Best options for employment in Tricities, in my view, please add yours as well (Knoxville: for sale, chapel)

[Tony1790]

Hello all,

I've been thinking about jobs and income lately. I'm thinking mainly in East TN terms (where I live currently), thinking mainly in terms of wages, benefits, access to employment, long term outlook, retirement, etc. What do you all think are the best jobs locally? Here's my take on it, this may or may not benefit anyone locally (most already employed), but those from the outside may benefit.

I like the following companies for pay and benefits:

Eastman in Kingsport (I know, duh, everyone likes Eastman), only draw backs are they need brainiacs (not me).

Veterans Hospital in Johnson City, pay is very good, with good retirement but most of the jobs are restricted to Vets (like me). I could get a job here, but then I couldn't go to college to get an education, so that I could get a job there....does that sound as silly to you as it does to me??

NFS in Erwin, need some college chemistry and a few other classes to get a good paying job, drawback include working with nuclear stuff and being in Erwin.......just teasing Erwinites!

Local city, county jobs, several openings, Johnson City, Jonesborough, WA County, etc, etc.

Federal jobs, USAJOBS - The Federal Government's Official Jobs Site, is the official govt website to see what is available locally. Best bets are the VA and NFS here locally, near Nashville you could look at the Army base as well.

Those are the biggies that immediately come to mind, that have good salaries, good benefits with decent retirement.

I usually would recommend law enforcement both city, county and state, but I don't here for 2 reasons. One, the pay for LE here seems to be significantly less than other areas for the same work. Second reason is that there are (as many other places, but a little more so here) many people that do not like "the law", ie cops. I may be way off base, but being a cop seems to be pretty dangerous here (and everywhere), but the cops elsewhere seem to be paid much more and while still not enough, the higher pay makes it more worthwhile to risk your life daily. No offense meant to anyone, but the pay does seem a little low for getting the things the boys in blue do.

MBMouse and others please post any good solid companies that pay well or at least decently in the area, for ideas of where to find work and a successful career.

Healthcare note: 2 things to know.

First, is that there are two major health care systems that have a virtual monopoly on their areas, Mountain states health alliance has a monopoly on Johnson City (witness their successful block of Wellmont expanding into Gray/Boonescreek), Wellmont (where I work), controls Bristol and much of Kingsport's healthcare.

Second, the pay here, while good for the area, is less than other places and some positions, just don't pay enough for the work, no if, and or but. LPN's start at $11 an hour and many of the hospital personnel (CNA, cleaners, etc) that work very hard and exposed to disease, injury, and just plain nastiness (poop, pee, human smells of all sorts) are paid as little as $6.25 an hour and that ladies and gentlemen, is freaking ridiculous with the cost of health care, gas, rent, food, etc, etc. $6.25 is shameful and I'm ashamed that I was offered that very wage by Mountain states healthcare in JC, hence why I'm driving to Bristol.

If you work retail or a non-skilled job that may pay $8-12 elsewhere, often pay $6.25 to $7.50 here to start, does working for those wages make sense? I'm not a fan of the concept, but I can see why some people that qualify for food stamps, housing assistance, etc would go that route, assuming $6.25 was the alternative.....again, not a fan, not an advocate, but I can see it.

Good luck to all, if you are looking for work or better work, if you have a decent job, Keep It!!! I left a $62k a year job for a $52k a year job for a $22k a year job, why?? All I can dumb, dumb and dumber

Take care, have fun, God Bless!!!!!

Tony

P.S. What good jobs are out there?? Feel free to post for your fellow man.

[deosculate]

I'm sure there are some sectors that do pay well here in the tri-cities; obviously healthcare isn't one from reading your posts. I can tell you that I was surprised at the amount of IT and tech jobs that were being advertised for.

Getting one, on the other hand, isn't as simple. I was job hunting for 6 months before I even got an interview (and I was very well qualified for the positions I was applying for). Nearly every tech-position I saw that had salary posted wasn't less than $30k a year.

I did get a position as a Systems Admin here and the average pay is somewhere around $75k with bonuses and what not. It came not too soon since my wife and I had depleted the savings we were willing to use to "wait it out." We were actually working on plans for moving back when the offer came through.

