According to information released by the U.S. Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics office in Chicago, wages for non-government employees in the Midwest rose only 1.6 percent for the 12-month period that ended in June. This is the smallest annual increase among the regions tracked by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. This is partially due to the fact that the Midwest still has a lot of manufacturing jobs, which have been forced to make pay concessions.
See "Midwest's wage gains smallest in nation", Lorene Yue, Chicago Tribune, July 29, 2004