Technical Information: (202) 691-6467 USDL 08-0686
http://www.bls.gov/bdm/
For release: 10:00 A.M. EDT
Media Contact: (202) 691-5902 Wednesday, May 21, 2008
(NOTE: This news release was reissued on Thursday,
May 22, 2008, to correct a data value shown in table A. The
value for private sector contracting establishments in the
fourth quarter 2006 was corrected from 6,943 to 5,943. Data
in the other tables and other figures in the text were not
affected by this correction.)
BUSINESS EMPLOYMENT DYNAMICS: THIRD QUARTER 2007
From June 2007 to September 2007, the number of job gains from
opening and expanding private sector establishments was 7.2 million,
and the number of job losses from closing and contracting
establishments was 7.5 million, according to data released today by
the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor. This
is the first quarter since June 2003 where gross job losses
have exceeded gross job gains. (See charts 1 and 2 and table 3.)
Over this period, firms with 1,000 or more employees accounted for
the largest share of gross job gains (16.9 percent) as well as the
largest share of gross job losses (16.4 percent). (See tables D
and 4 and chart 3.)
The Business Employment Dynamics (BED) data series include gross
job gains and gross job losses at the establishment level by major
industry sector and for the 50 states, the District of Columbia,
Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands, as well as gross job gains and
gross job losses at the firm level by employer size class.
The change in the number of jobs over time is the net result of
increases and decreases in employment that occur at all businesses in
the economy. BED statistics track these changes in employment at
private business units from the third month of one quarter to the
third month of the next. Gross job gains are the sum of increases in
employment from expansions at existing units and the addition of new
jobs at opening units. Gross job losses are the result of contractions
in employment at existing units and the loss of jobs at closing units.
The difference between the number of gross jobs gained and the number
of gross jobs lost is the net change in employment. (See the Technical
Note for more information.)
Private Sector Establishment-Level Gross Job Gains and Job Losses
Opening and expanding private sector business establishments
gained 7.2 million jobs in the third quarter of 2007, a decrease of
395,000 from the previous quarter. Over the quarter, expanding
establishments added 5.8 million jobs, while opening establishments
added 1.4 million jobs.
Gross job losses totaled 7.5 million, an increase of 81,000 from the
previous quarter. During the quarter, contracting establishments lost
6.1 million jobs, while closing establishments lost 1.4 million jobs.
(See tables A, 1, and 3, and chart 2.)
The difference between the number of gross jobs gained and the
number of gross jobs lost yielded a net change of -235,000 jobs in
the private sector for third quarter 2007. This is the first quarter
of net job losses since the second quarter of 2003.
Table A. Three-month private sector gross job gains and losses,
seasonally adjusted
------------------------------------------------------------------------
| 3 months ended
|-------------------------------------
| Sept.| Dec. | March| June | Sept.
Category | 2006 | 2006 | 2007 | 2007 | 2007
|-------------------------------------
| Levels (in thousands)
----------------------------------|-------------------------------------
| | | | |
Gross job gains...................| 7,473| 7,809| 7,509| 7,644| 7,249
At expanding establishments.....| 6,032| 6,271| 6,158| 6,257| 5,821
At opening establishments.......| 1,441| 1,538| 1,351| 1,387| 1,428
| | | | |
Gross job losses..................| 7,462| 7,297| 7,071| 7,403| 7,484
At contracting establishments...| 6,110| 5,943| 5,796| 6,008| 6,134
At closing establishments.......| 1,352| 1,354| 1,275| 1,395| 1,350
| | | | |
Net employment change (1).........| 11 | 512| 438| 241| -235
|-------------------------------------
| Rates (percent)
|-------------------------------------
Gross job gains...................| 6.7| 7.0| 6.6| 6.7| 6.4
At expanding establishments.....| 5.4| 5.6| 5.4| 5.5| 5.1
At opening establishments.......| 1.3| 1.4| 1.2| 1.2| 1.3
| | | | |
Gross job losses..................| 6.6| 6.5| 6.2| 6.5| 6.6
At contracting establishments...| 5.4| 5.3| 5.1| 5.3| 5.4
At closing establishments.......| 1.2| 1.2| 1.1| 1.2| 1.2
| | | | |
Net employment change (1).........| .1| .5| .4| .2| -.2
------------------------------------------------------------------------
1 The net employment change is the difference between total gross job
gains and total gross job losses. See the Technical Note for further
information.
From June 2007 to September 2007, gross job gains represented 6.4
percent of private sector employment, while gross job losses
represented 6.6 percent of private sector employment. (See tables
A and 2.) These gross job gain and loss statistics demonstrate that
a sizable number of jobs appear and disappear in the relatively short
time frame of one quarter.
Major Industry Sector Gross Job Gains and Gross Job Losses
Net losses were seen this quarter in all but three sectors of the
economy: utilities, wholesale trade, and education and health
services. These industries showed gains of 1,000, 2,000, and 113,000
jobs, respectively. (See tables B and 3.)
