Where are most Americans employed?
American workforce
A significant majority of the American labor force is employed in the services sector, while the other sectors, industry and agriculture, account for less than 20 percent of the US economy.
As a result, more than half of the workers in the country are working in the primary sector, mainly in agriculture, producing only about one sixth of the GDP. In contrast to this, the secondary and tertiary sectors produce the rest of the produce whereas they employ less about half the people.
United States-based largest private employers | ||
---|---|---|
Rank | Employer | Global number of employees |
1 | Walmart, Inc. | 2,300,000 |
2 | Amazon.com, Inc. | 1,608,000 |
3 | Allied Universal | 800,000 |
India's agriculture sector emerged as the leading industry in terms of employment in financial year 2021 with the number of employees tallying nearly 152 million.
- Average job openings rate: 9.00%
- Average hire rate: 6.17%
- Average monthly job openings: 31,000.
- Average monthly hires: 19,333.
- Average monthly employment: 313,514.
Disguised unemployment is mostly found in the agriculture sector in India where, say 10 members of the farmers' family are employed on a small plot when 5 are enough.
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Characteristic | Unemployment rate |
---|---|
Las Vegas-Henderson-Paradise, NV | 5.6% |
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI | 4.4% |
Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA | 4.2% |
In 2021, South Africa had the highest unemployment rate in the world, at 34 percent. Of the 10 countries with the highest unemployment rates, eight were in Sub-Saharan Africa.
- UnitedHealth Group. 350,000 employees | +20,000 from 2021. ...
- Berkshire Hathaway. 372,000 employees | +12,000 from 2021. ...
- Starbucks. 383,000 employees | +34,000 from 2021. ...
- United Parcel Service. ...
- Kroger. ...
- Target. ...
- FedEx. ...
- Home Depot.
In 2024, 8.6 percent of the Black or African-American population in the United States were unemployed, the highest unemployment rate of any ethnicity.
What industry hires the most people?
- Public Schools in the US. ...
- Hospitals in the US. ...
- Fast Food Restaurants in the US. ...
- Professional Employer Organizations in the US. ...
- Office Staffing & Temp Agencies in the US. ...
- Single Location Full-Service Restaurants in the US. ...
- The Retail Market for Jewelry in the US.
- Hospitals in the US. $1.327.4B.
- Health & Medical Insurance in the US. ...
- Commercial Banking in the US. ...
- Drug, Cosmetic & Toiletry Wholesaling in the US. ...
- New Car Dealers in the US. ...
- Life Insurance & Annuities in the US. ...
- Pharmaceuticals Wholesaling in the US. ...
- Public Schools in the US.

Rank | Country/Region | Labour force |
---|---|---|
— | World | 3,382,000,000 |
1 | China | 791,483,000 |
2 | India | 476,670,100 |
3 | United States | 160,400,000 |
Rank | Industry | Percent Change |
---|---|---|
1 | Motion Picture and Video Exhibition | 71% |
2 | Scenic/Sightseeing Transportation, Land | 65% |
3 | Insurance and Employee Benefit Funds | 62% |
West Virginia, deemed the worst state overall to find a job in 2022, also ranked 50th for the job market category and the median annual income metric, according to WalletHub.
North Dakota tops WalletHub's new list of “hardest-working states,” and New Mexico comes in last. The list compares the 50 states across 10 key indicators.
- Colorado. Colorado earned the top spot on our list of states with the best job market. ...
- Massachusetts. Massachusetts is one of the states with the most job opportunities and best weekly wages. ...
- New York. ...
- 4. California. ...
- Minnesota. ...
- Virginia. ...
- Washington. ...
- Connecticut.
Rank | State | Unemployment rate |
---|---|---|
1 | NORTH DAKOTA | 2.8 |
2 | NEBRASKA | 3.6 |
2 | UTAH | 3.6 |
4 | SOUTH DAKOTA | 3.7 |
Salt Lake City, Utah
As a gateway city to the American West, Salt Lake City supports many different industries. With natural resources in close proximity, mining and oil and gas are the highest-paying industries, along with agriculture, forestry, and utilities. However, the area's largest employer is education.
Highest paying states | Lowest paying states | |
---|---|---|
Massachusetts | $823 (up to $1,234 w/dependents) | Arizona |
Minnesota | $740 | Alabama |
New Jersey | $713 | Florida |
Connecticut | $649 (up to $724 w/dependents) | Louisiana |
What state has the most job opportunities 2022?
