Best Companies to Work For in Atlanta | Top 10 Atlanta Jobs | Highest Paying
Hello! I’m Tim Trevathan with Tim Trevathan Homes and Keller Williams Realty. Today, I’m going to talk about jobs. Why? Because thousands of people move to the Metro Atlanta area each year for a job. Some people move here because their company is transferring them, some people move here because they found a job, and others move here hoping to find a job. In fact, in 2022, finance website WalletHub ranked Atlanta in the top 15% of cities in the nation for jobs. The cool thing is that I have already helped several happy clients make Georgia their home from all over the country and even outside the country! And when you find out what kind of jobs that are available here, then there’s a good chance you might want to move here, too! And whether it’s calling, texting, or emailing, you can reach me however you want to make your relocation a reality! 770-906-0748 [email protected]
A few weeks ago, the Atlanta Regional Commission announced that 65,000 people moved to the 11 counties that make up the Metro Atlanta area in the past 12 months. Henry County, south of Atlanta had the largest population growth at 2.6% while north of Atlanta, Forsyth County had the second largest population growth, at 2.5%.
Gwinnett County had the largest population increase in terms of raw numbers, at a little over 13,000 new residents. If you are considering a move and interested in Forsyth County or Gwinnett County, take a look at some of the other videos on my channel when this is over. I have deep dives into various cities and neighborhoods that will give you a lot of information on those areas.
There are over 5 million people living in the Metro Atlanta area, with that number projected to increase to around 8 million by 2040. In 2019, 50,000 more people moved to Georgia than left, putting it with the 6th largest population net gain in the nation.
So, where do all these people work? I’m about to tell you.
According to the Georgia Department of Labor’s most recent data, the Top 10 employers in the state in 2021 were: Delta Airlines, Emory Healthcare, Gwinnett County Schools, Northside Hospital, Publix, Home Depot, Kroger, UPS, Walmart, and WellStar Health System.
The good news for Metro Atlanta residents is that all of these companies have a very strong presence in the area with many, or in some cases all, of their Georgia jobs located here.
Three of these companies, Delta, Home Depot, and UPS are three of the fifteen Fortune 500 companies headquartered here. In fact, Metro Atlanta has the 4th highest number of Fortune 500 company headquarters in the nation. That’s means a lot of jobs for the area.
There are two ways to look at the top jobs here. We just looked at the largest employers, now lets pivot and look at industries. What are the largest industries in Metro Atlanta?
I took a look at the Georgia Department of Labor’s breakdown of industries in the Metro Atlanta area to see which industries employ the most people. All of the numbers I am about to give you come from the Georgia Department of Labor.
Healthcare is the largest industry, with just over 290,000 employees. We saw that reflected on the largest employer list with Emory Healthcare and Northside Hospital. These are just two of the multiple health systems and thousands of medical offices located in the area.
Retail is the second largest industry with about 279,000 employees. Again, we saw this reflected on the Top 10 employer list with Home Depot and Walmart; the largest employers out of thousands of retail companies here in Metro Atlanta.
The 3rd largest in the area is accommodation & food services. A company in this industry didn’t make the Top 10 Employer list, but there are thousands and thousands of hotels and restaurants in the Metro Area. I was not at all surprised to see this industry as one of the top employers.
The other industries making up the Top 10 Industries in Metro Atlanta are: professional, scientific, and technical services; administration, support, waste management, and remediation services; manufacturing; transportation and warehousing; wholesale trade; construction; and finance and insurance.
Altogether, the 19 private sector industries in Metro Atlanta employ an average of more than 2.3 million people per month. The public sector employees about 313,000 people per month, most of whom work for one of the many local governments in the metro area.
Earlier this year, in May, almost 9,000 jobs were added in the Metro Atlanta area. More than 42,000 jobs have been added since the beginning of the year and the current unemployment rate is just 2.6% according to the Georgia Department of Labor. That is really good news considering the unemployment rate reached over 10% back in the early days of the pandemic.
Each year, Atlanta’s largest paper, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, known locally as the AJC, releases a list of the Top 175 Workplaces in the Metro Atlanta area. The companies on this list are broken down into 3 categories: small, medium, and large companies. More than 4,500 companies participated, 305 companies were surveyed, and 175 were named Top Workplaces. Ranking on that list based on responses to a survey sent to employees, with at least 35% participation required.
If you are moving to the area and looking for a job, be sure to check out this list. For 2022, the large company list was topped by a construction company, a pest control company, and a private K-12 school.
I’ve got one more list to consider if you are moving to the area and will be looking for a job, or if you already live here and need a job change. The Georgia Department of Labor has a great list of what it considers “Hot Careers to 2028”. It defines these as having faster than the state average annual growth, pay above the state average annual wage, and have at least 400 openings per year.
For those with a bachelor’s degree or higher, the top “hot careers” are primarily in the healthcare, education, finance, business, and software/computer industries.
The 10 “hottest careers” for those with bachelor’s degrees are all expected to have more than 1,000 openings annually, and most of them are expected to have 2,000-4,000 openings a year.
The bottom line, the Metro Atlanta area has worked hard to attract businesses both large and small, and it has paid off. Companies regularly open new locations here and new businesses are started here each year. What that means for Metro Atlanta residents and prospective residents is jobs.
There are open jobs here in a variety of industries meaning that whatever your skill set, there is likely a job opening that will be a good fit.
If you are planning a move to Metro Atlanta from somewhere else, or perhaps you are moving across the city for a new job, my contact information is below. I specialize in homes on the north side of the Metro area. Please reach out! I would love to talk to you and find out more about your dreams for your new home and help turn your dream into reality.