Goods-producing. Expanding and opening establishments in the
goods-producing sector accounted for 1,486,000 jobs gained, and
contracting and closing establishments accounted for 1,703,000 jobs
lost. This net loss of 217,000 jobs was the fifth consecutive
quarter of net loss in this sector.
Construction. In construction, gross job gains fell over the
quarter to 762,000 and gross job losses increased to 869,000,
resulting in a net loss of 107,000 jobs, the largest net loss since
this series began in 1992. Additionally, this sector experienced net
losses in four of the five previous quarters.
Manufacturing. Gross job gains and gross job losses in
manufacturing fell to levels of 467,000 and 564,000 jobs,
respectively, in the third quarter of 2007. Despite the drop in
gross job losses, this sector experienced a net loss of 97,000 jobs,
the largest net loss in 15 quarters.
Table B. Three-month private sector gross job gains and losses by industry,
seasonally adjusted
(In thousands)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| Gross job gains | Gross job losses
| (3 months ended) | (3 months ended)
Industry |-----------------------------|-----------------------------
|Sept.|Dec. |Mar. |June |Sept.|Sept.|Dec. |Mar. |June |Sept.
|2006 |2006 |2007 |2007 |2007 |2006 |2006 |2007 |2007 |2007
-----------------------|-----|-----|-----|-----|-----|-----|-----|-----|-----|-----
| | | | | | | | | |
Total private1 |7,473|7,809|7,509|7,644|7,429|7,462|7,297|7,071|7,403|7,484
Goods-Producing.......|1,572|1,636|1,629|1,622|1,486|1,739|1,719|1,682|1,691|1,703
Natural resources | | | | | | | | | |
and mining.........| 269| 287| 279| 286| 257| 263| 266| 287| 269| 270
Construction ........| 791| 825| 850| 814| 762| 868| 845| 816| 855| 869
Manufacturing .......| 512| 524| 500| 522| 467| 608| 608| 579| 567| 564
Service-Providing1....|5,901|6,173|5,880|6,022|5,763|5,723|5,578|5,389|5,712|5,781
Wholesale trade......| 311| 322| 314| 318| 305| 305| 303| 296| 300| 303
Retail trade ........|1,030|1,081|1,087|1,023| 996|1,085|1,004| 971|1,028|1,055
Transportation and | | | | | | | | | |
warehousing........| 241| 269| 224| 242| 220| 224| 225| 245| 222| 228
Utilities............| 15| 19| 11| 14| 13| 15| 18| 11| 12| 12
Information..........| 148| 167| 138| 160| 153| 171| 146| 132| 137| 155
Financial activities.| 446| 457| 421| 436| 408| 445| 444| 418| 467| 470
Professional and | | | | | | | | | |
business services..|1,335|1,427|1,276|1,389|1,301|1,279|1,313|1,242|1,322|1,315
Education and | | | | | | | | | |
health services....| 784| 795| 799| 785| 797| 674| 692| 655| 697| 684
Leisure and | | | | | | | | | |
hospitality........|1,180|1,223|1,165|1,219|1,158|1,184|1,105|1,096|1,196|1,215
Other services.......| 295| 299| 292| 304| 288| 305| 291| 278| 287| 307
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1 Includes unclassified sector, not shown separately.
Service-providing. In the service-providing sector, gross job
gains totaled 5,763,000 and gross job losses totaled 5,781,000,
resulting in a net loss 18,000 jobs. This is the first net loss
since the first quarter of 2003.
Education and Health Services. The education and health services
sector gained 797,000 jobs and lost 684,000 jobs in the third quarter
of 2007, for a net gain of 113,000. This industry has experienced a
net job growth every quarter since this series began in 1992.
Retail Trade. In retail trade, gross job gains decreased again
this quarter to 996,000 and gross job losses rose to 1,055,000,
resulting in a net loss of 59,000 jobs.
Leisure and Hospitality. The leisure and hospitality industry
gained 1,158,000 jobs and lost 1,215,000 jobs in the third quarter of
2007, for a net loss of 57,000 jobs.
Financial Activities. The financial activities sector experienced
gross job gains of 408,000 and gross job losses of 470,000, resulting
in a net loss of 62,000 jobs. This was the second net loss in this
sector since the fourth quarter of 2003.
Number of Establishments Gaining and Losing Employment
Another way to look at the dynamics of business activities is to
monitor the number and proportion of business units that are growing
and declining. In the third quarter of 2007, the number of
establishments losing jobs exceeded the number of establishments
gaining jobs for the second consecutive quarter. Out of 7.0 million
active private-sector establishments, a total of 1,944,000
establishments lost jobs from June 2007 to September 2007. This is an
increase of 6,000 establishments from last quarter. (See table C.)
Of these establishments losing jobs, 1,585,000 were contracting
establishments and 359,000 were closing establishments. During the
quarter, 1,519,000 establishments expanded and 367,000 establishments
opened, resulting in 1,886,000 establishments gaining jobs. The
number of active private sector establishments increased by 8,000
during the quarter. This change is the difference between the number
of opening establishments and the number of closing establishments.
