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The report also shows that Springfield, and other cities across the state, still hasn’t completely recovered from the recession from several years ago. It argues there were about 50,200 jobs in Springfield last year, about 2,600 fewer than in 2007. And it argues many of the jobs where there has been growth do not provide the same income as the jobs that used to exist but were shed during the recession.
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“This is a wake-up call really that we are seeing growth in parts of the economy that are not lucrative,” said Michael Shields, a researcher for Policy Matters Ohio.
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Other cities across the state were in a similar situation. In Dayton, seven of the 10 most common jobs provided earnings of less than 130 percent of the federal poverty line, the study showed.
In Springfield, local officials recently announced plans to work with the University of Cincinnati on a study of what employers need to pay to provide a living wage. Having a well-paid workforce is important to attract and retain younger skilled workers, said Amy Donahoe, director of hiring and employer services for the Greater Springfield Chamber of Commerce.
“We’ve taken a stance that we want to attract living wage jobs and we know that’s not $9 or $10 an hour,” she said.
Donahoe said there are good-paying jobs in Springfield but many of those jobs require either some additional education or at least a certificate. The challenge is finding ways to educate the area’s workers and provide them with the tools they need to move into higher paying jobs. Some workers don’t know how to advance or find better careers without some basic assistance, she said.
“The jobs that pay well are often the jobs that require more skills,” Donahoe said.
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Statewide, the common jobs that paid above the poverty line threshold included registered nurses, customer service representatives, office clerks and laborers and freight, stock and material movers.
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The most common positions in Ohio that payed below 130 percent of the federal poverty line were food prep workers and retail sales, which paid a median annual wage of $19,150 and $22,190, respectively.
Some of the common positions listed in the report in Springfield included cashiers, retail salespeople, nursing assistants, and food preparation and service workers. The most common job listed was cashier, which employed approximately 1,850 workers in the area last year and paid a median annual salary of $19,160 according to the report.
That’s about 94 percent of the median annual earnings as a share of poverty, the report showed.
The four most common jobs that paid above the poverty threshold included truck drivers, registered nurses, assemblers and fabricators and office clerks.
Of those, it showed there were about 1,080 registered nursing positions with an annual median salary of $58,880. The median annual salary for truck drivers was $45,640 and $35,940 for assemblers and fabricators.
The report showed the Springfield region did see growth in industries like professional and business services, which added 800 jobs and financial activities, which added 1,400 jobs.
At the same time, the region lost about 900 manufacturing jobs and 1,100 jobs in trade, transportation and utilities.
A report Policy Matters produced in February this year argued Ohio’s economy grew more than 65 percent from 1948 to 2015, but wages have not kept up with the increase in productivity.
Shields says its concerning for the economy if productivity has become uncoupled from wage growth.
“Wage earners are no longer earning that same share even though they’re more and more productive,” he said.
The agency’s report from February recommended policy changes that included boosting the minimum wage, finding a solution to ensure the state’s unemployment compensation fund is solvent and updating overtime laws.
The Springfield News-Sun is committed to providing unmatched coverage of jobs and the economy in Clark and Champaign Counties. For this story, the paper reviewed a recent report that suggested some of the region’s most common professions offer low wages.
By the numbers:
$25,470 — Median annual salary for nursing assistants
$22,540 — Median annual salary for retail salesperson
$50,880 — Median annual salary for registered nurse
$19,160 — Median annual salary for cashiers
Source: Policy Matters Ohio
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