[mbmouse]

Hi Tony,
Good post and your personal assessment WILL be very helpful to others looking for info on this forum. It is no secret that jobs are not easy to come by in this area without a higher education degree. They are not easy to come by in lots of states right now. With the drop nationally in the construction and travel business due to the cost of oil, lots of things are hard to come by.However, I do know of several people who have moved here from eleswhere and actually make more money here with better benifits than where they are moving from. I guess it just depends on everyones personal situation.
Here in north east TN we have low property costs (comparatively), low property taxes,no income tax, beautiful scenery and lots of safe friendly communities,our gas prices are 10 to 20 cents lower than boardering states and so on but it can't all be perfect right? Our down side is wages are lower and sales taxes are higher. I personally do not know of where jobs are and qualifications required for those jobs. However, I do keep an eye on what is happening and what some of the cities/towns are doing in the area as far as economic development efforts and what they are noted for as well. I received the news and updates from Jeff Fleming who is the assistant city manager of Kingsport. Here are some excerpts and links to some stats about the employment and economic developments of the region, granted most of these are focused on Kingsport due to the source, but some of these are region wide. (no copy writes here, have permission to reprint from the horses mouth ) From these, I know they are facts so it has to be happening or these accomplishments of the cities wouldn't be published where they are, such as Forbes, MSMoney, etc.
I do know that due to Eastman, BAE, NFS, American Water Heater, MSHA, Welmont, Seimans, BOSH, and many other manufacturing plants in the area, there are a lot of engineers, CEO's, IT, Scientists, Pharmacists and many other very high paying positions around. There is a significant percentage of the population that is paid over 100k a year, however,there is not a large turn over rate in these and other professions as well. There is also a lot of just over minimum wages jobs around such as retail. Just not sure about that in between market.
There do seem to be a lot of CDL jobs, heavy equipment and sales jobs available, just not sure of the pay scales.

Kingsport Selected as National
Sustainable Community Award Winner
...........
WASHINGTON, D.C.-The U.S. Chamber of Commerce Business Civic Leadership Center (BCLC) and Siemens Corporation last night presented the inaugural Siemens Sustainable Community Awards to three U.S. communities. The awards were presented to the City of Albuquerque, NM; the Chapel Hill-Carrboro, NC, Chamber of Commerce, and the City of Kingsport, TN. The three communities were recognized for their capability to successfully take on challenges such as environmental stewardship, economic growth, and social capital.
..................................

* Small Community - The City of Kingsport was recognized for its efforts, over the last decade, to revitalize the manufacturing town through a combination of training/workforce development, entrepreneurism, and diversification of the economic base. Jeff Fleming, assistant city manager for development, accepted the award.

__________________________________________________ _______

How important are healthcare jobs in Kingsport?

............You'll be pleased to know the number is now 4,700 jobs in the past 10 years (from Feb 98 to Feb 08). If you want to go all the way back to 1990, there have been 7,700 new healthcare jobs added in the Kingsport MSA -- that's comparable to the total number of employees that work at Eastman!

According to the BLS, Kingsport's MSA had 17,700 healthcare jobs in 2/08 compared to 13,000 in 2/98 and 10,000 in 1990.

Now you see why we're investing nearly $5 million to build the "Regional Center for Health Professions" in downtown Kingsport. It's a great opportunity to get a well-paying LOCAL job!


__________________________________________________ __________

Forbes lists Kingsport in Best Places for Businesses & Careers

March 19, 2008

Kingsport is considered a "large metro" by Forbes.

104. Bethesda, MD
105. Chicago, IL
106. San Diego, CA
112. Las Vegas, NV
115. Kingsport, TN
121. New York, NY
125. Greenville, SC
130. Chattanooga, TN
181. Spartanburg, SC

Best Places For Business And Careers - Forbes.com

Kingsport's strong suit was "low cost of doing business" -- which ranked #8 in the U.S.


__________________________________________________ _________

Sperling's BestPlaces continues to rank Kingsport among lowest costs of living in the U.S.
Kingsport continues to be ranked among the lowest costs of living in the United States by Sperling's BestPlaces

Coupled with a high quality of life, the low cost of living makes Kingsport a very attractive place to live!

Below is a random selection of cities (let me know if you want a specific comparison).

