Current Employment Statistics (CES9092000001) · State government, seasonally adjusted
How many jobs are there in state government?
The number of jobs in state government was 5,472 thousand in the month ended , down 0.5% from a year earlier (preliminary).
Jobs in state government, in thousands, seasonally adjusted, each month
Shaded bands are US recessions as the National Bureau of Economic Research dates them: to , to , to , to , to , to , to , to , to , to .
Shaded bands are US recessions as the National Bureau of Economic Research dates them: to .
Jobs in state government, in thousands, change from a year earlier, each month (ours)
Shaded bands are US recessions as the National Bureau of Economic Research dates them: to , to , to , to , to , to , to , to , to , to .
Shaded bands are US recessions as the National Bureau of Economic Research dates them: to .
Each point is one month of the series as the source publishes it, or a change worked out from those values (ours). The US recessions are shaded. Pointing at the chart shows the month and the value.
Select a line to follow
Inspect and compare dates
The newest month beside the one before it and the nearest ones a year, five and ten years earlier. The last ten years are in the table under "The numbers behind the chart".
| Measure | Latest | The month before | A year earlier | Five years earlier | Ten years earlier |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | |||||
| Jobs in state government, in thousands | 5,472 thousand | 5,475 thousand | 5,497 thousand | 5,137 thousand | 5,150 thousand |
| Change over a year | −0.5% | −0.2% | +0.3% | +0.9% | +1.3% |
The table scrolls sideways; the first column stays in place.
Observed .
Right now
The number of jobs in state government was 5,472 thousand in September 2026, the lowest since June 2026.
Over a year it is down 0.5% (ours). The source marks this value preliminary.
ChangeOurs
| Period | Then | Change |
|---|---|---|
| One month | 5,475 thousand in | −0.1% |
| Three months | 5,462 thousand in | +0.2% |
| Twelve months | 5,497 thousand in | −0.5% |
| Five years | 5,137 thousand in | +6.5% |
| Ten years | 5,150 thousand in | +6.3% |
In historyOurs
The number of jobs in state government of 5,472 thousand in was higher than in 840 of the 860 other months since , the same in 0 and lower in 20.
Highest since : 5,525 thousand in . Lowest since : 1,150 thousand in .
AverageOurs
Average since : 3,877.0 thousand (ours, a plain mean of the 861 months).
ComparedOurs
Over a year the number of jobs in state government is down 0.5%, which ranks 27 of the 35 rows of the table, where 1 is the largest change.
The table sets the number of jobs in state government beside the industries on the jobs by industry page, by the change over a year in each one's newest month.
Understanding the number of jobs in state government
Where it stands today
The number of jobs in state government was 5,472 thousand in September 2026.
What does the number of jobs in state government measure?
State government covers the employees of state governments, including state universities, colleges and hospitals.
Read more
The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) counts these jobs each month in a survey of employers, the Current Employment Statistics, and publishes them in the Employment Situation report at the start of the next month. The count is all employees on payrolls, in thousands, seasonally adjusted.
What 500metrics adds: the change over one month, three months, a year and five years, the highest and lowest value since the series begins, how the change over a year ranks among the lines of the jobs by industry page, the industry inside it with its own change over a year.
