In many parts of the Midwest, population growth is slowing at an unprecedented rate as people are getting older, women are having fewer children, and more people are moving out than in. New population projections out this month add to a growing list of demographic patterns indicating that many states in those regions will face a shrinking workforce over the next two decades.
The population of prime working-age adults, ages 25 to 54, will decline in 16 states, most of which are in the Midwest, as well as the Northeast, during the next 25 years. Maine, Vermont and West Virginia will see their working-age populations drop more than 10 percent. Michigan, Illinois, Ohio, Connecticut, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island and Wisconsin will see theirs fall more than 5 percent. The population in Indiana, however, is projected to rise nearly 10 percent to more than 7-point-1 million by the year 2040.
