Over the last 99 consecutive months — from March 2010 through May 2018 — employers added more than 19 million jobs, according to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. But employment isn’t the same everywhere, notes Monster, which analyzed its data and found the top 10 U.S. cities for job seekers, as well as the industries that are hiring most.
For the first half of 2018, New York City ranked number one for job seekers, according to Monster’s data — which differs from another job site’s analysis.
However, following the trend of health care-related jobs being in demand, Monster’s most posted job from January to June 2018 was a registered nurse.
Top 10 cities for finding a job:
According to Monster’s data of which cities had the most job postings, the coasts and large metropolitan areas held promise for those searching for a job in the first half of 2018.
- New York City
- Los Angeles
- Washington, DC
- Dallas
- Chicago
- Boston
- Philadelphia
- Atlanta
- San Francisco
- Houston
The Bureau of Labor Statistics looks at data from 388 metropolitan areas, and “eleven of the most populous metropolitan areas are made up of 38 metropolitan divisions, which are essentially separately identifiable employment centers.”
In May of 2018, the agency saw non-farming employment growth in 37 out of 38 metropolitan divisions — including those on Monster’s list. “The largest over-the-year increase in employment among the metropolitan divisions occurred in New York-Jersey City-White Plains, NY-NJ (+97,900),” according to the BLS, matching Monster’s data.
However, Indeed, a competing job search website, released its list of best cities for job seekers in April of this year and New York was nowhere near the top. In its evaluation of 50 metropolitan areas, Indeed took other factors into account, including salary, job security and advancement, work/life balance, and the city’s labor market. New York ranked 46 out of 50.
Coming in second on Monster’s list, the Southern California division of Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale, CA was ranked third by the BLS, with a year-over-year employment increase of 63,900. The Dallas-Plano-Irving, Texas division ranked second with the BLS, with an increase in employment of 90,700. Monster’s data placed Dallas not far off, in fourth place.
Most posted jobs on Monster
Monster analyzed the most-often posted jobs from employers in the first six months of 2018.
- Registered nurses
- Software developers
- Supervisors of retail sales workers
- Customer service representatives
- Heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers
- Computer user support specialists
- Sales representatives
- Maintenance and repair workers
- Retail salespersons
- Network and computer systems administrators
The demand for nurses — top on Monster’s list — isn’t entirely surprising. According to the BLS, employment of registered nurses is projected to grow 15% from 2016 to 2026. This is partially due to the aging of the baby boomer generation and the increased need for preventative services.
Other jobs in the top 10 fit with national trends of in-demand jobs. At the end of 2017, there was a shortage of 51,000 truck drivers, according to the American Trucking Associations, and there’s a greater demand from companies like Amazon that need to ship goods across the country to consumers. (Truck drivers are also seeing their wages go up as companies try to recruit more drivers.)
Software developers (number two on Monster’s list) also appear on CareerCast’s “Toughest jobs to fill in 2018” list, where application software developers was number one.
