Although FIRE employment increased by the smallest amount since 1995 at 0.9 percent, the average wage increased by a phenomenal 12.6 percent. Since 1997, the average FIRE wage has increased by 37.6 percent.

The largest sector within FIRE is Real Estate with 33,573 jobs, an increase of 1,142 over the year. The diverse sector of Real Estate Agents and Managers added 835 jobs to average 19,790. Nonresidential Building Operators’ employment increased by 5.8 percent and its’ wages by 7.7 percent to 2,549 and $35,430, respectively. Apartment Building Operators’ employment levels remained steady with an increase from 7,132 to 7,153. Subdividers and Developers, NEC employment increased from 1,434 to 1,508 jobs.

Four years of steady increases in employment with Insurance Carriers ended in 2000 with a 955-job loss to 27,618. The average wage increased by 5.1 percent to $46,997. The only significant gain within Insurance carriers occurred in Pension, Health, and Welfare Funds with a gain of 228 jobs to 2,359. The largest decline was in Title Insurance with a loss of 14 percent to 3,098.

Insurance Agents, Brokers, & Service recorded a second consecutive annual employment decline from 11,219 to 11,042.

Non-Depository Credit Institutions employment reversed a growth trend in response to rising interest rates with a 1,773 job loss to average 14,183. The net loss can be entirely accounted for within Mortgage Bankers and Brokers, which saw a loss of 2,032 jobs to average 7,619. Personal Credit Institutions reversed a two-year slide by gaining 195 jobs to average 2,698.

Depository Institutions’ employment continued to rise slowly with a 2.4 percent increase to 29,694. The increase is attributed to a 619-job increase at Commercial Banks. There were 20,417 jobs with an annual average wage of $34,570 at Commercial Banks. The decline in employment at Savings Institutions continued with a 56-job loss to 1,432. Job growth at Credit Unions slowed slightly from 3.9 to 3.6 percent. Credit Union employment averaged 3,961 with an average wage of $28,777.

Security and Commodity Brokers, Dealers, Exchanges, and Services continued to grow at a rapid pace. Security Brokers and Dealers added 1,288 jobs to average 9,826 with an annual salary of $85,596. Employment in Services Allied with the Exchange of Securities or Commodities expanded by 26.9 percent to 4,642. This industry has increased by 290 percent since 1992. Security Brokers and Dealers’ employment increased at faster rate than previous years with a 15.1 percent increase to 9,826.