Louisiana Could Add 55,000 Jobs Through 2028, and Lake Charles and Monroe Are Projected to Grow at the Fastest Rates

Louisiana is expected to add 55,000 jobs over the next two years, driven by industrial construction that includes data centers, liquefied natural gas plants and the SpaceX launch facility in Vermilion Parish. The new Louisiana Economic Forecast projects a 2.7% increase between 2027 and 2028, and the Baton Rouge region is poised to add more jobs than any other metro area in the state over that stretch. These are projected jobs from an economic forecast, not openings anyone can apply for today. For Metaintro readers, the useful part is underneath the statewide number, covering which metro areas are projected to grow, which projects are behind each one, what the employers themselves say they will hire for, and which training routes are tied to them.

What Does the New Louisiana Forecast Project?

Economist Loren Scott presented the forecast at Business Report's Louisiana Business Symposium on Tuesday, October 6, 2026. Statewide growth is driven by a boom in industrial construction projects, and Baton Rouge's lead is propelled by tens of billions of dollars in industrial construction.

The forecast is a two-year outlook for 2027 and 2028, and it breaks the state into metro areas. St. Tammany is the newest metro area in the state, while New Orleans would rank ninth in growth among the state's 10 metro areas.

These are projections, and a forecast does not list openings or tell anyone where to apply.

Which Metro Areas Are Projected to Add the Most Jobs?

The projected gains by metro area over the next two years are below, from the Louisiana Economic Forecast.

• Baton Rouge. 16,500 jobs, the most of any metro area by number of new jobs.
• New Orleans. 6,200 jobs, a 1.3% growth rate.
• Lake Charles. 6,000 jobs, or 5.6%, the highest percentage growth in the state.
• Acadiana. 5,600 jobs, a 2.9% growth rate.
• Shreveport-Bossier City. 4,800 jobs by the end of 2028.
• Monroe. A 4.5% increase in jobs, the second-fastest rate in the state, with employment projected to hit a record 95,300 jobs in 2027.

Houma-Thibodaux is projected to hire 2,700 jobs over the next two years, and Alexandria is expected to add 1,800 jobs, helped in part by Applied Digital's $3.6 billion data center in Rapides Parish. Hammond is projected to add 800 jobs over the next two years, and St. Tammany is the slowest growing area in Louisiana.

The Capital Region is home to a number of major industrial contractors who are working on projects around the state. Projects under construction nearby include the Hut 8 data center near St. Francisville, plus the Hyundai-POSCO steel plant and the CF Industries facility, both in Ascension Parish. The Hyundai Steel plant in Donaldsonville will create more than 1,300 direct new jobs, in the words of Louisiana Economic Development's April 2025 release.

Why Is Lake Charles Projected to Grow Fastest?

Lake Charles has $64.4 billion in projects currently being built, including the CP2 terminal and the Commonwealth LNG facility in Cameron Parish and the LNG export terminal Woodside Energy is building just south of Sulphur.

• CP2 LNG. When Venture Global started site work in June 2025, it expected the project to support approximately 3,000 new jobs in Louisiana, 400 of which will be direct, permanent employees of CP2. At peak construction, CP2 was expected to employ approximately 7,500 direct construction jobs, and it was expected to pay more than $4 billion in local property taxes during its operation. At that peak, CP2 was also expected to support tens of thousands of indirect subcontractor, part-time and full-time jobs in over 30 states.
• Louisiana LNG. Woodside's $17.5 billion final investment decision in April 2025 covers a Calcasieu Parish plant expected to produce up to 16.5 million metric tons (Mtpa) of LNG per year. No headcount was given, only that the project will support thousands of jobs during the construction phase, as well as thousands more once operational. At that point Louisiana had four operational LNG export terminals and was responsible for 61% of the nation's LNG exports.
• Commonwealth LNG. Caturus reached a final investment decision for its $13 billion Commonwealth LNG export facility in Cameron Parish in May 2026, with operations to begin in 2030 and a 9.5 million-tonnes-per-annum capacity expected to bring more than $3 billion in annual export revenue. The project is expected to support significant construction activity, long-term operations jobs and expanded opportunities for Louisiana businesses and suppliers, with no job count given.

At CP2, the expected 400 direct, permanent employees compare with approximately 7,500 direct construction jobs expected at peak, so the build phase is far larger than the permanent staff. An analysis by Leaders for a Better Louisiana, published on Tuesday, September 30, 2025, found that demand in Lake Charles could more than double as six megaprojects, including Woodside LNG and CP2, move through construction.

What Is Driving Monroe's Projected Growth?