The numbers behind the chart
What was the number of jobs in state government in each month?The last ten years, 120 months, newest first; the chart and the file have every month since Jan 1955
| Month | Value | Change over a year |
|---|---|---|
| 5,472 thousand | −0.5% | |
| 5,475 thousand | −0.2% | |
| 5,482 thousand | −0.4% | |
| 5,462 thousand | −1.0% | |
| 5,467 thousand | −0.9% | |
| 5,469 thousand | −1.0% | |
| 5,469 thousand | −1.0% | |
| 5,473 thousand | −0.9% | |
| 5,479 thousand | −0.8% | |
| 5,476 thousand | −0.7% | |
| 5,481 thousand | −0.4% | |
| 5,493 thousand | 0.0% | |
| 5,497 thousand | +0.3% | |
| 5,487 thousand | +0.3% | |
| 5,504 thousand | +1.1% | |
| 5,516 thousand | +1.7% | |
| 5,515 thousand | +1.8% | |
| 5,522 thousand | +1.9% | |
| 5,523 thousand | +2.0% | |
| 5,525 thousand | +2.2% | |
| 5,525 thousand | +2.5% | |
| 5,515 thousand | +2.7% | |
| 5,502 thousand | +2.6% | |
| 5,492 thousand | +2.4% |
Show 96 more rows
| Month | Value | Change over a year |
|---|---|---|
| 5,479 thousand | +2.7% | |
| 5,468 thousand | +2.8% | |
| 5,443 thousand | +2.7% | |
| 5,423 thousand | +2.4% | |
| 5,420 thousand | +2.7% | |
| 5,421 thousand | +3.2% | |
| 5,413 thousand | +3.5% | |
| 5,405 thousand | +3.6% | |
| 5,388 thousand | +3.6% | |
| 5,372 thousand | +4.7% | |
| 5,363 thousand | +3.9% | |
| 5,361 thousand | +4.3% | |
| 5,337 thousand | +3.7% | |
| 5,320 thousand | +3.4% | |
| 5,298 thousand | +3.1% | |
| 5,295 thousand | +3.7% | |
| 5,278 thousand | +3.5% | |
| 5,252 thousand | +3.6% | |
| 5,232 thousand | +3.6% | |
| 5,218 thousand | +2.9% | |
| 5,199 thousand | +2.2% | |
| 5,133 thousand | +0.2% | |
| 5,163 thousand | +0.8% | |
| 5,140 thousand | +0.2% | |
| 5,149 thousand | +0.2% | |
| 5,144 thousand | −0.2% | |
| 5,137 thousand | −0.8% | |
| 5,107 thousand | −1.7% | |
| 5,100 thousand | −1.5% | |
| 5,068 thousand | −2.2% | |
| 5,052 thousand | −2.6% | |
| 5,069 thousand | −1.6% | |
| 5,089 thousand | −1.0% | |
| 5,121 thousand | +0.7% | |
| 5,124 thousand | +1.0% | |
| 5,132 thousand | +1.1% | |
| 5,137 thousand | +0.9% | |
| 5,153 thousand | +0.6% | |
| 5,180 thousand | +2.0% | |
| 5,197 thousand | +2.5% | |
| 5,178 thousand | +2.4% | |
| 5,180 thousand | +1.3% | |
| 5,186 thousand | −1.5% | |
| 5,153 thousand | −2.9% | |
| 5,142 thousand | −2.3% | |
| 5,083 thousand | −3.2% | |
| 5,074 thousand | −3.3% | |
| 5,074 thousand | −3.1% | |
| 5,091 thousand | −2.5% | |
| 5,120 thousand | −1.8% | |
| 5,080 thousand | −2.1% | |
| 5,069 thousand | −2.0% | |
| 5,059 thousand | −1.8% | |
| 5,113 thousand | −1.5% | |
| 5,263 thousand | +1.4% | |
| 5,308 thousand | +2.4% | |
| 5,262 thousand | +1.7% | |
| 5,251 thousand | +1.4% | |
| 5,248 thousand | +1.6% | |
| 5,239 thousand | +1.1% | |
| 5,219 thousand | +0.7% | |
| 5,213 thousand | +0.8% | |
| 5,191 thousand | +0.3% | |
| 5,170 thousand | −0.2% | |
| 5,150 thousand | −0.5% | |
| 5,192 thousand | +0.3% | |
| 5,191 thousand | +0.5% | |
| 5,182 thousand | +0.5% | |
| 5,173 thousand | +0.4% | |
| 5,176 thousand | +0.3% | |
| 5,165 thousand | +0.1% | |
| 5,183 thousand | +0.6% | |
| 5,183 thousand | +0.8% | |
| 5,174 thousand | +0.1% | |
| 5,175 thousand | −0.1% | |
| 5,179 thousand | +0.1% | |
| 5,174 thousand | −0.1% | |
| 5,177 thousand | +0.2% | |
| 5,164 thousand | 0.0% | |
| 5,156 thousand | −0.1% | |
| 5,152 thousand | −0.1% | |
| 5,159 thousand | +0.4% | |
| 5,161 thousand | +0.5% | |
| 5,152 thousand | +0.4% | |
| 5,144 thousand | −0.1% | |
| 5,169 thousand | +1.1% | |
| 5,178 thousand | +1.2% | |
| 5,174 thousand | +1.3% | |
| 5,181 thousand | +1.7% | |
| 5,169 thousand | +1.4% | |
| 5,163 thousand | +1.4% | |
| 5,160 thousand | +1.5% | |
| 5,156 thousand | +1.3% | |
| 5,139 thousand | +1.0% | |
| 5,135 thousand | +0.9% | |
| 5,132 thousand | +0.9% |
How does it compare with the industries on the jobs by industry page?Ranked by the change over a year
| Series | Month | Value | Change over a year | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Health care and social assistance | 23,959 thousand | +2.2% | 1 | |
| Private education and health | 28,005 thousand | +1.9% | 2 | |