Table C. Number of private sector establishments by direction of
employment change, seasonally adjusted
(In thousands)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
| 3 months ended
|--------------------------------------
Category | Sept. | Dec. | March| June | Sept.
| 2006 | 2006 | 2007 | 2007 | 2007
----------------------------------|-------|-------|------|------|--------
Establishments gaining jobs.......| 1,891 | 1,954 | 1,935| 1,907| 1,886
Expanding establishments........| 1,535 | 1,562 | 1,577| 1,555| 1,519
Opening establishments..........| 356 | 392 | 358| 352| 367
| | | | |
Establishments losing jobs........| 1,909 | 1,892 | 1,900| 1,938| 1,944
Contracting establishments......| 1,558 | 1,542 | 1,545| 1,574| 1,585
Closing establishments..........| 351 | 350 | 355| 364| 359
| | | | |
Net establishment change (1)......| 5 | 42 | 3| -12| 8
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
1 The net establishment change is the difference between the number of
opening establishments and the number of closing establishments. See the
Technical Note for further information.
Firm-level Gross Job Gains and Gross Job Losses by Size Class
From June 2007 to September 2007, firms with 1,000 or more
employees accounted for the largest share of gross job gains (16.9
percent) as well as the largest share of gross job losses (16.4
percent). (See tables D and 4, and chart 3.)
Small firms, those with 1-4, 5-9, and 10-19 employees, showed an
increase in their proportion of gross job gains over the quarter,
with shares dropping for all other size classes. The gain was most
significant for firms with 1-4 employees, whose share of gross job
gains grew from 14.8 percent to 16.0 percent in the third quarter.
The firms with 1-4, 5-9, and 10-19 employees along with the largest
size class, firms with 1,000 or more employees, were the only classes
to show a drop in share of gross job losses. Despite the drop, size
class 1,000 or more employees maintains the largest share of gross
job losses in the third quarter. (See table D.)
Firms with 1-4 employees continued to have the largest shares of
both job gains at opening firms and job losses at closing firms, with
59.8 percent and 59.7 percent respectively, in the third quarter of
2007. (See table 4.)
Table D. Three-month private sector share (1) of gross job gains and losses by firm
size, seasonally adjusted
(Percent)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| Share of gross job gains | Share of gross job losses
| (3 months ended) | (3 months ended)
Firm size |------------------------------|------------------------------
|Sept.| Dec. |Mar. |June |Sept.| Sept.| Dec.|Mar. |June |Sept.
|2006 | 2006 |2007 |2007 |2007 | 2006 | 2006|2007 |2007 |2007
-----------------------|-----|------|-----|-----|-----|------|-----|-----|-----|-----
| | | | | | | | | |
1 - 4 employees..| 15.6| 15.8 | 15.7| 14.8| 16.0| 15.8 | 15.9| 16.7| 16.2| 15.8
5 - 9 employees..| 12.1| 11.6 | 12.3| 11.6| 12.1| 12.2 | 12.4| 12.6| 12.4| 12.2
10 - 19 employees..| 12.3| 11.7 | 12.5| 12.1| 12.2| 12.4 | 12.4| 12.5| 12.5| 12.4
20 - 49 employees..| 14.4| 13.8 | 14.6| 14.6| 14.3| 14.5 | 14.4| 14.4| 14.3| 14.6
50 - 99 employees..| 9.1| 8.7 | 9.0| 9.2| 8.9| 8.9 | 8.9| 8.8| 8.7| 9.0
100 - 249 employees..| 9.3| 9.2 | 9.4| 9.9| 9.3| 9.3 | 9.3| 9.0| 8.8| 9.5
250 - 499 employees..| 5.8| 5.5 | 5.5| 5.9| 5.6| 5.5 | 5.8| 5.3| 5.3| 5.6
500 - 999 employees..| 4.6| 4.5 | 4.5| 4.8| 4.7| 4.5 | 4.6| 4.1| 4.4| 4.5
1,000 or more employees| 16.8| 19.2 | 16.5| 17.1| 16.9| 16.9 | 16.3| 16.6| 17.4| 16.4
| | | | | | | | | |
Total...............|100.0| 100.0|100.0|100.0|100.0|100.0 |100.0|100.0|100.0|100.0
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1 Share measures the percent of the category represented by firm size.
Gross Job Gains and Losses by State
Over the quarter, Wyoming had the highest rate of gross job gains
(9.8 percent) and Alaska had the highest rate of gross job losses
(11.1 percent). Hawaii had the lowest rate of gross job gains (5.1
percent), while Illinois and Pennsylvania had the lowest rate of gross
job losses (5.7 percent each). (See table 6.) Gross job losses
exceeded gross job gains in 34 states, the District of Columbia and
the Virgin Islands, resulting in net losses in total private sector
employment. (See table 5.)
