The noted Austrian economist Joseph Schumpeter is credited with coining the term “creative destruction,” a quick summary of how free-market economies discard obsolete jobs.
Nowhere does that happen more frequently than in the United States, which is constantly reinventing itself. Innovation has heralded job opportunities in areas of the economy that did not exist a generation ago. Just as automobiles brought an end to the horse-drawn age, new technologies and platforms such as solar energy and the internet have created millions of jobs in those sectors. (These are the industries with the most job openings.)
To identify America’s 25 thriving industries, 24/7 Wall St. reviewed employment change from 2011 through 2020 for U.S. industries in the fourth level of detail as reported by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages.
Longer-term demographic shifts and technological advances are major drivers behind new job creation. As the baby-boom generation ages, companies are meeting the needs for services for the elderly and disabled. Job growth is soaring among ambulatory health care services and with mental health practitioners, each of which has seen employment increase more than 90% in between 2011 and 2020.
Employment at internet publishing and web search portals, meanwhile, leaped more than 177% from 2011 to 2020. It also is among the best-paying of the sectors, with an annual salary above $267,000 as of 2020.
Click here to see 25 American industries are thriving
Breweries and distilleries have added jobs at a brisk clip as well, reflecting changing American tastes in the consumption of alcohol. Employment among local messengers and delivery companies also rose dramatically, more than 213% from 2011 to 2020.
As America gradually shifts from fossil fuels to cleaner energy sources, the job market in solar power and wind generation has accelerated. Another trend of note is the explosion in industrial warehouse and storage space across the country. Employment has risen in that sector by more than 146%. (Here is a look at each state’s largest industry.)
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25. Translation and interpretation services
> Employment change 2011-2020: 81.82%
> Employment 2020: 41,725
> 10-yr. change in avg. annual pay: -16.36%
> Avg. annual pay 2020: $48,220
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24. Storage battery manufacturing
> Employment change 2011-2020: 85.27%
> Employment 2020: 26,370
> 10-yr. change in avg. annual pay: 36.85%
> Avg. annual pay 2020: $75,455
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23. Software publishers
> Employment change 2011-2020: 85.82%
> Employment 2020: 502,165
> 10-yr. change in avg. annual pay: 41.30%
> Avg. annual pay 2020: $182,418
Source: photovs / iStock via Getty Images
22. Truss manufacturing
> Employment change 2011-2020: 85.96%
> Employment 2020: 31,594
> 10-yr. change in avg. annual pay: 46.57%
> Avg. annual pay 2020: $48,901
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21. Light truck and utility vehicle manufacturing
> Employment change 2011-2020: 91.52%
> Employment 2020: 67,314
> 10-yr. change in avg. annual pay: -8.35%
> Avg. annual pay 2020: $76,071
Source: kzenon / Getty Images
20. Nail salons
> Employment change 2011-2020: 93.21%
> Employment 2020: 94,629
> 10-yr. change in avg. annual pay: 31.20%
> Avg. annual pay 2020: $20,303
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19. Miscellaneous ambulatory health care services
> Employment change 2011-2020: 93.61%
> Employment 2020: 64,788
> 10-yr. change in avg. annual pay: 37.30%
> Avg. annual pay 2020: $69,134
Source: Steve Debenport / Getty Images
18. Offices of mental health practitioners
> Employment change 2011-2020: 95.34%
> Employment 2020: 123,983
> 10-yr. change in avg. annual pay: 18.90%
> Avg. annual pay 2020: $43,847
Source: jhorrocks / E+ via Getty Images
17. New housing for-sale builders
> Employment change 2011-2020: 109.04%
> Employment 2020: 46,150
> 10-yr. change in avg. annual pay: 61.74%
> Avg. annual pay 2020: $103,123
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16. All other pipeline transportation
> Employment change 2011-2020: 111.55%
> Employment 2020: 806
> 10-yr. change in avg. annual pay: 63.33%
> Avg. annual pay 2020: $105,676
Source: guvendemir / E+ via Getty Images
15. Other non-scheduled air transportation
> Employment change 2011-2020: 112.85%
> Employment 2020: 6,309
> 10-yr. change in avg. annual pay: 20.97%
> Avg. annual pay 2020: $96,250
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14. Other marine fishing
> Employment change 2011-2020: 121.57%
> Employment 2020: 452
> 10-yr. change in avg. annual pay: 85.34%
> Avg. annual pay 2020: $88,098
Source: Mlenny / E+ via Getty Images
13. Wind electric power generation
> Employment change 2011-2020: 131.70%
> Employment 2020: 6,886
> 10-yr. change in avg. annual pay: 12.25%
> Avg. annual pay 2020: $107,375
Source: gilaxia / Getty Images
12. All other information services
> Employment change 2011-2020: 134.44%
> Employment 2020: 25,800
> 10-yr. change in avg. annual pay: 121.40%
> Avg. annual pay 2020: $153,414
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11. Political organizations
> Employment change 2011-2020: 134.85%
> Employment 2020: 16,597
> 10-yr. change in avg. annual pay: 31.78%
> Avg. annual pay 2020: $62,186
Source: ArtistGNDphotography / E+ via Getty Images
10. Distilleries
> Employment change 2011-2020: 138.01%
> Employment 2020: 18,148
> 10-yr. change in avg. annual pay: -8.39%
> Avg. annual pay 2020: $67,506
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9. Mobile food services
> Employment change 2011-2020: 139.65%
> Employment 2020: 20,555
> 10-yr. change in avg. annual pay: 31.54%
> Avg. annual pay 2020: $22,882
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Source: Kamonchai Mattakulphon / iStock via Getty Images
8. General warehousing and storage
> Employment change 2011-2020: 146.89%
> Employment 2020: 1,344,544
> 10-yr. change in avg. annual pay: 7.38%
> Avg. annual pay 2020: $43,707
Source: Daisy-Daisy / iStock via Getty Images
7. Services for the elderly and disabled
> Employment change 2011-2020: 177.07%
> Employment 2020: 1,987,729
> 10-yr. change in avg. annual pay: 14.51%
> Avg. annual pay 2020: $21,738
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6. Internet publishing and web search portals
> Employment change 2011-2020: 177.45%
> Employment 2020: 291,104
> 10-yr. change in avg. annual pay: 98.88%
> Avg. annual pay 2020: $267,732
Source: millann / iStock via Getty Images
5. Breweries
> Employment change 2011-2020: 197.51%
> Employment 2020: 79,457
> 10-yr. change in avg. annual pay: -27.06%
> Avg. annual pay 2020: $48,032
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4. Other food crops grown under cover
> Employment change 2011-2020: 212.35%
> Employment 2020: 26,353
> 10-yr. change in avg. annual pay: 48.83%
> Avg. annual pay 2020: $40,373
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Source: Capuski / iStock via Getty Images
3. Local messengers and local delivery
> Employment change 2011-2020: 213.16%
> Employment 2020: 144,704
> 10-yr. change in avg. annual pay: 31.37%
> Avg. annual pay 2020: $38,878
Source: TebNad / iStock via Getty Images
2. Other electric power generation
> Employment change 2011-2020: 217.92%
> Employment 2020: 2,537
> 10-yr. change in avg. annual pay: 45.29%
> Avg. annual pay 2020: $139,615
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1. Solar electric power generation
> Employment change 2011-2020: 704.88%
> Employment 2020: 4,290
> 10-yr. change in avg. annual pay: -10.41%
> Avg. annual pay 2020: $106,656
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