In Palo Alto County, jobs in the power generation and supply pay the highest wages

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Individuals that are employed in the power generation and supply industry reported the top wages in Palo Alto County for 2006. The average worker in the industry in Palo Alto County received an annual wage of $61,300 in 2006. The average wage is less than the industry pay the State of Iowa of $68,863 and less than then the pay for jobs in this industry across the nation of $76,551.

High-wage employment in Palo Alto County, Iowa may be found in farm product raw material merch. whls. ($43,439), building equipment contractors ($31,499), insurance agencies, brokerages, and related ($31,264) and automobile dealers ($26,219) industries. Note: Clicking the Above Graphic Displays the Detailed Comparison

About: These facts are part of the eCanned.com Industry Analysis Series.

Datasource: U.S. Department of Labor. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW). Private Sector Employment Only.

Palo Alto County Wages have increased by 24.2% Since 2001

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From the second quarter of 2001 to the second quarter of 2006, industry wages have increased in Palo Alto County, Iowa by a total of 24.2%. This is greater than the growth in wages for the State of Iowa and greater than the growth in industry wages across the US.

About: These facts are part of the eCanned.com Industry Analysis Series.

Datasource: U.S. Department of Labor. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW). Private Sector Employment Only.

Palo Alto County Industry Wages Lag Behind Iowa, and Wages Lag Behind the United States

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Total wages in all industries in Palo Alto County, Iowa when analyzed can be described as relatively low when compared to other Counties throughout the state in the 2nd quarter of 2006. The industry wages are 25.4 percent lower than the reported averages in the state of $32,587. The average industry wage was less than the overall average in the United States of $40,259.

About: These facts are part of the eCanned.com Industry Analysis Series.

Datasource: U.S. Department of Labor. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW). Private Sector Employment Only.

Palo Alto County Five-Year Industry Employment Change

Total Five-Year Employment Decline in Palo Alto County

The Farm product raw material merch. whls. industry has lost the most employment with a total loss of 31 jobs during the period. The employment lost in the Farm product raw material merch. whls. industry make up 28.4 percent of the total job loss in Palo Alto County, Iowa.

Top 5 Industries
1. Farm product raw material merch. whls. (31 jobs lost)
2. Newspaper, book, and directory publishers (28 jobs lost)
3. Automobile dealers (17 jobs lost)
4. Services to buildings and dwellings (8 jobs lost)
5. Nursing care facilities (7 jobs lost)

In Palo Alto County, Iowa, the total number of workers for all sectors has increased by 38 jobs between mid-2001 and mid-2006.

Total Five-Year Employment Growth in Palo Alto County

From the industries (4-digit NAICS) in the area, the Building equipment contractors industry has brought the most jobs with a total of 43 employees finding new jobs in the industry. The employment growth in the Building equipment contractors industry makes up 46.7 percent of the growth in Palo Alto County.

Top 5 Industries
1. Building equipment contractors (43 new jobs)
2. Limited-service eating places (10 new jobs)
3. Health and personal care stores (10 new jobs)
4. Gasoline stations (10 new jobs)
5. Other specialty trade contractors (7 new jobs)

From the 17 industries with industry data reported by the BLS in each quarter, 9 reported job growth in the duration of the last five years and 7 industries reported employment loss in the period.

Palo Alto County Five-Year Percentage Decline in Employment

The Newspaper, book, and directory publishers industry has seen the largest percentage drop in employment, losing 63.2 percent of the jobs from the 2nd quarter of 2001 to 2nd quarter of 2006. The losses of the area have declined faster than the industry sector has felt in the State of Iowa, where the industry reported a loss of 4 percent. The losses in the Newspaper, book, and directory publishers industry in Palo Alto County outpaced the US in terms of percent of decline of industry employment. The US lost 12.3 in percent of jobs in the Newspaper, book, and directory publishers industry.

