Omaha a bright spot on the jobs landscape

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This is the first in a series of essays about the U.S. economy, as seen in several U.S. states and cities.

With a revolving door of runarounds and no replies, finding a job in America can be bleak.

The latest Department of Labor report estimates that no net jobs were created in the month of August, leaving the unemployment rate at 9.1 percent. Add to that a government in Washington full of slow moving, bickering, politicians, and the effect is a country of scared, angry, and economically pessimistic people.

But there are a few bright lights in the gloomy economic picture. One of them lies in Omaha, Nebraska; a Midwestern city that could potentially hold a blueprint of progress and growth for strengthening and stabilizing the American Economy.

“This place is an anomaly. We’ve got 4.4 percent unemployment,” says Denny Chapman, a business law professor at Omaha’s Creyton University. “Farmers are having ‘wonder years,’ doing very well. We got 5 fortune 500 companies here. So we’re proud of what we’ve been able to sustain, with a little bit of luck.”

This upbeat sentiment is even expressed across town, in the “hood,” on Omaha’s predominantly black north side.

“Almost anything you can go into, as long as you work hard, you can find work,” says Julia Galloway, 91.

A former accountant and educator, Galloway stands smiling outside the home of her longtime boyfriend, whose home of 50 years has been split in half by a fallen tree. Despite the devastation and unexpected cleanup expense, when asked if she’ll be financially sound enough to deal with it, she immediately answers, “I’m sure,” while her daughter Veronica chimes in, “I just retired last year and was concerned about income. And it hasn’t impacted us at all.”

“My husband and I were driving recently and hearing about how depressed a lot of cities and states are,” says Veronica. “But you drive around here; you see the road construction, refurbishing, new building construction. [The recession] really has not, at least for our area, hit as hard.” “I think it’s the diversified economy here,” adds Julia. “It’s not just dependent on one type of workforce. We have insurance, banking, utilities, almost anything. It’s not like say, in Michigan or Ohio, where they have one big car manufacturer where everybody was employed. You have the hotel, entertainment services, almost any field you’re going in to there’s something. If one area goes down, there’s always something else.”

Deemed by Forbes magazine in 2009 as number one on its list of “America’s Fastest-Recovering Cities,” Omaha is where you’ll find the residence and offices of local hometown financial guru Warren Buffet. The world’s richest man in 2008, Buffet helped rally others to invest in a city that today overflows with opportunity.

Even neighboring Papillion, Nebraska made the top 10 list of this year’s Money Magazine’s “The Best Places to Live,” because of its abundance of jobs.

It’s no surprise that local citizens echo Buffet’s recent calls to increase taxes. It seems to be the gateway to Omaha’s success.

“Here you got some high taxes. But when you have high taxes, you’re paying for better streets. You’re paying for better construction. You’re paying to build your city,” says Matthew Green, 32, a single father and hotel worker. “I don’t care if [the president] raises it on everybody. Pay that extra dollar out your paycheck. If everybody works and pays extra out your paycheck them dollars add up to millions. The government can’t function without taxes.”

The willingness to pay higher taxes unifies Omaha’s people. “It’s just like your home. If you don’t have any income, you can’t pay your bills. Taxes is where we pay bills,” says Galloway. “But if you don’t have anything coming in, everything goes downhill. Taxes is where we get our revenue.”

In many ways, all seems well in Omaha. The streets are spacious and clean. The people are accommodating, emitting small town serenity Some drop dollars — not change — into the box of the lone homeless man sitting on a downtown street. Strumming his guitar for quick cash, he stops to offer his thoughts on Omaha’s economy and low unemployment rate. “It most certainly is not [great],” says John Tingle, 55.”There’s still unemployment, they’re just not on record anymore ‘cause everybody’s exhausted their unemployment,”

Out of work for 5 years thanks to a battle with Osteoporosis, Tingle, the former cook and railroad worker, now plays tunes for an unstable living, while frequenting the one homeless shelter in Omaha and bouncing between area churches for free breakfasts, lunches and dinners.

“I’ve put in applications [for work]; probably over 100,” he says. “I went to the Eastern Nebraska Office of the Aging and did 5 online applications every Wednesday.”

Despite the dire circumstances, his Omaha optimism still finds a way to shine through.

“I had a Twinkie today. I found a Twinkie,” he says with a small smile as someone drops $5 into his guitar case.

“I’m-a make it. I’m-a make it alright.”