Southeast Minnesota is a health care and agricultural powerhouse. The region is home to the renowned Mayo Clinic and some of the world's most recognized food companies and brands.
Advanced manufacturing is especially strong here, with machinery, chemicals, and electronics among the top products.
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Part-time work serves as a crucial entry point into Southeast Minnesota's labor market.
10/23/2025 10:52:56 AM
Amanda Blaschko
Part-time work serves as a crucial entry point into Southeast Minnesota's labor market for high school students taking their first jobs, college students getting income while they go to school, parents returning to work, retirees staying engaged and career changers testing new fields. These positions offer flexible schedules while building workplace skills, and for employers, they provide access to a diverse talent pool with the flexibility to scale staffing based on demand.
Data from DEED's /deed/data/data-tools/job-vacancy/index.jspJob Vacancy Survey shows that about 27% of job openings in Southeast Minnesota were part-time. This puts the region right in line with the Seven-County Metro area (27%) and Southwest (26%), and only slightly below Central, Northeast and Northwest Minnesota, which ranged from 30-32%. Part-time work is common across Minnesota, with all regions falling within a similar range.
Recent years have seen a notable shift in part-time hiring. Part-time openings made up 41% of all job vacancies in 2022, the highest share in the past decade. Since then, both the percentage and number of part-time vacancies have declined. Southeast Minnesota had 7,964 part-time job openings in 2022 compared to just 3,337 in 2024.
So where are these part-time opportunities? Most are in service-related occupations (Figure 1). Fast Food & Counter Workers topped the list with 324 part-time openings, followed closely by Cashiers (303 openings) and Retail Salespersons (232 openings). These customer-facing roles dominate, with median wages hovering around $14 to $17 an hour in 2025. Health Care also plays a significant role in part-time employment, with Nursing Assistants accounting for 146 part-time openings and a median wage of $21.76 and Registered Nurses with 101 job openings and a median wage of $50.02.
Part-time employment in Southeast Minnesota has decreased over time, but opportunities remain plentiful, especially across service-related occupations. With over a quarter of job vacancies being part-time, these positions provide real pathways into the workforce for a variety of workers. Whether you're a student seeking your first job, a parent balancing family responsibilities or an employer looking for flexible staffing solutions, part-time work continues to be an essential component of Southeast Minnesota's labor market.
For more information about the job market in Southeast Minnesota, contact Amanda Blaschko at Amanda.Blaschko@state.mn.us.
