Workforce Landscapes
This month, we explore key insights across the state: commuting patterns in the Twin Cities Metro, the top occupations driving Central Minnesota’s economy, and a new dashboard tracking Career & Technical Education (CTE) outcomes in the Northeast. We also examine energy efficiency job growth in Northwest Minnesota, employment projections for Southeast Minnesota, and the unique labor dynamics of Southwest Minnesota’s 23 counties. Whether you're a job seeker, employer, or policy enthusiast, these regional updates provide valuable perspective on our state’s workforce landscape. For more local information on any of these topics, please reach out to your Regional Analyst!
As the primary population center in Minnesota, the Seven-County Twin Cities Metro Area is home to a lot of people and a lot of jobs. That means a lot of commuting – people driving to and from for work. To get a sense of all this commuting, we can turn to the U.S. Census Bureau's OnTheMap tool, a web-based mapping and reporting application that shows where workers are employed and where they live.
From the larger cities and regional hubs to towns from Askov to Zimmerman, what people do for work is as varied as the landscapes. Understanding the most common occupations in the area provides valuable insight into the local economy, industries, and opportunities. Whether you're a job seeker, a student planning your career path, or simply curious about the details of our economy, this list of the top 20 most common occupations in Central Minnesota paints a vivid picture of where people work and how they contribute to the region's success.
With the increasing popularity of CTE programs in Minnesota high schools, the release of a new dashboard detailing outcomes and pathways of CTE students is especially timely. Created by our excellent researcher Alessia Leibert, the High School Technical Education Pathways & Outcomes dashboard answers four top questions, breaking out the answers by course topic, region, and more. I encourage you to read Alessia's article explaining and summarizing the data and the tool.
What sort of employment impact is energy efficiency having in the Northwest region? Again, I use the US Department of Energy's United States Energy and Employment Report (USEER) to answer this question by tabulating the job change from 2018 to 2023. Unfortunately, as with wind and solar, many counties have less than 10 estimated jobs and are reported as "< 10" for the most recent year of 2023. In sum, there were over 2,200 jobs in the region, after expanding since 2018.
DEED's latest employment projections for 2022-2032 provide insight into how jobs and industries are expected to change across Minnesota and our six planning regions. This analysis focuses on Southeast Minnesota's occupational projections, examining key trends in the region's labor market. The 11-county Southeast Minnesota planning region is projected to add 12,280 new jobs by 2032, reflecting a 4.5% growth rate that closely aligns with the statewide increase of 4.6%. But beyond just new job creation, the region is also projected to experience about 134,600 workers potentially leaving the labor force.
There are 23 counties in the Southwest Minnesota planning region, ranging in size from around 5,100 people in Big Stone County to just over 70,000 people in Blue Earth County. Each county shares some similarities, but also has unique features that set it apart. If you're interested in understanding the social and economic landscape of Southwest Minnesota, DEED's Regional Analysis & Outreach unit produces 8-page County Profiles that provide a comprehensive snapshot—offering everything from employment trends and wage data to population demographics and labor market insights.
Connecting Entrepreneurial Communities Conference -
March 20-21, 2025 in Virginia, MN
Registration is still OPEN for the SIXTH annual Connecting Entrepreneurial Communities (CEC) conference, which will take place March 20-21, 2025 in Virginia, Minnesota. Last year’s conference brought together over 100 entrepreneurs, business leaders, economic development professionals, decision makers, and community champions. Participants had the opportunity to connect with others who care about entrepreneurship in their region.
LMI TRAINING SESSIONS
Please reach out to your regional analyst if you or your staff would be interested in having a customized LMI training session. We would be happy to accommodate your training requests, either on LMI Data Tools or local economic conditions!
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