U.S., according to preliminary data released today by the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor.
The U.S. average weekly wage rose by 2.4 percent over the same time span. Of the 334 largest counties in the United States, as measured by 2007 annual average employment, 146 had over-the-year percentage growth in employment above the national average (0.4 percent) in March 2008; 178 large counties experienced changes below the national average. The percent change in average weekly wages was higher than the national average (2.4 percent) in 183 of the largest U.S. counties but was below the national average in 137 counties. The employment and 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 reports submitted by every employer subject to unemployment insurance (UI) laws. The 9.1 million employer reports cover 134.8 million full- and part-time workers.
Large County Employment
In March 2008, national employment, as measured by the QCEW program, was 134.8 million, up by 0.4 percent from March 2007. The 334 U.S. counties with 75,000 or more employees accounted for 71.5 percent of total U.S. employment and 78.3 percent of total wages. These 334 counties had a net job gain of 198,000 over the year, accounting for 41.2 percent of the overall U.S. employment increase. Employment rose in 189 of the large counties from March 2007 to March 2008. Orleans County, La., had the largest over-the-year percentage increase in employment (5.0 percent). Fort Bend, Texas, and Montgomery, Texas, tied for the next largest increase, 4.7 percent, followed by the counties of Williamson, Texas (4.6 percent), and Douglas, Colo., and Potter, Texas (4.1 percent each).
Employment declined in 129 counties from March 2007 to March 2008. The largest percentage decline in employment was in Lee, Fla. (-8.1 percent). Collier, Fla., had the next largest employment decline (-7.4 percent), followed by the counties of Genesee, Mich. (-6.5 percent), Saginaw, Mich. (-5.2 percent), and Marion, Fla., (-5.1 percent).
The largest gains in the level of employment from March 2007 to March 2008 were recorded in the counties of Harris, Texas (67,200), New York, N.Y. (38,700), King, Wash. (31,000), Dallas, Texas (29,100), and Bexar, Texas (20,200). The largest decline in employment levels occurred in Maricopa, Ariz. (-25,100), followed by the counties of Hillsborough, Fla. (-23,700), Wayne, Mich. (-23,000), Oakland, Mich. (-19,500), and Lee, Fla. (-19,400). Large County Average Weekly Wages
The national average weekly wage in the first quarter of 2008 was $905. Average weekly wages were higher than the national average in 92 of the largest 334 U.S. counties. New York, N.Y., held the top position among the highest-paid large counties with an average weekly wage of $2,805. Fairfield, Conn., was second with an average weekly wage of $1,905, followed by Somerset, N.J. ($1,765), Suffolk, Mass. ($1,708), and San Francisco, Calif. ($1,639).
There were 241 counties with an average weekly wage below the national average in the first quarter of 2008. The lowest average weekly wage was reported in Cameron County, Texas ($523), followed by the counties of Hidalgo, Texas ($532), Horry, S.C. ($534), Webb, Texas ($554), and Yakima, Wash. ($587).
Over the year, the national average weekly wage rose by 2.4 percent. Among the largest counties, Westmoreland, Pa., led the nation in growth in average weekly wages, with an increase of 14.9 percent from the first quarter of 2007. Williamson, Texas, was second with growth of 10.8 percent, followed by the counties of Somerset, N.J. (9.0 percent), San Luis Obispo, Calif. (8.3 percent), and Jefferson, Texas (7.9 percent).
Thirty-four large counties experienced over-the-year declines in average weekly wages. Trumbull, Ohio, had the largest decrease (-17.2 percent), followed by the counties of Saginaw, Mich. (-4.4 percent), Rockingham, N.H. (-3.9 percent), Fairfield, Conn. (-3.8 percent), and Mecklenburg, N.C. (-3.4 percent).
Ten Largest U.S. Counties
Five of the 10 largest counties (based on 2007 annual average employment levels) experienced over-the-year percent increases in employment in March 2008. Harris, Texas, experienced the largest percent gain in employment (3.4 percent) among the 10 largest counties. Within Harris County, the largest gains in employment were in natural resources and mining (5.5 percent) and construction (5.4 percent). King, Wash., had the next largest increase in employment, 2.7 percent, followed by Dallas, Texas (2.0 percent). Maricopa, Ariz., experienced the largest decline in employment among the 10 largest counties with a 1.4 percent decrease. Within Maricopa, six industry groups experienced employment declines, with construction experiencing the largest decline, -14.2 percent. Orange, Calif., had the next largest decline in employment, -1.1 percent, followed by Miami-Dade, Fla. (-1.0 percent).
Nine of the 10 largest U.S. counties saw an over-the-year increase in average weekly wages. King, Wash., had the fastest growth in wages among the 10 largest counties, with a gain of 4.2 percent. Within King County, average weekly wages increased the most in the information industry (12.8 percent), followed by the other services industry (7.7 percent). Harris, Texas, was second in wage growth with a gain of 3.8 percent, followed by Cook, Ill. (2.7 percent). The smallest wage gain occurred in Orange, Calif. (1.2 percent), followed by Maricopa, Ariz. (1.3 percent). The only wage decline among the 10 largest counties occurred in New York, N.Y. (-1.0 percent).
Within New York County, two industry groups experienced over-the-year wage declines in the first quarter of 2008 - manufacturing (-4.1 percent) and financial activities (-3.7 percent). Financial activities employs ten times more workers than manufacturing in New York County and had the county's highest average weekly wages. The declines for the first quarter of 2008 follow over-the-year average weekly wage gains of 14.6 percent in manufacturing and 24.2 percent in financial activities in the first quarter of 2007.
