Income and Work

June 27, 2013 by Sean O'Leary
County by County Unemployment Rates in the Mountain State

Below is a map of county unemployment rates for 2012 in West Virginia. Statewide, West Virginia averaged an unemployment rate of 7.3% in 2012. As the map shows, county unemployment levels ranged from just under 5% to over 12%. The county with the lowest unemployment rate was Monongalia, home of WVU, with an unemployment rate…

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June 18, 2013 by Sean O'Leary
With 3.8 Million Job Openings Last Month, Is There a Skills Gap?

Last month, the Labor Department's Job Opening and Labor Turnover Survey showed that there were 3.8 million job openings for the month of April. Groups like the U.S. Chamber of Commerce have pointed to the number of job opening as proof of a skills gap, arguing that there are not enough skilled workers to fill…

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June 10, 2013 by Sean O'Leary
Equal Pay Act Turns 50, But There Is Still Work To Be Done

This week marks the 50th Anniversary of the Equal Pay Act, which was signed into law by President Kennedy on June 10, 1963. The legislation required that employers give women and men equal pay for equal work. The Equal Pay Act was one of the first steps in the effort to eliminate the gender gap…

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June 4, 2013 by Ted Boettner
Growing Working Class Economic Insecurity at the Heart of West Virginia Woes

Over the last four decades, West Virginia's economy has shifted from producing less goods (e.g. steel, chemicals, etc.) to providing more services. While the rest of the country also underwent this economic shift - often referred to as deindustrialization - it was especially problematic in the Mountain State. While the state has made strides to…

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May 10, 2013 by Sean O'Leary
Income Inequality at Historic High in West Virginia

Last year, Ted showed, using ACS data, that income inequality was on the rise in West Virginia since 2006. But as it turns out, income inequality has been on the rise in West Virginia for almost 40 years. Mark Frank, an economist at Sam Houston State University, has used IRS records to put together state…

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April 26, 2013 by Ted Boettner
Freedom for Whom? 50 State Index Guided By Libertarian Ideology, Not Freedom

Yesterday, Sean showed that ranking well on the libertarian 50 State "Freedom" index doesn't mean your state performs better economically nor does it have any relation to low poverty or higher wages. While Sean looked at the numbers, I would like to talk about the qualitative side of the equation. What does the Mercatus Center…

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April 25, 2013 by Sean O'Leary
West Virginia Lacks “Freedom,” Should We Worry?

Earlier this month, the Mercatus Center at George Mason University released the 3rd edition of the Freedom in the 50 States rankings, which measures fiscal, regulatory, and personal "freedom." The study shares some similarities with the previously discussed Economic Freedom Index, both in how it defines freedom, and its relationship with real world economic measures. Freedom…

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April 5, 2013 by Ted Boettner
Overall, Natural Resource Extraction Jobs Are Growing in W.Va.

While there has been lots of shouting about the state losing coal jobs, as a whole, the state's natural resource extraction employment picture looks very healthy. All together, employment in the natural gas and coal industry reached almost 37,000 in the third quarter of 2012 - its highest point over the last ten years. While…

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April 3, 2013 by Ted Boettner
Fixing Job Applications Could Help Ex-Felons Gain Employment

While the governor's prison reform bill (SB 371) is being debated in the House, they might want to think about removing barriers that make it very difficult for ex-felons gain employment. If one of our goals is help reduce recidivism and help ex-felons enter the workforce, the state will need to end counter-productive practices that…

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March 28, 2013 by Ted Boettner
Job Impact Statements: Can They Work?

On Tuesday the Senate passed SB 187  that would require the Commerce Department to create a jobs impact statement or study on proposed legislation that could impact the state's economy.  The price tag from the commerce department is $262,000 per year, enough to add two additional staff to its Research Unit to prepare these statements.…

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