More Information
Additional information on gross job gains and gross job losses
are available at the Business Employment Dynamics Web page on the BLS
Web site at http://www.bls.gov/bdm. This information includes data
on the levels and rates of gross job gains and gross job losses by
firm size, the not seasonally adjusted data and other seasonally
adjusted time series not presented in this release, charts of gross
job gains and gross job losses by industry and firm size, and
frequently asked questions on firm-size data. Additional information
about the Business Employment Dynamics data can be found in the Technical
Note of this release or may be obtained by e-mailing BDMinfo@bls.gov.
------------------------------------------------------------------
| Comparing Business Employment Dynamics Data with Current |
| Employment Statistics and Quarterly Census of Employment |
| and Wages Data |
| |
| The net change in employment from Business Employment |
| Dynamics (BED) data series will not match the net change in |
| employment from the monthly Current Employment Statistics (CES) |
| survey. The CES estimates are based on monthly surveys from a |
| sample of establishments, while gross job gains and gross job |
| losses are based on a quarterly census of administrative records.|
| In addition, the CES has a different coverage, excluding the |
| agriculture sector but including establishments not covered by |
| the unemployment insurance program. The net over-the-quarter |
| changes derived by aggregating component series in the BED data |
| may be different from the net employment change estimated from |
| the CES seasonally adjusted total employment series. The in- |
| tended use of the BED statistics is to show the dynamic labor |
| market flows that underlie the net changes in aggregate employ- |
| ment levels; data users who want to track net changes in aggre- |
| gate employment levels over time should refer to CES data. |
| |
| BED data have a more limited scope than the Quarterly Census |
| of Employment and Wages (QCEW) data. The data in this release, |
| in contrast to the QCEW data, exclude government employees, |
| private households (NAICS 814110), and establishments with zero |
| employment. |
| |
| See the Technical Note for further information. |
------------------------------------------------------------------
Technical Note
The Business Employment Dynamics (BED) data are a product of a federal-
state cooperative program known as Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages
(QCEW), or the ES-202 program. The BED data are compiled by the U.S.
Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) from existing quarterly state unemployment
insurance (UI) records. Most employers in the U.S. are required to file
quarterly reports on the employment and wages of workers covered by UI
laws, and to pay quarterly UI taxes. The quarterly UI reports are sent by
the State Workforce Agencies (SWAs) to BLS and form the basis of the BLS
establishment universe sampling frame. These reports also are used to pro-
duce the quarterly QCEW data on total employment and wages and the longitu-
dinal BED data on gross job gains and losses. Other important BLS uses
of the UI reports are in the Current Employment Statistics (CES) program.
(See table below for differences between QCEW, CES, and BED.)
In the BED program, the quarterly UI records are linked across quarters
to provide a longitudinal history for each establishment. The linkage
process allows the tracking of net employment changes at the establishment
level, which in turn allows the estimation of jobs gained at opening and
expanding establishments and jobs lost at closing and contracting establish-
ments.
Differences between QCEW, BED, and CES employment measures
The BLS publishes three different establishment-based employment mea-
sures for any given quarter. Each of these measures--QCEW, BED, and CES--
makes use of the quarterly UI employment reports in producing data; how-
ever, each measure has a somewhat different universe coverage, estimation
procedure, and publication product.
Differences in coverage and estimation methods can result in somewhat
different measures of over-the-quarter employment change. It is important to
understand program differences and the intended uses of the program products.
(See table below.) Additional information on each program can be obtained
from the program Web sites shown in the table.
