July 03, 2001 (The Editor’s Desk is updated each business day.)

Five million new jobs in just ten occupations

Ten occupations are projected to add a total of about 5 million jobs during the decade 1998-2008, nearly one-fourth of overall job growth.

Largest projected employment growth by occupation, 1998-2008 (in thousands)
[Chart data—TXT]

Occupations with the most job growth tend to have a large number of workers already. Six of the 10 occupations—retail salespersons, cashiers, general managers and top executives, truck drivers, general office clerks, and registered nurses—each employed at least 2 million workers in 1998.

Data on labor force projections are from the Employment Projections program. Find out more about labor force projections in Working in the 21st Century, (Bureau of Labor Statistics, June 2001).