Workforce Overview | By Industry | Largest Employers | Corporate Expansions
Labor Cost & Earnings | Distribution of Earnings

One of the most significant advantages Utah offers employers is the quality of its work force.  CEOs of major companies, which have relocated to Utah during the past several years, report productivity advantages of 15% to 30% at their Utah facilities.

Labor Force Highlights
  • Utah's pool of young workers is projected to increase by 60% by the year 2020.
  • Utah is a right-to-work state, with only 6.2% of employees affiliated with unions.
  • At 22,000, Intermountain Health Care is the largest private employer.
  • In the 2002 New Economy Index, Utah ranked 7th in the nation in information technology jobs, and 12th overall for its ability to adapt well to the new economy.
  • Utah is ranked 4th nationally in terms of overall health.
  • Utah's unemployment rate for May 2003 is 5.3%, compared to the national rate of 6%.

In Utah, employers benefit from a strong work ethic and well educated workers. Utah is fourth in the nation in percentage of adults who have completed high school. The state also has a high literacy rate.  Furthermore, Utah has the youngest labor force of any state and its workers are among the healthiest. According to the United Health Foundation, Utah is ranked 4th nationally in terms of overall health. Utah has the fewest smokers per capita of any state and the risk for heart disease is 19 percent below the national average.

Due to Utah's high birth rate, employers also benefit from a labor supply that will continue to grow at more than twice the national average rate. From 2000-2002, Utah was the eighth fastest growing state. And, Utah is one of only a few states in the country with a growing indigenous labor force. With the national recession in place, Utah's rate of job growth fell to -1.0% in 2002, the first negative growth rate since 1964. Current projections are that employment growth in Utah will resume at a modest pace in mid-2003. Utah continues to have a ready supply of young workers due to our high birth rate. It is projected that the labor force will continue to increase twice as fast as the national average.

The supply of labor is aided by the high labor force participation rate in Utah. Among males over  16, some 81.8%  participated in the labor  force in 2000, compared to the national average of 74.4%. Utah's female participation rate is also above the national average, 63.3% compared to 60% nationally. Utah teens have the third-highest work force participation rate in the country.

Utah is one of 21 states with a right-to-work law. Under the Utah provision, no individual seeking or holding a job in the state may be forced to join or pay dues to a labor union. Union membership is low in Utah, with only  6.2% of manufacturing employees affiliating with unions, compared to a national average of 13.2%.