The nation’s hottest and coldest largest hiring markets are revealed in metro-level employment data for December, released Jan. 26 by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

The jobs data, together with an analysis of the nation’s top 50 most populous metros by LaborIQ® by ThinkWhy, shows that Kansas City, Mo.-Kan.; Salt Lake City; Indianapolis; Raleigh, N.C.; and Atlanta led all 50 cities in job growth.

Job growth measures employment expansion by percentage for a given area relative to other areas. Raleigh makes the top 5 list for the second straight month, and both Salt Lake City and Indianapolis have nearly returned to their pre-pandemic employment levels.

Related: Where the Jobs Will Be: 2021’s Top Hiring Markets

Mining construction expanded 6.8% in Kansas City from a year ago. Repair and maintenance, along with lending, had a strong December in Salt Lake City. Indianapolis saw strong year-over-year growth in construction and restaurants.

Raleigh continues to see solid year-over-year growth in professional, scientific and technical services, expanding 6.5% from a year earlier. In Atlanta, the professional and business services industry fared well, expanding in management and tech companies.

Other top 50 cities were much less successful in recouping jobs in December. Coming in at the bottom of the list are Providence, R.I.; Denver; Minneapolis-St. Paul; Portland, Ore.; and Detroit. Until vaccinations against COVID-19 become more widespread, cold-weather locations like several in the bottom 5 are likely to face challenges maintaining jobs in the already struggling restaurant industry, for example.

Conclusion

LaborIQ provides unique analysis on which markets are primed for hiring given current economic conditions. In the near term, some slowing in job growth is expected in early 2021 compared to record-setting months last summer. As a result, recruitment firms and hiring managers should focus their efforts on cities experiencing positive shifts in job growth from one month to the next. It’s these job markets and the businesses within them that will be more resilient to the economy’s macro trends.

LaborIQ by ThinkWhy continuously forecasts and reports labor data at all levels, measuring impact to cities, industries, occupations and business across the U.S.

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