Workforce Indicators

Workforce Indicators

Jay County has had for several years a very stable employment situation. With the growth of our local companies, our community has been able to attract worker from surrounding counties. Your company will have available to them some of the best employees with skills to accommodate your growth.

Economic Indicators – 2018

Resident Labor Force  9,931
Total Employed  9437
Per Capita Income38169
Median Household Income38663
Percentage below poverty level 19.9
Unemployment Rate 4.8

Commuting Patterns – 2019

Into Jay County From
All Areas2010
Adams County179
Randolph County571
Delaware County570
Blackford County406
State of Ohio284
Out of Jay County Into
All Areas3321
Adams County1231
Delaware County1027
State of Ohio424
Wells County416
Randolph County223

Regional Unemployment Rates – August 2017 (Most Current Data Available)

CountyLabor ForceEmployedPercent Unemployed
Adams County17,03116,4813.2%
Blackford County  5,2284,9864.6%
Delaware County54,25851,4755.1%
Jay County9,7079,2934.3%
Mercer, OH
24,20023,4003.2%
Randolph County12,53111,9854.4%
Wells County14,41613,9083.5%
Darke County, OH26,90025,9004.3%

Income and Poverty – 2017

Jay CountyIndiana
Per Capita Income3816939758
Median Household Income3866349384
Poverty Rate - 201419.915.2
Among Children under 1835.221.2
Monthly Avg. Of Families - Welfare2030864
Food Stamp Recipients in 201523808106-6
Free and Reduced Lunches - 20151905504539

Employment and Earnings by Industry – 2017

EmploymentAvg. Earnings Per Job
Total by place of Work1074850383
Wage and Salary824233787
Farm Proprietors752156834
Non-Farm Proprietors175438344
Farm961128146
Non-farm978742748
Private Sector838542223
Accommodation, Food Ser.49819241
Arts., Ent., Rec.597136
Construction49337941
Health Care, Social Service57531889
Information9728753
Manufacturing319065277
Professional Tech. Ser.18734604
Retail trade87021471
Wholesale Trade28458680
Other Private163723014
Government140245888

Workforce Development Services

Eastern Indiana Economic Growth Region (EGR6) is made up of nine counties – Blackford, Delaware, Fayette, Henry, Jay, Randolph, Rush, Union and Wayne. The region spans 2,977 square miles in Eastern Indiana bordering Ohio on the East and Central Indiana on the west. The population of the area is 350,000 with 186,000 people working in 302 different industries. The region has shared a common history in the manufacturing boom, which continues to dominate the economy although recent efforts have been focused on diversification of the region’s employment base while supporting the needs of its manufacturers. Planning and oversight of the services to employers, job seekers and youth of the region are provided by a business led Eastern Indiana Regional Workforce Board. Services are provided through eight area WorkOne Centers located throughout the region. Employer services are best compared to other regions of Indiana through the evaluation of the comparison of EGR 6 employer satisfaction rate to the other ten regions of the state.

The workforce development services provided to job seekers and youth are aimed at assuring continuous improvement of skills required by the existing and future employers of the workers. This is achieved through a continuous feedback loop of information from employers to the workforce preparation system to assure training meets the needs of area employers while providing workers with portable skills and credentials.

Workforce preparation skills are provided in many formats including:

  •  Traditional Classroom
  •  On-the-Job
  •  E-Learning
  •  Apprenticeship
  •  Work Experience
  •  WorkKeys Job Profiles and Worker Skill Remediation
  •  Employer based training through customized grants

WorkOne Centers serving the region include:

Jay County
107 S. Meridian Street
Portland, IN 47371
Phone: (260) 726-8316

Eastern Indiana
Regional Workforce Board
122 E. Main Street
P.O. Box 1856
Muncie, IN 47308
Phone: (765) 282-6400 Ext. 102

For more information on the Region or Indiana’s Workforce Development System visit
www.dwd.in.gov
www.eiegr.org
www.work-one.org