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Bureau of Labor Statistics > Employment Projections > About > Overview

Employment Projections Data Overview

Definitions

Employment Projections Data Definitions

Data sources

The Bureau of Labor Statistics develops the National Employment Matrix as part of its ongoing Employment Projections program, and it presents employment for approximately 300 detailed industries and 800 detailed occupations. Data from the Matrix underlie the data on this website and the occupational employment information presented in the Occupational Outlook Handbook.

The primary sources used to develop the Matrix are the Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey, the Current Employment Statistics (CES) survey, and the Current Population Survey (CPS).

Occupational classification

The occupational structure of the National Employment Matrix is based on the structure used by the OEWS program, which is using a classification system based on the 2018 Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) system.

Data on self-employed workers are based on Current Population Survey (CPS) data for equivalent occupations. A crosswalk is used to distribute CPS data to occupations in the National Employment Matrix.

More information about the Standard Occupational Classification system is available at: www.bls.gov/soc/.
More information about how the OEWS program classifies occupations is available at: https://www.bls.gov/oes/soc_2018.htm.

Industry classification

The industry structure of the National Employment Matrix is based on the 2022 North American Industry Classification System (NAICS). The exception is self-employment, which is not a NAICS industry but is treated as one for analysis in the Employment Projections methodology. For more information about self-employment, please see the Handbook of Methods.

Projections methodology

Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) projections of industry and occupational employment are developed in a series of six interrelated steps, each of which is based on a different procedure or model and assumptions: labor force, aggregate economy, final demand (GDP) by consuming sector and product, industry output, industry employment, and occupational employment. The results produced by each step are key inputs to following steps, and the sequence may be repeated multiple times to allow feedback and to ensure consistency.

Projections updates

National employment projections are developed annually. The next release will cover the 2025–2035 decade, and is scheduled to be published on this website in late 2026.

Note

The accuracy of projections for individual occupations is subject to error because of the many unknown factors that may affect the economy over the projection period. Furthermore, while occupational employment projections and related job outlook information can provide valuable inputs to the career decision-making process, they should not be the sole basis for a choice of career.

Last Modified Date: August 28, 2025