Cache County wage crunch causes stress for students
Jason and Jennifer sit in their chilly, one-bedroom apartment, bundled in sweaters, with Jennifer wrapped in a blanket. Jason, 23, scans the help wanted ads for the fourth time this morning.
“I’ve been looking for a decent job in Logan for about nine months, and I still haven’t found anything worthwhile,” he said.
Jason and Jennifer are a new family, just beginning their life together.
They have been married for nine months and have been living in Logan while attending Utah State University. Jason is studying biology, with hopes of becoming a pharmacist. Jennifer is a sociology major with plans to be a homemaker.
The only job Jason has held in Logan was a two-week stint for a construction company. Jennifer has also been looking for a steady job since they moved here from Provo.
The couple asked that their last names not be used because they don’t want to jeopardize any potential employment.
The couple’s biggest concern is finding jobs for which they aren’t vastly overqualified.
“I’ve spent days and days looking for a job, turning in resumes, following up with potential employers, even going to the local job service agencies, and in the end, found nothing,” Jennifer said.
This couple is not alone in its difficulty finding a job suited to them. According to Bureau of Labor statistics, in January 2001, 4.3 percent of the U.S. working-age population is unemployed, while another 2.7 percent is underemployed, or overqualified for the jobs they presently hold.
Some students at USU believe Cache Valley has a major underemployment problem, especially among university students.
Mindy Hammer, a junior at USU, has seen people struggle with the problem.
“Even highly-qualified students have a hard time finding a job that pays more than minimum wage, and the only jobs that pay more are working at a factory or telemarketing,” she said. “Who needs three or four years of college for that?”
Hammer said she and her friends have nicknamed the area “No Cash Valley.”
The urgency for Jennifer and Jason to both find good jobs has increased significantly, as Jennifer is pregnant with their first child. The baby is due in July.
They have been using Medicaid to cover visits to the doctor and eventually, the birth of the child.
The two believe it would be a miracle if they could find a job offering health insurance but are not expecting that.
“I don’t think there’s any possible way a job here in Logan would have insurance to help cover the expense of having this child,” Jennifer said.
“The fact that we’re going to be having a child makes it that much more important to find a well-paying job,” Jason said.
From their experiences, the two have found that easier said than done.
Jason has three years of experience in a law office working as a runner, legal researcher and secretary. He also has almost a year of telephone customer service experience, and has worked as a regional sales manager. In those jobs, he averaged about $12 an hour. He has been unable to find similar jobs in Logan.
Since moving to Logan, Jason has worked as a legal process server in Pocatello on the weekends. His hourly wage approaches $15, but works few hours because of the distance from home.
“I can’t work enough hours because I’m in school during the week, and the only time I can make the trip up to Pocatello is on the weekends,” he said.
Working construction, Jason made $6 an hour doing the same job his brother did in Provo for $10 an hour.
“It’s just ridiculous that a job here in Logan can pay half as much as the same job in a city a few hours away,” Jason said.
Bobbie Coray, director of the Cache Chamber of Commerce, has a different view on the subject.
“There is no shortage of jobs for students in Logan,” she said.
Coray added that Pepperidge Farms is looking for help and many jobs for students around Cache Valley pay between $8 and $10 an hour.
Coray also said students having trouble finding a job may not be using helpful resources like the Department of Workforce Services and the Utah State University Employment Office.
“Line workers and telephone employees are always sought after in Logan,” Coray said.
Assembly line and telemarketing jobs are among those some students feel overqualified for.
Jennifer said the most discouraging thing about jobs in Logan is the wages are so low compared to similar jobs in other places.
Jennifer made $8.60 an hour working four years at a restaurant. Here, the best wage the same restaurant could offer was $6 an hour. She is currently feeling the wage crunch as she has been offered a telemarketing job which pays $5.65 an hour, after working at a similar job in Provo making $8 an hour.
“The thing that’s frustrating to me is that you’re competing against so many people that even if you happen to find a job, you can’t ask for more pay because the employer will just say, ‘Fine, we’ll get someone who really needs this job,’ and you’re stuck with nothing,” Jennifer said.
The numbers appear to favor Jason and Jennifer’s argument of low wages in Logan for equal work. According to the Utah Department of Workforce Services Web site (www.dws.state.ut.us/), some semiskilled, mid-level jobs have broad wage differences between Logan and the rest of the state. Counter and rental clerks make an average of $6.40 an hour in Cache Valley, while the state average for that job is $7.90 an hour. Retail sales clerks make an average of $1 less per hour in Cache Valley compared to the state average. On the whole, Cache County workers average $1,780 per month, compared with $2,100 in Weber County, and $2,300 in Davis County.
Some attribute the low wages in Logan to a low cost of living in the area. The Web site shows that Logan’s cost of living is 5.6 percent lower than the U.S. average.
Over the past three years, Logan has had a slightly lower or slightly higher overall cost of living than comparable cities in Utah. The cost of living has had little or no effect on the wages in these areas.
What can be done about this wage crunch? Jason believes the solution lies in bringing more high-tech jobs to Logan.
“With all of the new businesses, like IHOP, Sonic and PetsMart, low-skilled, high-school age workers should have plenty of work opportunities,” he said.
“If Logan could attract more computer-related jobs and specialized sales jobs, college students could fill them and make more money while gaining valuable experience,” he said.
Coray agreed more high-tech jobs in Logan would benefit USU students. The Logan Economic Development Department is working to attract high-tech businesses, she said.
Whether Cache Valley really has an underemployment problem is still debatable. However, those like Jennifer and Jason who have faced the difficult reality of low-paying, low-skilled jobs here in Logan, hope things will improve.
“I’m going to keep my eyes open and keep hoping for a job that fits my abilities and pays well,” Jason said.