Overview of Atlanta Job and Wage Trends-Regional Snapshot January 2024 ARC

1. Regional Snapshot:
The Job and Wage Economy:
Starting Off By Looking Back

2. Highlights
2
• Over the past decade, metro Atlanta’s employment growth has been more robust than that of the nation. In fact,
when compared to some of our peer metros, metro Atlanta’s job recovery since the pandemic is among the strongest.
• Information (data processing, publishing and distributing information) and Management (corporate HQ) are relative
strengths of metro Atlanta’s economy.
• While employment in all sectors of metro Atlanta’s economy is higher today than pre-pandemic, we have lost jobs in a
few sectors over the past year, reflecting a softening of overall economic conditions.
• Inflation gains have outpaced wage gains over the past two years…
• …but inflation has dropped dramatically in metro Atlanta recently.
• As has been the case historically, Registered Nurses and Software Developers are the two most in-demand
occupations based on job postings from employers.
• In looking at how that demand has changed, occupations that were decimated during the pandemic – fast food
workers, laborers, stockers, pre-school teachers – are more in-demand today. Other occupations, such as engineering,
are also seeing increased demand in response to federal infrastructure investment initiatives.

3. 3
Metro Atlanta's job base
surpassed the three
million mark for the first
time ever in August
2022, having rebounded
to pre-pandemic levels
by Fall 2021.
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics
Consistent Employment Growth in Atlanta Since Pandemic
2000
2200
2400
2600
2800
3000
3200
Jan-12
Apr-12
Jul-12
Oct-12
Jan-13
Apr-13
Jul-13
Oct-13
Jan-14
Apr-14
Jul-14
Oct-14
Jan-15
Apr-15
Jul-15
Oct-15
Jan-16
Apr-16
Jul-16
Oct-16
Jan-17
Apr-17
Jul-17
Oct-17
Jan-18
Apr-18
Jul-18
Oct-18
Jan-19
Apr-19
Jul-19
Oct-19
Jan-20
Apr-20
Jul-20
Oct-20
Jan-21
Apr-21
Jul-21
Oct-21
Jan-22
Apr-22
Jul-22
Oct-22
Jan-23
Apr-23
Jul-23
Oct-23
Total Employment, Metro Atlanta (000s)

4. 4
95
100
105
110
115
120
125
130
135
Jan-13
May-13
Sep-13
Jan-14
May-14
Sep-14
Jan-15
May-15
Sep-15
Jan-16
May-16
Sep-16
Jan-17
May-17
Sep-17
Jan-18
May-18
Sep-18
Jan-19
May-19
Sep-19
Jan-20
May-20
Sep-20
Jan-21
May-21
Sep-21
Jan-22
May-22
Sep-22
Jan-23
May-23
Sep-23
Employment Growth, Metro Atlanta and The United States (Indexed – Jan 2013=100)
Atlanta US
Atlanta’s Economy Growing Faster Than U.S.
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics
This chart shows that metro
Atlanta’s economy has
consistently performed
better than the U.S. for the
last decade or so. Since the
beginning of 2013, metro
Atlanta’s employment grew
by 31 percent, compared to
19 percent for the U.S.

5. 5
Atlanta’s recovery from
the pandemic is one of
the strongest in the
nation, trailing Austin,
Dallas, Las Vegas and
Orlando. The latter
two’s economic
resurgence is driven
by a return of “Arts
and Entertainment”
employment from
pandemic lows.
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics
Atlanta Recovering Well From Pandemic (Feb 2020 - Oct 2023)
0.0%
2.0%
4.0%
6.0%
8.0%
10.0%
12.0%
14.0%
16.0%
18.0%
Austin Dallas Las Vegas Orlando Atlanta Miami Houston Denver Los Angeles Boston Chicago Washington
DC
Minneapolis
% Change since Pre-Pandemic

6. 6
0.0
0.2
0.4
0.6
0.8
1.0
1.2
1.4
1.6
1.8
2.0
Metro Atlanta’s Relative Strength
This chart shows which
industries are a relative strength
here in metro Atlanta. We do this
by comparing the percent of jobs
in each industry in metro Atlanta
to the percent of jobs in each
industry in the nation. Any value
over “1” means that jobs in that
industry are more heavily
concentrated in metro Atlanta the
across the nation as a whole,
indicating a relative strength. As
can be seen, Information (data
processing, publishing and
distributing information), and
Management (corporate HQ
jobs) are relative strengths in
metro Atlanta.
Information and Management Jobs Are Metro Atlanta’s Strengths
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics, October 2023

