Skeptical of weekly wage average

The Yuma Sun's headline story today (March 4th) reads “County wages well below averages.” At an average weekly wage of $668 that does put Yuma County well below state and national averages. There will be those who make less than that and those that make more than that each week. To put it in perspective, if you live in Yuma County and are lucky enough to find a job paying $668 a week, you are making $16.70 per hour (based on 40 hours a week if you are lucky enough to have a full time job) and $34,736 per year (based on having to work each week without a vacation). And if you are very lucky in Yuma County, you may get benefits that provide sick leave, vacation leave, and medical/dental benefits.

Unfortunately, I am skeptical of this weekly wage figure or at least the manner in which it is calculated. In my six months of job searching the Internet, YPIC, Monster, Arizona Workforce Connection, etc., I did not see any public sector jobs advertised in this wage range that I can remember. There were government jobs offering comparable or better wages, but not many. I do agree with the comment of YPIC's Patrick Goetz that “Yuma has always been seen as a lower wage area” but remain skeptical of the availability of better paying jobs in Yuma County. Maybe the BLS calculates the average weekly wage based upon workers currently employed PLUS vacant positions waiting to be filled?

George K. Blackwell

Yuma