Employment rose in Kentucky’s two large counties from March 2010 to March 2011, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. (Large counties are defined as those with employment of 75,000 or more as measured by 2010 annual average employment.) Regional Commissioner Janet S. Rankin noted that employment increased 1.7 percent in Fayette County and 1.3 percent in Jefferson County. (See table 1.)

Nationally, employment increased 1.3 percent during the 12-month period, as 256 of the 322 large U.S. counties gained jobs. Elkhart, Ind., posted the largest percentage increase with a gain of 6.2 percent over the year. Sacramento, Calif., experienced the largest over-the-year percentage decrease in employment with a loss of 1.6 percent.

In the two large counties in Kentucky, employment was higher in Jefferson County (407,900) in March 2011. Together, Kentucky’s large counties accounted for 33.7 percent of total employment within the state. Nationwide, the 322 largest counties made up 70.7 percent of total U.S. employment, which stood at 127.9 million in March 2011.

The average weekly wage in Fayette County rose 6.0 percent to $811 from the first quarter of 2010 to the first quarter of 2011. While average weekly wages were higher in Jefferson, at $873, the over-the-year wage growth of 3.4 percent was smaller. Nationally, the average weekly wage increased 5.2 percent over the year to $935 in the first quarter of 2011. (See table 1.)

Employment and wage levels (but not over-the-year changes) are also available for the 118 counties with employment levels below 75,000 in Kentucky. Average weekly wages in these counties ranged from $1,104 to $452. (See table 2.)

Large county wage changes

As noted, average weekly wages increased in both of Kentucky’s large counties from the first quarter of 2010 to the first quarter of 2011. Fayette County’s 6.0-percent wage growth ranked 60th among the nation’s 322 large counties. Jefferson County’s 3.4-percent wage growth ranked 200th. (See table 1.)

Nationwide, 315 large counties experienced growth in average weekly wages. Peoria, Ill., ranked first with an over-the-year increase of 18.9 percent. Santa Clara, Calif., had the second largest increase (12.4 percent), followed by the counties of Macomb, Mich. (12.0 percent), Clayton, Ga. (11.9 percent), and Wayne, Mich. (11.3 percent).

Among the 322 largest counties, 3 had over-the-year decreases in average weekly wages in the first quarter of 2011. Williamson, Texas, had the largest decrease in the nation (-3.8 percent), followed by the counties of Hudson, N.J. (-1.5 percent), and Durham, N.C. (-0.5 percent).

Large county average weekly wages

Average weekly wages in the state’s two large counties were below the U.S. average of $935. Even so, the average weekly wage in Jefferson ($873) and Fayette ($811) placed in the middle-third of the national ranking, at 137th and 179th, respectively. (See table 1.)

Nationally, average weekly wages were higher than average in 94 of the 322 largest counties. New York, N.Y., recorded the highest average weekly wage at $2,634, followed by Fairfield, Conn., at $1,888. Rounding out the top five were Somerset, N.J. ($1,867), Santa Clara, Calif. ($1,863) and San Francisco, Calif. ($1,723).

There were 228 large counties with an average weekly wage below the U.S. average in the first quarter of 2011. Horry, S.C. ($534), reported the lowest wage, followed by the counties of Cameron, Texas ($546), Hidalgo, Texas ($556), Lake, Fla. ($586), and Webb, Texas ($590).

Average weekly wages in Kentucky’s smaller counties

Among the 118 counties in Kentucky with employment below 75,000, 2 registered an average weekly wage above the national average of $935. Hancock County ($1,104) reported the highest weekly wage among the smaller counties, followed by the counties of Ballard ($1,023), Carroll ($902), and Mercer ($850). Carlisle County reported the lowest weekly wage among all 118 counties in the state, averaging $452 in the first quarter of 2011. (See table 2.)

When all 120 counties in Kentucky were considered, 15 reported average weekly wages under $500, 49 had wages from $500 to $599, 29 reported wages from $600 to $699, 18 had wages from $700 to $799, and 9 had wages at or above $800. (See chart 1.)

Additional statistics and other information

Quarterly data for states have been included in this release in table 3. For additional information about quarterly employment and wages data, please read the Technical Note or visit the QCEW Web site at www.bls.gov/cew/.

An annual bulletin, Employment and Wages, features comprehensive information by detailed industry on establishments, employment, and wages for the nation and all states. The 2009 edition of this bulletin contains selected data produced by the Business Employment Dynamics (BED) on job gains and losses, as well as selected data from the first quarter 2010 version of the national news release. This web-only publication has replaced the annual print bulletin, Employment and Wages Annual Averages. The March 2010 issue of this annual bulletin was the final one to be issued on paper. Tables and additional content from the 2009 Employment and Wages Annual Bulletin are now available online at www.bls.gov/cew/cewbultn09.htm.

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

For personal assistance or further information on the Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages Program, as well as other Bureau programs, contact the Southeast Information Office in Atlanta at 404-893-4222.

Technical Note

Average weekly wage data by county are compiled under the Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW) program, also known as the ES-202 program. The data are derived from summaries of employment and total pay of workers covered by state and federal unemployment insurance (UI) legislation and provided by State Workforce Agencies (SWAs). The 9.1 million employer reports cover 127.9 million full- and part-time workers. The average weekly wage values are calculated by dividing quarterly total wages by the average of the three monthly employment levels of those covered by UI programs. The result is then divided by 13, the number of weeks in a quarter. It is to be noted, therefore, that over-the-year wage changes for geographic areas may reflect shifts in the composition of employment by industry, occupation, and such other factors as hours of work. Thus, wages may vary among counties, metropolitan areas, or states for reasons other than changes in the average wage level. Data for all states, Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs), counties, and the nation are available on the BLS Web site at www.bls.gov/cew/; however, data in QCEW press releases have been revised and may not match the data contained on the Bureau’s Web site.

QCEW data are not designed as a time series. QCEW data are simply the sums of individual establishment records reflecting the number of establishments that exist in a county or industry at a point in time. Establishments can move in or out of a county or industry for a number of reasons—some reflecting economic events, others reflecting administrative changes.

The preliminary QCEW data presented in this release may differ from data released by the individual states as well as from the data presented on the BLS Web site. These potential differences result from the states’ continuing receipt, review and editing of UI data over time. On the other hand, differences between data in this release and the data found on the BLS Web site are the result of adjustments made to improve over-the-year comparisons. Specifically, these adjustments account for administrative (noneconomic) changes such as a correction to a previously reported location or industry classification. Adjusting for these administrative changes allows users to more accurately assess changes of an economic nature (such as a firm moving from one county to another or changing its primary economic activity) over a 12-month period. Currently, adjusted data are available only from BLS press releases.

Recommend this page using:

Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn