The Scottish economy has seen both ups and downs, but here are a few industries that are driving growth.
In this post, we will look at five industries that are crucial to the Scottish economy, based on a variety of factors, including total job numbers, average earnings per job and location quotient (LQ).
In terms of number of jobs, engineering activities top the list with 53,176 jobs. The industry has grown an impressive 25 per cent since 2009, and wages are well above average. In Aberdeen City, Aberdeenshire and North East Moray, engineering activities and related technical consultancy comprise 27,280 jobs, with average earnings of £44,468 per job. The industry has also grown 32 per cent in the region since 2009.
Human health activities account for 41,290 of the country’s jobs. The industry is also one and a half times as concentrated in Scotland as in Great Britain as a whole. Other human health activities are growing in Scotland (a 10 per cent increase since 2009), most notably in Angus and Dundee City (1,227 jobs added since 2009).
Combined facilities support activities are a sub category of services to buildings and landscape activities that makes up approximately 40 per cent of the higher level industry. Combined facilities support activities contribute 28,635 jobs to the economy of Scotland, a number which has increased most notably in North Lanarkshire with 2,386 jobs added in the last four years. Glasgow City also has a large number of workers in this industry (19,299 jobs), but the jobs have declined 11 per cent since 2009.
Activities of sports clubs have seen an astounding 41 per cent increase over the last four years, adding 6,593 jobs since 2009. The industry is growing in all regions of Scotland, from Glasgow to Dumfries, but the biggest growth has been seen in Dunbartonshire and Helensburgh & Lomond. In that region, activities of sports clubs has gained 864 jobs, an increase of 107 per cent.
Petroleum and natural gas industries have been growing in Scotland as well. Support activities for petroleum and natural gas extraction make up a large part of the Scottish economy, with an LQ of 9.89. Overall, the industry has grown 2.3 per cent since 2009, but during 2010, it declined by almost 5 per cent. Almost all of the jobs in the industry are in Aberdeenshire and North East Moray (18,043 jobs in 2013). The industry is almost eighty times more concentrated in the region than in Great Britain as whole. In spite of the current growth, it appears that the health of the petroleum and gas industry is still somewhat in question.
Next week, we will look at five industries that are heavily concentrated in Scotland compared to the rest of the UK.
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