Manufacturers’ News, Inc. — Manufacturing employment increased in New Jersey for a second straight year, reports the 2015 New Jersey Manufacturers Register ^®, an industrial database and directory published by Manufacturers’ News, Inc. (MNI) Evanston, IL. According to data collected by MNI, New Jersey manufacturers added 2,651 jobs from January 2014 to January 2015, a half percent increase, lagging behind the 1.8% national average increase reported by the Labor Department for the same time period.

Manufacturers’ News reports New Jersey is now home to 9,269 manufacturers employing 405,155 workers.

“Though far from pre-recession levels, investment in New Jersey’s industrial sector continues to pick up speed and employment has risen accordingly,” says Tom Dubin, President of the Evanston, IL-based publishing company, which has been surveying industry since 1912. “The state is well-known as a center for innovation, particularly in the chemical and pharmaceutical industries, and its more traditional sectors such as food processing have also posted gains.”

According to Manufacturers’ News, employment gains were led by the food products industry, which climbed 3.8% in 2014. Food manufacturers in New Jersey currently employ the third-most industrial workers in the state with 38,375 jobs.

The chemicals industry, which accounts for the most manufacturing jobs in New Jersey, posted a 1% gain. The chemicals sector accounts for 20% of New Jersey’s industrial employment, or 79,052 jobs.

Job gains were also reported in transportation equipment, up 13%; electronics, up 3.1%; and furniture/fixtures, up 3.4%.

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MNI reports Newark ranks first in the state for industrial employment with 9,890 jobs, up 1.1% in 2014. Manufacturing employment rose 5.3% in Somerset; 3.4% in Parsippany; and 1% in Piscataway.

Established in 1912, Manufacturers’ News, Inc. is the nation’s oldest and largest publisher of industrial information. MNI offers a variety of tailored solutions to help customers connect with 430,000 manufacturers and suppliers. MNI’s industrial database subscription service EZ Select allows users to tap into a live interactive database of manufacturers, while its industrial search engine IndustryNet connects buyers and suppliers and allows users to view profiles and obtain competitive quotes. For more information, contact Manufacturers’ News, Inc. 847-864-7000. http://www.manufacturersnews.com