Colorado ranks first in the nation for employment. Utah – No. 1 in the economy category overall – places second in this subcategory, followed by Massachusetts, Idaho and Virginia. Learn more about the Best States for employment below.
- North Port, Florida, Austin, Texas, and Jacksonville, Florida, are the best cities for job seekers. ...
- Honolulu, Hawaii, and New York, New York, rank as the worst cities for job seekers.
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Here are the 10 countries with the highest rates of unemployment:
- Botswana - 24.90%
- Grenada - 22.90%
- Eswatini - 22.70%
- Lesotho - 22.40%
- Gabon - 20.40%
- Namibia - 19.90%
- Curacao - 19.10%
Unemployment rate forecast - Country rankings
The average for 2022 based on 100 countries was 7.11 percent. The highest value was in South Africa: 34.63 percent and the lowest value was in Thailand: 1 percent.
US Jobless Rate Unexpectedly Falls
The unemployment rate in the US dropped to 3.5 percent in December 2022, falling below market expectations of 3.7 percent and matching the rates seen in September and July, which were the lowest since February 2020.
China is the top country the United States outsources to.
The U.S. outsources to China more than any other country. In addition, China's outsourcing market grows by 30% every year. Behind China, The Philippines, Taiwan, Ukraine, and Vietnam are among the top 5 countries U.S. businesses outsource to.
- Retail Sales Representative. Average Annual Salary: $30,824. ...
- Office Clerk. Average Annual Salary: $27,617. ...
- Registered Nurse. Average Annual Salary: $63,827. ...
- Customer Service Representative. Average Annual Salary: $29,624. ...
- Janitor. ...
- Server. ...
- Elementary School Teacher. ...
- Accountant.
However, by some metrics, the U.S. can be considered the most overworked country. For example, the U.S. is the only developed country in the world without mandated paid leave or mandated paid parental leave, and is one of only two countries to have no mandated paid sick leave.
Overall Rank | City | Total Score |
---|---|---|
1 | San Francisco, CA | 65.40 |
2 | Columbia, MD | 65.24 |
3 | Orlando, FL | 64.15 |
4 | San Jose, CA | 63.63 |
Where are most unemployed found?
India Is The Nation Of The Most Unemployed In The World: Labour Bureau Statistics.
- Silicon Valley/Bay Area, California. There is perhaps no more well-known startup city in the US than Silicon Valley. ...
- New York City, New York. ...
- Boston, Massachusetts. ...
- Los Angeles, California. ...
- Seattle, Washington. ...
- Washington D.C. ...
- Chicago, Illinois. ...
- Austin, Texas.
1 job on the list: Registered nurse.
Construction Worker. Take one step outside and chances are you'll see many buildings that construction workers finished. Construction workers are the #1 happiest job for a reason—they do what humans are built for! They plan, move and use their bodies, and get to see their creative works come to life.
- Dental Hygienist.
- Physical Therapist.
- Radiation Therapist.
- Optometrist.
- Human Resources Manager.
The explanation is quite simple: American workers have much shorter vacations and many fewer public holidays than other workers. Over the last forty years, people in other wealthy countries have made the political choice to accept slightly lower annual incomes in exchange for less time working. Americans have not.
North Dakota is the hardest working state in America, according to a new report from WalletHub. WalletHub compared the 50 states across 10 key indicators, ranging from average hours worked per week to the number of workers with multiple jobs to identify where the nation's hardest working people live.
United States. The United States was the seventh-hardest-working country in the world in 2021. The U.S. worker averaged 1,791 hours, just below Poland. Unlike their European counterparts, American workers are not guaranteed paid sick leave or paid maternity leave.
The federal minimum wage for covered nonexempt employees is $7.25 per hour. Many states also have minimum wage laws.
Minimum wages in the United States, by state 2023. The federally mandated minimum wage in the United States is 7.25 U.S. dollars per hour, although the minimum wage varies from state to state. As of January 1, 2023, the District of Columbia had the highest minimum wage in the U.S., at 16.50 U.S. dollars per hour.
What state has best paying jobs?
Massachusetts has the highest average salary in the country. New York, Washington, and California have a high cost of living and are home to a large number of Fortune 500 companies.