Projections
Overview
The Projections Unit of the Office of Economic Advisors develops both long-term and short-term outlooks of employment in Wisconsin's industries and occupations. Projections employment includes nonagricultural wage and salary employment; workers in private households, agriculture, forestry, fishing, hunting, trapping, and self-employed workers. Employment trends in approximately 300 industries and 800 occupations are examined.
The long-term projections are for ten years out into the future and are updated every two years. The short-term projections are for two years into the future and are updated annually. Projections are developed for Wisconsin and for Workforce Development Areas (WDA).
Long-term projections assist customers in long-run planning, while short-term projections help inform customers of more immediate employment conditions. Students, job seekers, and counselors may use the projections to explore employment in occupations and industries. Educational institutions may use occupational projections to evaluate degree and/or course offerings. Researchers may use the data in analyses of Wisconsin's labor market. Employers may use the data to examine expected employment in industries and occupations.
Visit Wisconsin Recovery Report(pdf) for a review of the 2023-2025 short-term projections.
Long-Term Projections 2022-2032
The 2022-32 projections give employment levels, numeric change, and percent change over the timeframe for industries and occupations in the state. The occupational projections show annual exits, transfers, and total openings. Also contained in the occupational data are typical education, training, and experience along with wages broken out by specified percentiles.
Based on the long-term employment projections for the period 2022-32, Wisconsin is projected to add 225,071 jobs for all occupations from 2022 to 2032, a 7.1% growth rate, reaching 3,387,402 total jobs. This involves 381,204 annual openings due to 158,454 job exits, 200,243 job transfers, and 22,507 new jobs. Since 2022 serves as the base year, Wisconsin, like other states, continues to see relatively high growth rates due to job recovery following the Covid-19 pandemic.
Projected job levels may be constrained by worker availability. Wisconsin's workforce, as is the case with most other states and developed countries, is affected by birth rates, immigration rates, and retirement rates. Projected estimates do not account for social/demographic upheaval, armed conflicts, natural disasters, legislative action, or recessions/depressions that occur within the projected period.
This program is funded by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (ETA).
Projections Portal
Projections of occupational employment growth are developed for all states and the nation. One of the most important uses of the projections is to help individuals make informed career decisions. Information on this site allows projected employment growth for an occupation to be compared among states. It also allows projected employment growth among occupations to be compared within one state.
Data Used to Create Projections
- U.S. Census Bureau
- Current Employment Statistics (CES)
- Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW)
- Occupational Employment & Wage Statistics (OEWS)
- Current Population Survey (CPS)
- BLS Employment Projections
