ECONOMICS
By Uric Dufrene
Migrating to Southern Indiana Why people move to a region
Michigan , New York ,
New Jersey , Illinois , Colorado , Kansas , Florida , Nevada are just a few of the license plates I recall during recent walks across downtown New Albany . That raised my curiosity and prompted me to dig a little deeper and look at what economists refer to as migration . How is Southern Indiana doing when it comes to migration , which will give us clues about the region ’ s ability to attract workers from outside the region . Is the presence of these out-of-state license plates part of a larger trend , or just a few coincidental observations ?
Before we get into some of the data , let us talk about migration and how and why this is important for Southern Indiana . For a regional economy to grow , plain and simple , a labor force must be available to fill jobs that will support regional growth . vAn available and growing labor force is also necessary for the region to attract new companies to the area . vThat is why population growth is tied to long-run economic growth . A shrinking population usually translates to economic decline .
Companies need labor or capital to grow , or some combination of both . If labor is not available , a company might rely exclusively on capital . So instead of hiring additional workers , it might invest in new machinery and automation . This will lead to productivity gains , and that means that the company will be able to produce more , with the same amount of labor . In other cases , however , it might rely on a combination of both labor and capital . More workers might be necessary to operate additional equipment , for example . The result could be more production , with the expectation that this will support more sales growth . This is good for both the company and the region .
So how does a region grow its labor force ? Well , there are primarily two ways to do that . It can grow its own . That is , it can rely on natural birth rates in the area . This is known as the natural rate of increase in the population and is the net of births minus deaths . This natural rate will support regional school populations and ultimately the number of high school and college graduates available to enter the workforce .
A region can also grow its labor force by attracting workers from outside the region . There are several reasons why someone might want to move to a new area . Could be family or personal connections , but in general , workers are attracted because of economic opportunities and perhaps a better quality of life . You may have heard the term , “ quality of place ”. Quality of place is often a key factor in deciding where one might wish to locate . Quality of place investments make the region more attractive and increase the likelihood that it can attract skilled workers from the outside . Hence such investments are critically important . Investments such as the Ohio River Greenway and Origin Park of the River Heritage Conservancy are prime examples of solid quality of place assets . Sidewalks and walkability , downtown attractions and amenities , available and affordable housing stock , quality schools and healthcare are all factors that determine the quality of place of a region . Ultimately , people want to have a nice place to live . So “ quality of place ” is one of the major factors that talent considers when selecting a place to locate and becoming part of the workforce .
Getting back to the original question , how is Southern Indiana doing on the migration front ? Are we attracting workers from the outside , or on net , losing residents
18 November / December 2020