Kevin Bemel ·
Where the Jobs Are
About the source date and illustrations
The date is transcribed from Posts – Sunday 2023. The original publication date has not been independently verified. Historical figures, links, and event announcements are preserved as written.
Some illustrations from the source document are not reproduced here. Original image credits are shown for the BLS material retained in this article.
The cover photograph is illustrative. Photo: Stephen Leonardi on Pexels · Pexels License.
4-½ minutes to read.
You may be surprised about which states have the most competitive job markets. They do not correlate with those gaining or losing population. Before we parse the details, let’s look at changes in real earnings.
Seasonally Adjusted Earnings
Real average earnings increased slightly from April 2023 to May 2023 and year over year. However, average hours worked declined 0.3%. In other words, on average, earnings did not really change over the last year.
Unless you have the average job, whatever that is, this means nothing to you.
Breakdown by Industry
While average weekly earnings for May 2023 were $1,146.99, when broken down by industry, they ranged from $535 to $2,089. Monthly changes ranged from -0.51% to 3.84%, with most increasing around one third of one percent. Year over year, increases ranged from 2.22% to 9.52% with most around 3 to 5%.
When you compare these changes with employment levels, a clearer picture emerges. For instance, Mining and Logging, which saw the largest earnings increase, has the smallest number of people working in the industry, and added only about 1,000 jobs in May. Compare that with Private Education and Health Services, which had the largest employment level growth and only a third of the year over year and less than one tenth of the monthly earnings growth of Mining and Logging.
Which sector is stronger. Let’s keep digging.
The Final Puzzle Piece
Now let’s compare job openings and employment levels by industry. Mining and Logging had 31,000 job openings in April 2023 and employed 601,000 people in 2022. So, job openings made up 5.2% of employment. Education and Health Services had 2,097,000 job openings and employed 35,377,000 people in 2022. For this industry, job openings were 5.9% of total employment. Not a big difference between the two sectors.
Logging and Mining are hazardous jobs. Education and Health Services typically require post high school education, which means paying out of your pocket or taking out student loans. Which is better? That depends on what you want to do, what kind of risk you can bear, and where you want to live among other issues.
Source illustration not reproduced.
Now you have the data to look at all industries and decide if you are in the right one and if not, which one makes the most sense for your future.
The State of the States
Despite large numbers of people and businesses leaving, Illinois and California have the first and second most competitive job markets with 60.6 and 47.9 people applying for each job, respectively. Of the 10 states that had the greatest percentage increase in population, only Florida and Arizona were in the top ten most competitive job markets.
Source illustration not reproduced.
It appears that as their job bases shrink, people still want to work in California and Illinois. For Florida and Arizona, job growth doesn’t appear to be keeping pace with population increases.
If you want to beat the competition, go to Wisconsin where only 1.7 people apply for each job opening.
Source illustration not reproduced.
A similar phenomenon applies to cities. Despite California’s population loss, Silicon Valley’s San Jose has the most competitive job market of any city with 107.6 people applying for each job. Probably because of the ability to work remotely and their high pay, demand for tech jobs is high, even as companies layoff thousands of workers.
The numbers are confusing, huh? The key is to gather the data and take your time deciding what it means and, most importantly, what it means for you and your family.
Where are you on your professional and financial journey? Are you looking to make change?
How can I help you? Call, text, or email me.
Courage at all times,
Kevin
(310) 994-6385
P.S. Don’t miss this week’s episodes of The WAY to WOW Shows:
Monday, June 26, 10:00 a.m. PT / 1:00 p.m. ET – Trusts & Estate Weekly with estate planning attorney and veteran Paul Hilton, join us live https://www.eventbrite.com/e/633479222407, watch the replay https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLCEw2fI1wAPIQbJD0tdcS8kzFEcpZ0DXz.
Tuesday, June 27, 11:00 a.m. PT / 2:00 p.m. ET – Business Lessons from the Military with leadership expert CAPT Mark Brouker, USN (Ret.), join us live https://www.eventbrite.com/e/633485581427, watch the replay https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLCEw2fI1wAPKJNrThFkrivOdTnYZFYNir.
Wednesday, June 28, 12:30 p.m. PT / 3:30 p.m. ET – People Making Money with Laurie Israel on Money & Marriage, join us live https://www.eventbrite.com/e/633497998567, watch the replay https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLCEw2fI1wAPJjhfe-kkJd0sVsGuTfjWWo.