JOBS
Views of Community Leaders.  Community leaders are unequivocal and virtually unanimous about the County's number one need:  Jobs.  Not only more jobs, but also more diversity in the employment base. 

A bastion of the automotive industry, the community has thrived for decades on the direct and indirect rewards of the high-paying jobs of its two major employers, Delphi and DaimlerChrysler.  People are accustomed to the industry's cyclic nature and in the past have braved out the downturns, expecting an upturn before long.  But this time is different. 

 

Community leaders believe the automotive industry's current difficulties to be permanent.

Auto workers who once earned $28 per hour have been replaced by non-union workers paid $14 per hour.  Overtime pay, which many families relied on for years, is no more. 

On top of these realities is frustration with the community's efforts to remedy the situation.  As seen in the pie chart above, a full 60% of survey respondents consider the community's economic development function inadequate. 

JOBS AND UNEMPLOYMENT
The charts titled "Jobs and Labor Force" and "Unemployment Rates" show a sustained economic decline since a 1999 high.  The solid area in "Jobs and Labor Force" represents Howard County residents in the work force, whether employed or unemployed.  The work force shrank by about 3,400 during a period when population dropped only 500; retirees (including many early retirees) and people who have given up on job search account for the difference.  The line at the top represents jobs located in the County, whether filled by residents or by commuters – Howard County has more jobs than workers, even including the unemployed.  About one in five workers live in other counties.  "Unemployment Rates" shows County residents' rate dipping below the national rate in 1992, continuing downward through 1999, then beginning a steady climb.  In 2006 average monthly unemployment was 7%.

INDUSTRIES AND WAGES
The average wage for all jobs in Howard County was $45,887 in 2005, second highest for all counties in Indiana.  This is driven by jobs in manufacturing, which represent more than a third of all jobs and pay an average of $80,148, the highest average manufacturing wage in the state. 

Howard County citizens are keenly aware of large losses in manufacturing jobs in recent years – some 1700 jobs between 2001 and 2005 alone (the earliest and most recent years for which these statistics are available).  The conventional wisdom is that new jobs are in retail, restaurants, and other low-paying services.  This may well be true of job openings caused by high turnover.  However, growth in hospitality (food service and accommodations) has in fact been minimal. Retail has experienced a net loss of more than 300 jobs.   The largest gains, in raw numbers, have been in health care and social services, wholesale trade, and educational services.  The table below provides further detail.

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT EFFORTS
A recent study by Donald T. Iannone & Associates (DTIA) examined nine separate economic development entities serving Howard County in 2006 at a combined annual operating expense of $3.29 million.  The DTIA consultants characterized Howard County's efforts since the 2004 adoption of an economic development strategic plan as only "fair," and were particularly critical of the handling of EDIT (Economic Development Income Tax) funds.  They recommended creating a new public-private partnership to merge all economic development efforts for the County.  DTIA predicted a high level of resistance to their recommendation.  To the contrary, three months after the report's release, we found consensus in support of the recommended consolidation, and cautious optimism that the County's economic development efforts will improve soon and succeed eventually.