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                                   -- Employers and Employment


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-- Business establishments

       New Jersey had nearly one million business establishments in 2023, employing more than 4.2 million people, according to the most recent survey released by the US Census Bureau. "Small businesses", defined by federal agencies as firms with fewer than 500 employees. accounted for over 99% of total firms, but total employment in the state is approximately equally divided among enterprises of 500 employees or under and those with over 500 workers. Over three-quarters of the business establishments employed under 10 employees; just over 200 reported having 1,000 employees or more, representing only 0.1% of the total number of establishments. In 2022, about 913,400 people were working in the trade, transportation, and utilities industry in New Jersey--the highest of any industry. The education and health services industry employed the second highest number of people, at about 733,000 employees. 
​*  Statistics of US Businesses, US Census Bureau

NJ Firms
Establishments 
Employment
Payroll ($1,000)
194,218
231,974
3,636,293
​214,757,817
PictureAd celebrating Campbell Soup's national recognition circa 1930s. Image: NewJerseyAlmanac.com
-- Corporate headquarters

       New Jersey's best-known corporations include those founded in the nineteenth century such as Prudential, Campbell Soup and Johnson & Johnson. Toward the end of that century, the legislature enacted laws to persuade major corporate trusts and monopolies to establish their legal headquarters in the state, most notably succeeding in getting John D. Rockefeller's Standard Oil Trust to reincorporate in New Jersey in 1899 as a holding company, the Standard Oil of New Jersey. Although the Standard Oil trust allowed by New Jersey law was later held by the US Supreme Court in 1911 to violate the federal Sherman Antitrust Act and the trust was subsequently dissolved, New Jersey continued, along with Delaware, to have a reputation as providing a hospitable site for corporate headquarters. Later in the twentieth century, the state's suburban communities increasingly attracted leading executives as residents, with some firms relocating their headquarters to take advantage of shorter commuting times and more space for expansion.
Picture
Johnson & Johnson world headquarters in New Brunswick. Image: NewJerseyAlmanac.com
Picture
Original Johnson & Johnson building in New Brunswick. Image: KilmerHouse.org



​Advertising & Sponsorships
PictureAd in Scribner's Magazine featuring drawing of Prudential home office buildings in Newark superimposed on Rock of Gibralter. Image: NewJerseyAlmanac.com
       New Jersey is the site for the headquarters of 15 companies in the Fortune 500 list of the nation's largest companies by revenue published in June 2022. The state ranked 13th among the 50 states; the leading states were Texas (53); New York (51); California (50); Illinois (38); Ohio (25); and Pennsylvania (24). The largest New Jersey based companies on the list were No. 36: Johnson & Johnson (New Brunswick); No. 55: Prudential Financial (Newark); No. 65: Merck (Kenilworth); No. 177: Becton Dickinson (Franklin Lakes); No. 185: Cognizant (Teaneck); and No. 203: PBF Energy (Parsippany).


​*   New Jersey Places 15 companies in 2021 Fortune 500, ChooseNewJersey.com
-- Occupational sectors

           Among occupational groups, office and administrative support had the largest employment, with about 17% of all employment. Sales and related occupations; transportation and material moving, education, training and library, and food service occupations followed as the top occupational groups. Combined, these groups accounted for just over half the total jobs in the state. 
      
         As of 2013, federal, state and local government employment represented approximately 260,000 of total jobs, comprised of some 48,000 federal civilian employees and 212,000 state and local government employees (excluding education), according to the Census of Governments published by the US Census Bureau. Measured as a percentage of population, New Jersey had 240 state and local government employees per 10,000 persons in its population, ranking 28th lowest of the 50 states and slightly higher than the average for all states of 237 per 10,000 population. The total active duty military was 7,697 and total civilians employed by the military was 10,446 as of August 2013. Of federal civilian employees, the largest employment in New Jersey was by the Army (5,602); Department of Homeland Security (4,468); Department of Veterans Affairs (3,747); Navy (2,139); Air Force (2,061); and Department of Justice (1,296).
*  Census of Governments, US Census Bureau
*  States With Most Government Employees: Per Capita Rates By Job Type, Governing
*  Federal Employees by State, Governing
*  Military Active-Duty Personnel by State, Governing 

-- Largest employers

       Annual surveys ranking the state's largest employers include those compiled by NJBIZ and New Jersey Business in their print and online publications. In recent surveys, large private employers with over 10,000 employees in the state have included Amazon; Wakefern Food (Shop-Rite supermarkets); Wal-Mart Stores; UPS; Verizon Communications; Bank of America; CVS; PSE&G; and Johnson & Johnson. 

        Some regional and county economic development agencies and chambers of commerce also publish lists of largest employers in the county along with other occupational information, such as Middlesex County; and Monmouth County.. Lists of largest employers in the Philadelphia metropolitan and New York City metropolitan regions are published, respectively, by the Philadelphia Business Journal and Crain's New York Business.
​   
   *  Leading Employers, New Jersey Business Action Center
   *  The biggest private employer in each N.J. county, 2/2/2017, NJ.com
PictureMen wait in line in April 1935 to apply for work digging with a pick and shovel on Newark subway excavation project for $4 for a 10-hour day. Image: US Department of State

-- Employment services

       Several government agencies and commercial firms provide employment services. Nationally, major online web sites like Indeed, Monster, CareerBuilder and ZipRecruiter post job openings with tools to allow localized searches, and New Jersey sites with affiliated newspapers, such as nj.com, northjersey.com and app.com, also publish employment listings. The state government maintains career centers throughout the state, and provides an online Find a Job in NJ site with searches of available jobs and other assistance.
-- Employer organizations (See more at Business Associations)

       Statewide, regional and local business organizations offer diverse support services for New Jersey employers. The New Jersey Business and Industry Association and the New Jersey Chamber of Commerce are the most active lobbying organizations on major business issues, and sponsor events and programs on special topics. More focused industry, trade and professional organizations include the Commerce and Industry Association of New Jersey; Employers Association of New Jersey (human resources); NFIB-New Jersey (small business); New Jersey Retail Merchants Association; New Jersey Builders Association; NAIOP-NJ (commercial real estate development); New Jersey Hospital Association; Medical Society of New Jersey; New Jersey State Bar Association; and Chemistry Council of New Jersey. Regional, county and local chambers of commerce meet regularly for networking and discussion forums. (See more at Business Associations)

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