“There are labor issues, technological advances, challenges, and we really, have to as a region, become bold and adapt to and refocus our economic development efforts,” Shaw said.
It becomes more obvious when the price of housing becomes out of reach for the average worker here, where rents often eat up more than half a household’s income and groceries become a struggle.
“So we’re looking at this merger as a way to take everything that’s been happening in the past 20 years, and recently since covid, and all the changes in industry trends and made a decision to come together,” Shaw said.
Sun Corridor focuses more on large companies while the Tucson Metro Chamber represents nearly 1,500 small businesses in the Tucson area. By joining forces, it could be a giant step towards closing the gap in job creation.
“What really changes, is that we’re now having all these conversations amongst each other and be more strategic about how we can build the economy,” said Metro CEO Michael Guymon.
The two entities will not pare down their workforces because of the merger because joining forces will help create new ideas and help seal the deal with companies that are looking for a new place to expand and grow or for local businesses to expand.
“We are able to deliver programming for small businesses that is much stronger than it currently is because we have a larger organization with greater resources,” Guymon said. “So, there are a number of benefits.”
No name for the new organization has been settled on yet and the merger will take place sometime in 2025.
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