What does this measure?
The overall percentage change in average salary since 2000.
Why is this important?
Salaries are a gauge of overall economic health and a measure of the degree to which employees are sharing in the prosperity of a community. They also indicate the vitality of a region and its ability to compete and attract workers.
How is our county doing?
Although there have been shifts in average salaries among employment sectors, the overall average salary in Essex County ($62,000) increased from 2000. This increase was less than the state, where average salary has increased by 15% and a 13% increase in the nation. Essex County's average salary simply kept pace with inflation.
The greatest increases in average salary were in the Financial Activities (43%), Natural Resources and Mining (38%) and Professional and Business Services (24%) sectors in Essex County, while the Information sector had the largest decline (-8%). Although Essex County, the state and nation had similar changes in many sectors, the state and nation both had increases in average salaries in Information (23% and 36%, respectively).
How do we compare to similar counties?
Lake, IL, with an increase of 20% in overall average salary since 2000, was the highest among the comparison counties, with Westchester, NY and Middlesex, MA trailing with increases of 10% and 15%, respectively. The greatest sector increase within each comparison county was Natural Resources and Mining in Middlesex, MA (62%), Manufacturing in Lake, IL (56%), and Financial Activities in Westchester, NY (44%) since 2000. The largest declines in average salary were in the Information sector in Westchester, NY (-13%) and Trade, Transportation and Utilities in Middlesex, NY (-6%).
Notes about the data
Data have been converted to 2019 dollars. Industries in which most of the workforce is full time (e.g., Manufacturing) will appear to pay significantly higher wages than ones that employ many part-timers (e.g., Retail or Leisure and Hospitality). 2020 data for this indicator are expected to be released in the third quarter of 2021.