- Quick Employment Statistics
Research Summary. With a new year comes a new national employment report, which provides us with all of the essential facts about the current employment situation. So, if you want to find out more about what jobs are booming and which companies are going layoff-happy, stay tuned.
We’ve gathered all of the essential trends and statistics about average US employment in 2023, and according to our extensive research:
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Private employers in the US added 235,000 in December.
Employment in the US has been increasing by a fairly steady rate of 100,000-300,000 new jobs per month since the start of 2022.
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Between Dec 2021 and Dec 2022, private employment across the US increased by 3%.
In Dec 2021, there were approximately 118.8 million people employed in the US, and as of Dec 2022, that number has increased to 122.4 million.
Month Private employment (in millions) MoM increase Dec 2021 118.8M N/A Jan 2022 119.2M 0.34% Feb 2022 119.5M 0.25% March 2022 120.0M 0.42% April 2022 120.4M 0.33% May 2022 120.8M 0.33% June 2022 121.2M 0.33% July 2022 121.4M 0.16% Aug 2022 121.6M 0.16% Sep 2022 121.7M 0.08% Oct 2022 122.0M 0.25% Nov 2022 122.2M 0.16% Dec 2022 122.4M 0.16% -
Midsize companies (50-249 employees) saw the largest increase in employees, adding 159,000 in 2022.
Most smaller companies saw a net increase in employees in 2022, with companies as small as 1-19 employees gaining 65,000 new workers over the course of the year.
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Large companies (500+ employees) saw a net loss of 151,000 employees in 2022.
Some of the largest companies like Meta, Amazon, Shopify, and Netflix laid off quite a few employees in 2022, with their main reason for doing so being economic uncertainty.
Company size Employment change 1-19 employees +65,000 20-49 employees +130,000 50-249 employees +159,000 250-499 employees +32,000 500+ employees -151,000 -
The Leisure and hospitality industry saw the largest increase in employment, adding 123,000 new jobs in 2022.
This is then followed by Professional and business services (52,000), Education and health services (42,000), and Construction (41,000).
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The Trade, transportation, and utilities industry lost 24,000 employees.
The Trade, transportation, and utilities industry lost more employees than any other industry in 2022, but others with net losses also include Natural resources and mining (-14,000), Financial activities (-12,000), and Manufacturing (-5,000).
Industry Employment change Leisure and hospitality +123,000 Professional and business services +52,000 Education and health services +42,000 Construction +41,000 Other services +31,000 Information +1,000 Manufacturing -5,000 Financial activities -12,000 Natural resources and mining -14,000 Trade, transportation, and utilities -24,000 -
The Pacific region saw the biggest increase in employment in 2022, at 5.47%.
This includes California and other west-coast states that were hit particularly hard by COVID-19 mandates. Fortunately, it seems the job market has recovered greatly within the past few years.
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The East South Central region had the only net decrease in employment in 2022, at a loss of -0.68%.
This region also has the fewest jobs available, which, while partially dependent on population, is also a concerning correlation.
Region Employment (Dec 2022) Percent increase from Dec 2021 – Dec 2022 South Atlantic 25.3M 3.26% Pacific 21.2M 5.47% East North Central 17.9M 2.28% Mid-Atlantic 16.6M 4.40% West South Central 15.0M 3.45% Mountain 7.6M 1.33% West North Central 6.8M 0.59% New England 6.2M 2.31% East South Central 5.8M -0.68% -
US employment has increased by an estimated 15.6 million since 2012.
There has been a steady net increase in jobs in the US over the past decade, in spite of a dip in 2020 caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Average US Employment Statistics FAQ
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What percentage of the US population is employed in 2022?
61.6% of the total US population is employed as of 2022. This marks a slight decrease over the past decade, as 63.7% of the population was employed in 2012.
However, it is important to note that 61.6% was a healthy recovery from the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic when only 56.8% of the US population was employed. For context, that was even lower than the lowest unemployment rate of just over 58% caused by the 2008 recession.
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Why is the US so short-staffed?
The US is mainly short-staffed due to issues caused by COVID-19 and the Great Resignation. Both of these instances combined caused the US to gain 10 million job openings, but only approximately 5 million unemployed workers to fill them.
This issue has been especially pronounced in positions affected by the pandemic, like the nursing or education fields. Many people quit their jobs in these fields for a variety of reasons and are not eager to return.
Conclusion
While overall employment has seen a steady growth of 3% over the course of 2022, not everyone is feeling this growth. Companies with 500+ employees have laid off at least 151,000 employees this year, and regions like the East South Central US are struggling to stimulate job growth.
However, smaller companies have seen positive growth, and most industries have as well. Industries like Leisure and hospitality, Professional and business services, Education and health services, and Construction are finally recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic.
Overall, the US might have a long way to go before we escape murky financial waters and the damage caused by the pandemic, but 2023 seems to suggest continued job growth.
References
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BLS – Industry employment and output projections to 2022
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Statista – Employment rate in the United States from 1990 to 2021
- Quick Employment Statistics
Author
Jack Flynn is a writer for Zippia. In his professional career he’s written over 100 research papers, articles and blog posts. Some of his most popular published works include his writing about economic terms and research into job classifications. Jack received his BS from Hampshire College.
