Peter Quigley on labor shortage
From Michigan Business Beat | Mackinac Policy Conference 2025 - Peter Quigley - #MPC25 · · Michigan Business Network
“Number one, for the last six and a half years, [the] shortage of talent... and that's a problem that we're going to have because it's arithmetic. We didn't birth enough kids to replace us guys, right? The demographics are not in our favor.”
On , Peter Quigley, President, Chief Executive Officer & Director at KELLY SERVICES INC -CL A, spoke about labor shortage during Michigan Business Beat | Mackinac Policy Conference 2025 - Peter Quigley - #MPC25 on Michigan Business Network.
About Peter Quigley
Peter Quigley, President and CEO of Kelly, announced his retirement in February 2025, stating he will step down once the board finds a successor. He served as chair of the 2025 Mackinac Policy Conference, where he discussed the ongoing talent shortage, describing it as an "arithmetic" problem due to demographic trends. Quigley has also been a proponent of second-chance hiring, citing company data that employees with criminal records show lower turnover and are "loyal" and "hardworking," and he argued that automatically disqualifying such candidates is not a good practice. Quigley has commented extensively on the labor market and the impact of artificial intelligence. He stated that AI is being introduced in "almost all sectors" and that job postings requiring AI skills have tripled, creating roles like "ChatGPT prompt engineer" that did not exist a year ago. He said AI will reduce routine tasks and increase productivity, but also predicted that jobs such as financial analysts and tax preparers may be replaced. On workforce flexibility, Quigley noted that post-pandemic, employees prioritize flexible arrangements and that companies must focus on the complete employee value proposition, including compensation, career development, and inclusive culture, to retain talent.