I was watching re-runs of "Columbo" (DVD) when I caught this interesting tidbit over at
Carpe Diem. This particular entry should be of interest to Willistonites.
There were two graphics concerning demographics of US young adults, aged
18 - 34. The data should be of interest to the general population but
then this, seemingly just out of the blue.
The bottom chart above (at the linked article) displays an
interesting comparison of the top 20 metro areas (wotj populations above
400,000) ranked by median annual earnings (in 2013 dollars) for
full-time workers ages 18-34 in 1980 and 2009-2013. Some observations:
1. In 1980, three Michigan cities (Flint, Detroit and Grand Rapids)
ranked among the top 20 US metro areas for the highest median incomes
for young adults, and Flint and Detroit were ranked No. 1 and No. 2. In
1980, young people working full-time in Flint and Detroit, thanks to an
80% market share for the Big 3 and the above-market wages of the UAW,
had higher median annual incomes than their counterparts in all other
major US cities .....
2....
3.....
4. Not surprisingly, more than half (11) of the top 20 metro areas
with the highest median incomes for Americans ages 18-34 in 1980 were in
Midwest or Rust Belt states. By 2009-2013, only three of the top 20 metro
areas by income for young Americans were in Midwest or Rust Belt states:
Minneapolis-St. Paul, Chicago and Des Moines (and none of those cities
have a strong manufacturing base), and almost all of the top 20 metros
by income for young Americans were in East Coast or West Coast states.
5. In 1980, 1990 and
2000, Williston, North Dakota wasn’t even included in the Census Bureau
list of US metro areas. But by 2009-2013 Williston ranked as the sixth
highest-income city in the US (for cities of all sizes) for young adults
with median income of $46,081, just slightly behind Washington, DC at
$47,380, San Francisco ($47,426) and San Jose ($51,149).
The median
income for the millennial generation working in Williston is higher than
the median incomes in Boston ($44,548), New York City ($42,108)and
Seattle ($41,167).
It’s another amazing sign of shale prosperity that
young Americans today are earning incomes in Williston, North Dakota, in
the epicenter of the Bakken Oil fields, that are comparable to the
median incomes of their counterparts in Washington, DC and San
Francisco.
Who wudda thought?
