It almost doesn’t qualify as big news anymore that Epic Systems in Verona continues to grow at an incredible pace, adding some 1,400 jobs to the local economy last year.
That’s because the huge increase has become expected if not routine. The electronic health records company has been adding about 1,000 jobs a year for more than five years, with a workforce that totals 9,400.
The impact of all those jobs with solid to high incomes spreads far beyond Epic’s sprawling headquarters southwest of Madison, and far beyond the growing technology sector of our economy. Many of those Epic employees live and play in Madison, adding to — if not creating — the city’s building boom and surge in spending on services, restaurants, retail stores and housing.
The bad news story of 2015 for Madison’s economy is the looming loss of its nearly century-old Oscar Mayer plant and headquarters. Losing the iconic Oscar Mayer facility and brand will be a blow to Madison’s North and East sides, as well as the city’s psyche.
That can’t be minimized.
Yet Epic added more jobs to the Madison region last year than Oscar Mayer will eliminate when it closes a year from now. And by the time Oscar Mayer shuts down, Epic will probably have added the equivalent of another Oscar Mayer workforce, which numbers 1,000.
A line worker at Oscar Mayer may not qualify for a software engineering job at Epic. But that line worker could be an excellent hire for lots of jobs that Epic’s presence here creates.
Epic is in the midst of building two more clusters of office buildings in Verona, with an additional 2,000-stall parking ramp and road work. That requires a slew of construction jobs.
Epic needs managers, human resource professionals and information technology help.
Epic feeds a small army of workers every day. And somebody has to maintain all of those buildings.
Getting Epic employees to and from their offices requires transportation workers, including bus drivers and car salespeople as well as mechanics. The Dane County Regional Airport has to employ more people each year to keep up with Epic’s travel demands.
Then there’s Downtown Madison, where many Epic employees shop, eat and live. And thousands of Epic visitors fill countless hotel rooms each year.
No wonder Madison’s unemployment rate is below 3 percent.
State leaders have catered to traditional manufacturers, who still drive a big part of Wisconsin’s economy. Gov. Scott Walker and other Republicans who run the statehouse are all but exempting manufacturers from paying state income taxes, for example.
But state leaders can’t afford to ignore our economy’s high-tech future, which will require strong support for public and higher education, university research and entrepreneurs. Wisconsin must lure more private investment from outside the state. Many dedicated workers — including those losing their jobs at Oscar Mayer — may need retraining.
Epic employees and many others in the modern economy thrive without unions, which challenges the Democratic narrative that only organized labor can sustain the middle class.
Epic’s incredible growth should remind Wisconsin that the economy is changing, with obvious challenges but also great opportunities.
