Elvis Presley made Memphis his home, and with Memphis employment, you could too. Memphis is where the first King of Rock built his mansion Graceland, and where a strong music culture continues today, anchored by blues legend BB King.
Memphis employment is as diverse as the men and women that sing its music. With the company headquarters of three Fortune 500 companies and five more in the Fortune 1000, Memphis employment includes corporate, manufacturing, tech, bioscience and tourism jobs.
Memphis Employment Opportunities
The largest private employer in Memphis is FedEx with over 40,000 workers. This Fortune 500 company delivers packages all over the United States. The Memphis Metropolitan Airport is the busiest cargo airport in the United States, receives many commercial flights and provides Memphis employment opportunities.
Another 3,000 people in the Memphis area work with International Paper. It is a leader in paper, packaging, forest products, and building materials. The third Fortune 500 company with Memphis headquarters is AutoZone. This retailer employs more than 2,000 people.
Other Fortune 1000 companies headquartered in Memphis include: Mueller Industries (metals), Fred’s (general retailer) and First Horizon National Corporation (financial services). Thomas & Betts is a leading manufacturer of electric products for industry and construction.
St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital treats and researches pediatric catastrophic illnesses. It also employs 3,000 people in this effort. Another Memphis institution is Ducks Unlimited. It only employs 170 people, but it is a prestigious nonprofit working to protect wetlands. It has millions of members worldwide.
ServiceMaster Consumer Services provides Memphis employment in its operational headquarters and its ten corporate divisions, all located in Memphis. This Fortune 1000 country includes the brands Merry Maids, Rescue Rooter, Terminix, American Home Shield, and TruGreen/Chemlawn. Between its corporate and its regular employment, ServiceMaster provides 1,400 jobs in Memphis Employment.
Memphis has sought bioscience industries and now regional employment in this area is close to 40,000 workers. This is six percent of the area’s workforce in 300 bioscience businesses. These employers include Johnson & Johnson, Schering-Plough, Pfiser and GlaxoSmithKline.
Over eleven institutions of higher learning also make Memphis their home. These colleges and universities are major employers in the area; and many of them are leading researchers in the biosciences.
Steel manufacturing provides many workers among at least three employers: Nucor Steel, KMA Manufacturing and SFI of Tennessee. Other manufacturers include Sharp and KTG corporation. A port city, due to its proximity on the Mississippi river, Memphis is also a leading
Sites like Graceland, Elvis’ home, and the thriving live music industry as well as many hotels contribute to the tourism that provides 52,000 jobs in the Memphis area.
Memphis Employment Agencies and Resources
When looking in the Memphis area, keep in mind that the area covers several counties and cities. Memphis jobs include those in Shelby County, Tipton County, and Fayette County, TN. In Arkansas, Crittendon County is often included in Memphis statistics. Also, in Mississippi, the counties of DeSoto, Marshall, Tate and Tunica are often considered part of Memphis as well.
The Tennessee Department of Labor offers a free service at ecmats.state.tn.us/eCMATS. This will allow you to search for jobs in the Memphis area and to apply. The local newspaper, the Memphis Appeal, listes job opportunities at its website, www.commercialappeal.com. Also you might try the Memphis Flyer classifieds which can be accessed at (http://memphis.backpage.com/online/classifieds/index). The Chamber of Commerce provides a link for Memphis job hunting at http://welcome.memphischamber.com/Community/Work/Job-Hunting.aspx. FedEx has a job opportunities site at www.fedex.com/us/customersupport/officeprint/faq/careers.html. To find out what International Paper has to offer, go to www.internationalpaper.com/Our%20Company/Careers/index.html. The University of Memphis lists available jobs at workforum.memphis.edu.
Memphis Employment Quality of Life
Memphis sits on the Mississippi River and is a major port city. It calls itself America’s Aerotropolis in tribute to the river, the busy airport, the trucking that passes through its many highways and its location as the largest city where three states meet. It is often considered the largest city in Tennessee and the largest city in the MidSouth, although Nashville, TN, is actually bigger. The reason that Memphis is considered “largest” has more to do with the million plus who live within Memphis and its many border towns, including Southhaven, Mississippi and West Memphis, Arkansas. Only 650,000 live within Memphis itself.
The crime rate is two times the national average. The murder rate averages 125 per year. The rate of other violent crimes is about 12,000 per year.
Like much of the U.S. South, Memphis has a lower cost of living. The state of Tennessee, does not have a state income tax, which allows workers to keep more of their salary. Sales taxes make up for this and run over 9 percent in the Memphis area. As a result, some shoppers go over the line into Mississippi to save on consumer goods. The magazine Kiplinger’s rated Memphis as one of the lowest tax burdens in the country. Forbes rated Memphis as one of the “best places to live rich”, calling the area’s lifestyle, Bohemian. Rental rates are low with a 3 bedroom condo at $700 and a house at $950 a month.
Temperatures in the winter rarely get below freezing and generally hover around 40 degrees Fahrenheit. Temperatures in the summer average 92 or greater during the day and low 80s in the evening.
Memphis Employment
For a large urban center, Memphis employment is growing and expanding. The Memphis Chamber of Commerce is clearly a strong force in bringing more jobs to the area, including more tech and more bioscience jobs. Of course, Memphis has many of the same economic problems plaguing the United States, but Memphis, with its many Fortune 500 and 1000 companies, has continued to grow jobs. Good jobs, a diverse and an interesting music scene and nightlife, and a low cost of living are good reasons to seek Memphis employment.
