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Kentucky Trails The Nation In Growth Rate Of Jobs, Population And Wages

Timothy D. Easley
/
AP
Workers assemble Ford trucks at the Ford Kentucky Truck Plant, Friday, Oct. 27, 2017, in Louisville. The state has been adding a substantial number of manufacturing jobs, especially in the automotive sector.

Although the Bluegrass State is outperforming some of its neighbors, Kentucky trails the nation in the growth rate of jobs, population and wages.

A new report called "A Citizen's Guide to Kentucky’s Economy since the Recession," shows the state added 180,000 jobs since 2009. That's a 10 percent increase in job growth compared to the national increase of about 13 percent.

Kentucky ranks 47th in the nation in personal income, with the state average at $39,000. That compares to the national per capita income of $50,000. Connecticut tops the list of personal income at $70,000, followed closely by Massachusetts at $66,000.

Professor Emeritus of Economics at the University of Louisville Paul Coomes prepared the report for the Kentucky Chamber of Commerce. He says some regions of the state have been showing steady progress in several economic indicators.

"We continue to see the strongest growth down the Interstate 65 and 75 corridors," he says. "So Northern Kentucky, Louisville, Lexington, Bowling Green, Richmond, Somerset. Those are the areas that have seen the strongest job growth, the population growth, and the highest pay per job."

Overall, Coomes says Kentucky outperformed Illinois, Missouri, Ohio and West Virginia in those categories.

However, Indiana and Tennessee beat Kentucky in those economic indicators.

Coomes says Kentucky is in the breadbasket of America, and that means it has different types of jobs, and lower salaries, than urban regions.

"If you look at the states that are the highest in per capita income, these are not manufacturing places, these are places that have major corporate headquarters," he says. "Tons of professional jobs where people are required to have graduate education."

While Kentucky has been adding a substantial number of manufacturing jobs, especially in the automotive sector, Coomes says manufacturing has become only about 10 percent of jobs nationally.

The Bluegrass State outperformed only New Mexico, West Virginia and Mississippi in per capita income. 

This story comes from member station WKYU. For more stories like this, visit wkyufm.org now

Rhonda Miller began as reporter and host for All Things Considered on WKU Public Radio in 2015. She has worked as Gulf Coast reporter for Mississippi Public Broadcasting, where she won Associated Press, Edward R. Murrow and Green Eyeshade awards for stories on dead sea turtles, health and legal issues arising from the 2010 BP oil spill and homeless veterans. She has worked at Rhode Island Public Radio, as an intern at WVTF Public Radio in Roanoke, Virginia, and at the South Florida Sun-Sentinel and Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Rhonda’s freelance work called Writing Into Sound includes stories for Voice of America, WSHU Public Radio in Fairfield, Conn., NPR and AARP Prime Time Radio. She has a master’s degree in media studies from Rhode Island College and a bachelor’s degree in journalism from Boston University. Rhonda enjoys quiet water kayaking, riding her bicycle and folk music. She was a volunteer DJ for Root-N-Branch at WUMD community radio in Dartmouth, Mass.