Rochester Area Skill Needs Assessment and Business Climate Survey, May 2014

Rochester Area Skill Needs Assessment and Business Climate Survey 2

Chart 1 portrays the share of jobs in the Finger Lakes by “low,” “middle” and “high” skill.

Chart 1

Over a third of the jobs in the Finger Lakes area are middle-skills jobs.

Table 2: Jobs in the Finger Lakes area by skill level, select years Number of Jobs (1000s)

Change in Jobs

2002

2012

2022 2001-2012 2012-2022

High-Skills Middle-Skills

128 225 238

130 214 243

142 227 261

2%

9% 6% 7%

-5%

Low-Skills

2%

Source: CGR Calculations using EMSI data

EMSI’s occupational forecast over the next ten years indicates middle-skills jobs shrinking as a share of the total. EMSI does not forecast a rise in total employment, including the total number of middle-skills jobs. Based on EMSI’s wage data, a middle-skills job pays on average $43,000 a year. This is 167% of what an average low-skill job would pay and 58% of the average high-skill job. Middle-skills workers earn between $14,000 and $124,000 a year. M ETHODOLOGY For this survey, Monroe Community College employed the MCC Business and Industry opt-in database. The survey was delivered to 2,408 business contacts, and the total distribution by REDC industry sectors is as follows:

Monroe Community College Center for Governmental Research Rochester Business Journal