Arlington, Va.

Share of jobs in strong industries: 49.4%
Number of workers: 119,222
Metro area unemployment rate: 4.3%
Agriculture jobs: 0.16%
Professional, Scientific, and Technical jobs (legal, accounting etc.): 20.25%
Education jobs: 6.91%
Health-care jobs: 5.53%
Public Administration (Government) jobs: 16.6%

Arlington, located across the Potomac River from Washington, has a highly educated populace, many of whom work for the federal government or in lobbying and legal jobs. Only 7% of the residents are in the vulnerable financial, real estate, and insurance sector—about half the percentage in financial centers such as Jersey City, N.J., (outside Manhattan) and Charlotte, N.C., home of Wachovia and Bank of America.