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The following article is provided by the Caesar Rodney Institute, a Delaware-based nonprofit 501(c)(3) public policy research organization.

It comes from a Policy Center Director who works to help Delawareans by providing fact-based analysis in four key areas:

education, energy and environmental policy, the economy and government spending, and health policy.

Don't wager on Delaware's Economy

Don't wager on Delaware's economy

Center for Economic Policy and Analysis

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics compiles data on employment, wages, and establishments by industry for each state. The wage data for Delaware tells a dismal story.

 

Over the past ten years (2009-2019), total private industry wages in Delaware rose 40% compared to 55% across the U.S. The jobs generated in Delaware were disproportionately in lower-wage service industries.

 

Total Delaware wages in high paying Goods Producing industries (mining, construction, manufacturing) rose 25% over the ten years while the nation jumped 46% in the nation. Total wages in Delaware’s Service Producing industries rose 43% compared to 57% for the nation.

 

Take a look at the change in the average private industry wage. Over the past decade, the average private wage in Delaware increased by 23% compared to 31% across the nation.

 

The average private industry wage in Delaware not only failed to keep pace with inflation, but it also went from above the U.S. average in 2009 ($47,365 vs. $45,155) to below the U.S. average in 2019 ($58,406 vs. $59,202).

 

Earned wages are the major component of personal income. The poor performance of Delaware’s wages during the last ten years helps explain why Delaware's per capita personal income has gone from above to below the national average.

 

With $16/hr - $17/hr jobs being added at Amazon, the Delaware economic outlook continues to trend downward.

 
 
 

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About the Caesar Rodney Institute
The Caesar Rodney Institute (CRI) is a Delaware-based, nonprofit 501(c)(3) research organization. As a nonpartisan public policy think tank, CRI provides fact-based analysis in four key areas: education, energy and environmental policy, the economy and government spending, and health policy.

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Our mission is to educate and inform Delawareans-including citizens, legislators, and community leaders-on issues that affect quality of life and opportunity.

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