Fact Pack! Nevada workforce hits all time high

By Hightower Las Vegas and RCG Economics on October 20, 2023

Nevada’s “headline” unemployment rate was unchanged from August to September with the rate staying at 5.4 percent, per the Nevada Department of Employment, Training and Rehabilitation’s September 2023 economic report.

The labor force in the state grew by about 8,000 and September marked the 9th consecutive month that the state has seen an increase in that metric.

September also marked the first time in the state’s history that its labor force exceeded 1.6 million workers.

Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) Employment (Seasonally Adjusted) data:

Las Vegas employment increased by 4,100 jobs (0.4 percent) over August, an increase of 36,000 jobs (3.3 percent) since September 2022.

Reno employment saw an increase of 2,300 jobs (0.8 percent) since August, an increase of 8,900 jobs (3.4 percent) since September 2022.

U.S. Jobs

Unemployment rates were higher in September in 16 states and stable in 34 states and the District of Columbia, per the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Twenty-four states had jobless rate decreases from a year earlier, 10 states and D.C. saw increases, and 16 states had little change.

The national “headline” (U-3) unemployment rate, 3.8 percent, was unchanged over the month but was 0.3 percentage points higher than in September 2022.

Lowest jobless rates in September:

Maryland (1.6 percent)
North Dakota, South Dakota, and Vermont (1.9 percent each)

Additionally, the rates in Maryland (1.6 percent), Pennsylvania (3.4 percent), and Rhode Island (2.6 percent) set new series lows (all state series begin in 1976.)

Nevada had the highest unemployment rate (5.4 percent). D.C.’s rate was 5.0 percent; California’s was 4.7 percent.

States that saw the biggest rate changes month over month:

Source: US Bureau of Labor Statistics as of September 2023

Compared to September of last year, nonfarm payroll employment increased in 36 states and was essentially unchanged in 14 states and D.C. The largest job gains occurred in:

Texas (+435,800)
California (+302,800) and
Florida (+241,200).

The largest percentage increases occurred in Nevada (+3.4 percent), Texas (+3.2 percent), and Idaho (+3.0 percent).

Rate changes year-over-year can tell us a lot about where the economy may be heading. Twenty-one states saw statistically significant drops in their unemployment rates over September 2022, while 11 saw statistically significant increases:

Source: US Bureau of Labor Statistics as of September 2023

LVGEA Says

In this month’s newsletter, the Las Vegas Global Economic Alliance noted the following:

Las Vegas Airport Ranks #3 for Passenger Satisfaction — The Harry Reid International Airport ranked third in passenger satisfaction in the ‘mega’ category of airports in the J.D. Power 2023 North America Airport Satisfaction Study. The airport sat at the top of the list due to the ease of getting to the airport and a quick check-in and security process and was also the number one spot for quality of things to do in the terminal.

California Millennials Flocking to Nevada — A new survey finds Nevada has the nation’s sixth-highest rate of net migration in the country with the largest percentage of new residents being millennials from California. The addition of millennials is good news for the region, considering the group of 20- and 30-year-olds provide a boost to the region’s talent pool.

LVGEA’s Economic Snapshot page for October is also worth a look, along with the Stat Pack page at RCG Economics (whose principal and chief economist, John Restrepo, is co-publisher of Fact Pack, for those of you who are new Fact Pack readers).

What You Need to Earn to Own a Home in 50 American Cities

Visual Capitalist has the data, initially tabulated by Home Sweet Home, to map out the annual salary needed to afford a 30-year mortgage (at a 6.37% interest rate) to buy a home in America’s 50 most populous metropolitan areas:

As of May 2023

“Top” 10:

Source: Visual Capitalist as of May 2023

Our stats:

#21 Las Vegas, Nevada – Median Price $431,400; Salary $101,310

College Town Rent Rates

An analysis examining rental prices near 150 of the largest colleges in the U.S. reveals the locations with the most and least affordable off-campus housing. Unsurprisingly, the costliest rates were near colleges located in coastal cities, whereas college towns in the Midwest and South gave students a more affordable place to live. 

