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[T]he Massachusetts economy is being hampered by a trend that predates COVID: More people are exiting the workforce than are jumping in.

Last month, there were 112,000 fewer people in the labor force -- those with jobs or looking for one -- than at the peak in June 2019, a drop of 2.9 percent.

Driving the decline are retiring baby boomers, the oldest of which are now 77. And looking forward, Massachusetts has relatively fewer young people moving toward working age. Residents under 18 years old make up 21 percent of the population, ranking it near the bottom of all states.

The demographics, combined with little or no growth in the labor force both here and nationally, mean the state's supply of workers could be strained in the years ahead unless immigration increases.

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