SERVICES PROGRAM

Program Description

In 2015, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) estimated over 72 million workers in service industries. The largest numbers of employees are in education (13 million), accommodations and food (10 million), and professional, scientific and technical (10 million). Jobs in the sector are highly diverse, and also include finance and insurance, real estate, arts, entertainment, recreation, and public administration, among others.  Veterinary medicine and animal care are part of the Healthcare and Social Assistance sector program. Firefighters, law enforcement and other public safety workers are part of the Public Safety sector program.

The work environments in the services industries include offices, hotel rooms, outdoor and indoor entertainment facilities, restaurant kitchens, classrooms, automotive garages, public roads, and private households. Services workers frequently travel on roadways as part of their jobs. Many youth are first employed in services jobs, especially in the Food Service and in Arts, Entertainment and Recreation sub-sectors. Some occupations require academic degrees and many jobs are physically demanding. A variety of occupational hazards potentially affect the health of these workers.

Major NAICS industries in the NIOSH Services sector

NAICS	NAICS Industry Title	Industries within NAICS Group	Number of Workers
51	Information	Libraries, Publishing, Sound and Movie Recording, Wired and Wireless Communications	2,998,000
52	Finance and Insurance	Depository and Non-depository Credit, Insurance, Brokerages	7,081,000
53	Real Estate, Rental, Leasing	Real Estate Brokerages, Facility Leasing and Rental, Real Estate Management, Consumer Products and Equipment Rental	3,005,000
54	Professional, Scientific and Technical*	Drafting and Design, Law Offices, Accounting, Direct Mail, Marketing and Public Relations, Survey and Mapping, Engineering, Laboratories, Consulting	10,625,000
55	Management of Corporations and Entities	Corporate, Subsidiary, and Regional Offices; Bank Holding Companies	193,000
56	Administrative Support and Waste Management	Office, Business and Facility Support; Building Services; Travel Reservations; Investigation; Waste Collection, Treatment and Disposal; Employment Services	6,591,000
61	Education	Primary and Secondary Schools, Technical and other Colleges, Universities, Professional Schools, Educational Support	13,601,000
71	Arts, Entertainment and Recreations	Performing Arts, Spectator Sports, Museums, Zoos, Botanical Gardens, Amusement Parks, Gambling Industries, Historic Sites, and Nature Sites	3,184,000
72	Accommodations and Food Services	Hotels and Motels, RV Parks, Boarding Houses, Restaurants, Catering, Drinking Establishments	10,637,000
81	Other Services	Automobile and Machine Servicing and Repair; Giving Organizations; Religious Organizations; Social Clubs; Business, Professional, Labor, Political and Trade Organizations; Personal Care; Laundries; Private Households	7,264,000
92	Public Administration	Local, State, and Federal Governments excluding Members of the Military (Public safety workers have been included in a separate NORA sector grouping.)	6,928,000

*Veterinary Medicine is part of the NORA Healthcare and Social Assistance Sector

For more information about the Services sector, please see the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) Web site (Code 51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 56, 61, 71, 72, 82, and 92)

The Number of Workers is obtained from the 2015 Current Population Survey, http://www.bls.gov/cps/cpsaat18.pdf , accessed 22 August 2016

The Services Program focuses on the following subsectors:

1. Automotive Repair and Maintenance

2. Building Services

3. Education and Schools

4. Hotels and Motels

5. Public Administration (aka Government) except Public Safety

6. Recreation and Entertainment

7. Restaurants and Food Services

8. Telecommunications

9. Temporary Labor Industry

10. Waste Collection and Disposal

11. Hair and Nail Salons

Temporary workers are often employed by companies in this sector but may actually work in manufacturing, construction or other sectors.  Temporary workers are of special interest because of their tenuous employment situation and high injury risk.