Nationwide Workforce

The U.S. brewing industry includes over 2,000 brewing related establishments and importers, 2,800 distributor establishments, and 521,000 retailer outlets. Numerous other businesses—including farmers, packaging manufacturers, and advertising agencies—depend on the industry for their livelihood.

Approximately 43,000 Americans work for the nation’s large and small breweries and importers, taking home $4.1 billion a year in salaries and wages, along with additional millions in benefits. The U.S. Department of Labor found their wages to be among the highest of 350 industries surveyed.

Over 95,000 people work for distributors and approximately 888,000 work for retail outlets that sell beer.

Directly and indirectly, the U.S. brewing industry employs 1.9 million Americans. These workers earn $62 billion in wages and benefits.