Washington Business & Employment Growth Since 2009
- 24,550 more businesses
- 538,715 more employees
- 19.0% increase in total wages
- $18,683 increase in annual wages per employee
- 39.4% increase in wages per employee
Since 2009, the number of businesses in Washington has grown by 10.9% (0.5% less than the national average of 11.4%). Employment in Washington has grown by 19.0% (5.4% greater than the national average of 13.6%). Wages have grown by 39.3% since the end of the Great Recession. This wage growth is 13.6% greater than the national average of 25.7%. The average weekly wage in Washington of $1,272 is 13.4% above the national average of $1,101. The gap between the national average has widened from 4.1% a widening of 9.4% since the end of the recession.
Sector Growth
Business Sector Growth
| Sector | 2018 | 2009 | Pct Chg |
|---|---|---|---|
| Healthcare | 57,594 | 16,139 | 256.9% |
| Professional services | 26,645 | 18,869 | 41.2% |
| Construction | 25,973 | 23,530 | 10.4% |
| Retail trade | 20,141 | 19,963 | 0.9% |
| Other services | 19,844 | 55,802 | -64.4% |
| Accommodation and food services | 17,437 | 15,295 | 14.0% |
| Wholesale trade | 13,858 | 14,012 | -1.1% |
| Waste services | 12,784 | 9,921 | 28.9% |
| Finance and insurance | 9,081 | 9,282 | -2.2% |
| Real estate and rental | 8,482 | 8,052 | 5.3% |
| Manufacturing | 7,794 | 7,325 | 6.4% |
| Agriculture and forestry | 7,155 | 7,507 | -4.7% |
| Transport and warehousing | 4,984 | 4,432 | 12.5% |
| Information | 4,616 | 3,283 | 40.6% |
| Educational services | 3,399 | 2,354 | 44.4% |
| Arts and entertainment | 2,986 | 2,550 | 17.1% |
| Company management | 714 | 676 | 5.6% |
| Utilities | 307 | 309 | -0.6% |
| Mining and oil extraction | 156 | 184 | -15.2% |
The sector that has had the strongest growth [in number of businesses] is the Healthcare sector, which has increased by 256.9% since 2009. The sector that has has the largest decline is the Other services sector, which has declined by 64.4% since the recession.
Employment Sector Growth
| Sector | 2018 | 2009 | Pct Chg |
|---|---|---|---|
| Healthcare | 421,669 | 319,447 | 32.0% |
| Retail trade | 379,661 | 304,288 | 24.8% |
| Manufacturing | 284,156 | 262,502 | 8.2% |
| Accommodation and food services | 283,229 | 220,341 | 28.5% |
| Professional services | 201,623 | 155,759 | 29.4% |
| Construction | 200,149 | 148,759 | 34.5% |
| Waste services | 168,684 | 128,343 | 31.4% |
| Wholesale trade | 133,653 | 120,211 | 11.2% |
| Information | 133,175 | 103,080 | 29.2% |
| Agriculture and forestry | 107,329 | 89,657 | 19.7% |
| Transport and warehousing | 103,343 | 80,451 | 28.5% |
| Other services | 99,128 | 121,511 | -18.4% |
| Finance and insurance | 94,490 | 92,707 | 1.9% |
| Real estate and rental | 53,399 | 46,359 | 15.2% |
| Arts and entertainment | 53,004 | 45,329 | 16.9% |
| Company management | 44,593 | 32,147 | 38.7% |
| Educational services | 44,101 | 33,127 | 33.1% |
| Utilities | 5,037 | 5,037 | 0.0% |
| Mining and oil extraction | 2,578 | 2,298 | 12.2% |
The sector that has had the strongest employment growth [in number of employees] is the Healthcare sector, which has increased by 32.0% since 2009. The sector that has has the largest employment decline in number of employees is the Other services sector, which has declined by 18.4% since the recession.
Weekly Wage Growth By Sector
| Sector | 2018 | 2009 | Pct Chg |
|---|---|---|---|
| Information | $3,745 | $2,033 | 0.0% |
| Company management | $2,268 | $1,686 | 0.0% |
| Professional services | $1,949 | $1,381 | 0.0% |
| Utilities | $1,917 | $1,623 | 0.0% |
| Finance and insurance | $1,826 | $1,371 | 0.0% |
| Wholesale trade | $1,546 | $1,184 | 0.0% |
| Manufacturing | $1,526 | $1,210 | 0.0% |
| Mining and oil extraction | $1,365 | $1,019 | 0.0% |
| Construction | $1,240 | $982 | 0.0% |
| Transport and warehousing | $1,163 | $895 | 0.0% |
| Retail trade | $1,132 | $565 | 0.0% |
| Real estate and rental | $1,061 | $707 | 0.0% |
| Healthcare | $1,013 | $838 | 0.0% |
| Waste services | $969 | $761 | 0.0% |
| Other services | $777 | $478 | 0.0% |
| Educational services | $750 | $664 | 0.0% |
| Arts and entertainment | $624 | $491 | 0.0% |
| Agriculture and forestry | $622 | $455 | 0.0% |
| Accommodation and food services | $462 | $328 | 0.0% |
The sector that has had the strongest wage growth is the Unclassified sector, which has increased by 0.0% since 2009. The sector that has has the smallest wage growth is the Educational services sector, which has declined by 0.0% since the recession.
