Lane County Occupational Projections 2021-2031
March 17, 2023Lane County’s total employment will grow 12% (20,600 jobs) between 2021 and 2031, according to new projections from the Oregon Employment Department. Employment growth reflects recovery from low employment levels in 2021 due to the pandemic recession in addition to structural growth. In addition, many job openings are expected due to the need to replace workers who leave their occupations.
Between 2021 and 2031, all occupational groups in Lane County will have job openings. Total openings include growth openings, replacement openings (largely from retirements), and transfers (changes in occupation).
At the broad occupational group level, the most openings are expected in the service category with 51,351 openings, making up more than a quarter of all openings. Service occupations – which include jobs as varied as food preparation and service workers, protective service workers, pest control workers, and janitors – generally pay lower wages and require lower levels of education. The fast growth in service occupations is mainly caused by the pandemic-related job losses incurred in 2020. Service occupations require face-to-face interaction with consumers and many workers in this group lost their jobs.
Another broad occupational category with many openings is professional and related (26,258). These occupations include teachers, scientists, engineers, and lawyers. Unlike the service occupations, these occupations are generally highly paid and require high levels of education and training.
At the detailed occupational level, the occupations with the most openings largely have lower educational requirements and lower pay. Fast food workers, home health and personal care aids, educational instruction and library workers, registered nurses, and waiters and waitresses are the five occupations with the most job openings anticipated in the coming 10 years. Out of the top 15 occupations adding the most jobs, registered nurses, general and operations managers, and software developers are the exception as occupations with relatively high wages.
A variety of education levels are required for many occupations in the high-wage, high-demand category. High-wage, high-demand occupations pay more than the median wage and have more than the median number of job openings over the ten-year period. There is a wide variety of occupations in this category including managers, truck drivers, construction workers, sales representatives, health care workers, software developers, accountants, and bookkeepers so there is something for everyone with the right education and training.
More information on industry and occupational projections for Oregon and sub-state areas can be found at QualityInfo.org/projections.