Dallas leads US cities in small business and hourly earnings growth.

Small business hourly wages are rising faster in Dallas than anywhere else. Photo by Alexander London for Unsplash.

Dallas It leads US cities in small business growth and hourly earnings growth for workers, according to a recent study.

Hourly earnings growth for US small business workers slowed in September, according to the latest Paychex | IHS Markit Small Business Employment Watch, however, found that the Dallas metro area is performing better than other cities, with our median wage at $31.38 and up 7.44% month over month. That makes it the seventh straight month Dallas has led the nation in growth.

That doesn’t mean our workers earn as much as those in Seattle ($36) or San Francisco ($39), but pay increases faster than anywhere else. (Also, our cost of living is more reasonable than in those places, which I’ll explore in a minute). Our part-time workers will earn slightly more than the national average starting in September.

Among the top performing industries for workers are entertainment and hospitality, commercial transportation and utilities, construction, manufacturing, professional and business services, financial activities, and education and health services, according to the study.

Martin Mucci, chairman and CEO of Paychex, noted that workers across the country are getting more hours. “With continued low unemployment levels, small businesses are leading the increase in hours by relying on their current employees to work more,” he said.

Dallas ranked 19th for hours logged in September.

Paychex Small Business Hours of Operation

“The moderation in hourly earnings growth is particularly noteworthy,” Mucci added, adding that it could be a sign that the Fed’s actions are likely having an impact in the fight against inflation.

As we noted in this month’s cover story on affordable housing, the income of Dallas residents is going to be a special focus, as many developers receive tax breaks for providing units at or below the area median income. The median income for the area in Dallas is $68,200. The median income for a family of four in the Dallas metro area is $97,400.

80% of AMI for a single person is $54,560 per year. For a family of four, it’s $77,920.

For training methodology and the full report, visit the study here. For more on the affordable housing effort, visit this story.