Office Jobs

Jobs in offices as a share of the total number of jobs in each state.

WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT? The New Economy is a services, high-tech, and office economy. This is not to say that mass production manufacturing or agriculture are unimportant, or that the United States produces fewer manufactured goods or food. In fact, we produce more than ever. But higher rates of productivity growth in manufacturing and agriculture have meant that almost 93 million workers (80 percent of the U.S. workforce) do not spend their days making things—instead, they work in jobs that require them to move things, process or generate information, or provide services to people. The tools most Americans use are now more likely to be the fax, copier, telephone, or personal computer than the riveter or lathe. As competitive advantage increasingly stems from customization, design quality, and customer service, the office has become the factory floor of the New Economy: it is where an increasing share of the value added is produced.

THE RANKINGS: States with a large share of jobs in offices tend to have more than their share of financial services, high-tech, or corporate or regional headquarters. States with relatively few jobs in offices tend to have economies rooted in agriculture, natural resources, or branch-plant manufacturing.

STATES BY RANK
Rank	State	Score
1	Delaware	26.7%
2	Massachusetts	26.4%
3	New York	26.4%
4	Connecticut	24.3%
5	Illinois	22.9%
6	New Jersey	21.7%
7	Minnesota	21.5%
8	Florida	21.2%
9	Rhode Island	21.2%
10	Pennsylvania	20.8%
11	Nevada	20.5%
12	Missouri	20.2%
13	Nebraska	20.1%
14	Ohio	20.0%
15	Colorado	19.1%
16	Hawaii	19.1%
17	California	19.0%
18	Georgia	18.8%
19	Tennessee	18.8%
20	Utah	18.7%
21	Virginia	18.7%
22	Maryland	18.7%
23	Wisconsin	18.6%
24	Michigan	18.6%
25	Texas	18.6%
26	Arizona	18.5%
27	Louisiana	18.2%
28	Iowa	17.7%
29	New Hampshire	17.6%
30	North Carolina	17.2%
31	Oregon	17.1%
32	Washington	16.8%
33	Kansas	16.7%
34	Indiana	16.7%
35	Oklahoma	16.4%
36	Alabama	16.2%
37	South Carolina	15.8%
38	New Mexico	15.3%
39	Maine	15.2%
40	Kentucky	15.2%
41	South Dakota	15.0%
42	Arkansas	15.0%
43	West Virginia	14.6%
44	Vermont	14.3%
45	North Dakota	14.2%
46	Mississippi	13.8%
47	Idaho	13.3%
48	Alaska	12.6%
49	Montana	11.7%
50	Wyoming	10.7%

	U.S. average	19.6%

ALPHABETICALLY
State	Rank	Score
Alabama	36	16.2%
Alaska	48	12.6%
Arizona	26	18.5%
Arkansas	42	15.0%
California	17	19.0%
Colorado	15	19.1%
Connecticut	4	24.3%
Delaware	1	26.7%
Florida	8	21.2%
Georgia	18	18.8%
Hawaii	16	19.1%
Idaho	47	13.3%
Illinois	5	22.9%
Indiana	34	16.7%
Iowa	28	17.7%
Kansas	33	16.7%
Kentucky	40	15.2%
Louisiana	27	18.2%
Maine	39	15.2%
Maryland	22	18.7%
Massachusetts	2	26.4%
Michigan	24	18.6%
Minnesota	7	21.5%
Mississippi	46	13.8%
Missouri	12	20.2%
Montana	49	11.7%
Nebraska	13	20.1%
Nevada	11	20.5%
New Hampshire	29	17.6%
New Jersey	6	21.7%
New Mexico	38	15.3%
New York	3	26.4%
North Carolina	30	17.2%
North Dakota	45	14.2%
Ohio	14	20.0%
Oklahoma	35	16.4%
Oregon	31	17.1%
Pennsylvania	10	20.8%
Rhode Island	9	21.2%
South Carolina	37	15.8%
South Dakota	41	15.0%
Tennessee	19	18.8%
Texas	25	18.6%
Utah	20	18.7%
Vermont	44	14.3%
Virginia	21	18.7%
Washington	32	16.8%
West Virginia	43	14.6%
Wisconsin	23	18.6%
Wyoming	50	10.7%

Source: Cognetics, 1997 data.

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The Progressive Policy Institute (PPI)
Technology, Innovation, and New Economy Project
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