BRAC's Quarterly State of the Region - Q1 2025
New figures show the Baton Rouge Metro's population hit 880,000 in 2024 - its largest on record. This growing population is key to furthering recent economic growth.
Summary
The Capital Region has seen healthy job growth over the last year led by key industries including healthcare, construction, and leisure/hospitality.
The healthcare industry’s growth can be seen through projects like Our Lady of the Lake’s recent expansion in Ascension Parish. New investments in the pipeline, like Baton Rouge General’s hospital in Livingston Parish, suggest job creation in the sector isn’t slowing down anytime soon. Baton Rouge was already producing fresh healthcare talent at a faster rate than peer cities, and with projects like BRCC’s new Nursing and Allied Health building (set to open this fall) there’s good reason to believe the region can keep up with the growing demand for healthcare workers.
Growth in the construction sector has been led by specialty trade contractors. Construction laborers are up 9% in the last year, and the ranks of skilled trades workers in welding, plumbing, pipefitting, and carpentry have also increased. And demand in this sector could ramp up soon - Hyundai’s announcement last week that the company is building a $5.8 billion steel manufacturing facility in Ascension Parish will require thousands of construction workers over the project’s build-out phase. While construction on the Hyundai project is expected to start in 2026, demand for construction labor is likely to remain strong this year thanks to projects like Exxon’s recently-announced $100 million upgrade at its Baton Rouge facility.
Baton Rouge’s leisure and hospitality sector has grown about 4% over the past year. These figures, which run through January, likely don’t yet reflect any local impacts from Baton Rouge playing host to the United States Bowling Congress Open Championship. The tournament, which started in early March and runs through July, is expected to attract 58,000 bowlers to the region and pump $110 million into the local economy.
Lastly, new population numbers show the Capital Region grew in 2024. This not only signals some momentum for the region but also suggests Baton Rouge is attracting and retaining the workforce needed to support its growing industries.
Nonfarm jobs key takeaways:
The Baton Rouge Metro is up 6,900 nonfarm jobs (+2%) over the last year
Nonfarm job counts are near an all-time high
BLS recently revised up job counts in the Capital Region for most of last year
Major sector job growth key takeaways:
All key sectors grew in the last year
Strong growth in Private Education/Health Services (+2,400), Construction (+2,100), and Leisure/Hospitality (+1,500)
State government jobs are down 1,100 while local government jobs are up 1,300
Baton Rouge’s federal workforce is small (about 0.7% of all workers in the region), so downsizing impacts on job counts should be minimal
Top growing jobs key takeaways:
Occupations with strong growth mirror industries with strong growth (healthcare, construction)
Several of the top growing jobs are skilled trades, including welders, pipefitters, and carpenters
Managerial occupations also saw strong growth, including construction managers and operations managers
Most current job postings for postsecondary teachers are for adjunct instructors, not full-time professors
Jobs change compared to peers key takeaways:
Aside from healthcare, Baton Rouge has lagged out-of-state peers in key sector job growth since 2019
Hyundai’s new steel mill will boost the Capital Region’s manufacturing industry; once fully built out, the facility could increase manufacturing employment by more than 4%
Worker earnings key takeaways:
Earnings for workers in the Capital Region grew 14% in the last year, second-strongest growth in the state after Lake Charles
Workers in Baton Rouge earn more than those in any other metro across the state
Job postings key takeaways:
Job postings outnumber unemployed workers across the region
Registered nurses, retail workers, and retail supervisors are the most in-demand jobs in the Capital Region
“Project management” is the most sought after skill, showing up in 1 in 10 job postings
The median advertised salary for available jobs has increased 25% in the last year alone, from about $46,800 to about $58,300
Unemployment claims key takeaways:
Unemployment claims are at a two-year low in the Capital Region
Claims typically bottom out in the spring before increasing during the first half of summer - we should expect to see more workers go on unemployment over the next few months
Unemployment ticked up in January to 4.1%
Taxpayer migration key takeaways:
Baton Rouge has strong net migration from New Orleans and smaller Louisiana regions including Alexandria, Hammond, and Monroe
The region loses people on net to larger out-of-state regions including Houston, Dallas, and Atlanta
Parish population change key takeaways:
The Baton Rouge Metro’s population surpassed 880,000 in 2024, its largest on record
Livingston (+7% since 2020), Ascension (+6%), and West Baton Rouge (+5%) lead the region in growth
The metro’s population grew by about 5,400 in 2024, and the region has grown overall since 2020
Livingston (+2,316 residents in 2024), East Baton Rouge (+2,079), and Ascension (+1,580) saw strong growth in 2024, while St. Helena and West Baton Rouge saw more limited growth
Population change versus peers key takeaways:
Greenville, SC has seen the strongest growth among peers (+7%) since 2020
Columbia and Knoxville, both mid-sized regions home to an SEC school, have grown by 5% and 6% respectively since 2020.
While Baton Rouge leads key in-state peers in terms of population growth (+1%), it lags similarly-sized out-of-state peers
Population change components key takeaways:
International migration is responsible for most of the region’s growth since 2020
Natural change (births - deaths) has also contributed to population growth