Which States Have the Largest Employment Shares?

• Natural Resources and Mining: Wyoming has the highest share of jobs in this category in the nation, with 8.6% of its total employment in this sector. Wyoming has consistently been a leader in this sector because of its large stores of natural resources (the state is a leader in the production of coal). Recent increases in the prices received for natural resources have led to an increase in activity in this sector, not just in Wyoming, but nationwide. The states with the next highest concentrations in this sector are West Virginia and Alaska, each with 3.5% of their total employment in natural resources and mining.
• Construction: Nevada is the state with the highest share of employment in construction, with 11.0% of its total jobs classified under this category. The state, which has been the beneficiary of high employment and population growth this decade, has seen its share of construction employment rise 2.3 percentage points, from 8.7% in 2000, the largest increase among all states over that five-year period. Florida was next, with a 1.3-percentage-point increase over the same time period. The state with the second-highest percentage of employment in this sector is Arizona, with an 8.7% share.
• Manufacturing: Indiana has the highest concentration of jobs in the manufacturing sector, with 19.3% of total employment represented. The state is home to several auto manufacturers, as well as suppliers. Nationwide, this sector has been declining for many years as manufacturing moves overseas and our economy becomes more service oriented. The share of manufacturing employment in Indiana has declined by 2.8 percentage points since 2000; but North Carolina, with its high concentration of textile manufacturing jobs, has lost the most in percentage terms, with a decline of 4.8 percentage points since 2000.
• Trade, Transportation, and Utilities: New Hampshire leads the nation in its share of employment in this sector, at 22.1%, with the largest share in the retail trade sector (15.0%). Expansion in the wholesale and retail trade sectors is currently the major source of growth in this sector. All of the states' shares in this category fall within a narrow range, from 16.3% to 22.1%, with the exception of Wyoming, which has a share of 4.1%.
• Information: Overall, this sector is the second smallest in the nation, representing only 2.3% of total national employment. Colorado has the largest share among states in this employment sector, at 3.5%. Colorado's share used to be even higher—it is home to a large number of Internet and telecommunications providers, both of which experienced a severe decline in the early part of the decade and have been declining slowly since. The sector has lost 1.4 percentage points in Colorado since 2000, nearly double the decline in Virginia, which posted the second-largest decline in share.
• Financial Services: Delaware has the highest concentration of jobs in this category, accounting for 10.5% of total employment. The state is home to some of the largest credit card issuers in the nation, including JP Morgan Chase, MBNA, Discover, and Juniper.
• Professional and Business Services: The District of Columbia has the largest concentration of jobs in this sector, which includes lawyers, accountants, payroll services, and security services. With 21.7% of employment in this category, the District is well above the second-ranked state of Florida, which has a share of 16.9%.
• Educational and Health Services: Rhode Island is the state with the highest share of employment in this category, which represents 19.4% of its total employment. Among the top employers in the state are two universities (Brown University and the University of Rhode Island) and several healthcare providers (Lifespan and Care New England). Over the period from 2000 to 2005, Alaska and Vermont have seen the largest increases in share of employment in this sector, up 2.4 percentage points each.
• Leisure and Hospitality: By far, Nevada is the leader in employment in this sector, which accounts for 26.8% of total employment. This category includes accommodations and food services, which is a large part of the Nevada economy, especially in Las Vegas. The next closest state is Hawaii, with a share of 17.7%. The national share of employment in this sector is only 9.6%.
• Other Services: The District of Columbia again has the largest share in this sector, with 8.6% of its employment represented in this category. This sector includes employment in areas such as personal care services, grantmaking, and advocacy.
• Government: As one would expect, the District of Columbia leads in this category as well, with government employment accounting for 34.2% of its total jobs. The District is home to the nation's capital and is the heart of the national government. Alaska comes in second, with 26.3% of total employment represented in this category. Alaska is home to several military installations, which are the beneficiaries of federal spending.

States With Largest Employment in Each Major Sector

by Jeannine Cataldi