Buncombe County, NC jobs, unemployment and layoffs

Buncombe County’s unemployment rate is 3.2%. Employers filed 1 layoff notices here in the last 12 months. 158 open professional jobs are in its cities.

Buncombe County economy

3.2%
unemployment, Aug 2026
4.4% the month before
135,442
in the labor force
Source: BLS Local Area Unemployment Statistics
271,790
people in Buncombe County
Source: U.S. Census Bureau
$70,578
median household income
Source: Census ACS
43%
of workers in white-collar occupations
Management, business, financial and professional; Census ACS

Buncombe County layoffs

1
WARN layoff notices, last 12 months
423
workers named
A floor: states may leave out counts
1
employer

WARN notices filed in Buncombe County, newest first
Notice date	Employer	City or county	Workers	Type	Source
Jan 8, 2026	Thermo Fisher ScientificTakes effect Dec 31, 2027	Buncombe County	423	Closure	State record

All layoff notices in the state

Employers hiring most in Buncombe County

Employers with the most open professional roles in this county’s cities. The county is taken from each job’s city, so roles with no city are not counted.

RTX11 open roles
Eaton8 open roles
Raytheon4 open roles
Sinclair4 open roles
GPAC3 open roles
Bradfordhealth2 open roles
Brookdale Senior Living2 open roles
Canadian Executive Search Group (USA) Inc / Division of Arro...2 open roles
Carolina DAY School2 open roles
Cintas2 open roles

Colleges in Buncombe County

Colleges in Buncombe County
College	City	Type	Students
University of North Carolina Asheville	Asheville	Public 4-year	1,000–4,999
Montreat College	Montreat	Private nonprofit 4-year	Under 1,000
Warren Wilson College	Swannanoa	Private nonprofit 4-year	Under 1,000

Conferences in Buncombe County

Industry conferences and trade shows held in Buncombe County. 2 with dates announced.

ACI-NA/AAAE Airport Customer Experience Symposium
Mar 9 to Mar 11, 2027 · Asheville, NC
Paid ticket. Pricing not shown in the listing.
MO Summit
Apr 12 to Apr 14, 2027 · Asheville, NC
Paid ticket. Ticket price not shown on the listing read; tickets sold through the organizer Ticket Tailor page.
Digital PM Summit
Usually October (next dates not announced) · Asheville, NC
Ticket $1,150 to $1,650. 2026 ticketing listing: $1,150 Bureau member / $1,650 non-member.

All conferences

Workforce development and job centers

The public workforce board and American Job Centers serving Buncombe County. They offer free help with job search, training and filing for benefits.

Mountain Area Workforce Development Board
Buncombe, Henderson, Madison, Transylvania

NCWorks Career Center- Buncombe County
Asheville · Comprehensive
Monday-Friday 8:30am-5:00pm (Closed 12:30pm-1:30pm)

Cities in Buncombe County

Other North Carolina counties

All of North Carolina

Laid off or looking for work in Buncombe County?

See what to do first and the jobs open near you.

See your options after a layoff

Sources: Census Bureau and BLS (county unemployment is not seasonally adjusted); WARN notices from North Carolina’s published record; job counts from our live job board; IPEDS for colleges; CareerOneStop for workforce boards and job centers.