The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts that employment in the United States will continue to grow over the next decade, but at a significantly slower pace than in the previous decade. New job opportunities will be more concentrated in a few industries, among which The power demand brought about by AIPopulation aging, as well as enterprises increasing their investment in technology, are the main driving factors.
The overall growth rate has significantly slowed down.
A report released by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics at the end of last month shows that from 2025 to 2035, the total number of jobs in the United States is expected to increase by 5.9 million, reaching 176.2 million, with a growth rate of 3.5%. This level is significantly lower than the 10.9% seen in the previous decade.
Against the backdrop of a slowdown in overall growth, new job opportunities in the future will not be evenly distributed, but will instead concentrate more in areas such as electricity, healthcare, and technical services.
Data centers drive up demand for electric power-related hiring
The report states that utilities will become the industry with the fastest recruitment growth over the next decade, with employment expected to increase by 9.8%. The main reason is that large technology companies continue to build data centers, driving up demand for electricity.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics indicates that nearly all of the new jobs will come from the fields of power generation, transmission, and distribution, with the electricity demand generated by AI being an important driving force. Within these sub-industries, employment in solar power generation is expected to grow by 153%, and in wind power generation by 62%.
The most significant medical contributions lead to the creation of new positions.
In terms of the number of new jobs created, healthcare is expected to be the main source of employment over the next decade. The industry is projected to grow by 9.5% and will contribute 37% of all new jobs created by 2035.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics believes that population aging, as well as the increased prevalence of chronic diseases such as heart disease, cancer, and diabetes, are the main reasons driving the expansion of healthcare recruitment. Among specific occupations, the number of positions for licensed nurses is expected to increase by 41%, and for healthcare and health service managers, it is expected to increase by 24%.
Technical positions continue to expand.
Despite long-term concerns in the market that AI will compress programmer and software-related jobs, reports indicate that the technical services industry will still maintain relatively fast growth. The professional, scientific, and technical services sector is expected to grow by 8.6%, creating approximately 926,700 new jobs, which is the second-highest figure among all industries.
As more enterprises utilize AI tools to enhance operational and decision-making efficiency, the job market for data scientists is expected to grow by 34.6%, while that for computer and information research scientists is expected to grow by 21.8%.
Administrative support positions are expected to decline.
However, the impact of AI on employment is not uniform. The report predicts that there will be a 4% reduction in office and administrative support positions, amounting to about 752,100 fewer jobs, which is the largest decline among the main categories of occupations.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics indicates that, on one hand, AI will drive demand for certain jobs, while on the other hand, it may reduce the need for labor in other positions due to increased productivity. Generative AI is particularly likely to decrease the demand for jobs that involve a lot of repetitive tasks and will limit recruitment opportunities in certain professions such as art, design, entertainment, sports, and media.
