The Printing Industry Ranks third largest Manufacturing Industry in the U.S. – This is according the U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics and is measured by the number of people employed in the commercial printing industry.

Since 1980 the growth of the Printing Industry has outpaced the overall economy as indicated by the GDP adjusted for inflation. Growth is measure in terms of the value of shipments made. The growth is roughly 50% while growth of employment has been about 36%. In Michigan alone, there are over 2,000 vacant jobs in the printing industry as of August 31, 2000 – This according to a study done by the Printing Industries of Michigan.

Seven out of ten jobs are categorized as production jobs – The Average Hourly wage in 1998 for non-supervisory production work was $13.18 per hour. This was far above the national average of all non-supervisory manufacturing at $12.81 per hour and all labor in all sectors of the economy non-supervisory hourly at $11.79.

Electronic Pagination Systems Operator is ranked as the seventh fastest growing occupation throughout the year 2005. The U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics predict and increase of 83% or nearly 15,000 people in the number of employees from 1994 to the year 2005.