Summary of Major Differences between QCEW, BED, and CES Employment Measures
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| QCEW | BED | CES
-----------|---------------------|----------------------|------------------------
Source |--Count of UI admini-|--Count of longitudi- |--Sample survey:
| strative records | nally-linked UI ad- | 400,000 establish-
| submitted by 9.0 | ministrative records| ments
| million employers | submitted by 7.0 |
| | million private sec-|
| | tor employers |
-----------|---------------------|----------------------|------------------------
Coverage |--UI and UCFE cover- |--UI Coverage, exclud-|Nonfarm wage and sal-
| age: all employers| ing government, pri-| ary jobs:
| subject to state | vate households, and|--UI Coverage, exclud-
| and federal UI Laws| establishments with | ing agriculture, pri-
| | zero employment | vate households, and
| | | self-employed workers
| | |--Other employment, in-
| | | cluding railroads,
| | | religious organiza-
| | | tions, and other non-
| | | UI-covered jobs
-----------|---------------------|----------------------|------------------------
Publication|--Quarterly |--Quarterly |--Monthly
frequency | -7 months after the| -8 months after the | -Usually first Friday
| end of each quar- | end of each quarter| of following month
| ter | |
-----------|---------------------|----------------------|------------------------
Use of UI |--Directly summarizes|--Links each new UI |--Uses UI file as a sam-
file | and publishes each | quarter to longitu- | pling frame and annu-
| new quarter of UI | dinal database and | ally realigns (bench-
| data | directly summarizes | marks) sample esti-
| | gross job gains and | mates to first quar-
| | losses | ter UI levels
-----------|---------------------|----------------------|------------------------
Principal |--Provides a quarter-|--Provides quarterly |--Provides current month-
products | ly and annual uni- | employer dynamics | ly estimates of employ-
| verse count of es- | data on establish- | ment, hours, and earn-
| tablishments, em- | ment openings, clos-| ings at the MSA, state,
| ployment, and wages| ings, expansions, | and national level by
| at the county, MSA,| and contractions at | industry
| state, and national| the national level |
| levels by detailed | by NAICS super- |
| industry | sectors and by size |
| | of firm, and at the |
| | state private-sector|
| | total level |
| |--Future expansions |
| | will include data |
| | with greater in- |
| | dustry detail and |
| | data at the county |
| | and MSA level |
-----------|---------------------|----------------------|------------------------
Principal |--Major uses include:|--Major uses include: |--Major uses include:
uses | -Detailed locality | -Business cycle | -Principal national
| data | analysis | economic indicator
| -Periodic universe | -Analysis of employ-| -Official time series
| counts for bench- | er dynamics under- | for employment change
| marking sample | lying economic ex- | measures
| survey estimates | pansions and con- | -Input into other ma-
| -Sample frame for | tractions | jor economic indi-
| BLS establishment | -Analysis of employ-| cators
| surveys | ment expansion and |
| | contraction by size|
| | of firm |
| | |
-----------|---------------------|----------------------|------------------------
Program |--www.bls.gov/cew/ |--www.bls.gov/bdm/ |--www.bls.gov/ces/
Web sites | | |
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Coverage
Employment and wage data for workers covered by state UI and Unemployment
Compensation for Federal Employees (UCFE) laws are compiled from quarterly
contribution reports submitted to the SWAs by employers. In addition to the
quarterly contribution reports, employers who operate multiple establishments
within a state complete a questionnaire, called the "Multiple Worksite Report,"
which provides detailed information on the location of their establishments.
These reports are based on place of employment rather than place of residence.
UI and UCFE coverage is broad and basically comparable from state to state.
Major exclusions from UI coverage are self-employed workers, religious or-
ganizations, most agricultural workers on small farms, all members of the
Armed Forces, elected officials in most states, most employees of railroads,
some domestic workers, most student workers at schools, and employees of cer-
tain small nonprofit organizations.
Gross job gains and gross job losses in this release are derived from lon-
gitudinal histories of over 7.0 million private sector employer reports out
of 9.0 million total reports of employment and wages submitted by states to
BLS in the third quarter of 2007. Gross job gains and gross job losses data
in this release do not report estimates for government employees or private
households (NAICS 814110) and do not include establishments with zero employ-
ment in both previous and current quarters. Data from Puerto Rico and the
Virgin Islands also are excluded from the national data. As an illustration,
the table below shows, in millions of establishments, the number of establish-
ments excluded from the gross job gains and gross job losses data in the third
quarter of 2007:
Number of active establishments included in
Business Employment Dynamics data at the
national level
Millions
Total establishments QCEW program....................................9.0
Excluded: Public sector.........................................0.3
Private households....................................0.6
Zero employment.......................................1.0
Establishments in Puerto Rico
and the Virgin Islands..............................0.1
Total establishments included in Business
Employment Dynamics data.............................................7.0
Unit of analysis
Establishments are used in the tabulation of the BED statistics by in-
dustry and firms are used in the tabulation of the BED size class sta-
tistics. An establishment is defined as an economic unit that produces
goods or services, usually at a single physical location, and engages in
one or predominantly one activity. A firm is a legal business, either
corporate or otherwise, and may consist of several establishments. Firm-
level data are compiled based on an aggregation of establishments under
common ownership by a corporate parent using employer tax identification
numbers. The firm-level aggregation, which is consistent with the role of
corporations as the economic decision makers, is used for the measurement
of the BED data elements by size class.
Because of the difference in the unit of analysis, total gross job gains
and gross job losses by size class are lower than total gross job gains and
gross job losses by industry, as some establishment gains and losses within
a firm are offset during the aggregation process. However, the total net
changes in employment are the same for not seasonally adjusted data and are
similar for seasonally adjusted data.
Concepts and methodology
The Business Employment Dynamics data measure the net change in employ-
ment at the establishment or firm level. These changes come about in one
of four ways. A net increase in employment can come from either opening
units or expanding units. A net decrease in employment can come from either
closing units or contracting units. Gross job gains include the sum of all
jobs added at either opening or expanding units. Gross job losses include
the sum of all jobs lost in either closing or contracting units. The net
change in employment is the difference between gross job gains and gross
job losses.
The formal definitions of employment changes are as follows:
Openings. These are either units with positive third-month employment for
the first time in the current quarter, with no links to the prior quarter, or
with positive third-month employment in the current quarter, following zero em-
ployment in the previous quarter.
