WORKFORCE INVESTMENT AREA
The Newport News Workforce Investment Area, as defined by the Virginia Employment Commission, is the Virginia Peninsula. Newport News is the largest city on the Virginia Peninsula and is its employment center. A civilian labor force of more than 250,000 workers reside in the Labor Market Area:
• The City of Newport News
• The City of Hampton
• The City of Williamsburg
• The City of Poquoson
• Gloucester County
• Isle of Wight County
• James City County
• Matthews County
• York County
A larger Total Drawing Area encompasses the entire Norfolk-Virginia Beach-Newport News MSA. A diversified labor force of over 800,000 lies within a 45–minute commute of most of the industrial and business sites in Newport News.
General Labor Force Data, November 2010
| Newport News Labor Force Area* |
Hampton Roads MSA** |
|
|---|---|---|
| Civilian Labor Force | 257,360 |
831,557 |
| – Employed | 238,225 |
771,696 |
| – Unemployed | 18,016 |
59,861 |
| – Unemployment Rate | 7.4% |
7.2% |
| Source: Virginia Employment Commission *Includes Newport News, Poquoson, Williamsburg, York, James City County, and Hampton **Virginia Beach–Norfolk–Newport News, VA–NC MSA, VA Part |
||
Civilian Labor Force Growth 2005–2009
| Total | Annual Average | |
|---|---|---|
| Newport News Labor Force Area* | 11,117 |
2,223 |
| Hampton Roads MSA** | 30,298 |
6,060 |
| Source: Virginia Employment Commission *Includes Newport News, Poquoson, Williamsburg, York, James City County, and Hampton **Virginia Beach–Norfolk–Newport News, VA–NC MSA, VA Part |
||
Civilian Covered Employment Trends – Annual Percentage Change, 2005–2009
2005 |
2006 |
2007 |
2008 |
2009 |
|
NEWPORT NEWS |
-0.02%
|
0.71% |
1.44% |
0.10% |
-2.27% |
Hampton Roads |
4.21%
|
-0.84% |
1.46% |
-0.21% |
-2.27% |
| U.S. | 1.78%
|
1.90% |
1.12% |
-0.47% |
-3.77% |
| Source: Virginia Employment Commission | |||||
LABOR FORCE PROFILE
Demographically, the working population of the Newport News/Hampton Roads labor market is typical in such areas as educational attainment and female participation in the labor force. The strong military presence, the international influence that springs from the ports, and the overall attractiveness of the area all contribute to the sophisticated metropolitan climate and labor pool.
Occupational Profile
| NEWPORT NEWS | Hampton Roads | |
|---|---|---|
| Managerial | 11.0% |
12.6% |
| Professional | 14.5% |
15.4% |
| Technicians | 5.0% |
5.7% |
| Sales | 12.0% |
11.9% |
| Clerical | 15.6% |
15.9% |
| Service | 17.6% |
15.6% |
| Skilled Craftsmen | 14.3% |
12.6% |
| Semi skilled, laborers, other | 10.1% |
10.4% |
| White collar occupations | 46.1% |
49.5% |
| Blue collar occupations | 24.3% |
23.0% |
| Service & Sales occupations | 29.6% |
27.5% |
| Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2000 | ||