| Utilities | 612 thousand | +1.7% | 3 | |
| Construction | 8,364 thousand | +1.3% | 4 | |
| Durable goods | 7,898 thousand | +1.1% | 5 | |
| Professional, scientific, technical | 10,844 thousand | +0.8% | 6 | |
| Accommodation and food services | 14,310 thousand | +0.7% | 7 | |
| Goods-producing | 21,623 thousand | +0.7% | 7 | |
| Other services | 6,039 thousand | +0.6% | 9 | |
| Professional and business services | 22,482 thousand | +0.6% | 9 | |
| Administrative, support, waste | 9,019 thousand | +0.5% | 11 | |
| Private service-providing | 114,094 thousand | +0.5% | 11 | |
| Total private | 135,717 thousand | +0.5% | 11 | |
| Leisure and hospitality | 16,969 thousand | +0.4% | 14 | |
| Wholesale trade | 6,078 thousand | +0.4% | 14 | |
| Local government | 15,173 thousand | +0.3% | 16 | |
| Manufacturing | 12,652 thousand | +0.3% | 16 | |
| Mining and logging | 607 thousand | +0.3% | 16 | |
| Service-providing | 137,421 thousand | +0.3% | 16 | |
| Total nonfarm | 159,044 thousand | +0.3% | 16 | |
| Retail trade | 15,480 thousand | +0.2% | 21 | |
| Trade, transportation, utilities | 28,778 thousand | +0.2% | 21 | |
| Mining, oil and gas extraction | 567 thousand | +0.1% | 23 | |
| Private education | 4,046 thousand | −0.1% | 24 | |
| Transportation and warehousing | 6,609 thousand | −0.1% | 24 | |
| Management of companies | 2,620 thousand | −0.3% | 26 | |
| State government (this page) | 5,472 thousand | −0.5% | 27 | |
| Real estate, rental, leasing | 2,438 thousand | −0.6% | 28 | |
| Government | 23,327 thousand | −0.9% | 29 | |
| Nondurable goods | 4,754 thousand | −0.9% | 29 | |
| Financial activities | 9,082 thousand | −1.2% | 31 | |
| Finance and insurance | 6,645 thousand | −1.4% | 32 | |
| Arts, entertainment, recreation | 2,659 thousand | −1.6% | 33 | |
| Information | 2,739 thousand | −4.2% | 34 | |
| Federal government | 2,682 thousand | −8.0% | 35 |
The table scrolls sideways; the first column stays in place.
Which industries are inside state government?Newest month of each industry
| Industry | Month | Count | Share | Change over a year | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| State government, excluding education | 2,871 thousand | 52.5% | −0.2% | 1 |
The table scrolls sideways; the first column stays in place.
What do these figures leave out, and how are they cited?Limits, dates and how to cite
What this number cannot tell you
- BLS counts jobs, not people: a person with two jobs on two payrolls is counted twice. Farm jobs, the self-employed, unpaid family workers, private household workers and members of the military are not counted.
- The count comes from a survey of employers, so each month's value carries sampling error. BLS revises each month twice in the two months after it is first published, and each February it benchmarks the series to a full count of jobs from unemployment insurance tax records and revises earlier values, so past values on this page can change.
- BLS publishes this series from 1955.
- JOLTS has no line for exactly this group of industries, so no job openings, hires, quits or layoffs are shown beside the count of jobs.
- The counts of the industries inside it are shown in whole thousands, but BLS publishes those series to one decimal, so the changes, the ranks and the shares, which are ours and worked out from the values as BLS publishes them, can differ in their last place from those worked out from the values as shown.
- The changes, the ranks and the highest and lowest values are ours, worked out from the values BLS publishes; a change is in percent.
Observed . Checked .
How to cite this
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Current Employment Statistics, State government, seasonally adjusted, through September 2026. Compiled by 500metrics, "How many jobs are there in state government?", https://500metrics.com/jobs-by-industry/state-government.
Can the data be downloaded?jobs-by-industry-state-government.csv
Download the full history as CSV: 861 rows, to , 14,760 bytes.
Our text and compilation: CC BY 4.0.
Recession dates from the National Bureau of Economic Research.
Page updated