Top 5 Industries
1. Newspaper, book, and directory publishers (63.2 percent decline)
2. Services to buildings and dwellings (60 percent decline)
3. Legal services (37 percent decline)
4. Automobile dealers (36.5 percent decline)
5. Farm product raw material merch. whls. (20.7 percent decline)

Employment for all industries has increased by 1.3 percent from the reported values in 2001. These values are less than growth in Iowa, which saw a gain of 2.5 percent from the 2nd Quarter of 2001. The gains were less than than the gain felt at the national level of 2.6 percent.

Palo Alto County Five-Year Percentage Growth in Employment

The Building equipment contractors industry has witnessed the largest percentage of employment expansion, increasing by 496.2 percent from the 2001 (Q2) to the 2006 (Q2). This industry in Palo Alto County has added employment faster than the growth seen in the industry for Iowa, where the industry felt a gain of 15 percent. The Building equipment contractors industry in Palo Alto County outpaced the nation in terms of industry employment growth . During this period, the nation gained 5.3 percent of the industry employment.

Top 5 Industries
1. Building equipment contractors (496.2 percent gain)
2. Other specialty trade contractors (137.5 percent gain)
3. Personal care services (70.0 percent gain)
4. Health and personal care stores (37.0 percent gain)
5. Limited-service eating places (11.0 percent gain)





About: This report is part 2 of 6 in the eCanned.com Industry Analysis Series.

Datasource: U.S. Department of Labor. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW). Private Sector Employment Only.

Palo Alto County One-Year Industry Employment Change

Total One-Year Employment Decline in Palo Alto County

From of the area's 4-digit NAICS industries, the Full-service restaurants industry has lost the most employment with a total loss of 12 jobs. The declines in the Full-service restaurants industry make up 26.5 percent of the total employment decline in Palo Alto County, Iowa.

Top 5 Industries
1. Full-service restaurants (12 jobs lost)
2. Farm product raw material merch. whls. (10 jobs lost)
3. Automobile dealers (6 jobs lost)
4. Newspaper, book, and directory publishers (4 jobs lost)
5. Services to buildings and dwellings (3 jobs lost)

From the 23 industry sectors (4-digit NAICS) with employment figures reported by the BLS in each quarter, 11 accounted an for increase in employment during the period and 10 industry sectors reported declines during the time period.

In Palo Alto County, Iowa, the entire sum of jobs in all industries overall has increased by 86 jobs from mid-2005 to mid-2006.

Total One-Year Employment Growth in Palo Alto County

The Building equipment contractors industry has brought the most jobs with a total of 15 total jobs brought in during the period. The growth in the Building equipment contractors industry makes up 31.3 percent of the growth in Palo Alto County.

Top 5 Industries
1. Building equipment contractors (15 new jobs)
2. Limited-service eating places (12 new jobs)
3. Child day care services (4 new jobs)
4. Other specialty trade contractors (4 new jobs)
5. Building material and supplies dealers (3 new jobs)

Palo Alto County One-Year Percentage Growth in Employment

The Building equipment contractors industry has witnessed the largest percentage of employment expansion, increasing by 40.9 percent from the 2005 (Q2) to the 2006 (Q2). This industry in Palo Alto County has added employment faster than the growth seen in the industry for Iowa, where the industry felt a gain of 8.8 percent. The Building equipment contractors industry in Palo Alto County outpaced the US in terms of percent growth of industry employment. During this period, the US gained 5.5 percent of the industry employment.

Top 5 Industries
1. Building equipment contractors (40.9 percent gain)
2. Other specialty trade contractors (40.7 percent gain)
3. Insurance carriers (25.0 percent gain)
4. Child day care services (14.3 percent gain)
5. Limited-service eating places (13.4 percent gain)

Palo Alto County One-Year Percentage Decline in Employment

The Services to buildings and dwellings industry has lost the largest percent of jobs, losing 38.5 percent of the jobs from the 2nd quarter of 2005 to 2nd quarter of 2006. The losses of the area have declined faster than the industry has seen in the Iowa, where the it saw a gain of 2.8 percent. The losses in the Services to buildings and dwellings industry in Palo Alto County outpaced the United States in terms of percentage decline of industry employment. In this period, the United States gained 3.1 in percent of workers in the Services to buildings and dwellings industry.

