Jamaica has fewer jobs than working residents: 0.6 for each
Only 8% work in Jamaica itself; outside it, Stratton draws the most (12%, 5 miles). Employers in Jamaica report 210 jobs for 380 working residents. Working from home is the commute for 23% of workers, where Vermont as a whole has 17%.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
The workday shuffle in and out of Jamaica
On a workday 351 residents head out to work, 29 work right here, and 181 people come in from elsewhere.
About 810 people are in Jamaica on a workday afternoon, 17% fewer than live here.
Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2023, primary jobs.
Where Jamaica goes to work
Where Jamaica clocks in
12% of workers
6% of workers
6% of workersLines 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.
Goods, not services: 46% of the jobs in Jamaica
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Jamaica, 2013 → 2023: 146 → 210. 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 Jamaica’s own residents hold wherever they work.
The trip to work from Jamaica: about 23 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 7.2 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Jamaica workers work from home, vs 17% across Vermont. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 335 commuters (the 23% who work from home are left out). Across Vermont: 82% drive alone, 1% 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 Jamaica’s workers travel
About 25% 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.
Bordering towns draw 18% of Jamaica’s workers
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Jamaica workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jamaica | – | — | — | 23 min | $79,219 |
| Stratton | 12% | — | — | 33 min | — |
| Wardsboro | under 3% | — | — | 27 min | — |
| Winhall | 2% | B− | B− | 27 min | $95,500 |
| Townshend | 4% | C+ | B+ | 25 min | $78,750 |
| Windham | under 3% | — | — | 27 min | — |
Same-state neighbors only. Stratton, Wardsboro and Windham: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
The biggest share goes to Stratton. Darker towns draw more of Jamaica’s workers. Tap a town to see its commute.
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.
Jobs and commuting in Jamaica: questions
What is the median household income in Jamaica?
$79,219 (±$19,072) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $81,203 across Vermont and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Jamaica?
4.5%, against 10.1% across Vermont and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Jamaica?
23 minutes each way on average, against 24 across Vermont and 26 nationally. 23% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Jamaica work?
8% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Stratton (12%, 5 mi), Londonderry (6%, 7 mi), Brattleboro (6%, 19 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Can you get around Jamaica without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 3% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Jamaica, from the people who make the trip.
More of Jamaica
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.