HR and payroll company ADP ranked cities across the country based on three things that make a strong labor market: annual pay growth, new hire wages and the hiring rate.

The study, published in August of this year, surveyed 55 U.S. metros with populations of at least 1 million, according to ADP. 

Top cities in the study included Denver, Oklahoma City, Las Vegas, Seattle and Portland, Oregon. 

Cities ranked the lowest included Providence, Rhode Island, Tampa, Florida, Baltimore, Salt Lake City and Cleveland. 

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Julia Pollak is the chief economist at Zip Recruiter. Pollack says if your industry or career is not growing or hiring, it could be because too many people are staying put. 

“People are saying it has gone from the great resignation to the big stay, or the great stay. With companies hiring fewer workers, but also firing fewer workers than was normal before the pandemic and people switching jobs less frequently,” Pollak said. “If you have a job you like, you have unprecedented job security. But if you don’t have a job or if you are stuck in a job you don’t like, you have fewer prospects,” Pollak said.

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Pollack said if moving or changing industries isn’t an option for you, the good news is the labor market may accelerate soon.

The Federal Reserve has signaled they will likely start cutting rates on September 18th, which should accelerate hiring and the labor market.

ADP’s report ranked Denver as the number one hottest job market. Median pay for new hires was $19 an hour, the report said. The monthly hiring rate was 4.5%. 

The survey also mentioned metros that have thriving and resilient industries are better off in the job market. One example is major hiring efforts from companies like PepsiCo in Denver. ADP said in the study construction and manufacturing jobs are some of the biggest drivers of Denver’s high ranking.

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PepsiCo Beverages North America (PBNA) spokesperson Jessica Neilsen said the company is building its largest manufacturing facility in North America and is doubling the size of its Denver workforce to 500.

The new manufacturing facility is 1.2 million-square-feet, according to a PepsiCo spokesperson. (Kennedy Hayes/ FOX Business)

“We’ve been here since the 1950’s. PepsiCo has had a huge presence in the community and we wanted to sustain that presence and make our footprint larger,” Neilsen said. 

Neilsen said the new building will be called HighPoint. 

The new PepsiCo site will service most of the western states, including Utah, New Mexico and California, a company spokesperson said.  (Kennedy Hayes/ FOX Business)

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Across all states, some of the fastest growing industries include healthcare, such as nurse practitioners and physician assistants, and government jobs, such as cybersecurity analysts, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.