Amazon Now Region’s Top Private Sector Employer
Amazon is now the region’s top private employer, according to Arlington County’s latest Annual Comprehensive Financial Report. The federal government remains the No. 1 employer overall.
Amazon, which opened its second headquarters site in the Crystal City area of Arllington, known as HQ2, with 8,000 employees earlier this year, comes in ahead of accounting company Deloitte and tech firm Accenture. Rounding out the top 10 employers in Arlington are the Virginia Hospital Center (No. 6), Lidl (No. 7), BNA Bloomberg (No 8), Nestlé (No. 9), and Booz Allen Hamilton (No. 10).
It was noted that a only a decade ago, the top five employers were government related, including the Department of Defense, Arlington County government and schools, the Department of Homeland Security, Deloitte, and the Justice Department.
The report cites overall, “Arlington is home to an estimated 214,600 jobs, as of January 1, 2023. The service sector comprises a significant share of jobs in Arlington. About 27.6 percent of all jobs are in the professional and technical services sector. Another 21.3 percent of jobs are in other service sectors, including administrative, education, and health. The government sector also continues to comprise a large share of Arlington jobs. About 20.8 percent of the County’s January 2023 employment is estimated to be in government,”
Regional Job Growth Matches Statewide Numbers
Northern Virginia’s year-over-year increase in total jobs is comparable to the state as a whole. The Northern Virginia economy added 25,500 to the employed workforce in the period between November 2022 and November 2023, according to figures reported this month by the Virginia Employment Commission.
That increase to 1,549,600 equates to a 1.6-percent rise. That’s the same percentage rise for the state as a whole, where over the 12-month period employed residents grew 1.6 percent to 4,108,300.
New Laws Noted That Begin With New Year
Among the new laws that will go into effect on January 1 are the following, according to State Sen. Barbara Favola:
Foster Care & Adoption: The home studies done by a local board of social services or licensed child-placing agency that are required in foster care and pre-adoption placements can now be transferred to other localities, local social services boards, and licensed child-placing agencies within Virginia if the families being evaluated have moved within state. There are regulations in place that specify the content matter of these studies so uniformity is fairly consistent. Moreover, this new law will streamline the process for placements without compromising the safety of the child.
Health Care Coverage: Health insurers will have to provide coverage for hearing aids and related services for people 18 years or younger when recommended by an otolaryngologist, a specialist who treats ear, nose and throat conditions. The hearing aid coverage includes one hearing aid for each impaired ear every 24 months, up to a cost of $1,500. The new law will apply to policies; contracts; and plans delivered, issued, or renewed on and after January 1.
Expanding Counseling Services: Virginia entered a national Counseling Compact. This compact allows eligible licensed professional counselors from compact states to practice in Virginia and a reciprocal license is granted to Virginia licensed counselors. Twenty states are participating in the Counseling Compact, including the neighboring states of Tennessee, North Carolina, West Virginia and Maryland. I am particularly excited about the entrance of Virginia into the national Compact given the shortage of counseling professionals.
Medical Cannabis: Oversight of the state’s medical cannabis program will move from the Virginia Board of Pharmacy to the Virginia Cannabis Control Authority (CCA). All retail and product licensing functions will transfer to the CCA. The Virginia Board of Pharmacy will continue to license healthcare providers who are eligible to grant permission to use medical cannabis.