The graph illustrates the number of jobs in four different sectors of the US economy over a 60-year period, from 1960 to 2020. Units are measured in millions.
Overall, job numbers in retail and healthcare experienced an upward trend, while the opposite was true for manufacturing and agriculture, which decreased, albeit at different rates. Notably, the trend for manufacturing was the highest at the beginning, which was eventually overtaken by healthcare and retail.
Starting with rising categories, the number of jobs in retail stood at just over 5 million in 1960, while this was lower in healthcare at about 3 million. Both trends witnessed constant growth, converging with each other and hitting their highest point at just over 15 million in 2020.
In contrast, the employment rate in manufacturing and agriculture saw a gradual decrease throughout the timeframe. Manufacturing started at exactly 15 million, which was the biggest employment rate at the beginning of the period, and almost 6 million for agriculture in 1960. The former rose to 20 million in 1980 before declining constantly and reaching approximately 13 million by the end of the period. While the latter experienced a persistent decline, ending at 3 million and hitting its lowest point on the graph.