Data on display
Projected employment growth in industries with many Hispanics
Elka Torpey | October 2019
Which demographic group is expected to have the most labor force growth from 2018 to 2028? If you guessed Hispanics, you’re right. From 2018 to 2028, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) projects the number of Hispanics in the labor force to increase by about 7.4 million—more than any other age, sex, or race or ethnic group. BLS projects total growth in the labor force to reach about 8.9 million people over the decade.
BLS uses demographic data from the Current Population Survey (CPS) to project changes in the labor force as a whole and to provide information about current employment in industries and occupations. Chart 1 shows the percent growth in employment projected from 2018 to 2028 in selected industries that had relatively large numbers of Hispanic workers in 2018.
Chart 1. Employment growth,1 projected 2018–28, in selected industries with many Hispanic or Latino workers, 2018
|
Occupations
|
Employment growth, projected 2018–28 (percent)
|
Hispanic or Latino employment, 2018
|
|
Healthcare and social assistance
|
16 |
2,871,000 |
|
Construction
|
11 |
3,433,000 |
|
Accommodation and food services
|
10 |
2,824,000 |
|
Transportation and warehousing
|
6 |
1,417,000 |
|
Educational services
|
4 |
1,652,000 |
|
Other services2
|
1 |
1,574,000 |
For example, in construction—the industry in the chart with the most Hispanic workers—roughly 3.4 million workers in 2018 were Hispanic or Latino. That’s about 13 percent of all Hispanic or Latino workers. And employment in construction is expected to grow, with an 11-percent growth rate projected for workers of all races and ethnicities from 2018 to 2028—more than double the 5-percent average rate of employment growth projected for all industries.
Among industries shown in the chart, the one projected to have the fastest employment growth for workers of all races and ethnicities is healthcare and social assistance. Employment in this industry is projected to grow more than 3 times the average rate for all industries. In 2018, nearly 2.9 million workers in healthcare and social assistance were Hispanic or Latino, or about 1 in 10 Hispanic or Latino workers.
Visit the BLS Employment Projections program for more data and information on expected changes in the labor force, industries, and occupations. And the Occupational Outlook Handbook features projections for hundreds of occupations, such as those related to construction and extraction, healthcare, and community and social service.
Elka Torpey is an economist in the Office of Occupational Statistics and Employment Projections, BLS. She can be reached at torpey.elka@bls.gov.
Suggested citation:
Elka Torpey, "Projected employment growth in industries with many Hispanics,"
Career Outlook,
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics,
October 2019.
United States Department of Labor
