Return to the PIE Home PageTotal employment in the Columbus MSA increased from 796,000 in 1996 to 814,900 in 1997, an increase of 2.4%. As the pie chart above indicates, the majority of the Columbus MSA's employment is in the trade and services sectors. In 1997, trade represented 26.2% of the total economy and services represented 28.1%.
Total employment in the Columbus MSA has increased 48.0% from 1980 to 1997. However, some sectors have grown faster than others, causing the employment picture in the Columbus MSA to shift emphasis from manufacturing to services and trade. As the bar graph above illustrates, between 1980 and 1997 the fastest growth occurred in the services sector (104.6%), the finance, insurance and real estate sector (78.5%) and the trade sector (66.4%). Manufacturing employment declined by 14.4% over the same period. This trend parallels the national trend toward a services-oriented economy.
The diversity and continued growth of employment in the Columbus MSA have led to the perception that our economy is recession-resistant. Although good for the economy as a whole, services and trade sector jobs are frequently part-time and have lower wages and fewer benefits. For example, in Franklin County, services and trade employment annual earnings are often one-third to one-half the annual earnings of manufacturing employment.
Sector 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 Construction 21,000 18,900 15,400 16,600 18,900 Manufacturing 108,400 104,500 96,600 94,100 99,200 Transport/Utilities 26,500 26,000 25,100 24,500 25,800 Trade 128,100 128,000 127,200 130,500 139,800 Wholesale 28,300 28,300 28,100 28,800 31,000 Retail 99,800 99,700 99,100 101,700 108,800 FIRE 39,900 41,600 43,300 44,800 46,600 Services 112,000 114,900 116,100 118,300 126,100 Government 113,700 111,700 109,000 108,700 108,100 Local 49,400 47,900 46,100 46,100 45,400 State 49,600 49,300 48,500 48,500 48,100 Federal 14,700 14,400 14,400 14,200 14,500 Totals 550,800 546,900 534,000 538,700 565,500
Notes: Figures are approximate due to rounding. "FIRE" refers to finance, insurance, and real estate. All "Totals" include figures from the unlisted category, mining.
Sector 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 Construction 21,300 23,700 26,700 28,800 29,200 Manufacturing 100,400 99,100 96,200 93,600 93,800 Transport/Utilities 25,700 26,300 27,800 29,400 30,400 Trade 149,200 155,700 165,300 171,800 178,800 Wholesale 31,900 32,100 33,500 35,000 36,000 Retail 117,300 123,600 131,800 136,800 142,800 FIRE 49,300 53,500 56,800 58,500 59,700 Services 134,500 144,200 152,700 160,600 170,000 Government 110,600 114,600 117,600 120,800 123,000 Local 46,900 48,400 49,600 51,900 52,900 State 48,600 50,700 52,300 53,500 54,100 Federal 15,100 15,500 15,600 15,400 16,000 Totals 591,900 618,000 643,900 664,300 685,700
Notes: Figures are approximate due to rounding. "FIRE" refers to finance, insurance, and real estate. All "Totals" include figures from the unlisted category, mining.
Sector 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 Construction 28,900 26,400 26,800 27,400 29,800 Manufacturing 94,000 92,300 91,500 92,200 92,000 Transport/Utilities 30,100 30,100 30,400 30,800 32,800 Trade 181,600 179,500 184,400 189,700 199,900 Wholesale 35,800 35,600 36,000 36,700 38,200 Retail 145,800 143,900 148,400 153,000 161,500 FIRE 60,400 59,600 59,200 60,900 63,200 Services 179,500 182,500 188,700 194,600 204,900 Government 127,200 129,100 131,100 131,700 132,800 Local 54,500 56,300 58,300 59,100 59,600 State 55,800 56,300 56,600 57,300 57,900 Federal 16,900 16,500 16,200 15,300 15,200 Totals 702,500 700,300 712,800 727,900 755,900
Notes: Figures are approximate due to rounding. "FIRE" refers to finance, insurance, and real estate. All "Totals" include figures from the unlisted category, mining.
1980 1997
% of % of
Sector 1995 1996 1997 Total Total
Construction 31,200 32,800 35,000 3.8 4.3
Manufacturing 93,400 92,000 92,800 19.7 11.4
Transport/Utilities 34,500 35,700 36,200 4.8 4.4
Trade 210,400 213,300 213,200 23.3 26.2
Wholesale 39,500 40,100 41,500
Retail 170,900 173,200 171,700
FIRE 64,700 67,000 71,200 7.3 8.7
Services 214,900 221,400 229,100 20.3 28.1
Government 133,600 133,300 136,700 20.7 16.8
Local 60,500 61,700 62,600
State 58,000 57,500 58,500
Federal 15,100 14,000 15,600
Totals 783,500 796,000 814,900 100.0 99.9
Notes: Figures are approximate due to rounding. "FIRE" refers to finance, insurance, and real estate. All "Totals" include figures from the unlisted category, mining.
Source: Ohio Bureau of Employment Services, Labor Market Information Division
Filename: SD-002