Savannah Chamber

29 Savannah Area Chamber of Commerce 2015 Economic Trends 8 Employment (By Place of Work) By Sector The Savannah MSA workforce increased 2% from 2013 to 164,300 workers. This represents a post-recession high watermark. Several sectors experienced significant growth in 2014, reflecting improving business conditions in the region: transportation and utilities (+900 jobs, 8.6% growth), professional and business services (+1,600 jobs, 8.1% growth) and leisure and hospitality (+1,400 jobs, 6.2% growth). Also notable is the 3.8% increase (+200 jobs) in the construction sector. Manufacturing added 100 jobs in the past year. Financial activities, wholesale trade, retail trade, and information remained stable from 2013 to 2014. Except for the government sector, education and health services was the only sector to experience a minor (-200 jobs) job loss. Federal government decreased from 2013 to 2014 by 200 jobs, while state and local government combined fell by 200 jobs. Employment – Annual Averages Savannah MSA Industry 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 Change 2008-14 Change 2013-14 Total Nonfarm* 160,100 151,700 151,800 153,300 157,000 161,100 164,300 2.6% 2.0% Construction & Mining 8,900 7,300 6,200 5,900 5,600 5,200 5,400 -39.3% 3.8% Manufacturing 14,900 14,000 13,700 14,400 15,000 15,100 15,200 2.0% 0.7% Wholesale Trade 6,600 5,700 5,700 5,700 5,700 6,100 6,100 -7.6% 0.0% Retail Trade 18,200 17,000 17,300 17,800 18,200 18,800 18,800 3.3% 0.0% Transportation & Utilities 10,900 10,100 9,900 10,200 10,800 10,500 11,400 4.6% 8.6% Information 1,600 1,500 1,500 1,500 1,400 1,400 1,400 -12.5% 0.0% Financial Activities 6,600 6,200 6,000 5,700 6,100 6,500 6,500 -1.5% 0.0% Professional & Business Services 18,400 16,500 17,500 17,600 18,400 19,700 21,300 15.8% 8.1% Education & Health Services 22,000 22,500 23,600 23,800 23,900 24,200 24,000 9.1% -0.8% Leisure & Hospitality 20,500 19,900 20,000 20,600 21,500 22,600 24,000 17.1% 6.2% Other Services 7,800 7,200 6,800 6,800 6,800 7,100 7,200 -7.7% 1.4% Government – Federal 2,900 3,000 3,200 3,200 3,200 2,900 2,700 -6.9% -6.9% Government – State & Local 20,600 20,900 20,500 20,200 20,400 20,600 20,400 -1.0% -1.0% Source: U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, State and Area Employment, Hours and Earnings (2014 data are annualized seasonally adjusted through October.) Retrieved at www.bls.gov on 12-10-2014. * NOTE: BLS data are benchmarked annually; data for 2008-2013 have been updated to reflect these changes. Where the Jobs Are All post-recession job growth in the Savannah MSA has occurred in the private sector. Two of these industries, leisure/ hospitality and education/ health services, have grown to surpass total public sector employment (24,000 vs. 23,100) as the largest sectors of the regional economy. Five sectors hold similar portions of total employment in the Savannah MSA, further attesting to the area's healthy, diverse industry mix: education and health services (14.6%), leisure and hospitality (14.6%), professional and business services (13.0%), state/local government (12.4%), and retail trade (11.4%). Manufacturing accounts for 9.3% of the area's jobs.

• Cover