In public education, teachers lost jobs while management gained jobs: Job losses in key occupations within the public-sector educational services industry between 2019 and 2020
| Occupation group | Employment (2019) | Share of industry | Employment (2020) | Job changes | Percent change in jobs | Share of net losses | Average wages (2019) | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Management, business, and financial occupations | 762,117 | 8.5% | 815,269 | 53,153 | 7.0% | N/A | $36.83 | ||
| Professional and related occupations | 6,371,282 | 71.2% | 6,086,238 | -285,044 | -4.5% | 56.6% | $30.54 | ||
| Education instruction and library occupations | 5,495,249 | 61.5% | 5,206,289 | -288,959 | -5.3% | 57.4% | $30.41 | ||
| K–12 teachers | 3,883,380 | 43.4% | 3,676,652 | -206,728 | -5.3% | 41.1% | $31.21 | ||
| Postsecondary teachers | 688,953 | 7.7% | 537,005 | -151,948 | -22.1% | 30.2% | $38.72 | ||
| Teaching assistants | 690,775 | 7.7% | 824,687 | 133,912 | 19.4% | N/A | $19.19 | ||
| Service occupations | 886,734 | 9.9% | 711,010 | -175,724 | -19.8% | 34.9% | $15.66 | ||
| Food preparation and serving related occupations | 275,705 | 3.1% | 228,747 | -46,959 | -17.0% | 9.3% | $13.55 | ||
| Building and grounds cleaning and maintenance occupations | 364,729 | 4.1% | 325,514 | -39,215 | -10.8% | 7.8% | $16.75 | ||
| Personal care and service occupations | 152,017 | 1.7% | 63,311 | -88,706 | -58.4% | 17.6% | $14.66 | ||
| Child care | 113,595 | 1.3% | 46,538 | -67,057 | -59.0% | 13.3% | $14.41 | ||
| Office and administrative support occupations | 559,256 | 6.3% | 528,422 | -30,834 | -5.5% | 6.1% | $19.77 | ||
| Transportation and material moving occupations | 212,655 | 2.4% | 157,893 | -54,762 | -25.8% | 10.9% | $18.12 | ||
| Bus drivers | 187,787 | 2.1% | 129,378 | -58,409 | -31.1% | 11.6% | $17.90 | ||
Notes: “2019” refers to the 12 months from March 2019 to February 2020 and “2020” refers to the 12 months from March 2020 to February 2021. Cells labeled N/A indicate job gains.
Source: Economic Policy Institute Current Population Survey Extracts, Version 1.0.15 (2021), https://microdata.epi.org.