Expansions. These are units with positive employment in the third month
in both the previous and current quarters, with a net increase in employment
over this period.
Closings. These are units with positive third-month employment in the pre-
vious quarter, with no employment or zero employment reported in the current
quarter.
Contractions. These are units with positive employment in the third month
in both the previous and current quarters, with a net decrease in employment
over this period.
All establishment-level employment changes are measured from the third
month of each quarter. Not all establishments and firms change their em-
ployment levels. Units with no change in employment count towards estimates
of total employment, but not for levels of gross employment job gains and
gross job losses.
Gross job gains and gross job losses are expressed as rates by dividing
their levels by the average of employment in the current and previous quar-
ters. This provides a symmetric growth rate. The rates are calculated for
the components of gross job gains and gross job losses and then summed to
form their respective totals. These rates can be added and subtracted just
as their levels can. For instance, the difference between the gross job
gains rate and the gross job losses rate is the net growth rate.
Linkage methodology
Prior to the measurement of gross job gains and gross job losses, QCEW
records are linked across two quarters. The linkage process matches esta-
blishments' unique SWA identification numbers (SWA-ID). Between 95 to 97
percent of establishments identified as continuous from quarter to quarter
are matched by SWA-ID. The rest are linked in one of three ways. The first
method uses predecessor and successor information, identified by the states,
which relates records with different SWA-IDs across quarters. Predecessor
and successor relations can come about for a variety of reasons, including
a change in ownership, a firm restructuring, or a UI account restructuring.
If a match cannot be attained in this manner, a probability-based match is
used. This match attempts to identify two establishments with different SWA-
IDs as continuous. The match is based upon comparisons such as the same
name, address, and phone number. Third, an analyst examines unmatched re-
cords individually and makes a possible match.
In order to ensure the highest possible quality of data, SWAs verify with
employers and update, if necessary, the industry, location, and ownership
classification of all establishments on a 3-year cycle. Changes in establish-
ment classification codes resulting from the verification process are intro-
duced with the data reported for the first quarter of the year. Changes re-
sulting from improved employer reporting also are introduced in the first
quarter.
Sizing methodology
The method of dynamic sizing is used in calculations for the BED size-
class data series. Dynamic sizing allocates each firm's employment gain or
loss during a quarter to each respective size class in which the change
occurred. For example, if a firm grew from 2 employees in quarter 1 to 38
employees in quarter 2, then, of the 36-employee increase, 2 would be al-
located to the first size class, 5 to the size class 5 to 9, 10 to size
class 10 to 19, and 19 to size class 20 to 49.
Dynamic sizing provides symmetrical firm-size estimates and eliminates
any systematic effects which may be caused by the transitory and reverting
changes in firms' sizes over time. Additionally, it allocates each job
gain or loss to the actual size class where it occurred.
Seasonal adjustment
Over the course of a year, the levels of employment and the associated
job flows undergo sharp fluctuations due to such seasonal events as changes
in the weather, reduced or expanded production, harvests, major holidays,
and the opening and closing of schools. The effect of such seasonal vari-
ation can be very large.
Because these seasonal events follow a more or less regular pattern each
year, their influence can be eliminated by adjusting these statistics from
quarter to quarter. These adjustments make nonseasonal developments, such as
declines in economic activity, easier to recognize. For example, the large
number of youths taking summer jobs is likely to obscure other changes that
have taken place in June relative to March, making it difficult to determine
if the level of economic activity has risen or declined. However, because
the effect of students finishing school in previous years is known, the
statistics for the current year can be adjusted to allow for a comparable
change. The adjusted figures provide a more useful tool with which to ana-
lyze changes in economic activity.
The employment data series for opening, expanding, closing, and contract-
ing units are independently seasonally adjusted; net changes are calculated
based on the difference between gross job gains and gross job losses. Simi-
larly, for industry data, the establishment counts data series for opening,
expanding, closing, and contracting establishments are independently adjusted,
and the net changes are calculated based on the difference between the number
of opening and closing establishments. Additionally, establishment and em-
ployment levels are independently seasonally adjusted to calculate the sea-
sonally adjusted rates. Concurrent seasonal adjustment is run using X-12
ARIMA. Seasonally adjusted data series for the total private sector are cal-
culated by summing the seasonally adjusted data for all sectors, including
the unclassified sector, which is not published separately.
The employment data series for opening, expanding, closing, and contracting
units for each of the 50 states and the District of Columbia are seasonally
adjusted at the total private level only. The sum of the state series for
opening, expanding, closing, and contracting units will not necessarily be
equal to the national total private series because of the independent seasonal
adjustment of these series.
The net over-the-quarter change derived by summing the BED component series
will differ from the net employment change estimated from the seasonally ad-
justed total private employment series from the CES program. The intended use
of BED statistics is to show the dynamic labor market changes that underlie
the net employment change statistic. As such, data users interested particu-
larly in the net employment change and not in the gross job flows underlying
this change should refer to CES data for over-the-quarter net employment
changes.