For example, if your annual income in Kingsport is $50,000 per year, you would need $119,100 in San Diego to achieve a comparable lifestyle....or $64,450 in Orlando.....or $63,150 in Asheville....or $53,950 in Roanoke.

Even within the region, you'd need nearly $2,000 more per year to live in Johnson City than Kingsport.

__________________________________________________ _______________



Labor Report: Sullivan has 4th Lowest Unemployment Rate in Tennessee

Labor Report
December, 2007
Source: Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development
http://www.tennessee.gov/labor-wfd/l...2007county.pdf



Labor Report: Sullivan has 4th Lowest Unemployment Rate in Tennessee



Labor Report
December, 2007
Source: Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development
http://www.tennessee.gov/labor-wfd/l...2007county.pdf

Johnson City-Kingsport-Bristol, TN-VA CSA
Labor Force = 247,110
Employed = 235,870
Unemployed = 11,240
Unemployment Rate = 4.5%


Northeast Tennessee County Unemployment Rates:
Sullivan = 4.0%
Washington = 4.4%
Hawkin = 4.6%
Carter = 5.2%
Hamblen = 5.4%
Hancock = 6.5%
Greene = 7.6%

Lowest County Unemployment Rates (Statewide):
1. Williamson 3.6% (Franklin-Brentwood-Nashville Metro S)
2. Knox 3.7% (Knoxville)
3. Lincoln 3.9% (Fayetteville)
4. Sullivan 4.0% (Kingsport-Bristol)
5. Davidson 4.1% (Nashville)
6. Rutherford 4.1% (Murfreesboro-Nashville Metro SE)
7. Cheatham 4.1% (Ashland City-Nashville Metro NW)
8. Roberton 4.3% (Springfield-Nashville Metro N)
9. Sumner 4.3% (Hendersonville-Gallatin-Nashville Metro NE)
10. Hamilton 4.3% (Chattanooga)

__________________________________________________ ____________

Tri-Cities receives strong export value rating

Tri-Cities TN/VA - The Regional Alliance for Economic Development - Regional metro receives strong export value ranking

According to the Department of Commerce, the Kingsport-Bristol-Bristol, TN-VA metro ranks 71st out of 369 metros in the United States in terms of total export value for 2006.

__________________________________________________ ______________

[Tony1790]

I forgot to Add:

CSX - Class I railroad, has a facility in Erwin, TN, the railroad is hiring due to retiring workforce. Pay generally starts in the high teens and goes to the low 20's per hour, with excellent retirement (you get to extract yourself from Social Security)

Norfolk Southern has a mechanical facility, but it is about an hour or so away in Asheville, NC (could be too far to drive, but has excellent pay/benefits)

For any of the railroad jobs, you apply by going to their websites.

Good luck

Tony

[gsp4ever]

I usually just read this forum but felt compelled to post. I grew up in Bristol and, like most of my friends and classmates, needed to leave to find better opportunities. Lack of employment--viable employment--is a well known and long time problem. I'm in my mid-thirties with a Bachelor's degree. When I think about who, specifically, from my immediate peer group still lives in the area and "makes a good living" I will list the following:

Doctor, Nurse, Physical Therapist
Attorney
School Teacher, School Principal/Administration
UPS driver
Family owned business (construction company and funeral home)
Banker

Realistically, a person can do these jobs in just about ANY CITY/TOWN IN THE UNITED STATES. Some obviously, require specialized degrees and certifications and, I will say, that you would generally need some local connections to obtain the good banking jobs and teaching jobs in Bristol.

I don't want to sound mean here, but there is generally a large number of unskilled and uneducated people living in the Tri-Cities area. Lower middle and blue collar working class, if you will. These people are definitely willing to work for low wages. I dare say that many of these jobs pay now, in 2008, not much more than they did in 1980. You could land a manufacturing job that payed $7-8 or so an hour and find that new hires are still being paid the same amount even today--what's left of manufacturing that is. I've heard people say that East TN/SW Virginia was the "last stop before Mexico" where manufacturing was concerned. Companies looking for good work ethic and low wages.

