Labor Market Information Center

2025 Annual Report

Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages

Summary of 2025 Trends

Number of Covered Workers

The number of employees covered by unemployment insurance in 2025 was 460,365 workers. This represents an increase of 0.4% from 2024. This chart indicates that six supersectors showed worker gains, four supersectors decreased and one remained unchanged during 2025. The Trade, Transportation, and Utilities supersector has the highest number of workers mainly because retail trade has a high average number of employees. In 2025 the number of covered wage and salaried workers equaled 96.0% of South Dakota's wage and salaried workers. Covered workers are counted at their place of work. A person who works for more than one covered employer is counted at each job.

Percentage change in employment of South Dakota covered workers by industry sector from 2024 to 2025

Average Number of Covered Workers by Ownership and Supersector
	2024	2025	Percent Change
Private Ownership
Natural Resources and Mining	8,491	8,742	3.0%
Construction	29,226	29,719	1.7%
Manufacturing	45,085	44,302	-1.7%
Trade, Transportation, and Utilities	91,841	91,886	0.0%
Information	5,129	5,083	-0.9%
Financial Activities	26,976	26,915	-0.2%
Professional and Business Services	37,294	37,412	0.3%
Education and Health Services	74,348	75,643	1.7%
Leisure and Hospitality Services	50,333	50,770	0.9%
Other Services	13,220	13,396	1.3%
Total Private Ownership	381,942	383,869	0.5%
Public Administration
Federal Government	11,742	11,378	-3.1%
State Government	14,753	14,835	0.6%
Local Government	50,113	50,284	0.3%
Total Government	76,608	76,497	-0.1%
Statewide Total	458,549	460,365	0.4%
Data subject to revision. Produced by the Labor Market Information Center, South Dakota Department of Labor and Regulation, in cooperation with the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Annual Pay of Covered Workers

Annual pay reflects total compensation paid to covered workers in the form of wages, salaries, bonuses, commission, and overtime pay during the year. Annual pay is calculated by dividing total payroll by the average number of workers. The statewide annual pay for workers covered by unemployment insurance for 2025 was $60,577. This represents an increase of 3.9% from 2024.

Annual pay is affected by the number of hours worked and the rate of pay. Full-time workers normally have higher annual pay than part-time workers do. Many of the industries with the lowest annual pay have a sizable percentage of part-time jobs. Industry specific annual pay is determined by the mix of full-time and part-time workers and high-paying and low-paying jobs. The Leisure and Hospitality supersector has the lowest industry annual pay of $24,183, because these types of businesses typically hire many part-time workers. Financial Activities workers have the highest annual pay at $88,966.

Annual Pay of Covered Workers by Ownership and Supersector
Private Ownership	2024	2025	Percent Change
Natural Resources and Mining	$57,089	$58,069	1.7%
Construction	$67,917	$71,093	4.7%
Manufacturing	$63,418	$66,214	4.4%
Trade, Transportation and Utilities	$52,587	$54,180	3.0%
Information	$69,682	$73,533	5.5%
Financial Activities	$84,356	$88,966	5.5%
Professional and Business Services	$78,726	$81,279	3.2%
Education and Health Services	$65,629	$68,899	5.0%
Leisure and Hospitality Services	$23,631	$24,183	2.3%
Other Services	$46,436	$48,583	4.6%
Total Private Ownership	$58,674	$61,041	4.0%
Public Administration
Federal Government	$85,214	$88,536	3.9%
State Government	$67,338	$68,426	1.6%
Local Government	$46,542	$48,396	4.0%
Total Government	$56,474	$58,251	3.1%
Statewide Total	$58,307	$60,577	3.9%

Back to Annual Summary Menu

Marcia Hultman