After multiple years of losses, industrial employment in Pennsylvania increased 0.5 with 3,776 more industrial jobs between June 2011 and June 2012, according to the Pennsylvania Manufacturers Register, an industrial directory published annually by Manufacturers' News Inc. in Evanston, Ill.
This now means Pennsylvania employs 807,726 workers who belong to 17,363 manufacturers.
"Pennsylvania continues to see its manufacturing sector improve," says Tom Dubin, president of MNI. "The state's educated work force, access to capital and investments in innovative technologies have been a draw for a variety of enterprises."
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Industrial machinery and equipment continues to rank as Pennsylvania's largest industrial sector by employment with 93,473 manufacturing jobs, up 1 percent in the past year, MNI finds. Food products manufacturing comes in at second with 86,691 jobs, up 2 percent since 2011, and fabricated metals is the third largest sector providing 84,393 jobs. No significant change is reported for the fabricated metals sector.
Of the industrial sectors that gained jobs in the last year are chemicals at 3.6 percent, petroleum products at 1.9 percent, transportation equipment at 1.8 percent, rubber and plastics at 1.7 percent, and primary metals at 1.4 percent, MNI finds. Sectors that faced losses are printing and publishing at minus 4.3 percent, lumber and wood at minus 3 percent, paper products at minus 1.7 percent, and textiles and apparel at minus 1.1 percent.
Southeast Pennsylvania boasts the state's highest industrial employment rate accounting for 341,996 jobs while Southwest Pennsylvania employs 184,419 jobs, up 1.7 percent. Central Pennsylvania offers jobs to 118,639 industrial workers, down 0.5 percent, and Northwest Pennsylvania is home to 106,368 industrial jobs, up 0.5 percent. Next is Northeast Pennsylvania with 56,304 jobs, down 0.5 percent over the last year.
Philadelphia is still Pennsylvania's top city for manufacturing employment as is accounts for 44,453 jobs, a decline of 1.5 percent over the year, MNI reveals. Pittsburgh ranks as the second largest city with 36,812 jobs, up 7.5 percent over the year while York is the third largest city employing 22,339 industrial jobs for no significant change reported. Lancaster comes in next with 17,544 jobs, down 3.7 percent, and Allentown is the fifth largest city providing 17,355 industrial jobs, a 1.1 percent drop.
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