Workforce
Lawrence County, Alabama is included with neighboring Morgan County in the Decatur Metropolitan Area. Employees working in Lawrence County come from nine counties throughout North Alabama, giving the county a well-trained and diverse workforce.
Lawrence County’s workforce benefits from an abundance of nearby technical training and higher education opportunities. In addition to the area’s two-year and four-year institutions, Lawrence County also offers job training through local and state technical programs.
February 2018 Employment Data
| Civilian Labor Force | Employment |
Unemployment | Unemployment Rate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Source: Alabama Department of Labor, February 2018 data. | ||||
| Lawrence County | 13,646 | 13,006 | 640 | 4.7% |
| Decatur MA | 68,690 | 65,834 | 2,856 | 4.2% |
| Alabama | 2,169,8785 | 2,077,644 | 92,231 | 4.3% |
| U.S. | 161,494,000 | 154,403,000 | 7,091,000 | 4.4% |
2017 Average Employment Data
| Civilian Labor Force | Employment | Unemployment | Unemployment Rate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Source: Alabama Department of Labor, February 2018 data. | ||||
| Lawrence County | 13,640 | 12,974 | 666 | 4.9% |
| Decatur MA | 68,480 | 65,562 | 2,918 | 4.3% |
| Alabama | 2,168,444 | 2,073,106 | 95,338 | 4.4% |
| U.S. | 160,320,000 | 153,337,000 | 6,982,000 | 4.4% |
2017 Average Labor Area Workforce
| Civilian Labor Force | Employment | Unemployment | Unemployment Rate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Source: Alabama Department of Labor, 2017 Unemployment data. | ||||
| Lawrence | 13,640 | 12,974 | 666 | 4.9% |
| Colbert | 23,092 | 21,889 | 1,203 | 5.2% |
| Cullman | 37,637 | 36,239 | 1,398 | 3.7% |
| Franklin | 13,960 | 13,369 | 591 | 4.2% |
| Lauderdale | 41,868 | 39,937 | 1,931 | 4.6% |
| Limestone | 41,092 | 39,457 | 1,635 | 4.0% |
| Morgan | 54,580 | 52,588 | 2,252 | 4.1% |
| Winston | 9,646 | 9,164 | 482 | 5.0% |
| Total | 235,515 | 225,617 | 10,158 | 4.46% |
2017 Underemployment Data
| North Alabama | Lawrence County | Morgan County | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Note: Rounding errors may be present. Based on March 2017 labor force data and 2016 underemployment rates. Source: Center for Business and Economic Research, The University of Alabama and Alabama Department of Labor. |
||||
| Underemployment | 23.4% | 23.3% | 19.7% | |
Inflow
Total Primary Jobs: 5,338
Workers Living and Working in Lawrence County: 2,360
Total Employed in Lawrence County, but Living Outside the County: 2,978
| Source: On the Map, US Census, Alabama Department of Labor | ||||
| Morgan County | 751 | 14.1% | ||
| Lauderdale County | 439 | 8.2% | ||
| Colbert County | 292 | 5.5% | ||
| Madison County | 187 | 3.5% | ||
| Limestone County | 167 | 3.1% | ||
Outflow
Total Primary Jobs: 11,944
Total Living in Lawrence County, but Employed Outside the County: 9,584
| Source: On the Map, US Census, Alabama Department of Labor | ||||
| Morgan County | 4,974 | 41.6% | ||
| Madison County | 1,367 | 11.4% | ||
| Colbert County | 633 | 5.3% | ||
| Jefferson County | 619 | 5.2% | ||
| Lauderdale County | 481 | 4.0% | ||
Click here for the State of the Workforce Report XI ( May 2017)