Tennessee Overview

The Tennessee job market, which took a hit during the recession as the auto manufacturing industry contracted, is rising again with the auto industry’s recovery. Besides auto, the Volunteer State relies on healthcare, as well as real estate and financial services for jobs. The economy and labor market are expected to continue on their solid path of recovery in 2012, creating jobs for the state’s nearly 3.1 million workers.

Tennessee Job Opportunities

Bordered by the Smoky Mountains in the east and Mississippi River in the west, Tennessee once had an agriculture-based economy, but the state has since successfully diversified its work opportunities into manufacturing and tourism.

Trade, transportation and utilities is Tennessee’s top employment sector, representing nearly 21 percent of total employment in Tennessee. Other important industries are government, professional/business services and manufacturing. The professional/business services sector has recently reported strong growth, while financial activities, information services and other services have been declining.

Tennessee Employment Trends

Tennessee job metrics have shown solid improvement since the worst of the recession. The unemployment rate, which peaked at 11 percent in mid-2009, was hovering around 8 percent in early 2012. Tennessee payroll employment, which fell for two years, has been increasingly positive since mid-2010. Tennessee’s online job postings are strong and nearing prerecession levels.

Tennessee jobs are expected to increase 1.7 percent between Q2 2012 and Q2 2013, higher than the 1.3 percent growth expected in the nation’s job supply, Moody’s Analytics forecasts.