Spatial Divisions of Corporate Services Occupations in the United States, 1983–88

This article examines corporate services from a regional perspective, using the concept of “spatial divisions of labor.” We examine non‐routine, control‐related activity as well as routine activity, bridging the literatures on white‐ and pink‐collar work. Using the Geographic Profile on Employment and Unemployment , published by the U.S. Department of Labor, we examine occupational data across the nine census divisions continuously from 1983 through 1988. This data source is unique because it reports on occupational data annually, in relatively disaggregate form, and does so by geographic regions. Location quotients for the occupational data serve to identify a “core” with respect to concentrations of control‐related activity. This core comprises the New England, Middle Atlantic, and Pacific divisions. In contrast, routine activity generally is more dispersed, although some regional separation is evident for specific occupations, showing regional concentration in subordinate or “peripheral” regions. The results of the study identify regional patterns, which are heuristically valuable in raising questions regarding the complex processes responsible for spatial divisions of labor. In particular, the findings suggest a geography of modes of production, a subject that requires substantially more attention.