A new salary study by the

Fulton Industrial Business Association shows that wages are going up

on the busy corridor.

"This is an annual survey

that has been done in its present format for the last three years that

takes a snapshot of the business district from a wage and benefit perspective.

I add or refine benefit questions according to local and national employment

trends," said FIBA executive director Patrick Stafford.

The survey covers a variety

of positions and gives employees and employers a good database for wages

in the area.

This year's study, for example,

shows a secretary with typing skills of 50-60 words per minute earns

between $7.25 and $9.50 an hour.

If you have an extensive

background in customer service, you could earn as much as $21 an hour,

while the average for a top-rated customer service expert is $15.29.

Entry-level production workers

on Fulton Industrial average $9.15 an hour, while top production workers

in lead positions average $15.17 an hour.

The area has more than 30,000

workers and Stafford said retention is key with so many positions available

to workers. The survey helps managers and executives make sure their

wages are in line with other businesses in the area.

As more and more people discover

the good jobs with decent wages in the area, Stafford wants to focus

on making the corridor even more desirable to workers and potential

employers.

"My hopes are to develop

a corridor that has every vacant piece/parcel of property with frontage

on Fulton Industrial Boulevard be of viable commercial or retail use

for the area employees, traveling public and residents of the area,"

he said.

He said that many businesses

are looking at the area and the wage study is one tool the association

uses to show the its viability. He wants to see a number of family sit-down

restaurants, a car wash, a grocery store, a movie theater, and a day

care center within the district.

As more people realize the

viability of the corridor and the wages that are being paid, he believes

his vision will come to fruition.