Philadelphia Overview

The Philadelphia job market has been experiencing a slow recovery following the recession. However, conditions should eventually improve since the city has differentiated itself as a strong research area, offering jobs in education and healthcare and supported by a number of strong nearby schools.

Philadelphia Job Opportunities

Philadelphia ranks among the country’s top five centers for research and development due to its strong education and health sector. The area is home to more than 100 colleges and universities, several medical schools, a strong hospital network, and numerous biomedical and pharmaceutical companies.

Jobs in Philadelphia are dominated by the education/health services sector. Trade, transportation and utilities and professional/business services are the next-largest hiring sectors for the area’s 3 million workers. While construction, driven by real estate expansion, has begun to recover, several other sectors continue to report employment declines, including government; trade, transportation and utilities; information services; and financial activities.

Philadelphia Employment Trends

Philadelphia’s job conditions have fluctuated. After peaking at 9.4 percent in early 2010, the city’s unemployment rate has experienced sporadic ups and downs, finishing 2011 below 8 percent. Payroll employment declined between mid-2009 and mid-2010, and weakened again in the second half of 2011. While online hiring has strengthened, it is still notably below prerecession levels.

Philadelphia jobs are expected to grow 1.3 percent between Q2 2012 and Q2 2013, the same growth rate expected in the US job supply, according to a Moody’s Analytics forecast.