Service sector employment continues to increase in Pennsylvania
April 25, 1996
Service sector employment continues
to increase in Pennsylvania
MIDDLETOWN, Pa. -- Employment in the
service sector continues to outpace all other industry
sectors statewide.
While the total number of business establishments
in Pennsylvania continues to increase, the Pennsylvania
State Data Center at Penn State Harrisburg reports the
largest increase during the period from 1991 to 1995
came in the service industry which grew by 6,763 or 7.2
percent.
The State Data Center also reports that between
1991 and 1995, the number of business establishments in
the Commonwealth increased 9,172, a 3.4 percent
increase. In the second quarter of 1995, the number of
establishments in Pennsylvania totaled 278,173.
State and county business establishment and
employment data for all industries from 1991 to 1995 is
available in the report "Pennsylvania County Industry
Trends 1991-1995," produced by PENNTAP, the
Pennsylvania Technical Assistance Program, and the
Pennsylvania State Data Center.
The largest decrease in business establishments
during the period was in the construction industry, which
lost 1,546 establishments (5.2 percent), followed by
mining, 144 establishments, and manufacturing, 100
establishments.
Total employment in Pennsylvania grew by
157,185 employees during the 1991-1995 period, a 3.2
percent increase, to the 1995 total 5,141,397. The
largest gain in employment during the last four years
occurred in the service sector, an increase of 142,297
employees (8.5 percent), followed by retail trade, 42,224
workers 4.7 percent).
Four of the 10 major industry sectors in
Pennsylvania showed a decline in employment from 1991
to 1995. Manufacturing employment decreased by
43,216 employees (4.3 percent), construction by 5,683
(2.6 percent), mining by 5,544 (21.7 percent), and
wholesale trade by 2,347 (0.9 percent).
The Pennsylvania counties with the largest
number of business establishments were Allegheny
(32,677), Philadelphia (26,082), and Montgomery
(23,100). The counties with the smallest number of
establishments include Forest (135), Cameron (152), and
Sullivan (182).
The counties showing the largest employment
gains from 1991 to 1995 include Montgomery, gaining
18,604 jobs, Lancaster, growing by 12,163, and Bucks
increasing by 11,671. The largest employment decrease
during this period was in Philadelphia, with 42,182 jobs
lost, followed by Wyoming County, 385, and Indiana
County, 360.
The greatest gains in construction industry jobs
from 1991 to 1995 were seen in western Pennsylvania
while the greatest losses in this industry were
experienced in eastern Pennsylvania. The most sizeable
gains in construction industry jobs were in Westmoreland
County with an increase of 678, followed by Butler
County, 602, and Erie County, 525. The greatest losses
were in Philadelphia County, 3,046 jobs, Delaware
County, 2,130, and Montgomery County, 640.
Manufacturing jobs in Pennsylvania decreased 4.3
percent between 1991 and 1995. The counties with the
largest drops in manufacturing jobs during this period
were Philadelphia, 21,900, Allegheny, 7,132, and
Chester, 3,500. Despite the overall decrease statewide,
26 counties in the state showed employment gains in
manufacturing from 1991 to 1995. The most appreciable
gains in the industry were seen in Lancaster County,
1,786 jobs, Elk County, 1,773, and Adams County,
1,077.
The retail trade industry accounted for 18 percent
of total employment in Pennsylvania in 1995. This
industry saw an increase in employment from 1991 to
1995 of 42,224 jobs or 4.7 percent. The counties with
the largest percent increase in retail employment from
1991 to 1995 were Pike (64.1 percent), Fulton (46.4
percent), and Clearfield (33.8 percent).
The wholesale trade industry in Pennsylvania lost
2,347 jobs from 1991 to 1995, a decrease of less than 1
percent. The largest increases in wholesale trade jobs
were in Bucks County, 1,361, followed by Berks
County, 952, and Chester County, 740. During the 1991
to 1995 period, 23 of the state's 67 counties lost
employment in the wholesale trade industry.
The largest employment growth in Pennsylvania
from 1991 to 1995 was in the service industry, an
increase of 8.5 percent or 142,297 jobs. The counties
with the largest gains include Delaware, 11,164 jobs,
Montgomery, 10,915, and Allegheny, 10,054. Four
counties in Pennsylvania lost employment in the service
industry during the 1991-1995 period. Losses were seen
in Montour, 362 jobs, followed by Pike, 293,
Huntingdon, 133, and Cameron, 10.
The state-sponsored Pennsylvania State Data
Center is the Commonwealth's official source of
population and economic statistics and services. It is
based at Penn State Harrisburg's Institute of State and
Regional Affairs in its School of Public Affairs.
________________
EDITORS: Contact: Jennifer Shultz at the Pennsylvania
State Data Center's Capital Office at (717) 772-2710 or
the Penn State Harrisburg Public Information Office at
(717) 948-6029. Contact the Pennsylvania State Data
Center to order a copy of the report "Pennsylvania
County Industry Trends 1991-1995."
Source of Information: The analysis presented here
pertains to business establishments
and employment of employers covered
under Pennsylvania's Unempployment
Compensation Law. The information
was extracted from unemployment
compensation tax reports filed with
the Pennsylvania Department of
Labor and Industry by employers in
Pennsylvania for the second quater
of 1995