In this age of globalization, the idea that someone might spend their entire life in the same small town—even the same large city—seems almost quaint. Today’s workforce has access to the largest repository of human knowledge in history and is more mobile than ever. That means when someone wonders about the best place to work in manufacturing, they have the ability and opportunity to look at US manufacturing focus, state-by-state, and seriously consider all 50 options.
That’s a lot of options, which is why Kempler Industries has released a list of the 50 best cities for manufacturing jobs in the U.S. based on four factors:
1) Total Manufacturing Jobs Per 100,000 people (0.50)
2) Year-over-Year Industry Growth (0.25)
3) Median Manufacturing Job Income (0.15)
4) Median Housing Cost (.10)
The numbers in parentheses indicate the weightings applied to these factors prior to calculating the best cities to live. Data was collected from the U.S. Census Bureau and Zillow. It’s worth noting that only one metro area with a population of over 1 million made the Top 10: Portland, OR. Average earnings clearly fluctuate between cities, with a gap of more than $40,000 USD between San Jose, CA and Jackson, MS
The complete list appears below:
For more information on careers in manufacturing, check out our feature on Bridging the Skills Gap.