Rogue Valley Industry Employment Concentration Analysis

October 29, 2025

Location quotients (LQ) measure employment concentration in a local area compared with that of a broader base area. An LQ value greater than 1 indicates employment is more concentrated in the local area compared with that of the base area. An LQ of less than 1 indicates a lower concentration. LQ equal to 1 means the employment concentration in the local area is equal to that of the base area. This is an indicator of how specialized the economy is of a specific geographic area.

With this definition in mind let’s examine the location quotient of the 10 sectors in Josephine and Jackson counties using Oregon and the United States as the base areas. We’ll then take a closer look at one industry of interest in each county.

Josephine County

The private education and health services sector employes a higher proportion of workers compared with the other nine sectors. In 2024 the LQ was 1.37 with the Oregon base meaning there were nearly 1.5 times as many workers in this sector compared with what we saw at the state level. Shifting to the United States base the LQ is slightly higher at 1.39. The information sector sees the lowest LQ of any sector with the Oregon base, while the United States base indicates professional and business services is the least concentrated. These results suggest that Josephine County specializes in the production of private services.

Focusing on private education and health services employment, how much have these concentration levels changed over time? The lowest LQ during the period 2001-2024 was 1.22 in 2003. The highest was 1.37 in 2008 and 2024. In other words, private education and health services employment concentration has been consistent over the past 23 years.

Widening our lens to the United States base reveals a similar story, albeit with slightly wider bounds. The lowest LQ was 1.13 in 2005 while the highest was 1.39 in 2024.

Jackson County

Like Josephine County, private education and health services employment is more concentrated than any other sector, ranking the highest across both reference areas. In 2024, the LQ was 1.29 with the Oregon base, meaning there were nearly 1.5 times as many workers in this sector compared with the sector’s concentration at the state level. Shifting to the United States base the LQ was 1.31. The information sector sees the lowest LQ of any sector, 0.56 and 0.55, respectively. Jackson County specializes in the production of private services.

Zeroing in on private education and health services, employment concentration levels dipped noticeably beginning in 2001, reaching a recent low LQ of 1.17 in 2003 and 2007. The LQ has been generally increasing since 2010 to a high of 1.30 in 2023 with a slight decline in 2024.

The national base area graph depicts a similar upward trend in concentration levels beginning in 2008. The lowest LQ was 1.06 in 2007 while the highest was 1.31 in 2024.