Tulsa Paid Remote Workers $10,000 to Move In — Nearly All of Them Stayed

Tulsa’s bet on remote workers is paying off — fourfold. As Rthvika Suvarna and Fola Akinnibi explain in an article for Bloomberg CityLab, the Oklahoma city offered $10,000 to remote workers who moved there.

Roughly 3,400 people participated in the Tulsa Remote program and, according to a new study, each $1 invested in the new residents brought a $4 return in local economic benefits. “That’s far more than the typical 2-to-1 ratio for traditional incentive programs to attract large employers, according to the study from senior economist Timothy Bartik at the W.E. Upjohn Institute for Employment Research.”

Almost seven years into the program, 96 percent of participants stayed through the first year, and 70 percent have stuck around longer. “One emphasis of Tulsa’s program that experts consider crucial to its retention is the social infrastructure it offers, including networking, social events and coworking space to help acclimate them to the city.”

The program creates multiplier effects, generating new jobs and boosting demand for existing services. “Because the program targets high-skilled, high-income workers, increases in tax revenue can help pay for additional public services,” the authors explain. Meanwhile, targeting remote workers with existing jobs means the city could focus on attracting people rather than corporations.