U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

Industries at a Glance

Personal and Laundry Services: NAICS 812

About the Personal and Laundry Services subsector

The personal and laundry services subsector is part of the other services (except public administration) sector.

Industries in the Personal and Laundry Services subsector group establishments that provide personal and laundry services to individuals, households, and businesses. Services performed include: personal care services; death care services; laundry and drycleaning services; and a wide range of other personal services, such as pet care (except veterinary) services, photofinishing services, temporary parking services, and dating services.

North American Industry Classification System

The personal and laundry services subsector consists of these industry groups:

Personal Care Services: NAICS 8121
Death Care Services: NAICS 8122
Drycleaning and Laundry Services: NAICS 8123
Other Personal Services: NAICS 8129

Workforce Statistics

This section provides information relating to employment and unemployment in personal and laundry services. While most data are obtained from employer or establishment surveys, information on industry unemployment comes from a national survey of households. The following tables present an overview of the industry including the number of jobs, the unemployment rate of those previously employed in the industry, mass layoffs, data for occupations common to the industry, and projections of occupational employment change.

Employment, Unemployment, and Layoffs


Data series	Feb. 2013	Mar. 2013	Apr. 2013	May 2013
Employment (in thousands)
Employment, all employees (seasonally adjusted)	1,329.3	1,329.5	(P) 1,329.9	(P) 1,333.0
Employment, production and nonsupervisory employees	1,136.9	1,144.0	(P) 1,154.6
Unemployment
Unemployment rate	6.9%	7.0%	7.8%	5.6%
Layoffs
Mass layoff events	(1) -	(1) -	(1) -
Initial claimants for unemployment benefits	(1) -	(1) -	(1) -
Footnotes (1) Data do not meet BLS or state agency disclosure standards. (P) Preliminary

(Source: Current Employment Statistics, Current Population Survey, Mass Layoff Statistics)

Extended Mass Layoffs


Data series	2nd quarter 2012	3rd quarter 2012	4th quarter 2012	1st quarter 2013
Extended mass layoff events	4	(1) -	(P) 10	(1) (P) -
Separations	742	(1) -	(P) 1,303	(1) (P) -
Initial claimants	585	(1) -	(P) 1,296	(1) (P) -
Footnotes (1) Data do not meet BLS or state agency disclosure standards. (P) Preliminary

(Source: Mass Layoff Statistics)

Employment by Occupation


Data series	Employment, 2012
Counter and rental clerks	57,720
First-line supervisors/managers of personal service workers	22,900
Hairdressers, hairstylists, and cosmetologists	321,190
Laundry and dry-cleaning workers	105,550
Pressers, textile, garment, and related materials	43,600

(Source: Occupational Employment Statistics)

Projections

For projected (future) employment estimates, see the National Employment Matrix, which includes employment estimates by industry and occupation for personal and laundry services.

(Source: Office of Occupational Statistics and Employment Projections)

Earnings and Hours

This section presents data on employee earnings and weekly hours. The latest industry averages of hourly earnings and weekly hours are shown. In addition, recent hourly and annual earnings are shown for occupations commonly found in personal and laundry services.

Earnings and Hours of All Employees


Data series	Jan. 2013	Feb. 2013	Mar. 2013	Apr. 2013
Average hourly earnings	$15.49	$15.64	$15.71	(P) $15.71
Average weekly hours	28.7	29.1	29.3	(P) 29.2
Footnotes (P) Preliminary

(Source: Current Employment Statistics)

Earnings and Hours of Production and Nonsupervisory Employees


Data series	Jan. 2013	Feb. 2013	Mar. 2013	Apr. 2013
Average hourly earnings	$13.69	$13.76	$13.82	(P) $13.82
Average weekly hours	27.5	27.9	28.1	(P) 28.1
Footnotes (P) Preliminary

(Source: Current Employment Statistics)

Earnings by Occupation


Data series	Wages, 2012
	Hourly		Annual
	Median	Mean	Median	Mean
Counter and rental clerks	$9.13	$9.93	$19,000	$20,650
First-line supervisors/managers of personal service workers	$16.69	$18.26	$34,700	$37,980
Hairdressers, hairstylists, and cosmetologists	$10.94	$12.88	$22,740	$26,780
Laundry and dry-cleaning workers	$9.38	$10.00	$19,500	$20,800
Pressers, textile, garment, and related materials	$9.45	$9.89	$19,660	$20,580

(Source: Occupational Employment Statistics)

Work-related Fatalities, Injuries, and Illnesses

This section presents data for the industry on the number of workplace fatalities and the rates of workplace injuries and illnesses per 100 full-time workers in personal and laundry services. An injury or illness is considered to be work-related if an event or exposure in the work environment either caused or contributed to the resulting condition or significantly aggravated a pre-existing condition.


Data series	2008	2009	2010	2011
Fatalities
Number of fatalities	29	29	39	46
Rate of injury and illness cases per 100 full-time workers
Total recordable cases	2.8	2.5	2.3	2.4
Cases involving days away from work, job restriction, or transfer	1.5	1.4	1.3	1.4
Cases involving days away from work	0.8	0.8	0.8	0.8
Cases involving days of job transfer or restriction	0.7	0.6	0.5	0.5
Blank cells indicate no data reported or data that do not meet publication criteria.

(Source: Injuries, Illnesses, and Fatalities)

Workplace Trends

This section presents data on the number of establishments in personal and laundry services.

Establishments


Data series	4th quarter 2011	1st quarter 2012	2nd quarter 2012	3rd quarter 2012
Number of establishments
Private industry	195,483	(P) 195,737	(P) 196,851	(P) 197,966
Local government	1,123	(P) 1,118	(P) 1,116	(P) 1,115
State government	9	(P) 10	(P) 10	(P) 10
Federal government	140	(P) 142	(P) 142	(P) 140
Footnotes (P) Preliminary