[Centaurmyst]

I spent 10 years living in the Upper Valley in Vermont right along the NH border. I moved to Maine 3 years ago and want to go back to the Upper Valley to live once I finish school. I LOVED that area so much.

I don't have much bad to say about the area other than if you have a big family and rent it can be really hard to find somewhere to live. If you only need a 2 bedroom or smaller you can find something with all utilities included for less than $1000 a month easily. Hanover, NH has Dartmouth College and a teaching hospital, so there is excellent health care available in the area. Jobs are everywhere pretty much no matter what you do...even manufacturing. There is a lot of cultural diversity in the area due to Dartmouth mostly and good restaurants and shopping right in Lebanon/West Lebanon NH. There is no sales tax in NH, so things are cheaper. NH also has no state income tax last I knew. It's really a worker's environment and it's easy to find not only just any job, but a pretty good job in a week or less. When my 17 year old son was 14 he worked at Wendy's making $8 an hour to start.

The area is absolutely beautiful, too. Vermont is the cleanest state I have ever seen. I miss driving along and not seeing any trash on the side of the roads. You should definitely look into moving there and go check the area out. There are also a lot of interesting places to visit close by.

[Centaurmyst]

Whoa...after reading a lot of these posts I need to post again about some of what is being said. First, the Original Poster is talking about moving to the Upper Valley of Vermont. That is around White River Junction. Right across the river is West Lebanon and Hanover, NH. That area is a far cry different economically than most other areas of Vermont. You still have the beauty but you also have a very strong job market with a really good chance at getting a good job with excellent benefits. A lot of the responses on this thread are coming from people in northern Vermont or other areas that aren't so close to NH. Now, if someone were going to relocate into another area of Vermont further north it would probably be a difficult transition, but the Upper Valley is entirely different. Frankly, anyone who doesn't have a job in the Upper Valley area either doesn't want one or just hasn't looked. Buying a home in the area can be expensive, but if you rent it's not a big deal. I always found the people to be really friendly, too. You get a really good mix because you'll meet people from both Vermont and NH. My advice if you do make the move is to live on the Vermont side and work and shop on the NH side. I'm a single mother of 4, by the way. Single parents can do just find in the Upper Valley.

[GypsySoul22]

I live in the Upper Valley now (since moving last year from NY). I like it here but I don't think you have a lot of 'normal jobs' here--just very low paying ones and high tech ones.

I have found it hard to get a job paying more than $10 an hour. My last job should have paid $15 'realistically' for all the responsibility I had (and I was a temp!) but I was only making $10/hr.

It's a very competitive area to find a 'good' job. Fortunately my husband got one of these and is going on a year at a local hospital. He's doing the night shift, though, so you have to be willing to make sacrifices.

If I wanted to work for $8.50/hr(what someone offered me to work at DARTMOUTH) I could have a job tomorrow. That's okay if you are in school or college, I guess. Not when you have many years of work, education and experience behind you.

From what I have read, there are similar problems all over the country. Not just here.

[flu189]

No doubt, the beauty of the state is a wonder to behold. Folks, remember, especially those of you who are from out of state or those of you who are fiscally very well off, there is a lot worry and turmoil here now. The wonderful scenery and other aspects of Vermont life which appeal to so many are just a dream or fad to the working stiffs who labor day to day here. I was fortunate enough today to be able to on the dime of my employer travel through some nice areas and while stopping for gas, food, etc, and talking to the locals, the attitude and prospects are rather depressing. Again, for those who have not been effected by the recent and ongoing financial turmoil, or if you have enough in your accounts to make it seem like not such a big deal, remember, that that a great many locals here are really taking a massive hit and despite the pretty scenery and cordial encounters, life for the great number of locals is being stressed. I am very concerned as I keep close tabs on my colleagues both in my civilian job here and my military job, and on all fronts there is are some very real problems developing.

[GypsySoul22]

Originally Posted by flu189

No doubt, the beauty of the state is a wonder to behold. Folks, remember, especially those of you who are from out of state or those of you who are fiscally very well off, there is a lot worry and turmoil here now. The wonderful scenery and other aspects of Vermont life which appeal to so many are just a dream or fad to the working stiffs who labor day to day here.

At my last job, I sat at a windowless desk serving people who 'played' where I worked. I listened to them plan their fun days and nights. Their fun was OUR work...

