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Virginia Employment Numbers: Charlottesville Leads, Bristol Trails

New numbers from the Bureau of Labor statistics show Virginia is steadily adding jobs, although some parts of the Commonwealth are growing much faster than others.

Charlottesville is adding jobs faster than any other part of the state, adding 2.4 percent to its workforce this year. Charlottesville director of economic development Chris Engel says that’s because people from all over the country are attracted to the city’s vibrant downtown area.

“Charlottesville has a very unique authentic appeal that is attractive to millennial workers and companies that attract young, knowledge based workers.”

On the other end of the spectrum is Bristol, straddling the boundary with Tennessee. It added about 200 jobs over the last year. That’s 0.2 percent employment growth. Director of Economic Development Bart Poe says that’s largely because Bristol recently lost a major manufacturer that made tops to soda cans. That’s in addition to the departure of a major coal company a few years ago.

“We’ve also tried to show these buildings as a pair so that we can have a manufacturing facility and maybe a corporate headquarters. So we’re getting a lot of attention for the buildings, so we have high hopes for that.”

If the economic development folks in Bristol are successful, they’re hoping to be on the top of the job numbers next year. Poe says filling those buildings could bring as many as 500 new jobs to Bristol.

This report, provided by Virginia Public Radio, was made possible with support from the Virginia Education Association.