Industry Growth
Business Industry Growth
| Industry | 2018 | 2009 | Pct Chg |
|---|---|---|---|
| Services for the elderly and disabled | 40,149 | 514 | 0.0% |
| Computer systems design and related services | 8,104 | 3,873 | 0.0% |
| Residential building construction | 7,843 | 6,525 | 0.0% |
| Private households | 6,446 | 43,880 | 0.0% |
| Wholesale trade agents and brokers | 4,521 | 5,866 | 0.0% |
| Management consulting services | 3,772 | 1,780 | 0.0% |
The top industry that has had the largest increase in the number of businesses is the Services for the elderly and disabled industry, which has increased by 0.0% since 2009. The top industry that has has the largest decline in the number of businesses is the Private households industry, which has declined by 0.0% since the recession.
Employment Industry Growth
| Industry | 2018 | 2009 | Pct Chg |
|---|---|---|---|
| General medical and surgical hospitals | 85,164 | 70,880 | 0.0% |
| Aerospace product and parts manufacturing | 83,876 | 82,920 | 0.0% |
| Software publishers | 65,212 | 51,305 | 0.0% |
| Services for the elderly and disabled | 62,835 | 18,079 | 0.0% |
| Computer systems design and related services | 56,763 | 31,443 | 0.0% |
| Supermarkets and other grocery stores | 55,355 | 50,728 | 0.0% |
The top industry that has had the largest increase in the number of employees is the Services for the elderly and disabled industry, which has increased by 0.0% since 2009. The top industry that has has the largest decline in the number of employees is the Aerospace product and parts manufacturing industry, which has declined by 0.0% since the recession.
Weekly Wage Growth By Industry
| Industry | 2018 | 2009 | Pct Chg |
|---|---|---|---|
| Investment banking and securities dealing | $5,362 | $2,932 | 0.0% |
| Open-end investment funds | $4,978 | $2,634 | 0.0% |
| Software publishers | $4,792 | $2,817 | 0.0% |
| Internet publishing and web search portals | $4,464 | $1,686 | 0.0% |
| Commodity contracts brokerage | $4,248 | $3,440 | 0.0% |
| Electronic shopping and mail-order houses | $4,223 | $1,659 | 0.0% |
| Unclassified | $3,620 | $698 | 0.0% |
The top industry that has had the strongest wage growth is the Unclassified industry, which has increased by 0.0% since 2009. The top industry that has has the largest wage decline is the Commodity contracts brokerage industry, which has declined by 0.0% since the recession.
Company Size
Business Growth By Company Size
The biggest percentage change in the number of businesses has been in businesses with 1,000 or more employees. The number of businesses with this number of employees has grown from 72 to 119, which is an increase of 65.3%.The smallest percentage change in the number of businesses has been in businesses with fewer than 5 employees. The number of businesses with this number of employees has grown from 150,028 to 153,834, which is an increase of 2.5%.
Table: Change in the number of Businesses by Size of Business, since the Recession:
| Company Size | Q1 2018 | Q1 2010 | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fewer than 5 Employees | 153,834 | 150,028 | 2.5% |
| 5-9 Employees | 32,944 | 31,152 | 5.8% |
| 10-19 Employees | 22,368 | 20,013 | 11.8% |
| 20-49 Employees | 16,089 | 12,963 | 24.1% |
| 50-99 Employees | 5,267 | 4,197 | 25.5% |
| 100-249 Employees | 2,874 | 2,343 | 22.7% |
| 250-499 Employees | 698 | 526 | 32.7% |
| 500-999 Employees | 189 | 140 | 35.0% |
| More Than 1,000 Employees | 119 | 72 | 65.3% |
Employment Growth by Company Size
The biggest percentage change in the number of employees has been in businesses with 1,000 or more employees. The number of employees in companies this size has grown from 232,012 to 362,478, which is an increase of 56.2%.The smallest percentage change in the number of employees has been in businesses with fewer than 5 employees. The number of employees with this number of employees has grown from 222,446 to 228,184, which is an increase of 2.6%.
Table: Change in the number of Employees by Size of Business, since the Recession:
| Company Size | Q1 2018 | Q1 2010 | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fewer than 5 Employees | 228,184 | 222,446 | 2.6% |
| 5-9 Employees | 215,282 | 202,551 | 6.3% |
| 10-19 Employees | 299,098 | 265,794 | 12.5% |
| 20-49 Employees | 477,017 | 384,989 | 23.9% |
| 50-99 Employees | 359,557 | 285,667 | 25.9% |
| 100-249 Employees | 425,262 | 342,728 | 24.1% |
| 250-499 Employees | 232,826 | 179,263 | 29.9% |
| 500-999 Employees | 127,038 | 94,227 | 34.8% |
| More Than 1,000 Employees | 362,478 | 232,012 | 56.2% |
Weekly Wage Growth by Company Size
The biggest percentage change in the average weekly wage has been in businesses with 1,000 or more employees. The average weekly wage in companies this size has grown from $1,645 to $2,909, which is an increase of 76.8%.The smallest percentage change in the average weekly wage has been in businesses with 20 to 49 employees. The average weekly wage in companies this size has grown from $749 to $952, which is an increase of 27.1%.
Table: Change Average Weekly Wage by Size Since the Recession:
| Company Size | Q1 2018 | Q1 2010 | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fewer than 5 Employees | $823 | $593 | 38.8% |
| 5-9 Employees | $840 | $633 | 32.7% |
| 10-19 Employees | $889 | $690 | 28.8% |
| 20-49 Employees | $952 | $749 | 27.1% |
| 50-99 Employees | $1,123 | $823 | 36.5% |
| 100-249 Employees | $1,164 | $887 | 31.2% |
| 250-499 Employees | $1,463 | $1,092 | 34.0% |
| 500-999 Employees | $1,931 | $1,205 | 60.2% |
| More Than 1,000 Employees | $2,909 | $1,645 | 76.8% |
Data Sources
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