Norwich — The Connecticut Department of Labor kicked off its annual CT Learns & Works conference on Wednesday morning at Three Rivers Community College, the location for the first of four symposiums across the state.

"The purpose of CT Learns and Works is to bring educators and employers together to share their knowledge about what is needed and is being offered in terms of an educated workforce," CT Learns and Works Conference Chairman Stephen Dombrowski explained in a news release, "and to foster opportunities within a local area or region."

Attendees at Three Rivers included high school guidance counselors and teachers, higher education staff and local business leaders, especially in manufacturing and health care.

The symposium involved a presentation from CTDOL economist Patrick Flaherty, a panel with local employers and a discussion on the roles and responsibilities of the education community.

A recurring theme was that employers struggle to find young workers with the necessary soft skills. Speaking in the panel discussion, Chelsea Groton Bank Vice President Tamela Higgins noted this includes problem-solving, communication and leadership.

The 6 million job openings nationwide are a record high, Flaherty said. He added that employers say it's because they can't find candidates with the necessary skills but he feels many are not willing to raise their wages enough.

While job growth has been "significantly slower" in Connecticut than nationwide, Flaherty said, the employment population is above the national average, reflective of a problem with population growth.

Projections from the Connecticut State Data Center show Norwich as one of the top eight municipalities in the state for population increase from 2015 to 2030. New London, Griswold, Groton, Bozrah and Lyme also are expected to see population increases.

The largest decreases in southeastern Connecticut are expected in Waterford, Stonington and Old Lyme, though none of them made the bottom eight for decreases statewide.

Aside from population, another of Flaherty's concerns is that hospital employment is declining as home-care rises.

"The jobs in the sectors that are growing in health care generally tend to pay less than the jobs that are shrinking," he lamented.

While Flaherty sometimes gets surprised looks when he delineates the largest industries in other parts of the state, they should come as no shock here: gambling, ship- and boat-building, restaurants, elementary and secondary schools, and local government.

The panel following Flaherty's talk included discussion of the challenges millennials face, and the challenges employers face in recruiting and hiring them.

"The loyalty is less in this generation," said Rebecca Durham, interim vice president of patient care services for the East Region of Hartford Healthcare. She explained, "Our millennials are moving along quickly to the next great thing, the next opportunity."

Higgins spoke of her surprise when two summer interns got upset that their internships didn't turn into full-time positions.

"It's a summer internship, and we didn't cloak it any other way," she said. Still, Higgins spoke to the need of clarifying expectations.

Sound Manufacturing President Kelli-Marie Vallieres spoke to the importance of helping math teachers show real-world, manufacturing applications to their students, while Eastern Connecticut Workforce Investment Board COO Mark Hill expressed a desire to see the successful Manufacturing Pipeline Initiative expanded to other industries.

From the state Department of Education, Suzanne Loud talked about the need for soft skills, and the symposium concluded with strategies from Kate Farrar, of the Connecticut Women's Education and Legal Fund, on recruitment and retention of women in STEM fields, or science, technology, engineering and math.

The other CT Learns and Works symposiums will be May 10 at Post University in Waterbury, May 18 at Goodwin College in East Hartford and Sept. 27 at Northwest Community College in Winsted.

e.moser@theday.com