Scranton is a blue collar town (Pittsburgh, Allentown: crime, house, employment)

[frank754]

If Scranton cleans up and ever does what Wilkes-Barre has done (i.e. create a vibrant & attractive downtown with shops & better class eateries) it may have a chance. The housing is affordable and there are a lot of folks looking to come from other areas to downsize (tax & real-estate-wise)and make a go of it.
Probably more established families & middle agers approaching retirement than young people starting a career, but the odds are in favor of it... eventually

[sues1]

Originally Posted by marchawg

So if blue collar jobs are on the decline in the USA, and scranton is "never going to be white collar," WHAT exactly is it going to be?

I don't know, because you're right blue collar jobs are on the decline and that sucks, maybe we need a president in office that will look out for blue collar folks and get these jobs back in this country where they belong. They are out there, just not in this country anymore.

[ConfusingRotary]

It's not the president who is sending jobs overseas. Capitalists will find the cheapest labour, wherever it may be. If you don't adapt to that (ie become white collar), you will suffer.

Just because you have a white collar job, doesn't mean you have to go hang out at starbucks and buy $15 drinks. You can still apply the same blue collar ethic to a white collar job.

[KarenRice]

The President can help by introducing incentives for businesses to keep their labor HERE. On that same note, municipalities can do that too on a smaller scale.

[ConfusingRotary]

You guys give the president too much credit. Remember the whole "checks and balances" thing? He is not the only one who sets policies.

Now let's be realistic. Where do you think you'll find a government that will find it in their hearts to make jobs for people and stop taking kickbacks and bribes from corporations? You realize that with all the money businesses save by opening up factories in third world countries, they can afford monstrous.. "bonuses" to public officials, don't you? It's easier to pay off a few people than pay a fair wage in a first world country.

[Magritte25]

Originally Posted by johnqpublic

Look Scran,
Scrantons population and the surrounding area is turning older every year, there simply isnt the # of local kids there were 10 or 20 years ago..
Let me correct your short sightedness on another point. If major white collar employers wanted to move here they have an ample educated workforce to draw from, in this small area we have the University of Scranton, Marywood, Johnsons, Keystone, Lackawanna, Wilkes, KIngs, Etc, that are graduating hundreds idf not thousands of young degreed people each year.. so your arguement of a "educated" workforce doesnt hold water. this area is held back not by lack of qualified people, but by a corrupt political climate and opressive business taxes. nothing more, nothing less

^^^This. We have highly educated people in this area or from this area that move out. The problem is NOT an uneducated populace.

[Magritte25]

Originally Posted by sues1

I don't know, because you're right blue collar jobs are on the decline and that sucks, maybe we need a president in office that will look out for blue collar folks and get these jobs back in this country where they belong. They are out there, just not in this country anymore.

It's not any presidents' fault that so many labor/manufacturing jobs have moved out of the country. It's OUR fault - the consumers who would rather pay less for junk then support our local economies.

It's really sad.

[Magritte25]

Originally Posted by KarenRice

The President can help by introducing incentives for businesses to keep their labor HERE. On that same note, municipalities can do that too on a smaller scale.

So can consumers - by supporting their local small business rather than chains like Target, Wal-mart, etc.

(I am just as guilty of this as anyone else)

[SteelCityRising]

Originally Posted by johnqpublic

Look Scran,
Scrantons population and the surrounding area is turning older every year, there simply isnt the # of local kids there were 10 or 20 years ago..
Let me correct your short sightedness on another point. If major white collar employers wanted to move here they have an ample educated workforce to draw from, in this small area we have the University of Scranton, Marywood, Johnsons, Keystone, Lackawanna, Wilkes, KIngs, Etc, that are graduating hundreds idf not thousands of young degreed people each year.. so your arguement of a "educated" workforce doesnt hold water. this area is held back not by lack of qualified people, but by a corrupt political climate and opressive business taxes. nothing more, nothing less

Actually, John, the presence of so many institutions of higher learning in the region is worthless if most graduates leave. I graduated Pittston Area in 2005. Of those who went on to pursue a degree I can only rattle off a select few who are still in the region. The rest of us have all left due to the dearth of white-collar opportunity. My argument does hold water. Instead of baseless supposition, as is the common theme on this forum, allow me to leave you with some sobering statistics from the U.S. Census Bureau:

Percentage of Adults 25 Years and Older With a Bachelor's Degree or Higher (2008):
Scranton: 17.6%
PA: 25.9%
U.S.: 27.4%
Reston, VA: 68.1%

Median Household Income (2008):
Scranton: $33,418
PA: $50,272
U.S.: $52,175
Reston, VA: $102,839

Median Earnings by Educational Attainment (2008):

Scranton:
Less Than High School Graduate: $19,052
High School Graduate: $23,172
Some College or Associate's Degree: $28,001
Bachelor's Degree: $34,383
Graduate or Professional Degree: $46,675

PA:
Less Than High School Graduate: $20,766
High School Graduate: $27,751
Some College or Associate's Degree: $33,829
Bachelor's Degree: $46,582
Graduate or Professional Degree: $62,925

U.S.:
Less Than High School Graduate: $19,989
High School Graduate: $27,448
Some College or Associate's Degree: $33,838
Bachelor's Degree: $47,853
Graduate or Professional Degree: $63,174

Reston, VA:
Less Than High School Graduate: $27,310
High School Graduate: $28,364
Some College or Associate's Degree: $44,239
Bachelor's Degree: $74,002
Graduate or Professional Degree: $94,895

I don't see where the confusion lies when I make the assertion that, generally speaking, the more educated you are, the higher your earning potential is because you become more marketable to prospective skilled employers. Students in NEPA graduate with similar levels of student debt to students all over the country, but their earnings potential in NEPA is much more limited, making it more difficult to live comfortably while repaying those student loans. In Scranton more educated white-collar people equates to higher wage tax revenues, which will ultimately mean either lower (or stabilized) taxes across the board and/or better municipal services, which benefits the entire city.

I'll never understand why so many of you have the "it is what it is" mentality about Scranton. Yes, Scranton is growing very "gray", but there ARE ways to turn around the decades-long "Brain Drain" that is fleecing the region of its talented youth. I pitched several such ideas to city council via e-mail. Two council members responded (the "comp queen" you all love wasn't amongst them). They were patronizing of me, but I could tell they weren't very receptive because the ideas were too "progressive" for the limited minds at the helm of the city.

Virginia's politics are just as corrupt as many other parts of the country, and yet we are consistently rated the top state in America for business, and we have a plethora of six-figure earners here. Care to re-evaluate your claim that "corrupt politics" is the reason why Scranton cheers about "excellent high-paying jobs" at Wal-Mart?

[SteelCityRising]

Originally Posted by marchawg

So if blue collar jobs are on the decline in the USA, and scranton is "never going to be white collar," WHAT exactly is it going to be?

Thank you. This is my argument exactly. The manufacturing sector has been and will continue to be bleeding itself dry in this country, yet people in Scranton seem to be thinking it's going to be making a rapid "magical" recovery. It's not. Pittsburgh took the hint. Instead of lamenting the loss of their blue-collar industries they've begun to diversify much better into higher education, health care, research, engineering, pharmaceuticals, and even robotics. People can earn $50,000 salaries in these positions and live very comfortably in the city. In Scranton people acknowledge that blue-collar jobs are drying up (which is why the unemployment rate there is double-digits) while also saying "we'll never be white-collar." I'm still waiting on what the solution IS then. If Scranton can't be blue-collar OR white-collar, then is it just going to die?