Support Activities for Transportation: NAICS 488

About the Support Activities for Transportation subsector

The support activities for transportation subsector is part of the transportation and warehousing sector.

The support activities for transportation subsector consists of these industry groups:

• Support Activities for Air Transportation: NAICS 4881
• Support Activities for Rail Transportation: NAICS 4882
• Support Activities for Water Transportation: NAICS 4883
• Support Activities for Road Transportation: NAICS 4884
• Freight Transportation Arrangement: NAICS 4885
• Other Support Activities for Transportation: NAICS 4889

Workforce Statistics

This section provides information relating to employment in support activities for transportation. These data are obtained from employer or establishment surveys. The following tables present an overview of the industry including the number of jobs, mass layoffs, data for occupations common to the industry, and projections of occupational employment change.

Employment and Layoffs

Data series	Back data	May 2012	Jun. 2012	Jul. 2012	Aug. 2012
Employment (in thousands)
Employment, all employees (seasonally adjusted)		583.9	583.0	(P) 581.8	(P) 581.1
Employment, production and nonsupervisory employees		489.8	493.3	(P) 490.4
Layoffs
Mass layoff events		3	4	8	5
Initial claimants for unemployment benefits		161	249	849	452
Footnotes (P) Preliminary

(Source: Current Employment Statistics, Mass Layoff Statistics)

Extended Mass Layoffs

Data series	Back data	3rd quarter 2011	4th quarter 2011	1st quarter 2012	2nd quarter 2012
Extended mass layoff events		6	(1) -	(P) 6	(P) 4
Separations		974	(1) -	(P) 566	(P) 520
Initial claimants		827	(1) -	(P) 681	(P) 397
Footnotes (1) Data do not meet BLS or state agency disclosure standards. (P) Preliminary

(Source: Mass Layoff Statistics)

Employment by Occupation

Data series	Employment, 2011
Aircraft mechanics and service technicians	33,160
Cargo and freight agents	46,200
Dispatchers, except police, fire, and ambulance	14,020
Laborers and freight, stock, and material movers, hand	60,720
Truck drivers, heavy and tractor-trailer	43,330

(Source: Occupational Employment Statistics)

Projections

For projected (future) employment estimates, see the National Employment Matrix, which includes employment estimates by industry and occupation for support activities for transportation.

(Source: Office of Occupational Statistics and Employment Projections)

Earnings and Hours

This section presents data on employee earnings and weekly hours. The latest industry averages of hourly earnings and weekly hours are shown. In addition, recent hourly and annual earnings are shown for occupations commonly found in support activities for transportation.

Earnings and Hours of All Employees

Data series	Back data	Apr. 2012	May 2012	Jun. 2012	Jul. 2012
Average hourly earnings		$23.72	$23.46	$23.64	(P) $23.63
Average weekly hours		37.2	37.5	36.8	(P) 37.6
Footnotes (P) Preliminary

(Source: Current Employment Statistics)

Earnings and Hours of Production and Nonsupervisory Employees

Data series	Back data	Apr. 2012	May 2012	Jun. 2012	Jul. 2012
Average hourly earnings		$21.53	$21.46	$21.69	(P) $21.74
Average weekly hours		36.0	36.0	35.9	(P) 36.0
Footnotes (P) Preliminary

(Source: Current Employment Statistics)

Earnings by Occupation

Data series	Wages, 2011
	Hourly		Annual
	Median	Mean	Median	Mean
Aircraft mechanics and service technicians	$23.23	$23.27	$48,320	$48,400
Cargo and freight agents	$18.88	$20.09	$39,260	$41,800
Dispatchers, except police, fire, and ambulance	$14.85	$16.54	$30,890	$34,390
Laborers and freight, stock, and material movers, hand	$13.20	$15.46	$27,450	$32,160
Truck drivers, heavy and tractor-trailer	$15.63	$16.54	$32,510	$34,410

(Source: Occupational Employment Statistics)

Work-related Fatalities, Injuries, and Illnesses

This section presents data for the industry on the number of workplace fatalities and the rates of workplace injuries and illnesses per 100 full-time workers in support activities for transportation. An injury or illness is considered to be work-related if an event or exposure in the work environment either caused or contributed to the resulting condition or significantly aggravated a pre-existing condition.

Data series	2008	2009	2010	2011
Fatalities
Number of fatalities	96	87	68	(P) 92
Rate of injury and illness cases per 100 full-time workers
Total recordable cases	4.0	4.0	3.8
Cases involving days away from work, job restriction, or transfer	2.6	2.7	2.6
Cases involving days away from work	1.6	1.8	1.6
Cases involving days of job transfer or restriction	0.9	0.9	1.1
Footnotes (P) Preliminary
Blank cells indicate no data reported or data that do not meet publication criteria.

(Source: Injuries, Illnesses, and Fatalities)

Prices

This section provides industry-specific pricing information. The producer price index measures the percentage change in prices that domestic producers receive for goods and services. The prices included in the producer price index are from the first commercial transaction.

Data series	Back data	May 2012	Jun. 2012	Jul. 2012	Aug. 2012
Producer price index		(P) 116.4	(P) 115.7	(P) 116.2	(P) 116.0
Percent change from previous month		(P) 1.1%	(P) -0.6%	(P) 0.4%	(P) -0.2%
Footnotes (P) Preliminary

(Source: Producer Price Indexes)

Workplace Trends

This section presents data on the number of establishments in support activities for transportation.

Establishments

Data series	Back data	2nd quarter 2011	3rd quarter 2011	4th quarter 2011	1st quarter 2012
Number of establishments
Private industry		41,372	41,482	41,547	(P) 41,906
Local government		801	802	803	(P) 808
State government		418	416	415	(P) 414
Federal government		219	219	219	(P) 220
Footnotes (P) Preliminary

(Source: Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages)

Other BLS Resources

Career Guide to Industries

To learn about careers from an industry perspective, see the Career Guide to Industries.

 

Data extracted on: September 27, 2012