Earning a Living in Nonmetropolitan Nebraska

Authors

Rebecca Vogt, University of Nebraska-LincolnFollow
Cheryl A. Burkhart-Kriesel, Center for Applied Rural Innovation, University of Nebraska-LincolnFollow
Randolph Cantrell, University of Nebraska-LincolnFollow
Bradley Lubben, Center for Applied Rural Innovation, University of Nebraska-LincolnFollow

Date of this Version

2014

Citation

Nebraska Rural Poll Research Report 14-4, January 2015.

Comments

Copyright 2014 University of Nebraska-Lincoln.

Abstract

While wage and salary jobs make up about 80 percent of all Nebraska jobs, they are being steadily replaced by self-employment. This is especially true in nonmetropolitan counties. Given this, what types of jobs do rural Nebraskans have? How many rural Nebraskans derive income from self-employment? What motivates rural Nebraskans’ decision to be employed? This paper provides a detailed analysis of these questions. This report details 1,943 responses to the 2014 Nebraska Rural Poll, the nineteenth annual effort to understand rural Nebraskans’ perceptions. Respondents were asked a series of questions about their employment. Comparisons are made among different respondent subgroups, that is, comparisons by age, income level, region, etc. Based on these analyses, some key findings emerged.