State of Working Maine 2025: Strengthening Economic Opportunity in Rural Communities and Beyond shows economic opportunity in Maine is not an inevitable result of rural geography, but a consequence of state and federal policy choices.
The report examines economic trends across six regions of Maine and finds persistent disparities in income, employment, job quality, and access to basic needs such as food, child care, and health care. While the Portland metro area has seen steady and substantial economic growth for more than two decades, rural regions in the West and Northeast have experienced almost no economic gains since 2001.
The report finds that while this trend has emerged over several decades, differences in state and federal responses to economic downturns have influenced its severity and persistence. Policies during the Great Recession deepened hardship in rural Maine, while stronger federal action and targeted state investments during COVID-19 helped stabilize more remote communities. Despite these gains, many rural Mainers still face unequal access to good jobs, benefits, and safety-net programs.
“Where someone lives in Maine shouldn’t determine whether they can find a good job, put food on the table, or access health care,” said report author James Myall, an economic policy analyst at MECEP. “This report shows that smart policies can narrow these divides, and harmful policies can make them worse.”
The report shows solutions that address the regional differences in Maine’s economy will benefit Mainers living on low incomes or facing other economic headwinds throughout the state.
Key findings
- The gap between Greater Portland and the rest of the state has nearly doubled since 2001. From 2001 to 2023, per-capita GDP in the Portland metro increased 39%. In Maine’s Western and Northeastern regions, it stayed essentially flat. Differences in state and federal responses to major recessions explain much of this trend. The administration of Governor Paul LePage prolonged the Great Recession by rejecting federal funds and cutting essential services, while the federal COVID-19 response — paired with actions by Governor Janet Mills — helped stabilize more rural regions.
- Rural Maine continues to face higher unemployment and lower labor force participation. In 2024, unemployment in the Portland metro averaged 2.6%, compared with 4.5% in Northeastern Maine. Rural Mainers are also more likely to be out of the labor force altogether, often because they lack child care, face health challenges, or can find only seasonal or part-time work.
- Wages remain low — especially for women — in the most rural regions. Workers outside the Greater Portland and Central Maine regions are far less likely to earn a basic living wage. Women in Northeastern Maine earn just 71 cents for every dollar paid to men, while women in the Portland urban core earn 87 cents.
- Rural workers are more likely to be self-employed or work for small businesses, but with fewer protections. These workers often lack paid leave, health coverage, and labor protections, and are disproportionately harmed by carveouts intended to shield small employers from statewide standards.
- Government employment is a lifeline for rural Maine, but wages lag behind. Nearly one in seven Maine workers is a public employee, and public-sector jobs are especially important outside Greater Portland. Yet state and local government wages trail private sector pay, weakening rural economies.
- The safety net is crucial, and under threat. Federal programs like SNAP, Medicaid, Social Security, and enhanced unemployment benefits have an outsized impact in Maine’s poorest regions. Cuts enacted in the 2025 reconciliation bill will pull hundreds of millions out of Maine’s economy, disproportionately harming rural communities.
Policy solutions
The report outlines a series of recommendations to strengthen economic security across Maine, including:
- Continue enhanced premium tax credits for Affordable Care Act marketplace health insurance plans and end geographic price discrimination in insurance markets.
- Reverse federal cuts to SNAP and Medicaid and mitigate harm through state action.
- Expand access to child care and elder care to boost labor force participation and close wage gaps
- Invest in public sector wages, especially for educators and rural municipal workers.
- Modernize unemployment insurance, particularly for part-time and seasonal workers.
- Promote pay transparency and pay equity while ensuring enforcement of anti-discrimination laws.
- Protect and strengthen Maine’s minimum wage, including phasing out the tipped wage.
The report concludes that Maine’s economic challenges will not be solved by corporate tax breaks or incentives that benefit only the most prosperous regions. Instead, the state must invest in people through strong labor standards, a robust safety net, and policies that make work pay in every corner of Maine.
Webinar with report author and storytellers
All audiences and members of the media are welcome to join us for a webinar on Thursday, January 15 at noon exploring State of Working Maine 2025 and what it will take to build an economy that works for every community. You’ll hear directly from the report’s lead author, who will break down the data behind Maine’s regional disparities, and from Mainers with lived experience who will share insights about what these challenges look like on the ground.