The 1990s were very good to Wisconsin. Between 1991 and 1999 employment in the state grew by 21%, far surpassing the nation’s 13% growth. The state’s unemployment rate remained below the nation’s throughout the period and is still below 4% in 2000. Some areas of the state, such as Dane and Waukesha Counties, have unemployment rates below 2%. The one down side is that the economy added employment more rapidly in the first half of the decade; growth has slowed since 1995. It appears that the limited supply of labor, as evidenced by the very low unemployment rates, is currently limiting the rate of growth.

Two questions need to be answered. The first is whether all areas of the state participated in this growth. The second, and more comprehensive, is what factors were responsible for the growth. This report explores answers to both questions for 1991 to 1999, using the state’s Unemployment Compensation data.

All areas did participate, but some areas grew much more rapidly than did others. The areas that grew the fastest in terms of employment were Brown County (34%), the Fox Cities (29%), and Kenosha (27%). The slowest growers were Racine (8%) and Milwaukee (15%). The non-metropolitan areas of the state, referred to as the "rest of the state," grew faster, on average (25%), than the metropolitan areas.

The private sector grew much more quickly (23%) than did the public (11%).

Manufacturing employment grew by 14%, but this growth was eclipsed by Services (35%) and Retail (17%). Manufacturing growth was not universal: for example, the city of Milwaukee lost over 10,600 manufacturing jobs over the decade.

Growth came from a wide variety of industries. But a few common industries are among the fastest growing across the state. These fast growers include Business Services, led by Help Supply Services; Health and Allied Services, led by General Hospitals and Doctors' Offices; and Educational Services, led by Elementary and Secondary Education.

Certain areas like La Crosse, Kenosha, and Racine lost Retail employment in the 1995-1999 period, so the 1990s added modestly to their retail employment. In Milwaukee, Retail employment grew only 3% in the decade, suggesting retail saturation. But elsewhere Retail ruled. In Dane County, Retail employment grew by 19%, and in the rest of the state Retail employment grew by an amazing 28% over the 1991-1999 period.

High-tech employment exists in state, ranging from a high of 6% of all employment in Dane to 1% in Rock. The state added close to 25,000 high-tech jobs, 1991 to 1999.

The majority of net employment gains in most areas came from establishments that added 50 or more employees. The biggest exceptions were Kenosha and La Crosse, where 29% and 37%, respectively, of net employment growth came from the large growers. New additions to the employer ranks and more universal growth were more important in these two areas than elsewhere.

Establishments that were independent played a smaller and smaller role in contributing to net employment growth. The national surge toward mergers and multiple sites swept Wisconsin as well. Employment in single-site employers grew most (12%) in Kenosha while multi-site employment grew fastest in Brown County (72%). The slowest growth of multi-site employment was still a remarkable 35% in Dane County.

In 1999 some 50% of all employment in the state was attributable to employers with fewer than 100 employees. But this varied from a low of 43% in the Fox Cities to a high of 54% in Kenosha and the rest of the state.

The vast majority of areas added the most employment in establishments that had between 20 and 99 employees. The one exception was the rest of the state outside the eight largest metro areas. There the largest employers, those with 500 or more employees, added the most jobs.

In most areas, employers that were in existence in both 1991 and 1999 accounted for between 30% and 46% of net employment growth. One exception, Racine, realized only 12% of its growth from employers that were in place in 1991. This economy grew little, and the growth that did occur is attributable to new entrants to that economy.

Two central cities added substantially to their employment base. Green Bay and Madison each added over 30,000 jobs during the eight years. Milwaukee, by contrast, added only 4,000 of the 105,000 jobs gained in its metropolitan area.

Net migration of firms between central cities and their suburbs has had very little impact on the net number of jobs in either location. Firm migration should be a non-issue in most metropolitan areas.

Average earnings per worker in 1999 varied across the geographic areas, from a high in Milwaukee ($31,908) to a low ($23,936) in the rest of the state. But average earnings rose in inflation adjusted dollars in all areas over the 1991-1999 period. Earnings' growth was led by Kenosha (+14%) and Milwaukee (+11%). The single-largest industry gain was over $15,000 per worker in FIRE (Finance, Insurance and Real Estate) in Milwaukee.

The gains in earnings among service-sector workers have added substantially to the number of individuals whose average earnings exceed $25,000 per year. In all areas but one, the number of service-sector workers whose average earnings exceed $25,000 per year exceeds the number of workers in manufacturing with comparable earnings. Manufacturing is not the only place to find decent paying jobs.

There are common elements to the growth patterns across the state. But if one is to really understand the local economies, one must look at the details of what is responsible for the changes that have been occurring. Policy interventions and private sector initiatives would be better served with a more informed understanding of the dynamics of each of the local economies. This report seeks to contribute to that.