Despite headline-grabbing shifts toward electrification, the employment landscape of the global auto industry is a complex story of both stark contraction and promising growth, as evidenced by a 4.2% drop in U.S. manufacturing jobs even while Tesla's workforce surged by 68% in a single year.
Key Takeaways
- In 2023, the U.S. automotive manufacturing sector (NAICS 3361) employed 614,800 workers, down 4.2% from the previous year due to supply chain issues
- Globally, the automotive industry supported 14.1 million direct jobs in 2022, including manufacturing and assembly
- In 2022, Ford Motor Company had 173,000 employees worldwide, a reduction from 186,000 in 2021
- U.S. state of Michigan had 295,000 automotive-related jobs in 2023
- Ontario, Canada, employed 135,000 in automotive manufacturing in 2023
- Bavaria, Germany, had 220,000 auto industry jobs in 2023
- Global automotive employment fell by 1.8% from 2021 to 2022, reaching 14.1 million direct jobs
- U.S. automotive manufacturing jobs declined 5.7% year-over-year in 2023 to 614,800
- EU automotive employment dropped 2.4% in 2022 due to chip shortages
- U.S. assembly line workers in autos numbered 250,000 in 2023 BLS data
- Automotive engineers in U.S. totaled 180,500 in 2023, median wage $98,340
- Welders and cutters in U.S. auto sector: 45,200 employed in 2023
- U.S. automotive workforce average age 44.2 years in 2023 BLS survey
- Women comprised 28% of U.S. automotive manufacturing employees in 2023
- 65% of global automotive workers have high school or less education in 2022 ILO data
Global automotive employment dipped slightly in 2023, as job losses in traditional manufacturing were offset by growth in electric vehicles and retail.
Demographic Profiles
- U.S. automotive workforce average age 44.2 years in 2023 BLS survey
- Women comprised 28% of U.S. automotive manufacturing employees in 2023
- 65% of global automotive workers have high school or less education in 2022 ILO data
- U.S. auto engineers median age 41 years, 75% male in 2023
- Minority representation in U.S. autos at 42% in 2023, up from 38% in 2018
- Germany's auto workforce 55% over 45 years old in 2023
- India's auto sector 82% male workforce in 2023
- U.S. assembly line workers 35% Hispanic in 2023 demographics
- Global automotive management 85% male in 2023 McKinsey report
- U.S. auto dealer sales staff 72% male, average age 48 in 2023
- China's auto manufacturing 60% migrant workers under 35 in 2023
- EU automotive 22% female engineers in 2023
- U.S. automotive union membership 55% of production workers 2023
- Mexico auto plants 40% female workforce in assembly 2023
- Veteran employment in U.S. autos 8% above national average 2023
- South Korea auto workers average tenure 12.5 years in 2023
- UK auto sector 15% BAME representation in 2023
- Projected U.S. automotive job growth 2% by 2032, adding 20,000 jobs
- Global automotive skills gap affects 40% of firms in 2023 survey
- U.S. automotive apprenticeships enrolled 15,000 workers in 2023
- Women in U.S. auto engineering rose to 18% in 2023 from 15% 2018
Demographic Profiles Interpretation
The industry's future is being assembled by a surprisingly seasoned, male-dominated crew, but with promising signs that the hiring manager is finally checking some different boxes.
Employment Trends
- Global automotive employment fell by 1.8% from 2021 to 2022, reaching 14.1 million direct jobs
- U.S. automotive manufacturing jobs declined 5.7% year-over-year in 2023 to 614,800
- EU automotive employment dropped 2.4% in 2022 due to chip shortages
- China's auto jobs grew 3.2% in 2022 to 4.5 million, driven by EV boom
- India's automotive employment increased 4.1% to 19 million in 2023 post-COVID recovery
- Mexico auto manufacturing jobs rose 2.8% to 908,000 in 2023 on nearshoring
- Germany lost 25,000 auto jobs in 2023, down to 835,000
- U.S. auto dealer employment grew 1.2% to 1.15 million in 2023
- Global OEM employment shrank 0.9% in 2023 amid restructuring
- Japan's auto supplier jobs fell 1.5% to 3.5 million in 2022
- Ford cut 4,000 salaried jobs globally in 2023, total workforce to 173,000
- GM added 2,000 jobs in EV battery plants in 2023
- Volkswagen reduced workforce by 35,000 via attrition in 2023
- Tesla employment surged 68% from 2022 to 2023 to 140,473
- U.S. auto parts manufacturing jobs up 1.1% in Q4 2023
- South Korea auto employment stable at 410,000 in 2023 despite strikes
- Brazil auto jobs recovered 5% to 1.3 million in 2023
- UK manufacturing auto jobs down 3% to 183,000 in 2023
- EV transition projected to create 10 million new jobs globally by 2030
Employment Trends Interpretation
While the global auto industry sputters with job losses and chip shortage hangovers, the electric vehicle revolution is charging up a patchwork future, where China and Tesla surge while traditional powerhouses like Germany and the U.S. manufacturing sector grind gears through a painful, uneven transition.
