Water utilities face staffing challenges

By Mike Switzer

Published December 12, 2025 at 6:30 AM EST

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Jay Blankenship

Jay Blankenship, director of workforce engagement with Renewable Water Resources (ReWa) in Greenville, SC

One factor contributing to today’s tight labor market is the large number of retiring baby boomers. Our next guest’s organization is also facing this kind of staffing shortage which has led them to launch several new initiatives in an effort to alleviate this situation. Mike Switzer interviews Jay Blankenship, director of workforce engagement with Renewable Water Resources, known as ReWa, in Greenville, SC.

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Mike Switzer

After almost 20 years, Mike Switzer retired from Wells Fargo Securities in 2001 as Senior Vice President/Investment Officer and Certified Portfolio Manager. In 1999, he and his wife, Maggie, purchased and operated for eight years the Baskin Robbins ice cream store on Forest Drive in Columbia. They grew the store from a bottom-tier operation in the Baskin Robbins franchise system to one in the top 5% nationwide within three years, tripling sales along the way. While operating the ice cream store, Mike and Maggie received patents for a portable ice cream sink and fold-down sneezeguard they invented and in 2002 started Magnolia Carts, an ice cream cart manufacturing company, which they sold in 2013.

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