Manufacturing Still Among Top Five U.S. Employers

Data from the U.S. Census Bureau demonstrates the many contributions of the manufacturing sector. Manufacturing is the fifth largest employer, with 11.9 million workers in the United States in 2018 and an average annual employee payroll of $60,260. The value of shipments rose to $6 trillion in 2018. Nearly six in ten U.S. exporting dollars come from manufacturers. Manufacturing Metrics.