Personal income in Grand Forks catches up to national average
By John Hageman, Grand Forks Herald | |
McClatchy-Tribune Information Services |
But
But that changed after 2010.
Per capita personal income in the
Business and public officials, as well as researchers, point to growing oil production keeping the demand for workers high and a strong agricultural economy in the
Still, the
"Obviously,
Wages
For the few decades leading up to the oil boom around 2008, personal incomes in
"I would think that has a lot to do with the fact that the cost of doing business in
"And that is having an upward pressure on wages, but that's a good sign of a strong economy," Rauschenberger said.
Personal incomes also include royalties from mineral rights ownership that have increased since the onset of the Bakken oil boom. It also counts rental income, which also has increased in the agriculture sector, said
Employees of
Regional differences
Average weekly wages in oil-producing counties are among the highest in the state. But places far away from the Oil Patch have seen wages increase as well. In
That's still below
Still, Burian said AE2S has been able to provide wage increases over the past few years based not only on market trends but also performance. He said the strong economy in
"Compounded, we have seen some pretty significant increases in the last six years, and never had any pauses in that period," Burian said.
"We've tried to be pretty steady," Fisk said.
An insurance policy
Flynn said recent rapid growth in personal incomes here may slow in the near future. He said it's simply a mathematical reality that as the income base expands, obtaining the same growth rates will require larger jumps in personal income.
But he also pointed to
Swenson said the few years leading up to 2013 saw record commodity prices, but that's starting to turn around and is having a negative effect on net farm income.
For that reason, local business leaders say they want to establish a more diverse economy that's not as susceptible to swings in commodities or one particular industry. Attracting high-tech jobs that are anticipated to come with the burgeoning unmanned aerial systems industry in
"Any time you're tied to a commodity like oil or agriculture, your wages are going to be somewhat susceptible when the market goes up and down," Wilfahrt said. "The more diverse our economy is, it's almost like an insurance policy against one sector having a downturn."
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