Employment Indicators for Rhode Island (2024)

Total Employed

559,823
Civilian 16+

Private For-Profit

69.0 %
Largest Sector

Self-Employed

5.5%
Entrepreneurship

Government

13.1%
Public Sector

Rhode Island Workforce by Sector & Gender

Employment sector breakdown by gender in
Figure 1: Male vs Female participation in employment sectors (2024).

Rhode Island Employment Sector Breakdown

SectorTotal WorkersPercentage
Private For-Profit386,22569.0%
Government73,35513.1%
Self-Employed30,6285.5%
Private Non-Profit68,91912.3%

Rhode Island Gender Ratio Analysis by Employment Sector (2024)

SectorMale:Female Ratio
Private For-Profit1.21:1
Government0.90:1
Self-Employed1.46:1

Rhode Island Employment Trends (2010–2024)

Long-term employment trends in

Rhode Island Historical Employment Sector Trends

YearPrivateGovSelf-EmpNon-Profit
202469.0%13.1%5.5%12.3%
202369.2%13.3%5.1%12.3%
202269.5%13.3%4.9%12.1%
202170.1%13.1%4.8%11.8%
202070.3%12.9%4.9%11.7%
201971.2%12.7%4.8%11.1%
201871.7%12.4%4.9%10.9%
201771.5%12.2%5.0%11.2%
201671.1%12.4%5.0%11.4%
201571.0%12.7%4.9%11.4%
201470.4%13.1%5.0%11.4%
201369.8%13.1%5.2%11.8%
201269.7%13.2%5.3%11.8%
201169.4%13.3%5.5%11.6%
201069.5%13.3%5.8%11.3%

Employment Sector FAQs for Rhode Island

The largest employment sector in Rhode Island is Private For-Profit, which employs 69.0% of the local workforce.

There are approximately 559,823 civilian workers aged 16 and over currently employed in Rhode Island.

In the private for-profit sector, the male-to-female ratio is 1.21:1. This metric helps highlight gender participation across the most prominent industry classes.

Yes, the non-profit sector is notable in Rhode Island, accounting for 12.3% of all workers.

Since 2010, the total number of workers in Rhode Island has shown an increase, moving from 515,924 to 559,823 according to Census Bureau records.