Both the Phoenix and Tucson metropolitan areas are forecast to generate faster job gains
in the next few years than other parts of the state. The Phoenix metropolitan area is
forecast to add 1.5 million jobs during the next 30 years, which would constitute an
average annual growth rate of 1.9 percent per year. Further, the Phoenix area alone
would account for 83.4 percent of all job gains made in the state. The Tucson MSA is also
projected to add jobs over the next 30 years, with the number of jobs increasing by
162,000, or 1.2 percent per year. Tucson is expected to account for 9.1 percent of all jobs
gained in Arizona during the forecast period.
Pinal County
Pima cotton is a
specially designed type
of cotton that is named
for the Pima Indians
from which the original
breeding stock was
derived. It is considered
one of the highest
quality cottons in the
world.
Since the county’s inception 135 years ago, copper mining has been and remains an
economic mainstay, creating thousands of jobs and generating billions of dollars in tax
revenue for the state, county and local economies. Many of the jobs in the mining
industry have higher than average salaries when compared with other industries.
Another major economic engine for the region is the agricultural industry which routinely
employs almost 55,000 individuals on a full‐ or part‐time basis, annually. The central to
western area of the county is home to hundreds of family‐, corporate‐, and
university‐based farms that produce a number of agricultural goods, including Pima
cotton, hay, sorghum, millet, corn, sheep, dairy products, feeder cattle, and several
varieties of fruits, vegetables, and nuts.
Arizona’s military industry, including the principal military operations and the businesses
they support, accounts for over 76,000 jobs that are dispersed across a wide range of
employment opportunities.
However, the largest employment sector is the government, which employs individuals in
Pinal County at the county, state, and federal levels. Smaller, but not insignificant
employment industries in the area include the service sector (15,000 jobs), the retail
sector (over 6,000 jobs), construction (1,600), and manufacturing (300 jobs).
Pinal County has diverse employment industries, which are shown on Figure 2‐3. The
order in which the categories are grouped are provided by the U.S. Census Bureau
American Community Survey 5‐year estimates. Much of Pinal County’s workforce is in
the industries of educational services, and health care, and social assistance. The
educational services and health care and social assistance is comprised of three distinct
parts ‐ private educational services (including private and public elementary, secondary,
and higher education institutions; trade and technical schools; and other instructional
services), healthcare (including private doctor's offices, hospitals, nursing home facilities,
outpatient services, and diagnostic laboratories), and social assistance (including family
services, emergency services, and day care services). The next four largest employment
sectors are retail trade; arts, entertainment, recreation, and accommodation and food
2-22
Community Profiles