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States Where the Middle Class Is Being Left Behind<br>
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<p>By many measures, the U.S. economy is booming: unemployment is
close to a decade-long low; the Federal Reserve recently raised
interest rates for the second time in roughly a decade, signaling
confidence in the economy; and the Dow Jones Industrial Average
reached an all-time high earlier this year.</p>
<p>Despite the nearly decade-long period of growth, there have been
signs the American middle class is being left behind. Over the
past five years alone, incomes among the top 20% of earning
households in the United States rose about 1.5 times faster than
that of middle class households. Incomes among the top 5% of
households increased at roughly double the rate middle class
incomes did. In some states, the gap is widening at a much faster
rate. In Wyoming, incomes among the top quintile of households
increased by 12.2%, while the average income among middle class
households rose by just 2.5%. 24/7 Wall St. reviewed the nine
states where the middle class is being left behind.</p>
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<p>As the economy has recovered from the Great Recession, a trend
began to develop among the nation’s middle class. Americans who
lost their jobs managed to eventually find work again, but often
at a lower pay, or only part time. The result was that even as the
stock market soared and unemployment improved, incomes among the
nation’s middle class — often referred to as the backbone of the
economy — fell.</p>
<p><span style="color:#008000;"><strong><a
href="http://247wallst.com/special-report/2017/02/07/states-where-the-middle-class-is-disappearing/2/"
style="color:#008000;">Click here to see the states where
the middle class is being left behind.</a></strong></span></p>
<p>As the recovery continued, however, middle class incomes began to
rise somewhat, growing since 2011 in all but one state. Middle
class household incomes declined by 0.8% in Delaware. However,
throughout the country, and particularly in the nine states on our
list, income growth among the top earners dwarfed the income
growth of the middle class. In the nine states on our list, income
growth among the top quintile was roughly double the growth of the
middle quintile, and in the case of Wyoming and Alaska, it was
more than four times that of the middle class.</p>
<p>One possible explanation for the relatively low income growth in
some of the states on this list is, perhaps counterintuitively,
the relative strength of the middle class there. Four states on
this list have higher than average household incomes among the
middle quintile. This includes Alaska, where the average household
income in the middle quintile is about $73,500 a year, roughly
$17,500 greater than the national average household income for the
middle class.</p>
<p>Historically, strong labor unions have been integral to a vibrant
middle class. Collective bargaining has helped improve wages,
benefits, and rights for workers, both union and nonunion alike,
nationwide. However, according to the Economic Policy Institute, a
nonpartisan think tank, union membership has fallen considerably
in the last several decades. In addition to declining membership,
labor laws have weakened unions and their ability to contribute to
higher wages. Since union membership began to rapidly decline in
the 1980s, the share of income going to the top 10% of earners has
increased dramatically.</p>
<p>Perhaps because unions are not as influential as they once were,
there does not appear to be a strong overarching pattern between
union membership and stagnant middle class wages. Nationwide, some
11.1% of all working adults are union members. Among the states
where the middle class is disappearing, unionized workers comprise
anywhere from 5.2% of workers in Arizona to 24.7% in New York.</p>
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<p><strong>7. Idaho</strong><br>
<strong>> Middle class income growth 2011-2015:</strong> 5.1%
(25th lowest)<br>
<strong>> Fifth quintile income growth:</strong> 12.1% (7th
highest)<br>
<strong>> Fifth quintile share of income:</strong> 48.8% (14th
lowest)<br>
<strong>> Middle class household income:</strong> $48,216 (11th
lowest)</p>
<p>Currently, income inequality is less profound in Idaho than it is
across the country. This may not remain the case for long,
however. Middle class incomes in Idaho have not increased as
rapidly as they have nationwide. Meanwhile, income growth among
the top 20% of households has outpaced comparable growth
nationwide by a considerable margin.</p>
<p>Historically, labor unions have been a major factor in the
economic vitality of the middle class. The relatively small
presence of organized labor in Idaho may partially explain the
slower than average wage growth among middle income households.
Only 6.8% of working adults in Idaho are unionized, well below the
11.1% of U.S. workers who are.</p>
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<p>Ken<br>
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