Massachusetts Overview

The Massachusetts job market has already regained more than half the jobs lost during the recession. Leading the recovery were the state’s strong technology sector and its many top educational and healthcare institutions. Massachusetts is home to 3.5 million workers, most concentrated in and around Boston.

Massachusetts Job Opportunities

The Massachusetts job market is driven by the state’s many universities, including Harvard and MIT, and leading teaching hospitals, including Massachusetts General Hospital and Brigham & Women’s Hospital. The high tech and life sciences companies concentrated in Boston’s western suburbs account for a high number of jobs in Massachusetts as well. The Bay State is also home to several leading financial services companies, a strong tourism business and the Port of Boston, through which more than $7 billion in cargo passes annually.

The education/health services sector dominates employment in Massachusetts, accounting for more than 21 percent of Massachusetts jobs. Other key industries include trade, transportation and utilities and professional/business services, each of which has reported solid job expansion. Several sectors are currently reporting employment declines, including government, leisure and hospitality, financial activities, information services and construction.

Massachusetts Employment Trends

The Massachusetts labor market experienced a relatively mild constriction during the recession. The state’s unemployment rate, which peaked at 8.7 percent at the end of 2009 and early 2010, was 6 percent in May 2012. State payrolls, which declined for a relatively short 18 months, have been positive for nearly two years. While still below prerecession levels, online hiring is also steadily improving.

Massachusetts jobs are expected to grow 1.1 percent from Q2 2012 to Q2 2013, below the 1.3 percent gain expected in the US job supply during that time, Moody’s Analytics says.