STARKE COUNTY LABOR MARKET PROFILEStarke County is located in Northwest Indiana. The county is bordered on the south by Pulaski County. The County is adjacent to Marshall County on the east, LaPorte County is to the north, and Jasper County to the west. Starke County is one of the seven counties located in the area designated by the Indiana Department of Workforce Development as Indiana Economic Growth Region 1.
Starke County’s population estimate for 2006 was 23,069, down 2.1 percent from the 2000 Census total. During this same time period, Indiana’s total 2006 population estimate of 6,313,520 was up by 3.8 percent.
Population pageAccording to the 2000 Census, 11,005 people twenty-five years of age and over were high school high school graduates and/or had post-high school education. This amount represented 72.0 percent of Starke County’s twenty-five and over population. For the twenty-five years of age and over population, 1,286 or 8.4 percent were four-year college graduates or higher, ranking Starke County 87th highest among Indiana counties for percentage of this population who were college graduates or higher. For the 2004-2005 school year, 214 persons graduated high school and 110 or 51.4 percent intended to go on to higher education.
Education pageStarke County’s estimated average unemployment rate for 2006 was 6.6 percent, above Indiana’s annual average of 5.0 percent. The county’s unemployment rate was based on an estimated average residential labor force of 10,666. Of that labor force, 9,967 were employed and 699 were unemployed. Starke County’s unemployment rate reached a decade low of 4.6 percent in 2000. The rate rose to 7.5 percent by 2002.
Labor force pageIn 2005 persons living in but commuting to work out of Starke County was 5,670 or 38.7 percent of the labor force. Approximately 61.3 percent of Starke County’s working residents work in the county. The area outside Starke County where the largest number of residents went to work was Marshall County. In 2005 person commuting to work into the county from outside areas was 841 or 8.6 percent of the work force. The area sending the most number of persons into the county to work was Pulaski County.
Commutting pageIn 2006, Starke County businesses had an average of 4, 245 jobs. Three major industry sectors: Manufacturing, Government (all levels), and Health Care & Social Assistance dominated the county in terms of employment. These three industry sectors accounted for 61.3 percent of the county’s 2006 industry employment. The largest employing industry in the county was Manufacturing with 961 jobs, accounting for 22.6 percent of total employment. Total covered employment was down 0.5 percent between 2002 and 2006. Retail Trade showed the most job growth between 2002 and 2006, increasing 36 jobs or 6.0 percent. Wholesale Trade was second, adding 21 jobs or 22.8 percent. Administrative and Waste Services had the largest percentage gain at 48.8 percent.
Industry employment pageThe average 2006 earnings for Starke County was $24,875 per year versus Indiana’s $36,411. The average industry wage rose by $2,079 or 9.1 percent from 2002 to 2006. The Wholesale Trade industry had the highest average earnings at $32,508 per year, with the Manufacturing industry second at $32,164, while the industry with the lowest annual earnings number was Accommodation & Food Services at $9,945. Per capita income for 2005 was $21,667 in Starke County, up 42.1 percent since 1995.
Industry earnings pageStarke County has 343 firms, with 7 firms or about 2.0 percent employing 100 or more workers, while firms employing fewer than 10 workers account for 70.6 percent. Also, the number firms employing fewer than 10 workers fell 10.4 per cent or 28 firms between 1999 and 2006 to total 242 firms in 2006.
Firms page