Where is America’s workforce?

This question has popped up on many occasions over the past few years. According to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the number of Americans participating in the workforce lags below levels prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. Nonetheless, plenty of young Americans are transitioning into the workforce every year. Pew Research reports that, as of 2021, almost forty percent of Americans aged twenty-five or older have a bachelor’s degree, with women more likely than men to graduate from college.

Nonetheless, America’s workforce has shrunk and employers are frequently short-staffed.

Where is America’s workforce? That’s a BIG question, and it’ll take professional researchers and economists time to hash that out. I’m no professional researcher or economist. I took this question and stopped short of going down a rabbit trail of no return. Reframing the question, I sought to learn more about trends for Iowa’s prosecutors. I asked what prosecuting attorney offices across Iowa have been contemplating for several years: where are Iowa’s prosecutors?

Prosecuting attorney offices in Iowa have been increasingly challenged in recruiting and retaining prosecutors. It’s a challenge in Iowa’s big cities, and some rural counties have struggled to find someone willing to step into the elected County Attorney position. Considering the number of college graduates and law students, the pool of prospects is wide and deep. Why are prosecuting attorney offices in Iowa struggling with staffing? Sure, we have a demanding high-stakes job, but we aren’t dodging asteroids on our commute to work like Han Solo or flying covert missions into enemy territory like Maverick.

Statistics published by the American Bar Association show that over one hundred sixteen thousand students are pursuing a law degree. Prosecuting attorney offices provide excellent benefits and daily opportunities for law school graduates to put their newly obtained Juris Doctors to the test in court. We should be driving back applicants with a stick, but we’re not. So what gives?

I wanted to know more. I read books by authors like Adam Grant, Annie Duke, and Daniel Pink. I talked with colleagues. I listened to staff. I reflected. I prayed. I did research.

The National District Attorney Association (NDAA) published a survey on prosecutor retention in 2024. The NDAA determined that, while eighty one percent of Iowa’s prosecutors enjoy being a prosecutor, forty seven percent had considered leaving their jobs within the past month. Ouch! Better pay, high caseloads, and the impact of the demands of the job were cited as the primary motivating factors for leaving. On the flip side, the opportunity to do justice was the primary reason Iowa’s prosecutors choose to stay in their respective positions.

For prosecutors, doing justice allows us to advocate passionately on behalf of crime victims. It enables us to seek treatment and restorative options for offenders. It lets us save a child from an abusive home. Being a prosecutor allows us to make our home community a better place to live, work, and learn. It’s a one-of-a-kind opportunity to take the broken pieces in someone’s life and help put those pieces together with the hope of crafting something beautiful.

That’s a powerful thing.

After seeking to know more, I also experimented. I wanted to see for myself…what was motivating for prosecutors and aspiring prosecutors? What fostered a higher class of workplace community? I experimented and evaluated the positives and negatives of my experiments.

Fortunately I have a very understanding staff with a great sense of humor. Armed with a jumbo pack of scratch-and-sniff stickers, I hand out a few sticker awards every week in recognition of the hard work of staff members. The positives include: the stickers are fun and demonstrate that the efforts and contributions of everyone are seen. The negatives include: we discovered that there actually is such a thing as a scratch-and-sniff hot dog scented sticker.

I make a point to monitor staff members’ progress toward career goals and well-being. We formed teams to enhance camaraderie and collaboration. We hit the pause button on work once in a while to potluck and be present with one another. We help each other out with trials, research, and talk through the multitude of challenges of criminal prosecutions. My incredibly supportive wife green-lighted my request to purchase a couch and give it to the office. Not long after its arrival, the couch was adorned in Squishmallows. It’s not unusual to find someone sitting on the couch after a hard-fought trial or a long hearing.

If doing justice for the community is Reason Number One why prosecutors continue being prosecutors, Reason Number Two needs to become that the workplace culture is second to none. When it comes to recruitment and retention, who wouldn’t want to be part of that?

These aren’t overnight fixes. Recruitment persists as a challenge. There are plenty of folks who don’t like prosecutors. The hours of the job are still long. The stakes continue to be high. The demands remain immense, but we’ve built a culture that is as passionate about pursuing justice the right way as it is about supporting one another.

That’s a powerful thing too.

Where is America’s workforce? I don’t have an answer to that question, but take what I’ve learned and put it to use. I’m certain you care about your work, family, and where you volunteer. You’re giving your time, talents, and energy for a purpose. Chances are you are also driven by the pursuit of excellence. Odds are that you’re workplace is challenged with recruitment and retention too. It’s time to think differently about it. This is an opportunity to build up the team that’s around you every day. The people clocking in with you Monday through Friday are smart, talented, and capable of achieving more if you pursue excellence together in the right way. Be intentional. Hang on to what works. Learn the lessons from what doesn’t. Let the culture and the product speak for itself.

Try something new to tap into what makes your coworkers, your staff, and your colleagues tick. Set a goal and pursue it together. Take a field trip to think again about what you do and how you do it. Tinker with your culture to enhance communication and collaboration. Ensure that the contributions of those around you are seen. If you need help, I’d be willing to share some extra scratch-and-sniff hot dog scented stickers to get you started.

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Jordan Gaffney is the Marshall County Attorney.