MB--I found your post to provide some very interesting statistics but have to take exception with your statement that, "There is a significant percentage of the population that is paid over 100k a year". Yes, there will always be some chemists, pharmacist (again, every city/town has them) etc. that will have good jobs but the masses simply do not. For reference, I went to the Bristol Herald Courier government job database just to look around at the salary data. Here is what I found:

15 total government officials in the Tri-Cities made more than $100,000 per year.
6 total govt. officials in Washington and Sullivan counties made more than $100,000
14 total government officials in the Tri-Cities made $90,000-100,000 per year.
5 total govt. officials in Washington and Sullivan counties made $90,000-100,000

So, in all the city/county governments, power boards and school systems that make up the Tri-Cities area you are looking at 21 people over 100K per year. Plus there aren't *that many* people who are CEOs of corporations. BTW--as I look at the names of the top paying people in the Bristol governments (again because I grew up there) I recognize tons of names. Some of these people have been in these jobs since I was a little kid and others have connections to important people. Don't misunderstand me, you can live a decent life on $40K per year and not everyone has to have six figures. Even jobs in the 30s and 40s can be hard to come by.

My personal experience was that most of the good jobs (those in-between, college educated jobs you mentioned) never get advertised and are held inside a tight word-of-mouth, internal network. Don't think that jobs can't be created, either. When I moved back after college I would periodically hear that, "so and so is moving back to Bristol" and you wouldn't believe how quickly that person would surface as a branch manager of a bank or something like that. There are several people I went to school with who hold high ranking jobs in the school systems (and have for about 10 years now)--principals, curriculum directors and such. I don't want to take away from them, but my goodness, it's pretty sweet to teach for 3-4 years and then become a school principal in your mid-twenties, eh. Also, lots of people get transferred into the "good jobs" from other locations within their company. I used to know people whose parents came in to work for Sprint (former United Inter-Mountain Telephone) and Raytheon (now defunct) and Smith Kline Beecham (gone) from other, higher cost of living areas with little or no pay cut. I've also been told that there are people who work for the feds, like FBI and Social Security Administration who'll move you from one area to the Tri-Cities with little pay adjustment. That makes it easier to take advantage of a low cost of living.

Tony--if I were you, I'd hang in there as much as I could and try to go to school and get your RN licensure as fast as possible. Switch over to working for a doctor's office if you can to allow a bit more flexibility with day hours and an educated boss (doctor) who will understand the local area and appreciate someone with a committment to education and healthcare. Look and see what options for paying for school are available through Wellmont or Mountain States. Good grief, you could work the front desk at a doctor's office and get paid the same--and not as much grief as you do now in the hospital. Good luck to you.

[mbmouse]

gsp4ever, You are correct, I should have worded that better. Maybe "a larger percentage than one would think in this area make over 100K" ? I can not get into the specific details, nor is this scientific by any means but in my profession (mortgage broker) I see quite a bit and trust me, there are more higher paid employees than one thinks when looking at the stats from the region.
Yes, I do agree with you, most of those high paid positions are given to someone in the company or known in the community. This again goes to my comment about turn over rate, it is low. Hey would you give up a well paid job in a low cost of living area? Heck no! hahahhaha
The Chemical Engineers at Eastman, which there are A LOT of, start out at well over 50k a year. There is also, as you said, in the medical profession a lot of well paid employees for those specialty things. Look at some properties in the region, there are a heck of a lot of close to or over million dollar properties around, not necessarily for sale all the time, but they are here amongst the 100k properties. Someone had to pay for those right? Even to qualify to mortgage them, you have to make over 100k a year.
So again, it might not be a "large" percentage, but I do believe it is larger than perceived. Now, how one finds out about these positions when they open???? I have no clue. Wish I did.

[gsp4ever]

Mbmouse--you hit the nail on the head when you said, "how one finds out about these positions when they open??? I have no clue". This is one of the great mysteries of the Tri-Cities. It's very sad indeed.

Eastman has been a bright spot in the Tri-Cities for decades and people will drive for miles and miles if they can land a job there. Of course many people move into the Kingsport area, either by transfer or job acceptance to work at Eastman and it works well for them. Unfortunately, "feast or famine" would describe most of the employment opportunities in the Tri-Cities area.

