Food manufacturers currently employ 71,163,
Manufacturers’ News, Inc.--For a third straight year, Minnesota gained manufacturing jobs, reports the 2015 Minnesota Manufacturers Register®, a manufacturers database and directory published by Manufacturers’ News, Inc. (MNI). According to data collected by MNI, Minnesota manufacturers added 8,102 jobs, or 1.7% from October 2013 to October 2014, outpacing the U.S. average gain in manufacturing employment for the same time period as reported by the Labor Department.
Manufacturers’ News reports Minnesota is now home to 9,307 manufacturers employing 473,642 workers. The industrial publisher has recorded a 4.5% increase in the state’s manufacturing jobs since October 2011, recovering 41% of the losses suffered during the recession.
“Manufacturing employment in Minnesota continues to pick up speed,” says Tom Dubin, President of the Evanston, IL-based publishing company, which has been surveying industry since 1912. “The state’s winning mix of educated labor force, solid infrastructure, diverse economy, advanced technology, and business-friendliness continue to draw investment and boost employment.”
Manufacturers’ News reports Minnesota’s top industries by employment all reported gains, with the food products industry posting an increase of 1%. Food manufacturers currently employ 71,163, ranking it first in the state for industrial jobs. Employment in the industrial machinery sector climbed 1.6%, with the second-ranked sector accounting for 67,825 jobs.
Other notable employment gains were seen in medical devices, up 8.5%; furniture/fixtures, up 4.5%; lumber/wood, up 4.3%; stone/clay/glass, up 3.3%; and fabricated metals, up 1.9%.