Income and Work

February 20, 2014 by Sean O'Leary
Income Inequality Continues to Grow in West Virginia

A new report from the Economic Analysis and Research Network takes a deep look at income inequality, by focusing on how the top 1 percent in each state have fared over 1917–2011. The report finds that not only is income inequality on the rise nationally, but each of the 50 states has experienced growing income inequality…

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November 21, 2013 by Ted Boettner
Exaggerating the Employment Impacts of Shale Drilling: How and Why

Over the last five years, firms with an economic interest in the expansion of drilling in the Marcellus and Utica shale formations — and their allies, supporters, and trade associations — have used a variety of tools and techniques to exaggerate the employment impacts of shale drilling. These strategies have ranged from the use of…

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October 31, 2013 by Ted Boettner
Bigger Middle Class Can Push Job Growth

According to a relatively new report from the WVU Bureau of Business & Economic Research, the Mountain State is predicted to see average annual job growth of just one percent over the next five years. While many may see this as positive news for the state - especially given the recent economic recession and austerity at the…

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October 7, 2013 by Sean O'Leary
260,000 Workers in West Virginia Need Better Skills and Wages

Unlike in the past, in today's economy, higher education is very important to finding a good paying job. Workers with higher levels of education have higher wages and lower unemployment rates, as do the states with more workers with higher education. One strategy to help low-income and long-term unemployed workers is through the creation of…

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October 3, 2013 by Sean O'Leary
The State of Women in West Virginia

Last month, we released our State of Working West Virginia report, which looked at how workers in West Virginia are faring. Taking another perspective, the Center for American Progress released its State of Women in America report last week, which analyzes how women are faring in all 50 states. The report measures women's well-being in…

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October 2, 2013 by Sean O'Leary
Giving West Virginia’s Workers a Raise: Increasing the State Minimum Wage

  On April 14, 2013, the West Virginia House adopted HCR 107, expressing support for President Obama’s proposal to increase the minimum wage to $9.00 an hour and index it to inflation, in recognition of the decreasing value of the minimum wage and the idea that no one who works full-time should have to live…

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September 10, 2013 by Sean O'Leary
How Much Should You Be Making?

Over Labor Day weekend, the Economic Policy Institute released a handy tool, based on their inequality.is project, that shows you how much you would be making today, if wages had kept up with productivity over that last three decades. After WWII, wages and productivity grew hand in hand. As workers produced more, they earned more.…

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August 31, 2013 by Sean O'Leary, Ted Boettner
State of Working West Virginia 2013: From Weirton Steel to Wal-Mart

This edition of The State of Working West Virginia is the sixth of its kind. Each year since 2008 this report has examined the numbers and trends that tell the story of how the people who keep our state moving are faring. While each year’s report has a slightly different focus, one constant theme is the need to…

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July 5, 2013 by Ted Boettner
Mining Jobs At Highest Point in Over Two Decades

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics establishment survey, mining jobs are at a two-decade high in in the Mountain State.  The chart below finds that the number of jobs in "Mining & Logging" in West Virginia was 36,200 in May 2013. This was higher than at any time over the last 23 years.…

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