Happy New Year!
As we head into the new year, our regional blogs highlight a Minnesota labor market that is both evolving and resilient - from mixed views on AI’s role in the job search and seasonal retail hiring in the Twin Cities, to strong demand in healthcare, a diversifying workforce in Northwest Minnesota, and encouraging signs of continued labor force entry across Greater Minnesota. We wish you a Happy New Year, filled with fresh insights, new opportunities, and plenty of new data to explore! For more information, please reach out to your regional analyst.
Is artificial intelligence already reshaping the job search – or is it mostly background noise? When we asked job counselors whether AI has impacted their clients’ job search or employment experiences, the most common response wasn’t yes or no – it was unsure. Nearly half (45%) said they weren’t certain whether AI has made a difference at all. Another 33% said yes, while 21% said no. The perception mirrors what job counselors said across Minnesota.
With December comes holiday hiring across the Retail Trade industry sector. In the Twin Cities Metro Area, there were 8,160 establishments in Retail Trade supplying just over 152,000 covered jobs. As such, Retail Trade is the region's third largest-employing industry sector, accounting for nearly one-in-ten jobs. Broken down by specific sectors, General Merchandise Retailers accounts for nearly one-quarter of the region's total Retail Trade employment, with just over 35,100 jobs.
I had my semiannual dental visit earlier this month and after talking with my Dental Hygienist and Dentist, it got me to thinking about the dental workforce in our region. Their professional experience and observations align with the data that show that many occupations in the dental field continue to be in high demand. In 2025, there were an estimated 100 General Practitioner Dentists working in Northeast Minnesota along with 290 Dental Hygienists and 330 Dental Assistants. Wages for all three primary dental roles exceeded the regional median wage.
The story of Northwest Minnesota's employment recovery isn't just about numbers surpassing pre-pandemic levels – it's about who is doing the work. New data reveals a fundamental shift: the region's workforce is becoming dramatically more racially diverse, with communities of color now driving all net employment growth while the White workforce contracts. This transformation, accelerated by the pandemic, has profound implications for workforce development, recruitment strategies, and regional economic planning.
Every year, Minnesota collects detailed wage and employment information for approximately 800 occupations through the Occupational Employment & Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey. This data helps job seekers understand earning potential, assists employers in setting competitive wages, and guides workforce development decisions.
Though the region's unemployment rate has been ticking upward over the past year, the number of initial and continuing claims for Unemployment Insurance being filed by workers in Southwest Minnesota has been trending downward and remains near historic lows. The good news is that means that new workers are entering the workforce and looking for jobs at employers in the region.
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