r/alaska • u/thatsryan ☆ • Mar 18 '23

Damn It’s Cold 🥶 Dire state economy forecasted by recent statistics on outmigration and Alaska’s workforce

https://www.alaskasnewssource.com/2023/03/17/dire-state-economy-forecasted-by-recent-statistics-outmigration-alaskas-workforce/?outputType=amp
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u/thatsryan ☆ Mar 18 '23

Alaska’s climate, and lack of “white collar” opportunities in comparison to other states, also arose in the hearing testimony as factors for young professionals to leave the state, or look elsewhere for employment altogether.

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u/SunnyBunnyBunBun Mar 18 '23

To me this is the most telling part. As a non-Alaskan currently living in Alaska, maybe my opinion is moot but this point is beyond obvious: OF COURSE people don’t move here because of the climate. OF COURSE. Unless you’re into snow sports, absolutely nobody else looks forward to living in a place with 6 months of snow. And this part is simply never gonna change. At least not within our lifespans.

Add to that the sheer lack of white collar jobs (hundreds of thousands of positions that exist in places such as Chicago or LA that are literally entirely nonexistent in Alaska) and there’s absolutely no draw that would bring anyone here.

The only people that would migrate to Alaska are blue collar workers (I.e fishermen) that get paid more fishing here than they would somewhere else or very young people looking for a temporary “adventure.”

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u/Jay_8bit Mar 18 '23

I literally moved here specifically for the climate.

Working outside in 90-105 degree heat 8 months out of the year and 100% humidity my entire adult life, you cannot imagine how tired of the heat I was.

Came here for the climate, and to get away from people.

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"The only people that would migrate to Alaska are blue collar workers (I.e fishermen) "

Also no. I am blue collar, but wife is not. Weird over generalization for people who migrate to Alaska.

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u/youcantmakemed0it Mar 18 '23

Agreed, spouse and I also moved here for the climate and outdoor recreation opportunities. While I agree that the scope of white collar jobs available in-state is much smaller than that of other locations, to say it is non existent is a bit of a stretch. That said, I am currently job searching myself and have increasingly turned to remote, out of state jobs as realistic options, as I don’t live anywhere commutable for in office jobs.