Top 5 Industries
1. Services to buildings and dwellings (38.5 percent decline)
2. Newspaper, book, and directory publishers (18.3 percent decline)
3. Automobile dealers (16.3 percent decline)
4. Full-service restaurants (10.8 percent decline)
5. Legal services (10.5 percent decline)

Employment for all industries has increased by 3.1 percent from 2005 (2nd Quarter). These figures are greater than growth in Iowa, which saw a gain of 1.8 percent since 2005 ( 2nd Quarter). The gains were greater than than the gain reported at the US level of 2.0 percent.





About: This report is part 1 of 6 in the eCanned.com Industry Analysis Series.

Datasource: U.S. Department of Labor. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW). Private Sector Employment Only.

Income and Poverty in Palo Alto County, Iowa

When compared to other counties (and parishes) throughout the United States, Palo Alto County accounted a medium-low median household income of $37,919 (Adjusted to 2005 Dollars). This is 21.8 percent lower than the median income in State of Iowa of $46,179 and the median is 29.6 percent lower than the median for the rest of the nation, which is a reported $49,133.

In Palo Alto County, Iowa White householders had a median income (2005 Dollars) of $37,993 as reported in 2000 by the census, which was 0.2 percent greater than the median income in 2000. Hispanic households in Palo Alto County, Iowa , according to the 2000 census, had a median household income of $8,148, this income level is 78.5 percent less than the areas median income level for all households.

Evaluated with other counties (or parishes) across the nation, Palo Alto County, Iowa can be understood to have a medium-low rate of poverty among the people, accounting a rate of 10.6 percent with a family income under the 1999 poverty level. The American Indian and Alaska Native race/ethnicity population cohort, has the uppermost poverty rate with 71.4 percent of the population in 2000 living in poverty. Individuals aged 5 years are experiencing most percent people in poverty in Palo Alto County, reporting 18.1 percent of this demographic group living with incomes under poverty.







Datasource: U.S. Bureau of the Census. 2000 Decennial Census.

Higher Education in Palo Alto County, Iowa

According to the 2000 Decennial Census in Palo Alto County, Iowa, many men in the area have reached the Some College or Associates Degree category, with 34.8 percent obtaining this level of education. The women in Palo Alto have on average achieved a lower level of higher education (Bachelors Degree or Higher) than the male population-- 14.2 percent (Men) versus 13.6 percent (Women). Many of the women in the area have achieved the High School Diploma category, with 35.4 percent of the female population achieving this education level.

Palo Alto County, Iowa may to understood as having a moderately-educated population of the working age, with 13.8 percent of the population (+25) having received at least a Bachelors Degree, as reported in the Decennial Census of 2000. Palo Alto has a lower percent of the population with at least a Bachelors than the State of Iowa's proportion of 21.2 percent and a lower percent than United States proportion of 24.4 percent.

In Palo Alto County, Iowa as reported in the 2000 Census, 14 percent of the White Alone, . percent of Black or African American, 0 percent of the Asian alone and 0 percent of the Hispanic or Latino population, over the age 25, has achieved a Bachelors Degree or Higher.





Datasource: U.S. Bureau of the Census. 2000 Decennial Census.

Demographic Profile for Palo Alto County, Iowa

Since the year 2000, a medium-low number of individual migrated to the Palo Alto from outside the country. The immigration into Palo Alto totals 0.1 percent of the total international migration into the State of Iowa. This percent of international migration is medium-low when analyzed against immigration per population in 2005.

