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Spectrum News: Economic effects of Ohio’s falling population

UC professor says more jobs are coming to the state but finding workers could be an issue

headshot of Kyle Shaner By Kyle Shaner
1 minute read January 2, 2024

The population of Ohio has fallen in recent years, which a University of Cincinnati economics professor told Spectrum News could be a concern for the state’s employers.

Erhardt, Erwin3

Erwin Erhardt

In each of the past three years, Ohio has had more deaths than births. The Ohio Department of Development predicts the state, which currently is the seventh most populous in the United States, will lose almost 6% of its population by 2050.

Erwin Erhardt, PhD, an associate professor - educator in the economics department of UC’s Carl H. Lindner College of Business, said the falling population could be a future concern for Ohio’s economy.

“There’s more and more jobs coming to Ohio, but I guess one of the concerns I have in my mind is will we have enough younger people to fill them,” Erhardt said.

See more from Spectrum News.

Featured image at top: Ohio welcome sign. Photo/fotoguy22 via iStock

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