We had to cater to them, like so many in travel and tourism do...I was not raised to 'serve' or 'accept' being treated like an inferior and it was not pleasant sometimes dealing with people who felt they had a sense of entitlement...

It was rough to do that--people driving up in BMWs, playing golf, enjoying their vacations, being catered to hand and foot because they were 'the bread and butter' of the organization. Meanwhile I was trying to figure out if I would actually get a offered a job (I was a temp) so I could inch my own life forward (we had planned on buying a house but then everything went haywire with the mortgage firms).

I moved up here to 'get away' from 'well off' people and their attitudes. Unfortunately, many industries in VT rely on out of staters, serving them, and hopefully getting some of their money.

Too many people here have to put up with 'this sort of thing' to earn a living.

[mustmove]

Job prospects in the upper valley aren't great, certainly better than the NEK, and possibly better than Rutland. But overall lowpay crappy working conditions etc.

[Centaurmyst]

I worked at Hypertherm in Hanover...and they are one of the best companies to work for in the entire country.

There are a lot of temp situations to begin with, but most of those places do hire people full time after the contract with the employment agency runs out and the pay increases. The Upper Valley is an employee's job market and temp agencies are used because there aren't enough people to fill the jobs. My son, at 14 years old started off making $8 an hour at Wendy's...his first job ever. He walked in one day and started his orientation and training the very next day. That same son is now almost 18 years old and he tried for almost 3 years to get a job where we are now. The only reason he got the one he has now is because he met the Human Resource person's neice and boyfriend (who work at the same place). My son paid those kids HALF of his first paycheck for them to talk the aunt into giving him a job. My 22 year old spent 1.5 years looking for a job and my 20 year old still hasn't been able to find one. Compared to other places, the Upper Valley is heavenly in the jobs department. Even if you don't have experience there most places will train you and give you a shot. Timken Aerospace hires people with zero experience and trains them like that, and that is another very good employer there. Yes, you might have to work 2nd or 3rd shift, but you also get paid more for those hours.

We're planning on moving back to that area once we finish college.

[mustmove]

OK employment wise the upper valley is apparently better than Maine. I hope that you expect better with your college degree than running a CNC machine on the night shift. VT and rural NH are appalling for pay and working conditions compared to the Boston/NY metro areas. COL about the same.

[MRVphotog]

Originally Posted by Centaurmyst

I worked at Hypertherm in Hanover...and they are one of the best companies to work for in the entire country.

There are a lot of temp situations to begin with, but most of those places do hire people full time after the contract with the employment agency runs out and the pay increases. The Upper Valley is an employee's job market and temp agencies are used because there aren't enough people to fill the jobs. My son, at 14 years old started off making $8 an hour at Wendy's...his first job ever. He walked in one day and started his orientation and training the very next day. That same son is now almost 18 years old and he tried for almost 3 years to get a job where we are now. The only reason he got the one he has now is because he met the Human Resource person's neice and boyfriend (who work at the same place). My son paid those kids HALF of his first paycheck for them to talk the aunt into giving him a job. My 22 year old spent 1.5 years looking for a job and my 20 year old still hasn't been able to find one. Compared to other places, the Upper Valley is heavenly in the jobs department. Even if you don't have experience there most places will train you and give you a shot. Timken Aerospace hires people with zero experience and trains them like that, and that is another very good employer there. Yes, you might have to work 2nd or 3rd shift, but you also get paid more for those hours.

We're planning on moving back to that area once we finish college.

Thanks for posting and providing what I consider a learned and objective look at work in the upper valley.

Gypsy, as far as working with visitors it's half of Vermont's GSP so if you can't handle that kind of work Vermont might not work for you. In the hospitality business lots of management positions you can work your way up to. Many have started on the bottom rung and done this.

I work in the tourist business, sure you get some jerks, but overall they are respectful, friendly, fun to work with and thrilled to be in Vermont. This weekend is going to be both crazy and fun.

[68vette]

You need to remember that you are talking about 3-4 years ago. Times are very different right now. It's not just Vermont, but the economy has just about tanked nationwide with record numbers filing for unemployment. I'm only praying that the next President doesn't raise taxes that much. A large tax hike would put us in a depression for sure. It's sad how history repeats itself. We have a big economic boom and the country ends up in serious financial turmoil.
I don't mean to insult anyone, but ten or even fifteen dollars an hour is not a decent wage in todays world. Especially if you have specialty training or an education. I made more than that twenty years ago and I feel I still don't get paid enough for the training and education I have now.