As the job market continues to be the subject of daily concern with the current DETR report showing almost 130,000 statewide on unemployment rolls, this is a good time to remind residents most jobs in this city are not within the hospitality/retail industry and there are many good paying jobs that continued uninterrupted in spite of the pandemic.
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics lists Carson City as having the highest mean hourly wage within the Metropolitan Statistical Areas in Nevada as of May 2020.
With a statewide salary mean of $24.21 per hour, Carson City comes in at a mean hourly wage of $26.07 per hour as compared to Reno at $24.75 and Las Vegas at $24.02.
As one would expect in most capital cities, jobs in government are plentiful and pay good wages as well as offering benefits and pensions not often found in private sector employment. Regional workers commute daily to fill jobs bringing increased revenue as employees shop and dine within the city. Too, government jobs seem to be recession-proof even though there may be a small temporary cut back on hours during the most trying times.
The Army National Guard is headquartered here and is listed as the largest employer followed by #2 State Department of Corrections; #3 State Department of Transportation; and #4 Employment Security Division. The State Department of Motor Vehicles comes in at #6, followed by Legislative Counsel Bureau at #7, and Public & Behavioral Health at #8.
Carson Tahoe Health is the fifth largest employer. Manufacturers Click Bond rank #10 and Chromalloy is #13, both of which have significant federal contracts. The City of Carson City ranks #9; the Carson City School District at #11; and Western Nevada College at #12. The top employer within hospitality is the Casino Fandango at #14.
Bottom line: Out of the 14 top local employers listed, three are private sector and Carson Tahoe Health is a non-profit. All the rest receive mostly taxpayer dollars to operate.
Thus, through the pandemic, Carson City did not suffer as much as those cities mostly dependent on hospitality. While government shut down physically, employees were able to work from home and receive paychecks and benefits. Some manufacturers had to retool to supply medical needs, but most were operational, and some had to reduce staff. As everywhere else, retail and hospitality took the brunt of the shutdown.
When the city crossed the 50,000 population mark in 2000, major retailers and developers found Carson City to be on their radar. That radar signal is still strong as major companies look to grow recognizing the city as a regional hub.
Ronni Hannaman is executive director of the Carson City Chamber of Commerce.
