Economy in state outpaces US growth

Adds 4,600 jobs through March

The Massachusetts economy expanded at a healthy clip in the first three months of the year despite a national economic slowdown, breaking with the recent past when the state suffered longer and deeper recessions than the rest of the United States.

The University of Massachusetts said yesterday that the state’s economy grew at a 3.2 percent annual rate, about five times faster than the 0.6 percent national rate reported yesterday by the Commerce Department. During that period, Massachusetts employers added 4,600 jobs, even as companies nationwide cut more than 200,00.

So much for the wing-nuts that keep saying we would all be better off if we were less like Massachusetts and more like Mississippi.

It was suggested that I copy this comment here.

The real story is that because of the major investment Mass has made in education — its students rank number one in national achievement test — Mass has moved on to the new knowledge intensive industries like technology, investments, healthcare and biotechnlogy.

This means Mass generates high quality, high paying jobs. It has intensive growth while the sun belt creates jobs in the old low productivity, low paying jobs that have left Mass. They have extensive growth. The problem the sunbelt states face is that these low paying jobs are now leaving the sunbelt states for China, and other foreign producers. In essence, Mass is already where the rest of the country is going to have to follow over the coming decades.
There are many reasons for this. But much of it is the great Mass public education system and the willingness of Mass business and government leaders to work together to create the environment needed to support these high quality jobs.

Yes, the Mass model does create problems for those who do not get an education and prepare themselves to live in the post-industrial economy. That is why so many of them move out and are replaced those who come here to school and stay. A great example of that is that medical doctors in Mass have the lowest income of doctors in any state.