7. 7
Employment in every
industry in metro Atlanta is
higher today than before the
pandemic, showing the
strength of the local economy
as well as the diversity of our
industry mix.
All Industries Higher Than Pre-Pandemic Levels (Feb 2020 to Oct 2023)
0.0%
2.0%
4.0%
6.0%
8.0%
10.0%
12.0%
14.0%
16.0%
18.0%
Since Pandemic
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics

8. 8
-4.0%
-2.0%
0.0%
2.0%
4.0%
6.0%
8.0%
Percent Employment Change, Year-Over-Year (Oct-Oct)
Atlanta: Year-Over-Year Change National: Year-Over-Year Change
Employment Growth Over the Past Year Tells a Different Story, However…
When looking at employment
change from 2022 to 2023,
however, we see that certain
industries are struggling, such as
Information and
Transportation/Warehousing.
And these sectors, as shown on
previous slides, are relative
strengths of metro Atlanta’s
economy.
Overall, however, the majority
of Atlanta industry sectors are
growing at a faster clip when
compared to the nation.
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics

9. Wages & Inflation
9

10. Inflation > Wages
10
90
100
110
120
130
140
150
Aug-13
Nov-13
Feb-14
May-14
Aug-14
Nov-14
Feb-15
May-15
Aug-15
Nov-15
Feb-16
May-16
Aug-16
Nov-16
Feb-17
May-17
Aug-17
Nov-17
Feb-18
May-18
Aug-18
Nov-18
Feb-19
May-19
Aug-19
Nov-19
Feb-20
May-20
Aug-20
Nov-20
Feb-21
May-21
Aug-21
Nov-21
Feb-22
May-22
Aug-22
Nov-22
Feb-23
May-23
Aug-23
Inflation and Wages
Inflation Wages
For much of the past decade,
the inflation rate was so low
that even modest gains in
wages were enough to
outpace growth in inflation.
Over the past two years,
however, inflation is
outpacing wages (even
though wage growth has
ticked up from late 2021 to
present)
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics

11. 11
0.0%
5.0%
10.0%
15.0%
20.0%
25.0%
30.0%
Wage Change (Nominal) February 2020 – October 2023
Nominal Wage Change Lagging in Metro Atlanta
While inflation is now
growing faster than wages in
metro Atlanta, wage growth
itself hasn’t been very robust
when compared to some of
our peer metro areas. While
14 percent over a three-year
period is high historically, this
growth puts us near the
back-of-the-pack when
compared to other large
metro areas.
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics

12. 12
0.0%
1.0%
2.0%
3.0%
4.0%
5.0%
6.0%
7.0%
8.0%
Atlanta Baltimore Chicago Detroit Houston Los Angeles Miami New York Philadelphia Phoenix San Francisco Seattle St Louis
Annual % Change in Inflation (October-October)
Inflation is relatively
moderate in metro Atlanta
when compared to some of
our peer metros (i.e. the
ones that report inflation
during the same months)…
Inflation Relatively Tame in Metro Atlanta…

13. 13
At points during the last two
years, metro Atlanta led the
nation in year-over-year
inflation rates, driven by
rapidly increasing rents. Now
metro Atlanta boasts one of
the lowest inflation rates, and
today’s rates are not much
different than historical
rates.Note that in the chart at
left, the average over the
period is represented by the
horizontal yellow line.
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics
-6.00%
-4.00%
-2.00%
0.00%
2.00%
4.00%
6.00%
8.00%
10.00%
12.00%
14.00%
Dec-02
Jun-03
Dec-03
Jun-04
Dec-04
Jun-05
Dec-05
Jun-06
Dec-06
Jun-07
Dec-07
Jun-08
Dec-08
Jun-09
Dec-09
Jun-10
Dec-10
Jun-11
Dec-11
Jun-12
Dec-12
Jun-13
Dec-13
Jun-14
Dec-14
Jun-15
Dec-15
Jun-16
Dec-16
Jun-17
Dec-17
Jun-18
Dec-18
Jun-19
Dec-19
Jun-20
Dec-20
Jun-21
Dec-21
Jun-22
Dec-22
Jun-23
Inflation in Metro Atlanta
…Especially Considering Where We Were

