Are Good Jobs Disappearing? Third in the series, What the 1990 Census Says About Minnesota.

Increasing poverty rates during the 1980s and increasing wealth for the richest citizens have led to the fear that changes in the world economy are destroying good jobs in the United States. Analysis of the 1990 census data shows that over the 1980s there was a decline in the percentage of householders employed and in the percentage holding good jobs, but this does not constitute a collapse of well-paying jobs or a decline of the middle-class. Large differences exist among races in Minnesota. By 1990 the majority of minority householders did not hold a good job. In addition, only a slim majority of householders outside the Twin Cities metropolitan area held good jobs while within the metropolitan area a significant majority held good jobs. Education, gender, and disability also affect a person's chances of holding a good job. The importance of education, race, and disability increased during the 1980s, reflecting similar trends in the United States as a whole