Palo Alto County, Iowa has a population base that is comprised of 98.4 percent White, 0.1 percent African American, 0.3 percent Asian, and 0.9 percent Hispanic. The area can be described as having a very modest amount of racial and ethnic diversity, with 1.3 percent minorities. This is less than the State of Iowa percent of 7.3. Since 2000, Palo Alto has increased in diversity when 1.2 percent of the population was made up of minorities.

Palo Alto County, Iowa had an estimated population of 9,697 for the year 2005. The total population has decreased, from the population in the year 2000 of 10,142. The decline shows a decrease of -4.4 percent. Palo Alto ranks 76 of 99 counties in terms of population growth in Iowa and the county ranks 2,697 of 3,141 counties in terms of population growth in the United States.

In 2005, the Census Bureau estimated the median age in Palo Alto County, Iowa to be 43.1 years old. The median in Palo Alto is greater than the median age in the State of Iowa of 38.6. Since the year 2000, the area has witnessed an increase in this median, when at that time it was 40.8 years of age. With a total of 21 percent of the 2005 population being made up of children and youth younger than 18, Palo Alto can be described as having a medium-low proportion of youths. The working age population group (18-64) has a relatively low presence of the population, with 57.8 percent of the population makes up this age category. The retirement (65 and over) age group comprises 21.2 percent of the population. When compared to other counties in the United States, this represents a relatively high proportion of the population.

By measuring total land area, Palo Alto covers a total land area of 564 square miles. This area has a very low average area density of 17 persons per square mile. Similar counties in the US, in terms of density, include: -- more densely populated -- Nemaha, NE (17 per sq. mile ), Randolph, GA (17 per sq. mile ), Maries, MO (17 per sq. mile ), -- less densely populated -- Stevens, WA (17 per sq. mile ), Cuming, NE (17 per sq. mile ), Garfield, CO (17 per sq. mile ).

Datasource: Population Estimates Program, U.S. Bureau of the Census.

Housing Report for Palo Alto County, Iowa

Palo Alto County had an owner-occupied dwelling median in 2000 of $53,500, accounted by the Decennial Census. This is less than the Iowa 2000 home value of $82,500 and less than median owner-occupied dwelling value of $119,600 for the United States in the same year.

In the State of Iowa, Palo Alto County ranks 57 of 99 in terms of percentage growth in new housing structures. The county ranks 2,193 of 3,141, comparing the percentage change in residential in other US counties.

In Palo Alto County, there were a total of 4,731 homes in the year 2005. This county has gone through a growth in housing units, adding a sum of 78 residential units since 2001, or 1.7 percent.

According to the data, there is a large amount of housing that is affordable in Palo Alto County, Iowa. In 2000, 93.7 percent of residential real estate was valued under $125,000.





Data Source: U.S. Census Bureau

Employment Report for Palo Alto County, Iowa -- Annual 2005 Industry Summary

Manufacturing has a largest number of employee per establishment in Palo Alto County. The industry averages 29 jobs per place of business. This is less than the US industry average of 39 and less than the State of Iowa average establishment size of 54 for the Manufacturing industry.

In Palo Alto County, Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting, Manufacturing and Retail Trade are the three industries with the highest location quotients. The Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting industry has an LQ of 6.93. In other words, the percent of total jobs in the Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting sector is 6.93 times the percent of the national average, This signifies that Palo Alto may be an exporter of products or services of Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting.

In Palo Alto County, Manufacturing, Retail Trade, and the Accommodation and food services sectors are the largest industries, in terms of total number of jobs in 2005. The Manufacturing produces the largest number of jobs in the area accounting for 23.7 percent of all the jobs in the county. This makes up 643 jobs. The Retail Trade and Accommodation and food services industries make up 15.2 and 8.2 percent of the total jobs, respectively.

Construction is the industry with the largest change in employment since the year 2001 in Palo Alto County, with a job growth of 71.4 percent. This is greater than the national employment change in the industry of 7.3 percent. The State of Iowa had changed in sector employment of 11.4 percent, during the period.









Datasource: U.S. Department of Labor. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW).