The Mississippi state flag (bottom) flies over the Jackson, Mississippi skyline on June 28, 2020.
Rory Doyle | AFP | Getty Images
There may be no better place to beat inflation than Mississippi, which offers the lowest cost of living in the nation. But workers aren’t beating their feet to get there.
With one of the least educated and least productive workforces in America and one of the worst rates of labor migration, according to census data, Mississippi finished at the bottom of CNBC’s annual ranking of state competitiveness.
Greg Howell, manager at Magnolia Diesel in West Point, Mississippi, knows firsthand about the talent shortage in his state. He is looking for two diesel mechanics at his repair shop about 45 miles south of Tupelo. But he said the applications he has received so far have not been impressive.
“You can let them air out your bike tire. But right now, finding quality people who want to work is next to none,” Howell said.
In Mississippi, diesel mechanic jobs pay an average of about $22 an hour, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. But the higher the skills, the higher the salary. There are currently no applicants for the positions in the Tupelo area.
“A good mechanic isn’t looking for work right now,” Howell said.
More coverage of America’s best states for business in 2022
The situation for business owners is even worse when it comes to those looking for workers with high technical skills. Mississippi has the nation’s lowest concentration of so-called STEM — science, technology, engineering and math — workers. Only about 3 percent of Mississippi workers are employed in these high-demand fields, according to BLS data. Roughly 23 percent of Mississippi workers have a bachelor’s degree or higher, according to the Census Bureau, making the state’s workforce the second least educated in the nation, behind only West Virginia.
Overall, Mississippi’s workforce is also the least productive in the nation as measured by economic output per workplace. That leaves the state 47th in the “Workforce” category, the most important in this year’s rankings, as companies face historic worker shortages.
Improving the state’s workforce has been a priority of Gov. Tate Reeves, a Republican, in his first term. The state’s revamped workforce development agency, Accelerate Mississippi, has pledged to do just that by seeking to better connect workers with employers.
“We’ve been able to streamline our workforce development efforts to ensure we have a clear strategy — a strategy that will meet the needs of employers and fill vacancies for jobs that offer above-average wages,” Reeves said in the annual State of the State address in January.
Mississippi Republican Governor Tate Reeves finishes signing the bill that retires the last state flag in the United States with the Confederate battle emblem, during a ceremony at the governor’s mansion in Jackson, Mississippi, U.S., June 30, 2020. Cheering are, from left, Speaker House Rep. Philip Gunn, R-Clinton; Reuben Anderson, former Mississippi Supreme Court Justice; Lt. Gov. Delbert Hosemann; and Central District Transportation Commissioner Willie Simmons.
Rogelio V. Solis | Reuters
The program delivers results. According to the U.S. Department of Labor, Mississippi has one of the best results in the nation for hiring workers from its job training programs.
For his part, Howell does believe the state is doing everything it can to develop and hire workers, even helping pay the wages of interns through a community college.
“I think what this school does is go above and beyond,” he said. “I mean they pay the students to work here. I don’t know what else you would want a school to do.”
But, he said, new hires are reluctant to stick around for long, which he blames on “all that incentive money.”
“Everybody’s used to it and now they don’t want to work,” he said.
Still, Mississippi’s new successes in worker training don’t make up for the many weaknesses in the state’s workforce, which Reeves acknowledged are in the works.
“Doing things the right way to build a skilled workforce takes time,” he said.
Mississippi also fared poorly in the Education category, another Reeves priority, finishing at No. 46. While test scores are improving, they remain low, according to data from the U.S. Department of Education. And the state lags behind in funding both K-12 and higher education.
Mississippi finishes last in business-friendly, thanks to a judiciary consistently ranked among the worst for business by the U.S. Chamber Institute for Legal Reform. In other categories, the state is No. 49 in the economy and No. 48 in technology and innovation.
Discriminatory laws hurt a country’s ranking
This year’s worst-performing state offers mixed results in livability, health and inclusion, another important category in 2022 and a key factor in attracting workers.
While crime rates are low, air quality is high, and affordable childcare options are plentiful, Mississippi’s legendary Southern hospitality isn’t always applied evenly.
According to the National Conference of State Legislatures, Mississippi is one of only five states without a statewide anti-discrimination law protecting people without disabilities.
Patricia Cole receives a Moderna Covid-19 vaccination from a medical worker at a pop-up clinic operated by Delta Health Center in this rural Delta community on April 27, 2021 in Hollandale, Mississippi.
Spencer Platt | Getty Images
In 2021, Reeves signed the Mississippi Equity Act, which banned transgender girls from competing in school sports. The governor said the law was needed to counter Biden administration policies that “encourage transgenderism among our young people.”
The National Center for Transgender Equality called the law “unfair and discriminatory.”
Mississippi’s voting laws are consistently among the most restrictive in the nation, according to Northern Illinois University researchers. It is the only state that does not allow early voting, and voters can vote absentee in person before Election Day, but the practice is subject to severe restrictions.
An anti-abortion protester tries to talk to a patient on the other side of the fence outside the Jackson Women’s Health Organization clinic, May 3, 2022.
Andrea Morales | The Washington Post | Getty Images
Mississippi’s ban on abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy was the subject of the Supreme Court’s landmark decision in June overturning Roe v. Wade. Some groups argue that state abortion bans are bad for business because they will deter workers. But because many state laws are still in the process of being changed and the business community has yet to reach any kind of consensus on the issue, abortion laws are not considered in this year’s rankings.
Low prices during high inflation
Mississippi’s bright spot, year after year, is low costs. And this fact becomes more and more important as inflation rises.
The Magnolia State offers the lowest cost of living of any state, according to the Community and Economic Research Council, which tracks prices across the country. A four-bedroom single-family home in Jackson went for about $267,000 last year, researchers found. This is nearly 30% below the national average.
Abandoned home in Wisner, Mississippi.
Barry Lewis | In photos | Getty Images
And workers just got a big tax break. The state’s largest-ever tax cut began to phase in on July 1, the start of the new fiscal year. When fully implemented in three years, residents will pay a flat tax of 4% on income over $4,000 a year.
For businesses, the state offers the lowest wage costs in the country. The average hourly wage was $20.53 last year, according to the Labor Department. And renting office and industrial space is very cheap.
But with so many other weaknesses, however, it’s fair to ask whether you’re getting what you pay for in America’s lowest state for business in 2022.
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