MAJOR EMPLOYERS AND INDUSTRIES
In the first quarter of each year, EDCO conducts a region-wide survey of employers to determine the top 50 employers in the tri-county region of Deschutes County, Jefferson County, and Crook County. The rankings below reflect EDCO's research in April 2009. Listed below are Central Oregon's top employers based on employment; many organizations have multiple locations and their total employment is shown below.
| Top 50 Private Employers in Central Oregon |
| Rank |
|
|
| 2008 |
2007 |
Company |
Employees |
| 1 |
1 |
St. Charles Medical Center |
3,028 |
| 2 |
2 |
Les Schwab Tire Centers (regionwide)* |
1,500 |
| 3 |
4 |
Sunriver Resort |
850 |
| 4 |
6 |
T-Mobile |
850 |
| 5 |
5 |
Mt. Bachelor |
750 |
| 6 |
8 |
Wal-Mart (regionwide) |
700 |
| 7 |
9 |
TRG Customer Solutions |
650 |
| 8 |
7 |
Safeway (regionwide) |
578 |
| 9 |
10 |
Bend Memorial Clinic |
510 |
| 10 |
3 |
Bright Wood Corporation |
465 |
| 11 |
14 |
Kah-Nee-Ta Resort & Casino |
417 |
| 12 |
16 |
JELD-WEN Development (Eagle Crest) |
400 |
| 13 |
24 |
Knife River Corporation |
350 |
| 14 |
22 |
Opportunity Foundation (Redmond) |
330 |
| 15 |
28 |
Black Butte Ranch |
322 |
| 16 |
13 |
JELD-WEN Windows & Doors |
320 |
| 17 |
20 |
Ray's Grocery Stores (regionwide) |
306 |
| 18 |
17 |
Hooker Creek Companies (regionwide) |
300 |
| 19 |
19 |
Costco |
292 |
| 20 |
23 |
Bank of the Cascades (regionwide) |
281 |
| 21 |
28 |
Athletic Club of Bend |
270 |
| 22 |
NL |
Contact Industries |
270 |
| 23 |
25 |
Albertsons Supermarkets (regionwide) |
251 |
| 24 |
27 |
Lowe's (regionwide) |
240 |
| 25 |
12 |
Fred Meyer (regionwide) |
240 |
| 26 |
26 |
The Bulletin (Bend & Redmond) |
230 |
| 27 |
29 |
PCC Schlosser |
221 |
| 28 |
31 |
Home Depot (regionwide) |
236 |
| 29 |
32 |
BendBroadband |
200 |
| 30 |
35 |
Central Oregon Trucking |
200 |
| 31 |
NL |
Mid Oregon Personnel |
200 |
| 32 |
21 |
The Riverhouse |
200 |
| 33 |
NL |
Woodgrain Millwork |
195 |
| 34 |
11 |
The Parr Company (regionwide) |
185 |
| 35 |
15 |
Cessna |
185 |
| 36 |
34 |
JELD-WEN Millworks Manufacturing |
182 |
| 37 |
37 |
LifeWise Health Plans |
180 |
| 38 |
43 |
The Center (Ortho/Neuro Care & Research) |
160 |
| 39 |
50 |
NeighborImpact (regionwide) |
155 |
| 40 |
39 |
Deschutes Brewery |
153 |
| 41 |
42 |
Macy's |
150 |
| 42 |
48 |
Wells Fargo Bank |
150 |
| 43 |
36 |
Kirby Nagelhout |
150 |
| 44 |
41 |
Bend Research |
149 |
| 45 |
44 |
Epic Aircraft |
147 |
| 46 |
46 |
Clear Choice Health Plans (Bend) |
141 |
| 47 |
45 |
Target Stores |
136 |
| 48 |
33 |
Keith Manufacturing Company (Madras) |
130 |
| 49 |
NL |
Warm Springs Forest Products |
130 |
| 50 |
47 |
Microsemi Power Products Group (Bend) |
116 |
NL = Not Listed; Source: EDCO Research, April 2009
* Unconfirmed
Central Oregon Employment by Sector
Central Oregon has a diverse economy, with no one sector dominating the region. Government, retail trade, and the leisure and hospitality industry are the top three sectors, followed closely by manufacturing and natural resources, mining and construction. The region's Professional and Business Services as well as Financial Activities sectors experienced considerable growth in the last few years. For more information, visit Oregon Employment Department's award-winning website, www.olmis.org.
For the past decade, Deschutes County has led Oregon in high technology growth (over 270%). Numerous companies from the Silicon Valley, Portland-Vancouver Metro, and Puget Sound have relocated or expanded here - escaping skyrocketing costs, electricity shortages and tight labor markets. Many of these firms are small but extremely innovative, producing niche-market products from semiconductors to software, medical instruments to recreational equipment.
The region has seen strong growth in professional and business services, financial activities, and education and health services. With a growing tourism base, the leisure and hospitality sector has also experienced strong year over year growth. Manufacturing contracted in 2007, reflecting the relocation of major boat manufacturer in Jefferson County, and in 2008, reflecting the housing slowdown and mirroring a statewide reduction of manufacturing jobs. However, the manufacturing sector in Central Oregon remains a stronger economic component in the region than in other areas of Oregon.
Copies of the 2009 Central Oregon Area Profile can be ordered by calling EDCO offices at 541-388-3236 or 1-800-342-4135. This six page brochure has comprehensive information about Central Oregon's employment and wages, population, transportation, housing costs, as well as frequently referenced business resource numbers. Costs for EDCO members are $0.75 per copy and $1.00 per copy for non members.
Employment by County
Below we show the average employment by industry sector in Central Oregon, with breakouts for each county.
| 2008 Average Employment by Industry and County in Central Oregon |
| Sector |
Crook County |
Deschutes
County |
Jefferson County |
Tri-County Total |
| Natural Resources & Mining |
165 |
615 |
376 |
1,156 |
| Construction |
358 |
5,681 |
115 |
6,154 |
| Manufacturing |
1,072 |
5,082 |
1,036 |
7,190 |
| Wholesale Trade |
866 |
1,628 |
222 |
2,716 |
| Retail Trade |
530 |
10,193 |
541 |
11,264 |
| Transportation, Warehousing & Utilities |
415 |
1,209 |
105 |
1,729 |
| Information |
35 |
1,615 |
21 |
1,671 |
| Financial Activities |
180 |
3,685 |
117 |
3,982 |
| Professional and Business Services |
310 |
7,301 |
134 |
7,745 |
| Educational & Health Services |
643 |
8,988 |
248 |
9,879 |
| Leisure & Hospitality |
636 |
9,993 |
529 |
11,158 |
| Other Services |
222 |
2,325 |
187 |
2,734 |
| Government |
1,276 |
8,212 |
2,364 |
11,852 |
| County Total |
6,708 |
66,526 |
5,993 |
79,227 |
Source: Oregon Employment Department, 2008