Jobs Across America: An Interactive Map of Employment Density by Industry

Overview

RCLCO is excited to announce the release of its new interactive data tool, “Jobs Across America,” providing users with valuable insights into the spatial distribution of jobs by industry on a micro-geographic scale. RCLCO’s interactive tool builds upon Urban Sociologist Robert Manduca’s 2014 research, utilizing the most recent (2017) release of the U.S. Census Bureau’s Origin-Destination Employment Statistics (LODES) to generate a detailed look at up-to-date job concentrations at the Census Block-level.

Explore the Full Map

Why is this Tool Helpful?

This tool enables users to easily check and compare the density and distribution of jobs across different geographies, revealing the precise location of key, high-density employment cores that drive economic activity in any jurisdiction. The tool also allows users to pinpoint clusters of employment by industry group.

How to Use

To toggle any job industry group on/off the map, click the colored circle next to the job group on the legend. Use the buttons at the top left to zoom, and drag your mouse to pan and explore the map!

Key Conclusions

RCLCO’s interactive tool provides visual support for Robert Manduca’s Spatial Structure of U.S. Metropolitan Employment (2018), which concludes that jobs have a “bimodal spatial distribution,” with roughly 75% of jobs located on only 10% of built land, a distribution that holds true across major cities throughout the U.S. Unsurprisingly, the highest concentrations of professional services employment are located in dense urban cores/city centers, whereas industries such as manufacturing tend to be more distributed.

Next Steps & Further Research

Understanding the spatial distribution of jobs can help demographers, urban economists, and real estate professionals alike better understand “hotspots” of economic activity and how employment cores continue to evolve. Especially in light of key macroeconomic events, such as the recent COVID-19 outbreak, ongoing research on job distributions will serve as an important planning tool, and RCLCO will continue to expand upon this critical research.

Article and research prepared by Derek Wyatt, Managing Director; Dana Schoewe, Senior Associate; and Pratik Ramesh, Technology Associate.

Disclaimer: Reasonable efforts have been made to ensure that the data contained in this Advisory reflect accurate and timely information, and the data is believed to be reliable and comprehensive. The Advisory is based on estimates, assumptions, and other information developed by RCLCO from its independent research effort and general knowledge of the industry. This Advisory contains opinions that represent our view of reasonable expectations at this particular time, but our opinions are not offered as predictions or assurances that particular events will occur.