THE CURRENT STATE OF INDUSTRIES

Here, in our first issue of the New Year, we share the insights of several industry leaders on the business outlook for the metalworking industry and the critical issues that the industry faces during the coming year. While business in the metalworking sector continues a cautiously modest upswing, I thought it only appropriate to visit some other industries and see how they have been coping with the jobless recovery of the past year.

To do this, I pulled a summary report created by Anika Anand and Gus Lubin from the December 10 issue of Business Insider that has  two lists: one of the industries that lost the most jobs last year, the other of those that gained the most jobs last year. All of the research data used to compile these two lists was sourced from the seasonally-adjusted nonfarm payrolls of the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, from November 2009 through November 2010.

What follows is an interesting – and somewhat eye-opening – cursory profile of our nation at work . . . and not.

THE 10 INDUSTRIES THAT LOST THE MOST JOBS IN 2010

“While markets and profits rebounded, hiring did not,” reports Anand and Lubin. “Since November 2009, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) has recorded a mediocre 842,000 increase to nonfarm payrolls, with a 1,088,000 increase to the private sector. State and local governments suffered the most as property tax revenue cratered. Manufacturing job loss continued in most sectors.”

#10 Nondurable Goods. 33,000 jobs were lost in this sector that includes everything from food manufacturing to apparel and chemicals to paper products. Plastic and rubber products alone lost 18,900 jobs. The endless saga of factory jobs leaving the U.S. in pursuit of lower costs.

#9 Building Construction. 38,900 jobs lost. Significantly more jobs were lost in residential construction (31,300) than in nonresidential construction (7,600). No surprise here.

#8 State Government. 39,000 jobs lost. Increasing state deficits resulted in more government hiring freezes and layoffs. Is that really a bad thing?

#7 Real Estate and Rental/Leasing. 39,300 jobs lost. If memory serves correctly, all of this started with the housing crash.

#6 Telecommunications. 40,800 jobs lost. This was the hardest hit sector in the information industry.

#5 U.S. Postal Service. 41,100 jobs lost. Let’s see . . . UPS and FedEx both grew in their volume of domestic packages, international packages, even supply chain and freight. The entire human race communicates through smart phones and email. Meanwhile, the Post Office increases the price of stamps. Enough said.

#4 Accounting and Bookkeeping Services. 42,200 jobs lost. With so many people out of work, no one has any money to account for.

#3 Specialty Trade Contractors. 102,100 jobs lost. Concrete pouring, painting, electrical work, masonry and other specialty trades directly relate to the construction market. No surprise here.

#2 Local Government (excluding Education). 117,500 jobs lost. The collapse of property taxes decimated local government revenues, forcing hiring freezes and layoffs. Remind me again why this is bad?

#1 Local Government Education. 143,700 jobs lost. The collapse of property taxes nearly broke school systems across the nation. But how much of this was fat?

THE 10 INDUSTRIES THAT GAINED A TON OF JOBS IN 2010

“Despite the constant talk of unemployment and a jobless recovery, some industries actually had a pretty good year,” says Anand and Lubin. Sectors such as retail and mining led in hiring.” Not to be outdone, our #1 Honorable, Barack Obama, hired a boatload of new federal workers too.

#10 Computer Systems Design and Related Services. 42,000 jobs added. Revenge of the Nerds.

#9 Federal, except U.S. Post Office. 44,500 jobs added. Let’s be clear about this: Thank you, Mr. Obama, sir.

#8 State Government Education. 50,000 jobs added. So local government education loses the most jobs in the country at the same time state government is growing. Meanwhile, home schooling continues to expand everywhere. Please ask the union chiefs to pass around the party favors.

#7 Retail Trade. 55,300 jobs added. Furniture and home furnishing stores, general merchandise stores, electronics and appliance stores, and other retail stores resurrect from the dead.

#6 Membership Associations and Organizations. 61,500 jobs added. Networking grew with so many people unemployed.

#5 Social Assistance. 73,400 jobs added. Agencies grew that help the homeless, counsel troubled individuals, train the unemployed or underemployed, help families obtain financial assistance, and provide day care services for children.

#4 Mining. 88,200 jobs added. 600 U.S. mining companies and 250 exploration and mining support contractors combined for $35 billion in revenue.

#3 Durable Goods. 129,000 jobs added. Growth in everything from wood products to machinery and furniture to electronic instruments.

#2 Food Services and Drinking Places. 135,200 jobs added. Wonder how much of this was driven by leisure and hospitality vs. depression?

#1 Administrative and Support Services. 380,100 jobs added. This includes employment services and temporary help services. That’s right. The greatest job growth is in the sector that focuses on helping people find jobs.