I'm happy to see that many people on this forum warn (over and over again) potential relocators about the job market in the Tri-Cities and about the potential for disappointing wages when they do get a job. What disturbs me, though, are the people who some how think this warning does not apply to them, or that they have specialized skills, are at the top of their field, etc.etc. etc. It's not just the Tri-Cities forum, either as I see it all the time on Knoxville, Chattanooga, Western NC etc. Tony--this statement is in no way directed at you, it's just my observation in general.

East Tennesseans (and other people from Appalachia) are generally a proud bunch and want nothing more than for people of accept them and their area of the country. Southerners have been the object of much ridicule for too long and it still goes on. But lack of employment and the backwards nature of some of it still plagues the area and is something that, I believe, still holds this area back from progress. I do think "the powers that be" in the cities would like to change; however, it's pretty entrenched, I believe, and maybe almost subconcious for some, though very calculated for others who are trying to protect their corner of the world. Overall, I was very proud to grow up in Bristol.

Stepping off the soapbox and passing it on to someone else.......

[Tony1790]

Originally Posted by gsp4ever

I'm happy to see that many people on this forum warn (over and over again) potential relocators about the job market in the Tri-Cities and about the potential for disappointing wages when they do get a job. What disturbs me, though, are the people who some how think this warning does not apply to them, or that they have specialized skills, are at the top of their field, etc.etc. etc. It's not just the Tri-Cities forum, either as I see it all the time on Knoxville, Chattanooga, Western NC etc. Tony--this statement is in no way directed at you, it's just my observation in general.

East Tennesseans (and other people from Appalachia) are generally a proud bunch and want nothing more than for people of accept them and their area of the country. Southerners have been the object of much ridicule for too long and it still goes on. But lack of employment and the backwards nature of some of it still plagues the area and is something that, I believe, still holds this area back from progress. I do think "the powers that be" in the cities would like to change; however, it's pretty entrenched, I believe, and maybe almost subconcious for some, though very calculated for others who are trying to protect their corner of the world. Overall, I was very proud to grow up in Bristol.

Stepping off the soapbox and passing it on to someone else.......

Thanks for the input,

What you say is very true, it is also a fairly raw nerve with many on the board. I grew up in Asheville, NC and moved away as soon as I could, I didn't see much of a future locally and joined the service to see the world. I've been making good money for about 15 years until now. I'm basically starting over and it stinks. I'm finishing up my BA in History now and trying to get my licensure in nursing. Don't know if I'll stay in TN or not afterwards, the pay is alot lower here, but the towns are small and the traffic is light, so that plays a huge role in quality of life (to me). I was burnt out by the 4-5 hour a day commute that I had in Seattle.

One of our nurses quit a few days ago and went to work in Asheville (an hour away). I looked at Mission Memorial and most of the nursing wages were significantly higher than where I work, so I can see why she left. This is still a doable commute, but with the gas costs and having to pay income tax to NC, not sure if it's worth the drive.

Anyway, I'm just hoping that everyone that wants a job, finds one and can make enough to support their families and the local economy.

Tony

[todayzcatch]

tri cities property is not that much cheaper than surrounding areas that pay more. after you factor income, property cost, sales tax, commute, lower education scores tri cities isnt all that great a deal. earlier poster hit the nail on the head about who you know and closed group type practices here. i know of many people getting hand me down jobs at for companies like eastman NFS etc. due to there family members, friends working there. some have education dont get me wrong but to pass over previous applicants is just foul practice. and as far as kingsport receiving these special awards????? i just heard the city economic guy on talk radio just the other morning talking about the serious need for kingsport to get back in the game as far as economics/unemployment goes. i really hope kingsport does turn things around. to me there is a lot going to waste in the tri cities. the area has alot going for it who would know. i moved here b/c my wifes family is from this area. never did like it here but have learned to deal with it and make life the best it can be. at least the fly fishing is some of the best in the south right within 15 min anywhere in the tricities.

bryan

[LivingLikeAGradStudent]

My sister has some post-high school education and has had a tough time finding a decent job in the Tri-Cities the past year. Her latest attempt to get into the school world is to work in the lunchroom while she finishes her B.A. I'll be in the area next month and will be curious how it comes across from a job front. I do know that in my field, the pay would be at least 50 percent less than Southern California.