There are two major types of job gurus: the alarmists and the forecasters. I like the alarmists, which include some of my friends. They tell us job markets are changing, and we better be ready for the changes. This is good advice. The forecasters are risk takers and inevitably are undermined by unforeseeable events and undetected trends.

Let’s look at what has happened in the Indiana labor market over the past ten years (2014 to 2024). The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) gives us data on over 800 occupations organized into 22 civilian categories. We’ll focus on the latter.

The great increase in the number of jobs went to those in Transportation and Material Moving Occupations (109,250), a 44% increase. The biggest percentage increase was in Healthcare Support, a 64% increase based on 51,760 more jobs. What did the forecasters miss? Covid! Suddenly, we all wanted our groceries, shoes, and electronics delivered to our homes in hours. Shopping became an activity done in our slippers. The great warehouse boom began and the streets were filled with Amazon trucks.

The biggest decline in jobs were in Office and Administrative Support, down by 47,580 jobs (a 12% decline) as we no longer talked to anyone at the office we called. We learned to leave messages and pray for response.. In percentage terms, the biggest decline was in Personal Care and Service. That’s barbers and hair stylists, morticians and embalmers, coat room attendants and ushers where there was a 27% decrease in jobs (a loss of 20,120 jobs).

Business and Financial Operations added 44,500 jobs (up 41%) compared with Computer and Mathematical jobs (up 33%). In terms of the median pay for these jobs, it also looks like the Business School grads (up 31%) did better than the Computer Science and Math students (up 23%).

Two occupations deserve notice for going nowhere in numbers. Education and Library jobs rose by just 200 (0.1%) to 159,800. Those workers engaged in Farming, Fishing, and Forestry declined by 300 (8%) to a mere 3,250, the smallest occupation in the state.

Management remained the highest paid occupation with a median annual wage of $104,370, up 31%, but less than the 44% advance realized by all workers. These dollar figures are not adjusted for inflation.

The biggest dollar pay increase went to the Legal occupations where the median wage jumped by $27,800 (49%) However, the second biggest percentage gain (59%) was realized, most justly, by Building and Grounds Cleaning and Maintenance workers. Only those ever-struggling farm workers did better over the decade with an increase of 66% in their median wages.

As investment firms remind us, Past performance is not necessarily an indicator of future returns. I would suggest learning to read intelligently, and to apply or ignore what has been read, is still the most useful skill taught in schools.
Morton J. Marcus is an economist formerly with the Kelley School of Business at Indiana University. His column appears in Indiana newspapers, and his views can be followed his podcast.

© 2025 Morton J. Marcus

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