Jefferson County has the right workforce to meet your business needs. We have a labor pool of 27,809 skilled men and women, trained through our impressive university, local community college, and workforce development programs. And with low labor costs you’ll find it difficult to beat the value of Jefferson County, Arkansas’ workforce to support your business growth and expansion. 

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Demographics 

Jefferson County has a current  population of 64,246 people, with a median age of 38.8 years old and workforce of 27,809 people. Taking into consideration an increased demographic radius of 42 miles outside of the county, the workforce increases to 218,780 people (including several counties to the south and north). Given low congestion and ease of transportation, 42 miles is considered a commutable distance. With the exception of Jefferson County, Southeast Arkansas tends to be largely rural with numerous smaller urban areas. This area encompasses the following counties (2022 Census population estimates):
 

U.S. Bureau of Census - Quickfacts, population estimates, July 2022 

Education and Skills 

Jefferson County’s workforce is talented. A total of 86% of people in Jefferson County have a high-school diploma or higher and 18% have a bachelor’s degree or higher. 

Workforce Development Programs:

Jefferson County participates in the ACT Work Ready Communities initiative that encourages local business and industry to sign up in support of the “national framework” program that emphasizes standardized workforce skills credentials. Jefferson County is currently at 100% attainment of nationally set workforce development goals. 

Local Colleges and Universities: 

University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff (UAPB) - An 1890 land-grant institution, the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff (UAPB) is the second-oldest public university and the only public historically black institution in Arkansas. The institution’s historic mission is to teach in areas related to agriculture and the mechanical arts, as well as scientific and classical studies and help solve economic, agricultural and other problems in the community, state and region.

UAPB offers 33 undergraduate degrees, 12 master’s degree and a PhD program in Aquaculture/Fisheries that is home to one of the country’s leading programs that also supports Arkansas’s $165 million aquaculture and baitfish industry. The university’s bachelor degree program in regulatory science is a designated Center of Excellence by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Other areas of emphasis at UAPB include teacher education, business development and student leadership development and its NSF funded Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) Academy.

Southeast Arkansas College (SEARK) - Southeast Arkansas College is a two-year community college located in the city of Pine Bluff, enrolls about 1,000 students a year in 28 technical programs, health professions programs, and general education/transfer programs. 

The Associate to Bachelor's Program (A2B) is a collaborative degree program between the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff (UAPB) and Southeast Arkansas College (SEARK). The program allows students to simultaneously earn an associate degree at SEARK and a bachelor's degree at UAPB. Students may receive an associate degree upon completing 60 hours — 48 hours at SEARK and 12 at UAPB — with a cumulative GPA of 2.0 or higher. The concurrent enrollment empowers students to transfer between SEARK and UAPB seamlessly.

Value 

Arkansas was ranked as the #2 state in Entrepreneur magazine for most affordable state in its "The Cheapest States to Live in 2023" list , highlighting the affordable nature of the state.

Source: The Arkansas Dept. of Workforce Services reports employment income for Jefferson County for 3rd Quarter 2022