Healthcare Jobs In Floyd County Continue To Grow, Housing Availability Still An Issue
While healthcare continues to dominate the job market in Floyd County, housing also continues to be a stumbling block in attracting and retaining workers.
“Healthcare employees are highly in demand in Rome and Floyd County,” Georgia Power data scientist Mike Mainzer said. “They are easily the most posted jobs on the employment websites.”
Rome’s two major hospitals act as hubs for numerous other businesses, such as senior care facilities, that dominate job demand in Rome and Floyd County.
According to the Georgia Department of Labor, healthcare jobs in Floyd County officially increased by 4.9%, however according to Mainzer, the actual number is much higher because many nursing jobs are filled using temporary worker employment agencies, which skew the numbers.
Mainzer and Georgia Power Regional Economic Development Manager Tamara Brock spoke during the combined authority’s strategic planning session which is designed to help the authorities look forward and review employment, housing and economic trends.
Housing availability continues to be a problem in Floyd County, but there is growth on the horizon according to Rome-Floyd County Development Authority Chairman of the Board of Directors Jimmy Byars.
“Rome is starting to see a lot more development by the big, national real estate developers,” Byars said. “Companies like Smith Douglas Homes and D.R. Horton is coming to Floyd more and more.”
However, the jobs generated by these construction companies are unlikely to move the needle in terms of job growth.
“They use their own workers that they move around the region,” Rome Mayor Craig McDaniel said. “And they don’t buy their materials locally, but obviously we need housing.”
Stats presented by Mainzer showed that nearly equal amounts, approximately 20,000, come into Floyd County work from neighboring counties and a nearly equal amount leave the county to work elsewhere.
Part of the reason is housing availability, he said.
We’re seeing the availability of homes increasing, Byars said but Floyd hasn’t caught up to areas like Bartow County.
According to the Georgia Multiple Listing Service, there were 77 homes sold in December 2024 versus 88 homes the previous year. However, the big change over the past year is there are 326 homes in December 2024 versus 217 homes listed in December 2023, an increase of 50.2%.