South Dakota Overview

South Dakota is a scenic wonder full of prairies, grasslands and farmlands. The South Dakota job market and economy came through the recession in good shape thanks to the state’s stable agriculture business. While conditions vary by community, the Mount Rushmore State’s 448,000 workers are expected to see gradual job gains in 2012 and beyond.

South Dakota Job Opportunities

With scenic wonders that include the Black Hills, the Badlands and Mount Rushmore, South Dakota attracts millions of visitors annually, making tourism the second-largest industry in the state behind agriculture. South Dakota is also focused on creating jobs in advanced manufacturing, bioscience, financial services, professional/business services and renewable energy.

The most jobs in South Dakota are provided by the trade, transportation and utilities; government; and education/health services sectors. Several industries have reported job gains in 2012, including professional/business services; education/health services; trade, transportation and utilities; and manufacturing.

South Dakota Employment Trends

South Dakota’s unemployment rate, which peaked at just 5.3 percent in mid-2009 and again in early 2010, was down to 4.3 percent by the first half of 2012. South Dakota payrolls have shown mild job expansion from mid-2010 into the first half of 2012. Online hiring was mostly constricted in the second half of 2011 into 2012 but has shown strong gains in mid-2012.

Moody’s Analytics forecasts the number of South Dakota jobs will increase 1.5 percent between Q2 2012 and Q2 2013, slightly more than the 1.3 percent growth expected in the nation’s job supply.