Monroe's rate comes from the Meta data center under construction in Richland Parish. The Richland Parish campus will house Meta's largest multi-gigawatt AI training cluster, Hyperion, and since the December 2024 groundbreaking Meta had contracted more than $875 million with Louisiana businesses by its December 2025 update.

The build is led by three general contractors, Turner Construction Company, DPR Construction, and Mortensen Construction, which have been hiring skilled trade workers across the campus. By December 2025, Meta had supported 3,700 construction workers. Meta also counted more than 160 Louisiana businesses (84% of which are local to Northeast Louisiana) working on construction, with electric, paving and utility work among the trades. Its local infrastructure investment for roads, water and wastewater systems had expanded to more than $300 million.

By July 2026, DPR Construction, Turner Construction and Louisiana Delta Community College had launched a training program to help fill the need of nearly 7,000 more workers to complete the construction project. The Leaders for a Better Louisiana analysis projected that at its peak in late 2026 about 24% of Louisiana's industrial construction labor force will be tied to the six projects alone, and that the Monroe-area industrial construction workforce could peak at nearly four times its current size.

Once completed, the data center will support more than 500 operational jobs like electricians, HVAC specialists, server and network techs, safety and security experts, and engineers, according to Meta's December 2025 Richland Parish update.

How Does SpaceX Fit Into the Acadiana Forecast?

Acadiana's projected growth is helped by the $100 billion SpaceX launch facility in Vermilion Parish and the drone industry in Lafayette. SpaceX's Louisiana launch campus was announced on August 25, 2026.

• Jobs. SpaceX is expected to create 3,000 direct new jobs over the next 10 years, paying an average annual salary of $92,600, 192% above the Vermilion Parish average wage, and the state estimates more than 8,100 indirect new jobs for more than 11,100 new job opportunities in Acadiana.
• Timing. Construction is expected to begin in 2027 with the first launch targeted to be as soon as 2029.
• What gets built. At full buildout, the site is expected to include five launch complexes, each with two launch pads and a propellant farm, plus a propellant production facility, power generation, vehicle processing and residential housing for employees and their families.
• Local engagement. In August, SpaceX planned to host town halls and other community engagement events throughout the surrounding area in the coming months, and it has joined Source Louisiana, the state's database linking local businesses to contract work on major projects.

In Lafayette, under its October 2025 plan, DMR Technologies is expected to create 521 direct new jobs over the next 10 years with an average annual salary of $85,000 at its drone plant, a salary equal to 151% of the parish average wage. The state estimates an additional 766 indirect new jobs, for a total of 1,287 potential new job opportunities, and in its initial phase the plant was expected to assemble 500 to 1,000 drones within its first year of production. The Drone Institute plans to add jobs at its training and software development headquarters too.

SpaceX will tap into that same foundation of skilled workers and businesses, creating new career paths and economic activity in an entirely new sector while building on generations of industrial expertise, LED Secretary Susan B. Bourgeois said in August, according to the state's SpaceX campus release.

What Do the Amazon Data Centers Mean for Shreveport-Bossier?

Shreveport-Bossier City's projected gain is tied to three Amazon data centers that will be built in the area. Amazon's planned investment across the three campuses now totals $18 billion, after a third campus at Resilient Technology Park in Shreveport was added in August 2026. That third campus alone is expected to create 210 direct new jobs, with an additional 499 indirect new jobs estimated by the state, on top of an additional $6 billion in investment.

• Direct jobs. Amazon is expected to support up to 750 direct jobs across its three campuses, and the state estimates an additional 1,784 indirect jobs. The wage rates on those jobs are more than double the state average.
• Construction. STACK Infrastructure, which develops and owns the campuses, anticipates this project will support up to 2,250 construction jobs.
• Roles named. Positions supported across the development include electricians, HVAC technicians, project engineers, network specialists, operations managers and security specialists.
• Training. Amazon plans to launch workforce development programs with local educational institutions, technical colleges and community organizations for students, job seekers and career changers.

Natural gas is part of the picture too. Activity in the Haynesville Shale is expected to pick up as LNG facilities look to tap the area's natural gas supply, and Haynesville gas is also expected to fuel new power plants that will be built to service data centers.

Where Is Job Growth Projected to Be Slow?

Not every metro area shares the boom. In New Orleans, a continued decline in convention business post-COVID and the completion of Venture Global's Plaquemines Parish LNG terminal will cause job growth to slow down. One possible lift is the Louisiana International Terminal container shipping facility in St. Bernard Parish, where work could begin at the end of the year.

St. Tammany is forecast to add 1,100 jobs over the next two years, the slowest growth in the state, as slow growth in New Orleans is affecting the bedroom community, along with uncertainty around a pair of major employers. Globalstar was recently purchased by Amazon, and a British energy producer bought LLOG Exploration, and it isn't known whether the two deals will lead to job losses at local operations.