In the study, the average rent near the two big Nevada schools was $1,395 for UNR (ranking it in the more affordable half at 94^th) and $1,250 for UNLV (also ranking it in the more affordable half at #106).

Priciest areas:

As of September 2023

Best rates:

As of September 2023

(Note: The RentHop College Rent Report analyzed rental data from over one million active off-campus rental listings located near U.S. college campuses over the three months prior to publication. To produce the ranking, the median price for all listings within 2 miles of the center of campus was noted.)

View the full report here.

Intergenerational Poverty

According to Brookings, roughly one-third of children who grow up below the poverty line in the U.S. will also experience poverty as adults.

As of 10/17/23

Brookings researchers found four areas that are the key drivers of a child’s long-term chances of being lifted out of poverty:

Education and Skills: Educational attainment and occupational skills have large impacts on lifetime earnings. Achievement gaps (measured by test scores) in the educational process develop early in life, and these gaps go on to generate large disparities in high school and postsecondary attainment of children who grew up in low-income families relative to their high-income counterparts.

Child Health: Children growing up with low family incomes have worse health than other children, beginning even before birth and worsening as children age. These health disparities among children lead not only to greater disparities in adult health but also in education and earnings. Despite improvements from policy (like Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act), many poor children lack access to health insurance coverage. Access to nutritional programs (especially in summer) and family planning services is limited as well.

Parental Employment, Income and Wealth:
- Low wages and employment levels drive the relatively low earnings and family incomes of the poor, which limits the ability of families to invest in their children’s health and education and to live in safe neighborhoods with good schools. Further, a lack of affordable childcare is an employment barrier.
- Parental employment is important, but employment gains that are not accompanied by income gains seem to have little positive effects on children’s development.
- Family wealth is also highly correlated with later child outcomes; however, causal evidence on wealth effects is limited.

Crime and Criminal Justice Systems: Although crime rates have mostly fallen in the past three decades (despite a recent increase in homicides), violent crime remains relatively high in many poor neighborhoods, and exposure to violent crime has a negative impact on children’s long-term education and earnings. At the same time, adolescents who reside in poor neighborhoods experience high rates of juvenile detention and incarceration, which also have negative effects on their future outcomes.

In 2022, 12.5 percent of Nevada’s population lived below the poverty line, according to data compiled by Statista:

As you can see, even at its lowest point in the past 23 years (2001), 9.7 percent of the state’s population was living in poverty. The highest rate since 2000 was 16.4 percent (2012).

Statista chart for the nation:

The low of 10.5 percent in the last three decades occurred in 2019, the year before the COVID pandemic began. The high was 15.1 percent in 2010.

Ranked: Global Wealth per Person

The following Visual Capitalist infographic shows which countries’ residents have the highest and lowest average wealth by person. Switzerland wins for wealth ($685,226 per person); Colombia is on the other end of the scale. The U.S. ranks second, with a mean wealth per adult of $551,347, but median wealth in the U.S. stands at $107,739, putting us in 12th place for that metric.

As of 2023

More than 15 percent of the Swiss population are millionaires, the third-highest rate in the world.

Renewables

Renewable energy capacity around the world more than doubled in the 10 years between 2013 and 2022, per the International Renewable Energy Agency. However, progress has been lopsided, with large capacities built up in Europe and China. South and Central America, as well as the Middle East and Africa, have neither large capacity nor have they seen above-average growth.

The following Statista chart shows the stats for all regions, including those where growth has been slow:

As of December 2022

According to a report recently released by the International Renewable Energy Agency, roughly 13.7 million people globally work in the renewable energy industry. 

Statista graph showing which sectors employ the most people:

As of 2022

Since the employment analysis was first conducted in 2012, the number of employees in the sector has grown from 7.3 million. The country hosting the most jobs is China, with more than 5.5 million employees in its photovoltaics and wind power industries. Brazil employs 1.4 million people in renewables, many in biofuels. Around 1.6 million people work in different parts of the sector in the EU.

On the Horizon

Mike PeQueen: Next Friday brings us the all-important employment report which everyone and their brother will be watching to see if the Fed pause will last.

Next week’s MarketWatch calendar: