Jefferson City’s economic productivity ranked highest among state’s small metros

This is a 2009 aerial view of the Jefferson City Memorial Airport.
This is a 2009 aerial view of the Jefferson City Memorial Airport.

While it was near the middle of the country's small metro areas in terms of overall economic productivity, Jefferson City ranked highest among similarly-sized Missouri cities in a recent report.

Jefferson City ranked near the middle of the pack in terms of small metros at No. 117 out of 206. Data pointed to $8.6 billion in gross domestic product -- a measure of economic productivity based on the value of goods and services produced -- from the community with $86,872 in average annual GDP per worker across 99,709 employed residents.

The report stated the city's annual GDP per capita, which spreads the GDP across all residents in an area whether they are working or not, was $57,670 with a population exceeding 150,000.

The U.S. averaged $109,519 annual GDP per worker and $63,414 annual GDP per capita, according to the report.

Among all metro areas in the U.S., Jefferson City ranked 244 out of 357.

Despite a low ranking across the U.S., the Jefferson City metropolitan area was ranked highest (at 117) among Missouri's small metropolitan statistical areas, regions with high population densities and close economical ties which range in population from 100,000-349,999 residents. The Columbia area came in at No. 162 in the same category with an average of $79,974 in GDP per worker. Joplin ranked No. 175 with $77,656.

Representatives with the Jefferson City Area Chamber of Commerce were not available to comment on the rankings.

The report, compiled by nationwide moving labor provider HireAHelper, used data from the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis to calculate the GDP of small, mid-sized and large U.S. metro areas and rank them accordingly. The firm calculated its ranking based on the latest statistics, which represent 2020 numbers.

The federal government reported a 7 percent increase in GDP for the U.S. in the final quarter of 2021 despite a spike in COVID-19 cases around the same time, with most sectors experiencing wage growth as well despite inflation concerns.

While these indicators seem like healthy signs for the overall economy, the report argues it is the result of a gap between productivity and wages over the past several decades. While wages have reportedly increased by an average of 144 percent since the late 1940s, the authors say productivity has far outpaced pay with a 253 percent cumulative increase based on data from the Economic Policy Institute.

"A significant portion of the gap between productivity growth and wage growth can be attributed to advances in computing, automation and other technologies in recent decades," the report states. "While these advances have provided many benefits to the economy, the gap between productivity and wage growth is closely related to rising levels of economic inequality in the United States."

The Springfield area was ranked the 92nd most productive mid-sized metro in the U.S. out of 96 at $76,243 per worker, coming in at 332 overall.

The Kansas City and St. Louis areas ranked 32nd and 38th among 55 large metros, respectively, with Kansas City seeing $105,082 per worker annually and St. Louis garnering an average $100,535. They ranked 80 and 103 overall.

Missouri as a whole averaged $90,827 in annual GDP per its 3.6 million workers, according to the data, coming in at 39th among the rest of the U.S. New York came in first with $148,918 annual GDP per worker across more than 11.5 million workers. The report attributed those high numbers to thriving financial and technology centers within those states.

"As businesses and industries in these major locations continue to grow, their success provides the conditions and resources for continued expansion, which attracts even more human capital and productivity growth within these limited number of locations," the report stated.

The highest ranked metros were housed in high-ranked states, with the San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara area of California taking the top large metro spot with $259,532 in annual GDP per worker. The Stanford, Connecticut area took the lead in mid-sized metros with $151,044, while Midland, Texas, led small metros with $153,048 per worker annually.

Read the full report online at hireahelper.com/lifestyle.