Industries at a Glance

FONT SIZE:

Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institutions: NAICS 712

About the Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institutions subsector

The museums, historical sites, and similar institutions subsector is part of the arts, entertainment, and recreation sector.

Industries in the Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institutions subsector engage in the preservation and exhibition of objects, sites, and natural wonders of historical, cultural, and/or educational value.

North American Industry Classification System

The museums, historical sites, and similar institutions subsector consists of a single industry group, Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institutions: NAICS 7121.

Workforce Statistics

This section provides information relating to employment in museums, historical sites, and similar institutions. These data are obtained from employer or establishment surveys. The following tables present an overview of the industry including the number of jobs, mass layoffs, data for occupations common to the industry, and projections of occupational employment change.

Employment and Layoffs


Data series	Oct. 2009	Nov. 2009	Dec. 2009	Jan. 2010
Employment (in thousands)
Employment, all employees (seasonally adjusted)	130.5	129.1	(P) 129.1	(P) 129.1
Employment, production and nonsupervisory employees	105.5	99.0	(P) 96.4
Layoffs
Mass layoff events	(1) -	(1) -	(1) -
Initial claimants for unemployment benefits	(1) -	(1) -	(1) -
Footnotes (1) Data do not meet BLS or state agency disclosure standards. (P) Preliminary

(Source: Current Employment Statistics, Mass Layoff Statistics)

Extended Mass Layoffs


Data series	4th quarter 2008	1st quarter 2009	2nd quarter 2009	3rd quarter 2009
Extended mass layoff events	3	3	(1) (P) -	(1) (P) -
Separations	486	370	(1) (P) -	(1) (P) -
Initial claimants	445	417	(1) (P) -	(1) (P) -
Footnotes (1) Data do not meet BLS or state agency disclosure standards. (P) Preliminary

(Source: Mass Layoff Statistics)

Employment by Occupation


Data series	Employment, 2008
Curators	5,990
Museum technicians and conservators	4,150
Nonfarm animal caretakers	4,750
Public relations specialists	1,970
Tour guides and escorts	11,150

(Source: Occupational Employment Statistics)

Projections

For projected (future) employment estimates, see the National Employment Matrix, which includes employment estimates by industry and occupation for museums, historical sites, and similar institutions.

(Source: Office of Occupational Statistics and Employment Projections)

Earnings and Hours

This section presents data on employee earnings and weekly hours. The latest industry averages of hourly earnings and weekly hours are shown. In addition, recent hourly and annual earnings are shown for occupations commonly found in museums, historical sites, and similar institutions.

Earnings and Hours of All Employees


Data series	Sep. 2009	Oct. 2009	Nov. 2009	Dec. 2009
Average hourly earnings	$19.83	$20.21	$20.56	(P) $20.73
Average weekly hours	28.1	27.5	28.0	(P) 27.8
Footnotes (P) Preliminary

(Source: Current Employment Statistics)

Earnings and Hours of Production and Nonsupervisory Employees


Data series	Sep. 2009	Oct. 2009	Nov. 2009	Dec. 2009
Average hourly earnings	$15.36	$15.58	$15.93	(P) $16.17
Average weekly hours	26.2	25.5	26.5	(P) 25.9
Footnotes (P) Preliminary

(Source: Current Employment Statistics)

Earnings by Occupation


Data series	Wages, 2008
	Hourly		Annual
	Median	Mean	Median	Mean
Curators	$20.60	$23.17	$42,850	$48,200
Museum technicians and conservators	$16.64	$18.28	$34,620	$38,020
Nonfarm animal caretakers	$12.18	$13.40	$25,330	$27,880
Public relations specialists	$20.25	$22.39	$42,120	$46,570
Tour guides and escorts	$9.32	$10.40	$19,390	$21,630

(Source: Occupational Employment Statistics)

Work-related Fatalities, Injuries, and Illnesses

This section presents data for the industry on the number of workplace fatalities and the rates of workplace injuries and illnesses per 100 full-time workers in museums, historical sites, and similar institutions. An injury or illness is considered to be work-related if an event or exposure in the work environment either caused or contributed to the resulting condition or significantly aggravated a pre-existing condition.


Data series	2005	2006	2007	2008
Fatalities
Number of fatalities	15	8	12	(P) 10
Rate of injury and illness cases per 100 full-time workers
Total recordable cases	5.2	5.3	4.8	4.7
Cases involving days away from work, job restriction, or transfer	2.0	2.4	2.0	2.3
Cases involving days away from work	1.2	1.5	1.1	1.2
Cases involving days of job transfer or restriction	0.8	0.9	0.9	1.1
Footnotes (P) Preliminary

(Source: Injuries, Illnesses, and Fatalities)

Workplace Trends

This section presents data on the number of establishments in museums, historical sites, and similar institutions.

Establishments


Data series	3rd quarter 2008	4th quarter 2008	1st quarter 2009	2nd quarter 2009
Number of establishments
Private industry	5,643	5,637	(P) 5,620	(P) 5,634
Local government	691	693	(P) 694	(P) 692
State government	802	796	(P) 753	(P) 755
Federal government	613	614	(P) 620	(P) 664
Footnotes (P) Preliminary

(Source: Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages)

Other BLS Resources

Career Guide to Industries

To learn about careers from an industry perspective, see the Career Guide to Industries.