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City Hall, Mount Vernon, OregonPhoto: Orygun · CC BY-SA 4.0
–Not graded–Not graded
Jobs & commute in Mount Vernon

Most of Mount Vernon commutes out: there are 0.4 jobs for every working resident

For 0% of workers, the job is at home (Oregon 19%). Employers in Mount Vernon report 67 jobs for 172 working residents. Only 2% work in Mount Vernon; the top destination outside it is John Day (27%, 8 miles).

Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made

Day and night

Who works in Mount Vernon, and who works elsewhere

On a workday 169 residents head out to work, 3 work right here, and 64 people come in from elsewhere.

169live here, work elsewhere
3live and work here
64work here, live elsewhere
Night and day
At night550
Workday440
550live here− 170head out to work+ 64come in to work= 440on a workday

About 440 people are in Mount Vernon on a workday afternoon, 19% fewer than live here.

Job hub or commuter town?
0.39jobs per workerCommuter townJob hub

Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2023, primary jobs.

The commute map

Where Mount Vernon’s working residents head each day

Mountain HomeSpring Lake ParkDayvilleMount VernonSenecaCondonLong Creek: 7 residents work here (4%)Canyon City: 6 residents work here (3%)John Day: 47 residents work here (27%)SumpterLa Grande: 2 residents work here (1%)Ontario: 2 residents work here (1%)Baker City: 3 residents work here (2%)PendletonBend: 4 residents work here (2%)Salem: 5 residents work here (3%)Portland: 10 residents work here (6%)John DayPortlandLong CreekCanyon CitySalemBendMount Vernon
1
John Day7.7 mi away
27%47
2
Portland189.4 mi away
6%10
3
Long Creek20.5 mi away
4%7
4
Canyon City8.2 mi away
3%6
5
Salem195.3 mi away
3%5
6
Bend111.5 mi away
2%4
7
Mount Vernon (in town)right here
2%3
8
Baker City67.7 mi away
2%3
9
La Grande80.4 mi away
1%2
10
Ontario109.2 mi away
1%2
Everywhere elseother towns and states
48%83
The top trips

Where Mount Vernon clocks in

Lines run between town centers. The top 10 towns each way; “Everywhere else” is the rest, including other states.

A thicker line means more commuters. Switch between where residents work and where the people who work here live.

The jobs

What Mount Vernon’s employers do

Jobs based in Mount VernonJobs Mount Vernon residents hold

What kind of work

Goods: factories, building, farms7%30%
Trade, transport & utilities22%22%
Services: health, schools, offices70%48%

What it pays

$1,250 a month or less16%12%
$1,251–$3,333 a month31%33%
Over $3,333 a month52%55%

Who does it

29 or younger16%16%
30 to 5449%57%
55 and older34%27%
−29%

Jobs based in Mount Vernon, 2013 → 2023: 94 → 67. Big swings can come from how a large employer reports its locations, not only from real openings or closings.

Primary jobs covered by unemployment insurance (not the self-employed). Pay is monthly earnings. LEHD 2023.

Here is what they are, next to the jobs Mount Vernon’s own residents hold wherever they work.

Time on the road

About 55 minutes each way for Mount Vernon’s commuters

A year of commuting
423 hours

Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 17.6 full days in the car, bus or train.

Average commute minutes, one way

Mount Vernon55 min
Oregon23 min
U.S.26 min
Working from home
0%

of Mount Vernon workers work from home, vs 19% across Oregon. Their commute is the hallway.

About 0 in 10
How Mount Vernon gets to work
85%Drive alone
14%Carpool
1%Walk

Share of the 210 commuters (the 0% who work from home are left out). Across Oregon: 80% drive alone, 3% take transit; U.S.: 81% and 4%. Census ACS 2020–24.

From the Census survey of workers who don’t work from home.

How far

Near or far: the trip to work from Mount Vernon

10 mi25 mi50 mi80 miJohn Day: 27% · 7.7 miPortland: 6% · 189.4 miLong Creek: 4% · 20.5 miCanyon City: 3% · 8.2 miSalem: 3% · 195.3 miBend: 2% · 111.5 miBaker City: 2% · 67.7 miLa Grande: 1% · 80.4 miOntario: 1% · 109.2 miJohn Day 27%Portland 6%Long Creek 4%Canyon City 3%Salem 3%Mount Vernon
Mount VernonTop destinations (size = commuters)
38%Under 10 mi64 residents
9%10–24 mi15 residents
6%25–50 mi10 residents
47%Over 50 mi79 residents

About 47% show a job over 50 miles away. Some of that is real, and some is employers that report every worker at a head office, so a few long commutes are on paper only.

Straight-line distance from each worker’s home block to their main job’s block. LEHD 2023.

Every working resident’s trip, home to work, as the crow flies. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.

How to read these numbers

What this data can and can’t tell you

  • Two sources, two years. Trips, distances and jobs based here: Census LEHD 2023, primary jobs, where the employer reports them. Income, poverty, unemployment, commute time and how people travel: Census ACS 2020–24 averages.
  • Straight lines, older transit. Miles are as the crow flies. EPA’s walkability and transit files use 2017–20 inputs.

How these figures and grades are made →

Jobs and commuting in Mount Vernon: questions

What is the median household income in Mount Vernon?

$63,281 (±$34,040) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $83,011 across Oregon and $80,734 nationally.

What is the poverty rate in Mount Vernon?

9.9%, against 11.9% across Oregon and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).

How long is the commute from Mount Vernon?

55 minutes each way on average, against 23 across Oregon and 26 nationally. 0% of workers work from home.

Where do people who live in Mount Vernon work?

2% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are John Day (27%, 8 mi), Portland (6%, 189 mi), Long Creek (4%, 20 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).

Can you get around Mount Vernon without a car?

0% of commuters take transit and 0% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.

Commuter talk

Getting to work from Mount Vernon, from the people who make the trip.

Town Square →
Ask neighbors
Beyond the commute

More of Mount Vernon

Mount Vernon home →

Flows, distances and jobs: U.S. Census Bureau, LEHD Origin-Destination Employment Statistics (LODES 8), 2023, primary jobs. Commute time, working from home and working out of state: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates. Distances are straight lines between home and work; real drives run longer.