Tennessee ranks fifth in the nation for having the greatest income difference between the richest and the poorest residents, according to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, a non-partisan, nonprofit research organization.
[..]
Tennessee’s poorly skilled work force contributes greatly to the disparity here, said Dr. Matt Murray, professor of economics at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville. For decades, the state has relied on manufacturing, textile and apparel industries to provide many of its jobs, but they’ve been low-skill jobs that people can get without much education, he said.
The article notes that many of those jobs have moved out of the country, leaving low-paying jobs with stagnant wages.
According to the study, the top 20% of earners make more than seven times as much as the bottom 20% of earners nationwide. In Tennessee, the ratio is eight to one.
Nationwide, wages at the low end have decreased 2.5% while wages at the top end have increased by 9.1% since the late 1990s. In Tennessee, earnings for the bottom 20% have grown 6.5% in the last two decades, compared to 31.9% for the top 20%.
To mitigate the effects of economic forces outside the control of state policy, the study recommends raising and indexing the minimum wage, improving the unemployment insurance program, making state tax systems more progressive, and strengthening the social safety net.
The states with the greatest income inequality:
1. New York
2. Alabama
3. Mississippi
4. Massachusetts
5. Tennessee
6. New Mexico
7. Connecticut
8. California
9. Texas
10. Kentucky
Submitted by archcrone on Sun, 05/25/2008 - 14:03.
If we discount NY city and Albany wages just aren't that high, and cost of living is very high (including a relatively high state income tax), and we wouldn't see so much of a skewed result. There were a lot of manufacturing jobs that were lost in the state in the 80's and 90's, when companies left NY (and other northern states) to move south, before these companies left the country for even more souther pastures.
Submitted by Anonymous on Mon, 06/02/2008 - 10:33.
is the correct ratio? Or the correct rank for the state?
These studies always make me wonder what we should aim for. My favorites are the education ones, "Only x% of Tennesseeans graduate/go to college/have degrees". As though there were a magic number.
Weird mix.
In the case of New York, I guess it only takes a few Michael Bloomberg and George Soros types to skew the results for the whole state.
If we discount NY city and Albany wages just aren't that high, and cost of living is very high (including a relatively high state income tax), and we wouldn't see so much of a skewed result. There were a lot of manufacturing jobs that were lost in the state in the 80's and 90's, when companies left NY (and other northern states) to move south, before these companies left the country for even more souther pastures.
We've got Lamar and the Frists!
Chumps.
Very interesting...and quite depressing from my view here in the middle.
is the correct ratio? Or the correct rank for the state?
These studies always make me wonder what we should aim for. My favorites are the education ones, "Only x% of Tennesseeans graduate/go to college/have degrees". As though there were a magic number.