Key Takeaways
• Region’s workforce totals approximately 500,000. This workforce, which spans nine counties, includes workers within a 45 minute drive.
• Average annual wage in Region is $43,000.
• Average commuting time is 23.4 minutes.
• Fulton‐Montgomery Community College (FMCC) offers tailored training to provide local companies with skilled workers.
• Two new Pathways in Technology (PTECH) Programs serve Fulton County. These PTECH schools, which are new models for secondary educations, are training students in business management, advanced manufacturing, information technology and health science. Upon graduating from these PTECH Programs with Associates Degrees, these students will represent another source of trained, skilled labor for businesses in the Region.
There are 15 colleges within an hour's drive.
Workforce
Fulton County employers draw workers within a 45‐minute commuting distance that includes Albany, Schenectady, Saratoga Springs and other population centers. This workforce offers an above average number of:
• younger job seekers
• executive age workers
• pre‐retiree workers
Over 90% of the County’s population drive their vehicles to work. The average commuting time is 23.4 minutes (one way). One‐fifth of all workers living in Fulton County travel over 35 minutes with 16% traveling over 45 minutes.
Median Wages
Employers in Fulton County offer competitive wages for both goods and service producing jobs. The median annual salary is $31,200 in service producing industries and $33,200 in goods producing industries. This equates to retail buying power of approximately $11,000 per person.
In this range, two wage earner families can purchase a home valued at between $120,000 and $190,000, significantly beyond the median home value countywide of $108,000. New industries targeted by the County offer an average annual wage estimated at $43,000. At that level, a two-‐wage earner household could afford a home between $172,000 and $258,000.