New jobs data from the final quarter of last year shows employment in the Baton Rouge metro area increased by 2.9% during the three months that ended Dec. 31, 2014, compared to the same quarter in 2013.
That outpaced job growth of 1.9% statewide during the quarter, during which a total of 1,920,642 Louisianans were employed, up from 1,915,384 in the final quarter of 2013. The figures were released today by the Louisiana Workforce Commission.
In the Baton Rouge metro area—which includes Ascension, East Baton Rouge, East Feliciana, Iberville, Livingston, Pointe Coupee, St. Helena, Tangipahoa, Washington, West Baton Rouge and West Feliciana parishes—total employment grew to 439,462 in the final quarter of last year. That’s up from 430,478 jobs filled in the area during the final quarter of 2013. The average weekly wage in the Baton Rouge metro area at the end of last year was $975, which was also higher than the state average of $923.
The biggest industry sector gain during the final quarter of 2014 in the Baton Rouge area came in agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting, which increased 7.6% compared to the same quarter a year earlier. Other sectors posting the largest gains, at 6.2% each, were real estate, rental and leasing; and administrative and waste services.
The biggest sector loss was in utilities, which saw employment levels fall 6.7%. Only two other sectors posted job losses: information (down 0.8%) and public administration (down 0.5%). The mining sector, which includes oil and gas activities, was unchanged, likely because oil prices had not yet begun their plunge yet.
