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Idaho tops U.S. earnings increase for 2017

Posted at 5:29 PM, Mar 28, 2018
and last updated 2018-03-29 12:04:31-04

In 2017 alone, Idaho workers boasted a 5.3 percent increase in earnings compared to 2016, soaring past the 3.1 percent average growth for the U.S. as a whole.

“Obviously exciting news. We are happy about seeing wage growth,” said Idaho Commerce Chief Marketing Officer Matt Borud.

But it is not just isolated to last year. In 2016 Idaho saw a nearly 6 percent growth increase in earnings and in 2015 that number was 5.6 percent. 

"This isn’t new by any stretch, but we are excited to see the trend,” said Borud.

But why is the trend continuing to grow? Experts said a lot of it can be attributed to Idaho’s diverse industries and economy.

“There are a number of industries that are growing. We are not reliant on one business, we are not reliant on one industry sector, so when we see a variety of them growing it really sort of raises all of those,” said Borud.

They said the state has done a great of making Idaho a business friendly place where the state is regularly recognized. It’s also shown to be a great place to live all around.

“So many people choose to be here because of our outdoor recreation opportunities because of our tourism opportunities there is a lot to be said for that,” said Borud.

And while the commerce department said we should be excited about the trends in Idaho’s increase in earnings, the work isn’t finished. 

“Continuing to develop an educated skilled workforce is going to be imperative to seeing these trends continue,” said Borud.