The Washington region outpaced the nation in job growth within the professional, scientific and technical services sector between 2003 and 2004, according to U.S. census figures released Thursday.
Fairfax County was among the top employers in the country for the sector and Arlington County grew its employment base by more than 30 percent — 10 times the national figure.
“This is a hub for high-level technology,” said Karen Vasquez, a spokeswoman for Arlington Economic Development.
Arlington County added 73 professional, scientific and technical services companies between 2003 and 2004 and nearly 8,000 new workers for a total of 34,465. The county also increased its annual payroll by 24.5 percent — from about $2 to $2.5 billion.
“I think it says a lot about Arlington,” Vasquez said. “It especially helps to counteract some of the concerns that arose from the BRAC [military base realignment] decisions. There is a concern that Arlington will experience a loss of high-tech workers because of the BRAC-affected agencies and their workers potentially leaving.”
Fairfax held on to its status as the region’s employment powerhouse with the addition of nearly 17,000 workers in the sector. With more than 140,000 employees and about 6,700 firms, the county has a bigger professional, scientific and technical sector than even San Francisco, which led the nation in the growth of such jobs.
“Fairfax County, unlike some of our neighbors, has consistently been very aggressive about attracting businesses for a very long time,” said Jerry Gordon, president and CEO of the Fairfax County Economic Development Authority.
“That builds up a buzz. … Others are just trying to catch up at this point.”
Every other surrounding county, as well as the District, saw growth in both employment and new companies in the sector between 2003 and 2004. Loudoun County increased its number of professional, scientific and technical services employees by more than 24 percent.
Nationwide, the sector grew by about 3 percent in the number of employees and companies. Overall, the retail industry led employment growth nationally, followed by health care and social assistance, and accommodations and food services. The southeastern region, which includes Virginia, Maryland and the District, led the nation in total employment growth with 630,000 new jobs.