Occupational Categories
- U.S. assembly line workers in autos numbered 250,000 in 2023 BLS data
- Automotive engineers in U.S. totaled 180,500 in 2023, median wage $98,340
- Welders and cutters in U.S. auto sector: 45,200 employed in 2023
- Machinists in motor vehicle manufacturing: 32,100 in U.S. 2023
- Industrial truck drivers in autos: 28,400 U.S. jobs 2023
- Quality control inspectors: 25,600 in U.S. automotive 2023
- Electrical engineers in autos: 15,200 U.S. 2023
- Team assemblers: 180,000 in U.S. motor vehicles 2023
- Software developers in automotive: 42,000 U.S. 2023
- Logistics coordinators in global autos: estimated 500,000 worldwide 2023
- Mechanics and repairers in U.S. auto dealers: 180,000 in 2023
- Production supervisors in autos: 22,000 U.S. 2023
- Industrial designers: 12,500 in U.S. automotive 2023
- Data scientists in EV auto firms: 18,000 U.S. 2023 growth
- Sales managers in auto dealers: 45,000 U.S. 2023
- CNC machine operators: 38,000 in U.S. autos 2023
- HR specialists in global OEMs: 120,000 estimated 2023
- Battery technicians emerging: 5,000 U.S. jobs in 2023
- Supply chain analysts: 25,000 in U.S. autos 2023
- Marketing specialists in autos: 30,000 U.S. 2023
Occupational Categories Interpretation
The modern car is built by fewer hands turning wrenches, and more minds writing code, analyzing data, and managing the vast, intricate dance of global supply chains—proving that today's automotive industry runs as much on silicon and spreadsheets as it does on steel and sweat.
Regional Distribution
- U.S. state of Michigan had 295,000 automotive-related jobs in 2023
- Ontario, Canada, employed 135,000 in automotive manufacturing in 2023
- Bavaria, Germany, had 220,000 auto industry jobs in 2023
- Shanghai, China, supported 800,000 automotive jobs in 2022
- Detroit metro area employed 120,000 in auto manufacturing in 2023
- Gujarat, India, had 500,000 automotive sector jobs in 2023
- Baden-Württemberg, Germany, employed 350,000 in autos in 2023
- Tennessee, U.S., saw 85,000 auto jobs in 2023
- Maharashtra, India, employed 1.2 million in automotive in 2023
- Alabama, U.S., had 70,000 automotive manufacturing jobs in 2023
- North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, 150,000 auto jobs in 2023
- Kentucky, U.S., employed 92,000 in autos in 2023
- Tamil Nadu, India, 400,000 automotive jobs in 2023
- Ohio, U.S., had 110,000 auto manufacturing jobs in 2023
- Lower Saxony, Germany, 100,000 auto jobs in 2023
- Indiana, U.S., employed 105,000 in automotive in 2023
- Andhra Pradesh, India, 200,000 auto jobs in 2023
- South Carolina, U.S., 55,000 automotive jobs in 2023
- Hessen, Germany, 80,000 auto jobs in 2023
- Georgia, U.S., 40,000 auto manufacturing jobs in 2023
- Karnataka, India, 300,000 automotive jobs in 2023
- Texas, U.S., employed 60,000 in auto parts and assembly in 2023
- Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany, 50,000 auto jobs in 2023
- Missouri, U.S., 45,000 automotive jobs in 2023
- Haryana, India, 250,000 auto sector jobs in 2023
- Illinois, U.S., 75,000 auto manufacturing jobs in 2023
Regional Distribution Interpretation
While Michigan may still claim the "Motor City" crown, the global automotive assembly line has firmly expanded, with one Indian state now employing more people than Detroit, Bavaria, and Ontario combined.
Total Workforce Size
- In 2023, the U.S. automotive manufacturing sector (NAICS 3361) employed 614,800 workers, down 4.2% from the previous year due to supply chain issues
- Globally, the automotive industry supported 14.1 million direct jobs in 2022, including manufacturing and assembly
- In 2022, Ford Motor Company had 173,000 employees worldwide, a reduction from 186,000 in 2021
- General Motors employed 163,000 people globally as of December 2023, focused on North America and China
- Toyota Motor Corporation's global workforce stood at 370,870 in fiscal year 2023
- Volkswagen Group reported 682,700 employees in 2023, primarily in Europe
- The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported 1.02 million jobs in motor vehicles and parts manufacturing in 2023 average
- India's automotive sector employed 19 million people directly and indirectly in 2023
- China's auto industry had 4.5 million direct manufacturing employees in 2022
- Germany's automotive sector employed 835,000 people in 2023
- In the U.S., automotive dealers employed 1.15 million workers in 2023
- Stellantis had 272,000 employees globally in 2023
- Honda Motor Co. employed 197,039 people worldwide in FY2023
- South Korea's auto industry employed 410,000 direct workers in 2022
- Mexico's automotive manufacturing sector had 908,000 jobs in 2023
- Renault Group employed 168,400 people in 2023
- BMW Group had 154,878 employees worldwide as of December 2023
- The UK automotive industry employed 183,000 in manufacturing in 2023
- Japan's auto sector employed 5.5 million people including suppliers in 2022
- Tesla Inc. had 140,473 employees at the end of 2023
- Hyundai Motor Group employed 120,000 globally in 2023
- France's automotive industry employed 240,000 direct jobs in 2023
- Brazil's auto sector had 1.3 million jobs in 2023
- Canada's automotive manufacturing employed 125,000 in 2023
- Spain's auto industry employed 140,000 in manufacturing in 2023
- Thailand's automotive sector supported 500,000 jobs in 2022
- Iran's automotive industry employed 1.2 million in 2023
- Turkey's auto sector had 350,000 employees in 2023
- Australia's automotive manufacturing employed 50,000 before closure impacts in 2023 estimates
- In the European Union, automotive manufacturing employed 1.8 million in 2023
Total Workforce Size Interpretation
Though the gears of global automotive manufacturing employ millions, the industry finds itself navigating a precarious road where shifting supply chains and strategic pivots are tightening the bolts on workforce numbers, proving that even in an era of electric dreams, human hands remain both its engine and its most vulnerable component.
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