Labor Force Participation by Region, 1970-2017
70
Percent of Population 16 Years or Older
Eastern Panhandle
65
US
60
North Central
Metro Valley
WV
55
Other WV Regions
50
45
1970
1980
1990
2000
2010
2017
SOURCE: U.S. Census Bureau
Labor Force Participation
Despite the recent progress and the state’s
low unemployment rate, West Virginia’s
most telling long-run statistic is its rate
of labor force participation. This statistic
captures the share of the adult population
that wants to work in the first place, re-
gardless of whether he or she has a job or
is actively looking for work.
Consider these facts:
• Labor force participation in West
Virginia is lowest among the 50 U.S.
states, lagging the nation by 9 per-
centage points. Only 54 percent of
adults in West Virginia are in the
labor force.
• West Virginia has significantly lagged
the nation in terms of labor force
participation for decades—since at
least 1940.
• The labor force participation gap bet
ween West Virginia and the nation is
present broadly across genders and
age groups and therefore cannot be
attributed to one particular segment of
the population. The Eastern Panhandle
is the only region in the state that
enjoys a higher rate of labor force
participation than the nation. Other-
wise, labor force participation tends
to be higher in the more urban North
Central and Metro Valley regions and
lower in the state’s more rural areas.
This low rate of labor force partici-
pation represents one of the most severe
impediments to economic progress in
West Virginia as businesses that might
potentially locate to or expand in West
Virginia would likely be deterred by a
lack of available, qualified workers. West
Virginia will not be able to achieve the
prosperity its citizens hope for until the
state can find ways to get more of its men
and women off the sidelines and into the
labor force. This must be a top economic
development priority.
Education
A key factor in explaining labor force
participation in West Virginia is poor
educational outcomes. It is likely that there
are men and women who would like to
work in an ideal world, but they do not
look for work—and therefore are not part
of the labor force—because they doubt
they will be able to find a job due to a
lack of education, training and job skills.
The problem is that West Virginia as a
whole lags behind the nation in terms of
education attainment, even though the
state’s North Central, Eastern Panhandle
and Metro Valley regions exhibit the
highest rates of degree completion. The
share of adult residents who hold at
least a bachelor’s degree stands at 20
percent compared to 32 percent nation-
ally, placing the Mountain State last in
the country. To further complicate the
situation, the number of high school
and college-age men and women in West
Virginia is shrinking, and the share of
West Virginia high school graduates
who go on to college has fallen slightly
in recent years. The most recent year of
available data—2017—shows only 55
percent of West Virginia high school
graduates went on to college, compared
to 67 percent in the nation. Altogether,
these statistics suggest that it may become
increasingly difficult to produce more
highly educated and skilled young res-
idents to attract potential businesses.
Drug Abuse and Health
In a similar vein, it is likely that there
are men and women in West Virginia
who would work but do not look for
employment—and are not part of the
labor force—due to some barrier related
to drug abuse or health. West Virginia
reports the highest mortality, disability
and smoking rates among the 50 states,
and it leads the nation in drug-related
Bachelor’s Degree or Higher Attainment by Region
32
Percent of Population 25 Years or Older
28
North Central
24
Metro Valley
US
20
n
ter
Eas
16
dl
han
Pan
WV
e
12
8
4
1960
Other WV Regions
1970
1980
1990
2000
2010
2017
SOURCE: U.S. Census Bureau
WWW.WVEXECUTIVE.COM
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