Virginia's industrial employment saw little change in the past year as it only recorded a slight gain of 284 jobs, according to the 2013 Virginia Manufacturers Directory, published annually by Manufacturers' News Inc. in Evanston, Ill.
After calculating this small gain, Virginia now accounts for 6,420 manufacturers with 329,788 workers, MNI finds.
"The state continues to see its manufacturing sector improve," says Tom Dubin, president of the MNI. "Virginia has fared very well economically compared to most other states in the region."
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The top industrial sector by employment in Virginia is transportation equipment manufacturing with 37,323 jobs, a 2.1 percent increase, followed by food products with 33,758 jobs, up 1.6 percent, MNI finds. Printing and publishing come in third with 28,790 jobs, a 5 percent decline.
Other sectors that recorded job growth are electronics at 6.3 percent and industrial machinery and equipment at 2.4 percent, MNI states. Of the sectors with losses are furniture and fixtures at minus 6.8 percent; fabricated metals at minus 5.3 percent; stone, clay and glass at minus 3.8 percent; lumber and wood at minus 3.4 percent; and textiles and apparel at minus 3 percent.
Richmond ranks at Virginia's top city for manufacturing employment with 28,063 jobs, marking a decrease of 5.2 percent, MNI finds. Second-ranked Newport News accounts for 25,499 jobs, down 1 percent, while Roanoke is home to 10,508 jobs, a drop of 6.7 percent. Lynchburg is fourth with 9,859 jobs, which is nearly unchanged, followed by Norfolk with 9,637 jobs, down 3.7 percent.
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