Reliability of the data
Since the data series on Business Employment Dynamics are based on admini-
strative rather than sample data, there are no issues related to sampling
error. Nonsampling error, however, still exists. Nonsampling errors can oc-
cur for many reasons, such as the employer submitting corrected employment
data after the end of the quarter or typographical errors made by businesses
when providing information. Such errors, however, are likely to be distri-
buted randomly throughout the dataset.
Changes in administrative data sometimes create complications for the
linkage process. This can result in overstating openings and closings while
understating expansions and contractions. The BLS continues to refine methods
for improving the linkage process to alleviate the effects of these compli-
cations.
The BED data series are subject to periodic minor changes based on correc-
tions in QCEW records, updates on predecessors and successors information, and
seasonal adjustment revisions.
Additional statistics and other information
Several other programs within BLS produce closely related information.
The QCEW program, also known as the ES-202 program, provides both quarterly
and annual estimates of employment by state, county, and detailed industry.
News releases on quarterly county employment and wages are available upon
request from the Division of Administrative Statistics and Labor Turnover,
Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, Washington, DC 20212;
telephone 202-691-6567; (http://www.bls.gov/cew/); (e-mail: QCEWInfo@bls.gov).
The CES program produces monthly estimates of employment, its net change,
and earnings by detailed industry. These estimates are part of the Employ-
ment Situation report put out monthly by BLS.
The Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) program provides month-
ly measures of job openings, as well as employee hires and separations.
Information in this release will be made available to sensory impaired in-
dividuals upon request. Voice phone: 202-691-5200; TDD message referral
number: 1-800-877-8339.
Table 1. Private sector gross job gains and job losses, seasonally adjusted
Total private
(In thousands)
Gross job gains Gross job losses
Year 3 months ended Net change (1) Total Expanding Opening Total Contracting Closing
establishments establishments establishments establishments
1992 September 599 7,329 5,688 1,641 6,730 5,308 1,422
December 123 6,986 5,452 1,534 6,863 5,484 1,379
1993 March 288 7,117 5,404 1,713 6,829 5,364 1,465
June 734 7,275 5,782 1,493 6,541 5,155 1,386
September 965 7,539 5,926 1,613 6,574 5,265 1,309
December 603 7,375 5,822 1,553 6,772 5,411 1,361
1994 March 559 7,381 5,800 1,581 6,822 5,401 1,421
June 905 7,709 6,041 1,668 6,804 5,315 1,489
September 1,288 8,002 6,277 1,725 6,714 5,426 1,288
December 460 7,535 5,978 1,557 7,075 5,642 1,433
1995 March 758 7,787 6,124 1,663 7,029 5,652 1,377
June 358 7,666 6,006 1,660 7,308 5,840 1,468
September 845 7,983 6,341 1,642 7,138 5,645 1,493
December 378 7,830 6,140 1,690 7,452 5,929 1,523
1996 March 457 7,933 6,179 1,754 7,476 5,967 1,509
June 631 8,051 6,282 1,769 7,420 5,903 1,517
September 704 8,177 6,373 1,804 7,473 5,942 1,531
December 816 8,206 6,396 1,810 7,390 5,875 1,515
1997 March 784 8,214 6,407 1,807 7,430 5,886 1,544
June 584 8,055 6,330 1,725 7,471 5,931 1,540
September 901 8,515 6,718 1,797 7,614 5,927 1,687
December 708 8,617 6,697 1,920 7,909 6,024 1,885
1998 March 711 8,648 6,599 2,049 7,937 6,077 1,860
June 610 8,629 6,552 2,077 8,019 6,224 1,795
September 742 8,508 6,607 1,901 7,766 6,093 1,673
December 768 8,475 6,737 1,738 7,707 6,025 1,682
1999 March 353 8,585 6,626 1,959 8,232 6,395 1,837
June 644 8,539 6,661 1,878 7,895 6,210 1,685
September 588 8,571 6,734 1,837 7,983 6,250 1,733
December 1,005 8,749 6,956 1,793 7,744 6,076 1,668
2000 March 789 8,792 6,924 1,868 8,003 6,341 1,662
June 492 8,499 6,814 1,685 8,007 6,387 1,620
September 296 8,506 6,728 1,778 8,210 6,483 1,727
December 295 8,400 6,702 1,698 8,105 6,433 1,672
2001 March -156 8,436 6,694 1,742 8,592 6,717 1,875
June -792 8,009 6,319 1,690 8,801 7,050 1,751
September -1,184 7,608 5,917 1,691 8,792 6,991 1,801
December -960 7,591 5,932 1,659 8,551 6,858 1,693
2002 March -39 8,049 6,259 1,790 8,088 6,424 1,664
June -38 7,890 6,164 1,726 7,928 6,290 1,638
September -171 7,608 6,015 1,593 7,779 6,248 1,531
December -198 7,522 5,960 1,562 7,720 6,171 1,549
2003 March -420 7,423 5,901 1,522 7,843 6,306 1,537
June -96 7,415 5,944 1,471 7,511 6,040 1,471
September 180 7,369 5,898 1,471 7,189 5,828 1,361
December 332 7,560 6,027 1,533 7,228 5,792 1,436
2004 March 439 7,669 6,174 1,495 7,230 5,796 1,434
June 636 7,771 6,251 1,520 7,135 5,651 1,484
September 182 7,612 6,036 1,576 7,430 5,889 1,541
December 797 7,883 6,268 1,615 7,086 5,655 1,431
2005 March 352 7,578 6,107 1,471 7,226 5,800 1,426
June 590 7,796 6,248 1,548 7,206 5,789 1,417
September 651 7,943 6,362 1,581 7,292 5,846 1,446
December 539 7,846 6,278 1,568 7,307 5,936 1,371
2006 March 774 7,679 6,261 1,418 6,905 5,633 1,272
June 416 7,811 6,292 1,519 7,395 6,015 1,380
September 11 7,473 6,032 1,441 7,462 6,110 1,352
December 512 7,809 6,271 1,538 7,297 5,943 1,354
2007 March 438 7,509 6,158 1,351 7,071 5,796 1,275
June 241 7,644 6,257 1,387 7,403 6,008 1,395
September -235 7,249 5,821 1,428 7,484 6,134 1,350
(1) Net change is the difference between total gross job gains and total gross job losses.
