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State sinks in job-quality study

 Florida ranks 44th among states in job quality. The study blames a tax system catering to retirees.

By JAMES THORNER
Published June 24, 2006

Under Gov. Jeb Bush, Florida has striven to be a contender in the slugfest for high-quality corporate jobs. The assumption: Engineers and medical researchers pack a bigger economic wallop than waiters and construction workers.

But for proponents of the quality-over-quantity school of job creation, the results of a newly released University of Florida study could come as a bit of a blow.

Florida's share of top-paying jobs fell relative to the rest of the country from 1999 to 2004, according to a study released Thursday by UF's Bureau of Economic and Business Research. In the quality of its jobs, Florida ranked 44th among 50 states in 2004.

Who's to blame? The study singled out retirees, who make up a disproportionate share of the state's population. Retirees have molded the tax system in their favor so that schools and universities are strapped for money, the study says. Fewer college graduates equals lower-paying jobs.

Business has picked up the burden through Florida's higher corporate taxes. Other states offer more favorable business climates.

"Large retiree populations and a lack of college graduates are strongly related to low and declining job quality," according to the study, presented this week at a quarterly board meeting of Enterprise Florida, the state's economic development agency.

For Bob Abberger, a Trammell Crow development company executive who chairs the Greater Tampa Chamber of Commerce's Committee of 100, the study highlighted themes he's been hawking for months. Attention to education and work force development is paramount, he said.

"I wholeheartedly agree. Work force and education have to be at the top of our priorities if we're to remain competitive," Abberger said.

"I don't want to dump on retirees, though," he added. "I'm getting close to being one myself."

The study notes that low-value jobs that sustain retirees and tourism don't signify economic weakness in and of themselves. But if they're not counterbalanced by high-wage professional jobs, the state suffers.

As evidence, the study compared retiree bastions such as Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater with such highly educated enclaves as Tallahassee, Gainesville and Melbourne-Titusville.

Tallahassee with its state agencies and university, Gainesville (home of the state's flagship university) and Melbourne-Titusville (center of the space program) held their own compared to the other 49 states. Tampa-St. Petersburg, Orlando and other cities suffered by national comparisons.

The research suggests retirees' political clout has led to the creation of Save Our Homes and the homestead exemption. Save Our Homes caps property assessment increases at 3 percent annually. The homestead exemption waives taxes on $25,000 of a home's value.

Retirees schooled their children up North on someone else's dime, the study says. When they come to Florida, most retirees resist paying the bill for the next generation.

Education hugely impacts pay: On average, a college graduate earns 77 percent more than a person who stopped with a high school diploma.

Hoping to diversify Florida's economy, Enterprise Florida commissioned the $53,000 study last year. Spokeswoman Lisa Nason said the agency acknowledges the results but stressed that Florida's uniqueness as a tourist hub and magnet for migrants skew statistics relative to other states.

"Where are the gaps, where are the opportunities, what actions should we be taking? That's precisely the point of looking at Florida's job structure through the study," Nason said.

The prescription recommended by the study won't be popular: Floridians, especially retirees, should ease taxes on businesses by paying more in property and sales taxes.

"Significantly boosting education investments and reducing business taxes are the two most important steps to boosting Florida's job quality," the study concluded.

--James Thorner can be reached at thorner@sptimes.com or (727) 226-3313.

[Last modified June 24, 2006, 06:39:01]