Workers in the Baton Rouge Metropolitan Statistical Area had an average (mean) hourly wage of $19.14 in May 2011, about 12 percent below the nationwide average of $21.74, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Regional Commissioner Stanley W. Suchman noted that, after testing for statistical significance, wages in the local area were significantly higher than their respective national averages in 2 of the 22 major occupational groups, including production, while eighteen groups had significantly lower wages, including computer and mathematical, business and financial, and sales and related.

When compared to the nationwide distribution, local employment was more highly concentrated in 4 of the 22 occupational groups, including construction and extraction; installation, maintenance, and repair; and protective service. Conversely, 12 groups had employment shares significantly below their national representation, including computer and mathematical; education, training, and library; and business and financial operations. (See table A and box note at end of release.)

One occupational group—construction and extraction—was chosen to illustrate the diversity of data available for any of the 22 major occupational categories. Baton Rouge had 29,230 jobs in construction and extraction, accounting for 8.2 percent of local area employment, more than double the 3.9-percent share nationally. However, at $18.24 per hour, the local average hourly wage for this occupational group was measurably below the national average of $21.46.

With employment of 5,470, construction laborers was the largest occupation within the construction and extraction group, followed by carpenters (3,460) and electricians (2,570). Among the higher paying jobs were first line supervisors of construction trades and extraction workers and plumbers, pipefitters, and steamfitters, with mean hourly wages of $26.23 and $23.12, respectively. At the lower end of the wage scale were carpenters’ helpers ($11.88) and construction laborers ($12.54). (Detailed occupational data for construction and extraction are presented in table 1; for a complete listing of all detailed occupations go to www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes_12940.htm.)

Location quotients allow us to explore the occupational make-up of a metropolitan area by comparing the composition of jobs in an area relative to the national average. (See table 1.) For example, a location quotient of 2.0 indicates that an occupation accounts for twice the share of employment in the area than it does nationally. In the Baton Rouge Metropolitan Statistical Area, above average concentrations of employment were found in many of the occupations within the construction and extraction group. For instance, mechanical insulation workers were employed at 20.2 times the national rate in Baton Rouge, and carpenters’ helpers, at 7.1 times the U.S. average. On the other hand, cement masons and concrete finishers had a location quotient of 1.0 in Baton Rouge, indicating that this particular occupation’s local and national employment shares were similar.

These statistics are from the Occupational Employment Statistics (OES) survey, a federal-state cooperative program between BLS and State Workforce Agencies, in this case, the Louisiana Workforce Commission. The OES survey provides estimates of employment and hourly and annual wages for wage and salary workers in 22 major occupational groups and nearly 800 detailed occupations for the nation, states, metropolitan statistical areas, metropolitan divisions, and nonmetropolitan areas.

Technical Note

The Occupational Employment Statistics (OES) survey is a semiannual mail survey measuring occupational employment and wage rates for wage and salary workers in nonfarm establishments in the United States. Guam, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands also are surveyed, but their data are not included in the national estimates. OES estimates are constructed from a sample of about 1.2 million establishments. Forms are mailed to approximately 200,000 establishments in May and November of each year for a 3-year period. The nationwide response rate for the May 2011 survey was 77.3 percent based on establishments and 73.3 percent based on employment. May 2011 estimates are based on responses from six semiannual panels collected over a 3-year period: May 2011, November 2010, May 2010, November 2009, May 2009, and November 2008. The sample in the Baton Rouge Metropolitan Statistical Area included 3,183 establishments with a response rate of 68 percent. For more information about OES concepts and methodology, go to www.bls.gov/news.release/ocwage.tn.htm.

The May 2011 OES estimates are based in part on data collected using the 2010 Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) system. Nearly all the occupations in this release are 2010 SOC occupations; however, some are not. The May 2012 OES data will reflect the full set of detailed occupations in the 2010 SOC. For a list of all occupations, including 2010 SOC occupations, and how data collected on two structures were combined, see the OES Frequently Asked Questions online at www.bls.gov/oes/oes_ques.htm#Ques41.

Information in this release will be made available to sensory impaired individuals upon request – Voice phone: 202-691-5200; TDD message referral phone: 1-800-877-8339.

The substate area data published in this release reflect the standards and definitions established by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget. The Baton Rouge Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) includes Ascension, East Baton Rouge, East Feliciana, Iberville, Livingston, Pointe Coupee, St. Helena, West Baton Rouge, and West Feliciana Parishes in Louisiana.