Service Jobs - Arts

Arts, Entertainment and Recreation Services (revised fall 2024)

The arts, entertainment and recreation sector has firms and establishments producing and selling fun. There are three categories of fun.  In the first category, fun seekers are spectators who go to watch art and entertainment put on by theatre and dance companies, orchestras, music groups, sports teams, sports promoters, racetracks, and independent artists, writers, or performers. In the second category fun seekers are lookers who go to look at art and entertainment in museums, zoos, nature parks, botanical gardens and historical sites. The emphasis in both of these categories is on live art and entertainment.

In the third category fun seekers go to participate in recreation at amusement parks, arcades, gambling casinos, golf courses, ski resorts, marinas, fitness centers, sports centers, ice rinks, swimming pools, bowling alleys, billiard parlors, day camps, riding stables and a few more.

Possibly the people lifting weights and sweating out in fitness centers are not having fun, but otherwise the 2.518 million people employed here are producing fun, lots of fun. The arts and entertainment parts have 748.2 thousand jobs as of 2024.  Recreation jobs total 1.770 million, almost 70 percent of the jobs.

Among the participate jobs, fitness and recreation centers have the most jobs, 626.7 thousand, less than the 2019 pre-pandemic high of 661.4 thousand jobs. Jobs were only 274.7 thousand in 1990, but job growth here has been consistently high with an annual average growth of  2.58 percent for 33 years. These jobs make up an increasing share of total establishment employment. Golf courses are next with 406.8 thousand jobs, up from 159.3 thousand since 1990. All other amusements and  recreation are growing except employment at bowling alleys with 68.9 thousand jobs and employment in gambling casinos jumped from 33.7 thousand in 1990 to a high of 143.7 thousand jobs in 2007 but down from that high to 116.9 thousand jobs by 2024. Another 239.5 thousand work at casino hotels, which brings gambling employment to 387.3 thousand jobs by 2024.

The occupations in this sub sector have skills learned through practice and experience more than classroom education: athletes, actors, dancers, singers and musicians, for example. Nothing prevents any of the people holding these jobs from attending college but the emphasis is on specialized skills developed from long-term on the job training. A little over 16 percent of the jobs in arts, entertainment and recreation occupations, come in occupations that need college degrees in the Bureau of Labor Statistics skills taxonomy. The college degree total as of 2023 has 411.1 thousand of the 2.518 million job total in arts, entertainment and recreation. These occupations come mostly in management, finance and computing, but 130.1 thousand of arts, entertainment and recreation occupations qualify as college degree occupations.

All three of art, entertainment and recreation sub sectors have a variety of specialty occupations. In recreation, gambling has eight gaming occupations including gaming manager and first line supervisor of gambling service workers, gaming dealers, sports book writers and runners, gambling surveillance workers and gambling investigators, gambling change persons and booth cashiers, gambling cage workers, and gaming service workers, all other with 57.7 thousand jobs in the recreation sub sector and almost 171.6 thousand more mostly at casino hotels. Bureau of Labor Statistics discussion of gambling occupations warns their readers to be careful before thinking gambling jobs are “glamorous” jobs. Sure the “fun filled” atmosphere generates excitement, but work is long hours standing and there is noise from gambling machines and tobacco smoke from agitated gamblers. 

Exercise trainers and group fitness instructors alone have more jobs than gambling occupations with 199.5 thousand these jobs in the recreation sub sector out of 279.5 thousand jobs in the whole economy. Diet and exercise are now regular business transactions and a source of employment, even though both are very much do-it-yourself services. People can walk in a park or walk on a treadmill; one is free, one is not. People can eat less or pay for pills, powders, supplements, diet books, diet plans, counseling and weight watchers.

Art, design and entertainment occupations have entertainers, performers, coaches and athletes working in 184.8 thousand jobs, although many of these jobs are also in the film, recording and broadcasting industries. Jobs include producers and directors, actors, musicians and singers, dancers and choreographers. Art and Entertainment has almost all the jobs as professional athletes, but only 73.5 thousand jobs out of a total of 253.8 thousand jobs as coaches, scouts, umpires, referees and officials. A majority of coaches are paid positions at many schools and colleges where athletes are not considered employed.

Zoos and racetracks are part of art and entertainment where there are about 23.8 thousand jobs as animal trainer and animal care taker. Work in entertainment related occupations like ushers, lobby attendants, ticket takers, and locker room, coatroom, and dressing room attendants creates 43.3 thousand jobs. Nearly 25 thousand tour and travel guides work at museums and historic sites out of 46.7 thousand working in the entire economy.

With a 134.453 million jobs to divvy up art, entertainment and recreation employment gives us 2.518 million jobs and that is 1.61 percent of establishment employment, u .58 percent since 1990.  Arts, entertainment and recreation made steady job gains in the 1990’s, but did poorly in the 2002 and 2008-2010 recessions, but finished the 2000-2024 period with a gain of 730 thousand jobs. Job gains in good years tend to be offset by zero or negative gains in the bad years with the result that average job growth in this sub sector is too small to help much with America’s job requirements. In the United States where a job is a requirement America needs a steady flow of new jobs to meet its requirement, but there are only 59.948 million jobs left to fill. We still need service!