Hammond's projected gain comes as the area recovers from the explosion that destroyed the Smitty's Supply oil and lubricant plant in Tangipahoa Parish. Houma-Thibodaux has been hurt by a slowdown in offshore drilling in the Gulf but helped by some new federal shipbuilding contracts for Arctic icebreakers.

What Could Throw the Forecast Off?

The ongoing war with Iran is making the forecast for the oil market difficult. The forecast is based on the war with Iran ending in the fall and oil prices dropping to $68 a barrel in 2027, while crude oil prices are currently hovering around $89 a barrel.

In Acadiana, the forecast could be off if hiring ramps up faster than expected at SpaceX or at drone companies such as DMR Technologies or the Drone Institute. SpaceX's construction is expected to begin in 2027 with the first launch targeted to be as soon as 2029, and its direct jobs are expected over the next 10 years.

Which Trades and Training Routes Are Tied to These Projects?

The forecast does not list openings, but several training routes are tied to these projects.

• Meta's America's Workforce Academy. Baton Rouge was selected as the first cohort site for the $115 million academy, one of four pilot locations alongside Houston, Indianapolis and Columbus, Ohio. The four- to five-week boot camp is designed to prepare participants for jobs in fields like data center construction, fiber installation, power generation support and grid modernization, and it doesn't require a college degree or prior experience. It includes full tuition coverage, airfare and lodging, and a daily stipend during training, and accepted participants receive a conditional job offer from a Meta contractor partner. As of June 2026, details on when and where the Baton Rouge boot camp will take place had not yet been shared.
• Construction Craft Laborer Training Program, Monroe area. DPR Construction, Turner Construction and Louisiana Delta Community College launched a program with four weeks of classroom learning at LDCC focusing on construction basics and safety, followed by a week of hands-on experience at the Meta site, with scholarships that remove financial barriers. The program set classes from August 3rd to September 4th, and applications were due by July 24th, through LDCC's website or on-campus.
• Amazon data center programs, northwest Louisiana. These are planned with local educational institutions, technical colleges and community organizations, and the named roles start with electricians, HVAC technicians, project engineers.
• State colleges. The same Leaders for a Better Louisiana analysis found that the Louisiana Community and Technical College System has also scaled its construction training pipelines, and LSU has expanded its construction management program. In an earlier upswing, the state added nearly 30,000 industrial construction jobs from 2012 to 2018.

For the Lafayette drone plant, there is a form to register to be notified about DMR Technologies job opportunities, hiring events and news updates on the state's October 2, 2025 announcement.

What This Means for Job Seekers, and What Should You Do Next?

The headline is a forecast, and that shapes what to do with it. A statewide projection is a statement about where Louisiana's economy is heading, not a list of vacancies. Meta's campus will support more than 500 operational jobs once complete, and CP2 is expected to have 400 direct, permanent employees, against approximately 7,500 direct construction jobs at peak.

The same Leaders for a Better Louisiana analysis projected labor demand peaking at about 20,500 workers in late 2026 and early 2027 across the six megaprojects it studied.

• Pick a trade the projects name. Electricians and HVAC technicians show up on both the Amazon list and Meta's operational list. Electricians usually start through an apprenticeship.
• Go where the rate is highest if you can move. Lake Charles and Monroe are the two fastest by percentage, while Baton Rouge leads on the raw number of jobs.
• Look at fully funded routes. The Meta academy is fully funded and covers tuition, airfare and lodging, and a daily stipend.
• Treat long timelines as long. SpaceX is expected to create 3,000 direct new jobs over the next 10 years, and construction is expected to begin in 2027 with the first launch targeted to be as soon as 2029.
• If you are in New Orleans or St. Tammany, look outward. Both are projected to grow slowly, while Lake Charles and Monroe are projected to grow fastest by rate.

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People Also Asked

Q: How many jobs is Louisiana projected to add in 2027 and 2028?

A: The latest Louisiana Economic Forecast projects the state could add 55,000 jobs over the next two years, a 2.7% increase between 2027 and 2028.

Q: Which Louisiana city is projected to add the most jobs?

A: Baton Rouge is projected to add the most jobs by number, while Lake Charles is expected to show the highest percentage of job growth, driven by LNG construction.

Q: Are these forecast jobs open to apply for now?

A: No. They are projected job gains from an economic forecast. Routes tied to the projects include Meta's academy, where accepted participants receive a conditional job offer from a Meta contractor partner, and the Amazon campuses, where STACK anticipates this project will support up to 2,250 construction jobs.

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