14. Demand From Employers
14

15. 15
What Are Employers Seeking?
Source: Lightcast
0 5,000 10,000 15,000 20,000 25,000 30,000 35,000 40,000 45,000
Registered Nurses
Software Developers
Retail Salespersons
Sales Reps, Whole/Manu, not Tech/Science
First-Line Supervisors of Retail Sales Workers
Computer Occupations, All Other
Customer Service Representatives
Managers, All Other
Laborers and Freight, Stock, Material Movers
Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers
Fast Food and Counter Workers
Maintenance and Repair Workers, General
Food Service Managers
General and Operations Managers
Medical and Health Services Managers
Sales Managers
Stockers and Order Fillers
Secretaries and Admins, not Legal, Med/Exec
Waiters and Waitresses
Accountants and Auditors
Financial Managers
Computer User Support Specialists
Human Resources Specialists
Marketing Managers
Janitors/Cleaners, not Housekeepers
Health Technologists and Technicians, All Other
Management Analysts
Licensed Practical and Vocational Nurses
Computer Systems Analysts
Automotive Service Technicians and Mechanics
Unique Postings (Nov 2022 - Nov 2023)
In terms of demand, i.e. the
occupations that employers
are posting most often for,
Registered Nurses and
Software Developers top the
list over the last year. Upon
looking at the entire list, you
can see a good mix of “old”
and “new” economy jobs
represented.

16. 16
Who’s Hiring?
Source: Lightcast
0 2,000 4,000 6,000 8,000 10,000 12,000 14,000 16,000
Wellstar Health System
Emory Healthcare
Randstad
Piedmont Healthcare
Northside Hospital
The Home Depot
Cox Communications
Amazon
State of Georgia
GPAC
Walmart
Georgia Institute of Technology
Marriott International
Children's Healthcare Of Atlanta
Dollar General
Robert Half
Cox Automotive
Encompass Health
TJX
Chick-fil-A
UnitedHealth Group
The Judge Group
Hilton
Walgreens Boots Alliance
CVS Health
Goodwill
Kroger
Dekalb County School District
The Coca-Cola Company
Unique Postings (Nov 2022 - Nov 2023)
In seeing the chart on the
previous page, it should
come as no surprise as to
the employers posting the
greatest number of job
opportunities…

17. What Employers Are Seeking MORE of Today
0.50
0.70
0.90
1.10
1.30
1.50
1.70
1.90
2.10
Ratio: Today Vs. Prepandemic
Source: Lightcast
This chart compares those occupations that were most in-demand prior to the
pandemic with those most in-demand today. The bars going up above 1.0 represent those "more in-
demand today". Occupations like laborers, stockers, fast food, preschool teachers were all decimated
during the pandemic, and are coming back in demand. The occupations that don’t have any bars
(bounded in red) are jobs that didn’t have high demand before, but now are in demand, including
engineering occupations that will be needed to build out the federal infrastructure investment programs.

18. Most Popular Occupations in Metro Atlanta
Source: Jobs EQ
Occupation Total Employment Average Wages
Retail Salespersons 83,329 $ 33,400
Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand 77,219 $ 37,200
Customer Service Representatives 70,081 $ 41,800
Fast Food and Counter Workers 68,832 $ 25,300
General and Operations Managers 64,614 $ 126,700
Cashiers 60,907 $ 26,400
Stockers and Order Fillers 48,009 $ 34,900
Office Clerks, General 47,219 $ 41,900
Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers 46,072 $ 56,300
Registered Nurses 45,391 $ 93,700
Secretaries and Admins, not Legal, Medical, and Executive 44,166 $ 42,000
Business Operations Specialists, All Other 43,755 $ 80,900
Software Developers 43,423 $ 127,500
Waiters and Waitresses 43,352 $ 31,600
Janitors and Cleaners,not Maids and Housekeepers 35,420 $ 32,700
Accountants and Auditors 31,799 $ 91,000
First-Line Supervisors of Retail Sales Workers 31,254 $ 50,800
Sales Reps: Wholesale and Manufacturing, Not Tech/Science 30,513 $ 80,100
Bookkeeping, Accounting, and Auditing Clerks 30,159 $ 50,000
First-Line Supervisors of Office and Admin Support 30,117 $ 67,200
Industrial Truck and Tractor Operators 29,640 $ 45,500
Maintenance and Repair Workers, General 28,809 $ 46,400
Cooks, Restaurant 27,934 $ 30,700
Sales Reps of Services, Not Adv, Ins, Finance, Travel 26,106 $ 74,500
Elementary School Teachers, Except Special Education 25,639 $ 70,100
Construction Laborers 25,155 $ 40,900
Personal Care Aides 23,997 $ 27,800
Managers, All Other 23,959 $ 127,200
Flipping back to the supply
side… at left, we see which
occupations employ the most
people in metro Atlanta. The
largest occupations tend to
pay the lowest wages (red
shading). But look at
“Registered Nurses” and
“Software Developers”. The
two most in-demand
occupations (as seen
previously) are among the
higher-paying occupations
(green shading).