Indianapolis, Indiana forecast to produce more job growth

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The Indianapolis region in Indiana state (which covers Boone, Brown, Hamilton, Hancock, Hendricks, Johnson, Marion, Morgan, Putnam and Shelby counties) was projected by Indiana University academics to show a slight increase in job openings for 2007. It is a fact that income growth (for the period of the 1 st quarter of 2005 to the 1 st quarter of 2006) significantly surpassed that of the United States on the whole – showing a rebound from the previous year. Indianapolis gained 5.1% in real average weekly compensation while the country posted an increase of just 0.2%. Double-digit wage increases were experienced in both agriculture and manufacturing. On the whole, compensation data implies a 6.4% real growth rate of the economy in the region, compared to just 3.7% in real growth for the US economy during the same timeframe.(To illustrate the significance of these numbers, economic activity in the metro area of Indianapolis fell by 0.5% from the 1 st quarter of 2004 to the 1 st quarter of 2005.)

However, job growth was dull in Indianapolis, compared to the job growth of the country from August 2005 to August 2006. In that span of time, local employment experienced an increase of just 0.3% - on the other hand, the country saw job growth rise by 1.6%. Both local employment and national employment stood at 4.6% of the labor force. Work in manufacturing dropped by 1.1%. Management shrunk by 3.1%. Job growth was biggest in the construction (3.3%), food service and accommodation (4.4%), and agriculture (4.5%) sectors.

The real estate market in Indianapolis has not reflected a fall in real estate value similar to other markets, but building activity has admittedly slowed down (in tandem with the rest of the country.) A 17% decrease in year-to-date building permits was seen from September 2005 to September 2006. As the local median home price was boosted to $139,900 (from the previous $134,900), the inventory of unsold homes also increased by 14%.

As far as the quality of life is concerned, a higher level of community stress seemed to be felt by those who reside and are employed in the central city. For example, in the area covered by the Indianapolis Police Department, total crime incidents rose by 10.5% from July 2005 to July 2006. Also, the unemployment rate of Marion County stood at 5.4% (higher than the level of the bigger metropolitan area.)

Total nonfarm employment for the state of Indiana stood at 2,972,500 in January 2006, changing by 1.0% from the previous year. By June 2006, this had risen to 2,976,600, reflecting a 0.9% change from the previous year.

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Article Custom Written/compiled for Job Service Help by Mabelle Sese of The Filipino Worker Company. Updated June, 18, 2007