U.S. Auto-Related Jobs Grew 3% in 2018

Employment in the U.S. motor vehicles and components industry grew 3% last year to more than 2.53 million jobs, according to a government report.

The total includes people employed by carmakers, commercial vehicle companies, suppliers and repair facilities, but not dealers or other retailers.

The 2019 Energy & Employment Report tracks employment in five categories (fuels, electric power generation, transmission distribution and storage, energy efficiency and motor vehicles). Some 30,000 employers were surveyed across 53 energy technologies.

Manufacturing accounted for 40% of the total in the motor vehicles sector. This was followed closely by maintenance/repair at about 38%. The bulk of the rest of the positions were classified as wholesale/distribution/transport. “Professionals and business” personnel made up less than 3% of the total.

Broken down by powertrain type, jobs related to conventional gasoline and diesel vehicles accounted for 2 million positions, or 79% of the sector. Employment in these areas increased 1.4% in 2018.

Gains for jobs related to electrified vehicles jumped 18% to 231,200, according to the report. Employment for natural gas vehicles was up slightly, while fuel cell jobs fell about 9% to 9,800.

Four in five employers report difficulty in hiring new workers, with one-third saying it is “very difficult.” At the time of the survey, carmakers and suppliers predicted a 2.2% increase in employment for 2019.

The annual survey has been conducted for the past two years by the Energy Futures Initiative and the National Assn. of State Energy Officials. The Dept. of Energy previously managed it.