The fastest growing (and declining) job industries of the next decade: Federal data

(NEXSTAR) – While the health care industry is predicted to see the fastest job growth over the next decade, it’s not the only space where employment is expected to rise, new data from the Labor Department shows. Some aspects of the health care industry, meanwhile, may not see such growth.

Last month, the Labor Department released data regarding its employment projections for the next decade. Through 2035, the report suggests the U.S. economy will add 5.9 million jobs.

It’s the private healthcare and social assistance industry that is anticipated to add the most jobs of any sector, the Labor Department found. An entirely different industry is projected to have the fastest job growth, though: utilities.

“The overall demand for electricity is expected to increase over the projections period due in large part to AI adoption and demand for related infrastructure, such as data centers,” the Labor Department said in the summary of its analysis.

Industries falling under health care and utilities comprise the top 10 projected to experience the fastest growth in wage and salary employment through 2035.

Landing at the top of the rankings is solar electric power generation, which the Labor Department predicts will see a nearly 153% increase in employment over the next decade. That equates to about 26,000 jobs, a far cry from the increase of about 625,400 jobs projected for the services for the elderly and those with disabilities (more on this in a moment).

You can view the top 10 fastest-growing industries below:

Among the industries above, the Labor Department projects the geothermal electric power generation sector will see employment increase by nearly 32%, or about 300 jobs.

Though proportionally large for the industry, that’s a small increase in comparison to the industries projected to see the biggest employment growth in the coming years.

Services for the elderly and those with disabilities sit squarely at the top of that list:

While local government was able to rank among the top 10 above, other government workers may not fare as well in the coming decade.

The apparel manufacturing sector, which employed 79,000 as of 2025, is forecast to diminish to 49,200 by 2035, a decline of about 30,000 jobs, or just shy of 38%.

Projected to see an even greater decline is the printing and related support activities sector. Here, data suggests employment could drop by about 58,300 jobs, or 17%.

The table below shows the 10 industries where the Labor Department has projected the most rapid decline in wage and salary employment through 2035.

Though neither made it into the above rankings, the federal government and local elementary and secondary schools stand at the top of the list of industries that could see the largest decline in employment over the next decade.

The former, excluding the U.S. Postal Service, employed more than 2.3 million people in 2025, the Labor Department data shows. By 2035, it’s projected that will drop roughly 91,000 to about 2.2 million.

Local grade schools, meanwhile, employed more than 7.6 million last year. In the next decade, that is forecast to drop about 83,000 to more than 7.5 million.

Though the health care industry as a whole is projected to grow in the coming years, the Labor Department forecasts nursing facilities could see a notable dip of about 44,700 jobs.

The table below shows the 10 industries the Labor Department expects will see the greatest decline in employment by 2035:

While not reflected directly in the tables above, the Labor Department said office and administrative support occupations could be the most impacted of any due to the “growing adoption of AI.” The overall group may “shed 752,100 jobs” in the next 10 years, “the most of any major occupational group,” according to the report’s summary.

Changes in employment don’t necessarily signify people are losing their jobs. They could take up employment in a different industry, for example.

The Labor Department also warns that it cannot “account for the inherent uncertainty of predicting long-term changes in the labor market.”