Meta Los Lunas Campus

Albuquerque's economy combines federal labs and defense (Sandia and Los Alamos National Labs nearby, Kirtland Air Force Base), Intel's Rio Rancho semiconductor fab, healthcare, and growing tech. Data centers serve those federal and tech tenants — one tracked facility and roughly 400 NAICS 518 jobs (estimated). The metro is a small but specialized federal-and-tech market.

The trades pool is small. Electricians at $59,120 and HVAC technicians at $57,110 sit close in median, both modest in absolute terms. The standout is security: 4,440 security officers earn $44,780 — well above the typical Sun Belt security wage, reflecting the federal cleared-security pipeline serving Sandia, Kirtland, and Los Alamos. Network admins clear $86,540.

For a trades worker, Albuquerque is best fit for cleared workers — security officers, electricians, and HVAC technicians willing to pursue clearance for federal lab and Intel fab work. The pure data center opportunity is small but the surrounding federal infrastructure work is steady and pays a clearance premium.