Utah's relatively low cost of living, educated work force and union-free environment have made the state an attractive alternative for businesses relocating away from apparently "overgrown" cities like Las Vegas and Phoenix.

In fact, the state now enjoys record low unemployment because of rapid growth in the past two years and strong marketing efforts by the state and local tourism industry. But the tight labor situation raises concerns over whether businesses can continue to find qualified workers at affordable wage rates.

Understanding how Utah is perceived by the business community is key to helping the state identify ways to attract more qualified workers to relocate here.

And apparently, negative stereotypes about doing business in Utah are moderating, except for one, according to a 60-page study released Tuesday.

Utah is still a tough market for non-LDS singles, the study said. "Those who move to Utah as singles face a much different and more difficult assimilation than those who come married or with a family," the study said.

Commissioned by the Real Estate Professionals for Economic Growth, a consortium of real estate companies, government agencies and the LDS Church, the study says national consultants are watching to see if the state can resolve growth issues including generating enough qualified labor and easing the transportation gridlock caused by inadequate infrastructure.

"Last year, RE-PEG did a study on why businesses that were recruited didn't move to Utah. Those reasons ranged from a lack of state incentives to difficulty recruiting employees on weekends. This year, we did a study of companies that did relocate to Utah for at least a year and what their initial perceptions were about doing business here versus the realities," said William Martin, chairman of RE-PEG and co-owner of Commerce CRG in Salt Lake City.

Those perceptions are significant because they can potentially discourage businesses from moving to Utah, he said.

"We wanted to do a study that dealt with difficult issues of religion, cultural and ethnic diversity and to find out what are our shortcomings and strengths," he said. The study interviewed more than 40 site selectors or consultants who have conducted more than 100 business relocations or expansions in Utah during the past five years.

What the study found is a majority of the businesses' stereotypical perceptions tend to moderate once they have spent some time in the state. In spite of the bad publicity following recent events such as the capture of FBI fugitive and polygamist leader Warren Jeffs and the worldwide broadcast of "Big Love," the HBO television series on modern-day polygamy, government officials maintain perceptions about Utah are still improving.

"When businesses visit Utah and see potential sites for relocation or expansion, and talk to business people working here, that makes a big difference," said Jeff Edwards, president and CEO of EDCUtah. "And having a strong economy works in our favor, too."

In fiscal 2006, EDCUtah helped coordinate 112 national client visits to Utah, up from 65 in 2005 and 31 in 2004. The agency also helped more than 200 companies looking to expand in Utah, and assisted in 561 research inquiries, up from 347 in 2005.

Case in point, Helsinki, Finland-based Amer Sports Corp.'s Winter & Outdoor Americas unit, which sells Salomon and Atomic skis and other sports equipment, is bringing up to 130 jobs to Ogden from Oregon, New Hampshire and California.

Affordable housing was among factors cited for the company's move to Utah, Edwards said. Also helping is media exposure from the 2002 Winter Olympics and, more recently, the state's $10 million "Life Elevated" tourism campaign, which attracted more than 18 million tourists last year.

"Utah is not the same state it was 10 years ago. It's easier to do business here. It's more metropolitan, more mainstream," Martin said. "But we're still finding it hard to attract talent from the East and West coast areas because their cultures aren't as conservative as Utah's."

Still, lingering negative perceptions about the influence of the LDS Church in business and politics, the state's stringent liquor laws, and the "parochial, Norman Rockwell, very white-bred" monoculture, can be overcome, Martin says.

In fiscal 2006, EDCUtah helped with 34 corporate relocations, expansions or retentions including five corporate headquarters. That's up from 18 in 2005 and 11 in 2004. Last year, there were 5,636 jobs generated, up from 4,191 in 2005 and 1,530 in 2004.

Martin says the study can help the government examine employers' needs and identify which sectors face critical labor shortages. "If we can do a better job matching employers with their work force's needs, we can attract businesses here. Utah may be facing labor shortages now, but in-migration and our natural population growth ensures that we have at least 10,000 new students entering the public school system each year over the next decade," Edwards said.

"We can find ways to work with higher ed to improve vocational training, increase the number of graduates from high schools, technical schools, junior colleges and universities, work with in-state companies to expand their work force here, recruit and encourage companies to bring their employees here," he said. "With such a tight labor market, wages have to go up. But we won't match the kind of wage levels you see in Las Vegas, New York or San Diego. We're still affordable for those looking to relocate and expand in Utah."

This story appeared in The Daily Herald on page A1.