Job Growth in Nonprofit Entities in Maine is Strong – Here’s Why


The 2008–2009 recession and aftermath caused employment to decline among private for profit businesses, the self-employed, and government before the jobs recovery took hold in 2011. The exception was private sector nonprofits, which added jobs throughout the downturn and recovery. Employment in private nonprofits increased 15,000 from 2005 to 2015; during the same period, total employment declined and then recovered to about the same level as a decade earlier. The 86,000 private nonprofit jobs in 2015 made up 13 percent of employment, up from 11 percent in 2005.

 

Job growth in private nonprofit entities has been more robust than any other employer class in the last decade

 


 
 
The preceding data and chart was drawn from the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey, which collects information on the number of people employed in nonprofits each year. Because of variability in estimates from year to year, we have used three-year averages. Estimates for 2005 are the average from 2003 to 2005 and estimates for 2015 are the average from 2013 to 2015.
 
An alternative look at nonprofits is available from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics for the period from 2007 to 2012. BLS looked at 501(c)(3) entities, a classification that includes establishments engaged in charitable, educational, literary, animal welfare, child welfare, public safety, religious, or scientific pursuits, and includes two out of every three nonprofits. In the five-year period through 2012, nonprofit jobs, total wages, and establishments grew steadily in Maine, with jobs up 8 percent. In the same period, other private-sector jobs decreased 5 percent due to the economic downturn and slow recovery. Nonprofit workforce growth in the state has trended in a direction similar to the nation, while for-profit workforce growth lagged national growth considerably due to the declining working-age population in the state.

 


 

Workforce growth in private nonprofits in Maine was close

to the national rate of growth between 2007 and 2012


 

 

The preceding data and chart was drawn from the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey, which collects information on the number of people employed in nonprofits each year. Because of variability in estimates from year to year, we have used three-year averages. Estimates for 2005 are the average from 2003 to 2005 and estimates for 2015 are the average from 2013 to 2015.
An alternative look at nonprofits is available from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics for the period from 2007 to 2012. BLS looked at 501(c)(3) entities, a classification that includes establishments engaged in charitable, educational, literary, animal welfare, child welfare, public safety, religious, or scientific pursuits, and includes two out of every three nonprofits. In the five-year period through 2012, nonprofit jobs, total wages, and establishments grew steadily in Maine, with jobs up 8 percent. In the same period, other private-sector jobs decreased 5 percent due to the economic downturn and slow recovery. Nonprofit workforce growth in the state has trended in a direction similar to the nation, while for-profit workforce growth lagged national growth considerably due to the declining working-age population in the state.

Popular posts from this blog

Image
Employment Outlook to 2026 Workforce conditions in Maine are very tight in 2018, with unemployment and other measures of labor market slack at historically low levels. This is a positive development for individuals, but a challenge for employers who are concerned about future labor availability. This blog provides context to how this situation developed, then looks at our forecast for employment through 2026. How We Reached This Point From the early 1960s until 2007, employment in Maine nearly doubled. The rate of growth slowed in the 1990s, and, except for the decline and recovery during and after the 2008 and 2009 recession, employment has been relatively unchanged over the last decade. This recent lack of growth is because the prime working-age population of the state has contracted modestly. Combined with strong economic conditions, this has created a very competitive hiring and retention environment that has driven inflation-adjusted average wages up at the fastest
Read more

2018 Workforce Data Revisions: Less Monthly Variability than Previously Indicated

Image
Annual revisions to monthly workforce estimates for Maine have been published. Based on more complete data, revisions indicate that the unemployment rate and size of the labor force were little changed throughout 2018. The number of nonfarm payroll jobs was somewhat higher early in the year and lower later in the year than previous estimates indicated. Data cited in this brief is seasonally adjusted. Unemployment Rate Preliminary estimates released each month indicated that unemployment was as low as 2.7 percent in the spring and as high as 3.4 percent in the last three months of 2018. Revised rates indicate that unemployment changed little during the year, gradually rising from 3.2 percent in the first three months of the year to 3.5 percent in the last five months. Given the size of the survey sample and margins of error in the estimates, there has essentially been no change in the statewide unemployment rate for more than two years. Unemployment has been below 4.0 pe
Read more
Image
Dispelling Two Myths About the Unemployment Rate The unemployment rate is the most widely followed and cited economic statistic in the United States. Rates are provided each month for the nation, states, counties, many cities and towns, and other areas. They are produced using a consistent methodology to be comparable from one area to another, and from one period to another. Unemployment rates provide an easy to interpret indication of workforce conditions: low rates or a downward trend is positive; high rates or an upward trend is negative. Though seemingly straightforward, there are many widely held misconceptions or myths about how information on unemployed people is compiled, and who is or is not included. With that in mind, let’s dissect two myths about unemployment statistics. Myth: All jobless people are unemployed In 2017, close to 62 percent of the age 16 and over population in Maine were employed, so 38 percent were not employed. Nationally, about 60 percent were
Read more