Wyoming Short-Term Industry and Occupational Projections, 2015-2017

by: Michael Moore, Editor, and David Bullard, Senior Economist

The newest short-term industry and occupational projections from the Research & Planning (R&P) section of the Wyoming Department of Workforce Services indicate that Wyoming’s job market will contract during the two-year period from 2015 to 2017.

Short-term industry projections indicate that total employment across all industries is expected to decrease by an estimated 5,591 jobs (-1.9%) from 2015 to 2017 (see the Figure). During this two-year period, the most substantial decreases in employment are projected to occur in mining (-3,208, or -13.5%), construction (-2,547, or -10.8%), and transportation and warehousing (-881, or -6.8%). Moderate growth is projected for industries such as retail trade (742, or 2.4%), accommodation & food services (735, or 2.2%), health care & social assistance (607, or 1.9%), and educational services (323, or 1.1%).

Similarly, short-term occupational projections indicate that the most substantial declines are projected for construction & extraction occupations (-4,090, or -11.1%), transportation & material moving occupations (-1,255, or -5.0%), office & administrative support occupations (-678, or -1.8%), and production occupations (-601, or -4.5%). The Table shows occupational projections at the Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) major group two-digit level. Projections for detailed occupations at the six-digit level are available online at http://doe.state.wy.us/LMI/projections/2016/
Short_Term_Occs_2017.htm. Moderate growth is projected for food preparation & serving related occupations (431, or 1.6%); education, training, & library occupations (272, or 1.3%); health care practitioners & technical occupations (241, or 1.7%); and personal care & service occupations (198, or 2.2%).

As noted in a recent article in the January 2016 issue of Wyoming Labor Force Trends, “In the fall of 2015, Wyoming’s economy was exposed to a substantial decline in the prices of oil, an extended period of low natural gas prices, and the erosion in the price of coal” (Moore, 2016). The effects of the diminished demand for natural resources such as coal, oil, and natural gas are reflected in the over-the-year decline noted in that article, and serve as the basis for these short-term projections.

Reference

Moore, M. (2016). Employment and wage change for selected industries in Wyoming, 2005Q3-2015Q3. Wyoming Labor Force Trends, 53(1). Retrieved March 1, 2016, from http://doe.state.wy.us/LMI/trends/0116/a2.htm