LinkedIn Workforce Report | United States | July 2019

Over 155 million workers in the U.S. have LinkedIn profiles; over 20,000 companies in the U.S. use LinkedIn to recruit; over 3 million jobs are posted on LinkedIn in the U.S. every month; and members can add over 35,000 skills to their profiles to showcase their professional brands. That gives us unique and valuable insight into U.S. workforce trends.

This LinkedIn Workforce Report is a monthly report on employment trends in the U.S. workforce. It’s divided into two sections: a National section that provides insights into hiring, skills gaps, and migration trends across the country, and a City section that provides insights into localized employment trends in 20 of the largest U.S. metro areas: Atlanta, Austin, Boston, Chicago, Cleveland-Akron, Dallas-Ft. Worth, Denver, Detroit, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami-Ft. Lauderdale, Minneapolis-St. Paul, Nashville, New York City, Philadelphia, Phoenix, San Francisco Bay Area, Seattle, St. Louis, and Washington, D.C.

Our vision is to create economic opportunity for every member of the global workforce. Whether you’re a worker, an employer, a new grad, or a policymaker, we hope you’ll use these insights to better understand and navigate the dynamics of today’s economy.

Key Insights

●  Nationally, across all industries, gross hiring in the U.S. was 0.2% higher than in June 2018. Seasonally-adjusted national hiring was 1% higher in June from May 2019. The industries with the most notable hiring shifts in June were Agriculture (13.7% higher); Design (11.9% higher); and Corporate Services (8.7% higher).

●  Workers leaving the largest U.S. cities are increasingly relocating to smaller cities with large concentrations of Boomers and retirees. Nine of the top 15 “non-primary” metros gaining the greatest shares of workers from “primary” cities – defined as the top 20 largest US metro areas, according to Census data -- are also in the top 25 cities with the highest percentage of population over the age of 65. Naples, Florida, tops the list, followed by four other Florida cities: Punta Gorda, Sarasota, Melbourne, and Fort Myers. Outside of Florida, workers are also flocking to: Asheville, North Carolina; Myrtle Beach, South Carolina; and Santa Fe, New Mexico.

●  The majority of workers leaving these primary cities for the smaller, generationally older cities aren’t actually close to retirement. We found that the majority of workers on LinkedIn (37%) moving to these generationally older cities are between the ages of 25-44. That said, there are still a significant share of workers closer to retirement (ages 45-64) moving to these cities. Workers ages 45-64 are moving to generationally older cities at a much faster rate (20%) compared to migration across all U.S. cities (9.6%), signaling that these are among the most attractive markets for workers approaching retirement.

●  Health Care is the most popular industry attracting workers from primary cities, with the Real Estate and Retail industries close behind. The healthcare industry leads hiring in these generationally older cities, followed closely by real estate and retail -- and the dominance of these industries (and availability of jobs in them) are among the reasons that younger workers may be moving to these markets. Looking outside of healthcare roles, the most popular occupations these new movers hold are: realtor, project manager and salesperson.

●  Workers moving into generationally older cities are filling critical gaps in soft skills. When we looked at the existing skills ecosystems, we found health and real estate skills have traditionally dominated the marketplace. New workers moving into generationally older cities from primary cities are bringing with them in-demand soft skills -- with management, strategic planning, and business development topping the list.

Hiring |

The LinkedIn hiring rate is a measure of gross hires divided by LinkedIn membership. Nationally, across all industries, gross hiring in the U.S. was 0.2% higher than in June 2018.

Seasonally-adjusted national hiring was 1% higher in June from May 2019.

The industries with the most notable hiring shifts in June were Agriculture (13.7% higher); Design (11.9% higher); and Corporate Services (8.7% higher).

Table 1: Hiring on LinkedIn, by Industry, through June 2019

Migration |

The U.S. cities losing the most people are Wichita, KS; State College, PA; and Bryan-College Station, TX. For every 10,000 LinkedIn members in Wichita, KS, 284 left in the past 12 months.

The U.S. cities gaining the most people are Austin, TX; Denver, CO; and Charlotte, NC. For every 10,000 LinkedIn members in Austin, TX, 137 arrived in the last 12 months.

Austin, TX; Denver, CO; and San Diego, CA are the U.S. cities experiencing the most total migration (workers moving into and out of a city). This list captures the most transient cities. For every 10,000 LinkedIn members in Austin, TX, 702 arrived in or left the city in the last 12 months.

Check out our reports for Atlanta, Austin, Boston, Chicago, Cleveland-Akron, Dallas-Ft. Worth, Denver, Detroit, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami-Ft. Lauderdale, Minneapolis-St. Paul, Nashville, New York City, Philadelphia, Phoenix, San Francisco Bay Area, Seattle, St. Louis, and Washington, D.C., to see which skills are in shortage in those cities, and which jobs are open.