Table 2. Private sector gross job gains and losses, as a percent of employment, (1) seasonally adjusted
Total private
(Percent)
Gross job gains Gross job losses
Year 3 months ended Net change (2) Total Expanding Opening Total Contracting Closing
establishments establishments establishments establishments
1992 September 0.7 8.2 6.4 1.8 7.5 5.9 1.6
December 0.2 7.8 6.1 1.7 7.6 6.1 1.5
1993 March 0.3 7.9 6.0 1.9 7.6 6.0 1.6
June 0.8 8.0 6.4 1.6 7.2 5.7 1.5
September 1.1 8.3 6.5 1.8 7.2 5.8 1.4
December 0.6 8.0 6.3 1.7 7.4 5.9 1.5
1994 March 0.7 8.0 6.3 1.7 7.3 5.8 1.5
June 1.0 8.3 6.5 1.8 7.3 5.7 1.6
September 1.3 8.4 6.6 1.8 7.1 5.7 1.4
December 0.5 7.9 6.3 1.6 7.4 5.9 1.5
1995 March 0.8 8.1 6.4 1.7 7.3 5.9 1.4
June 0.3 7.9 6.2 1.7 7.6 6.1 1.5
September 0.9 8.2 6.5 1.7 7.3 5.8 1.5
December 0.3 8.0 6.3 1.7 7.7 6.1 1.6
1996 March 0.5 8.1 6.3 1.8 7.6 6.1 1.5
June 0.7 8.2 6.4 1.8 7.5 6.0 1.5
September 0.7 8.2 6.4 1.8 7.5 6.0 1.5
December 0.8 8.2 6.4 1.8 7.4 5.9 1.5
1997 March 0.9 8.2 6.4 1.8 7.3 5.8 1.5
June 0.6 7.9 6.2 1.7 7.3 5.8 1.5
September 1.0 8.4 6.6 1.8 7.4 5.8 1.6
December 0.8 8.4 6.5 1.9 7.6 5.8 1.8
1998 March 0.7 8.4 6.4 2.0 7.7 5.9 1.8
June 0.6 8.3 6.3 2.0 7.7 6.0 1.7
September 0.7 8.1 6.3 1.8 7.4 5.8 1.6
December 0.7 8.0 6.4 1.6 7.3 5.7 1.6
1999 March 0.3 8.0 6.2 1.8 7.7 6.0 1.7
June 0.6 8.0 6.2 1.8 7.4 5.8 1.6
September 0.6 8.0 6.3 1.7 7.4 5.8 1.6
December 1.0 8.1 6.4 1.7 7.1 5.6 1.5
2000 March 0.7 8.0 6.3 1.7 7.3 5.8 1.5
June 0.4 7.7 6.2 1.5 7.3 5.8 1.5
September 0.2 7.7 6.1 1.6 7.5 5.9 1.6
December 0.3 7.6 6.1 1.5 7.3 5.8 1.5
2001 March -0.1 7.7 6.1 1.6 7.8 6.1 1.7
June -0.8 7.2 5.7 1.5 8.0 6.4 1.6
September -1.2 6.9 5.4 1.5 8.1 6.4 1.7
December -0.9 7.0 5.5 1.5 7.9 6.3 1.6
2002 March 0.0 7.5 5.8 1.7 7.5 6.0 1.5
June 0.0 7.3 5.7 1.6 7.3 5.8 1.5
September -0.1 7.1 5.6 1.5 7.2 5.8 1.4
December 0.0 7.1 5.6 1.5 7.1 5.7 1.4
2003 March -0.4 6.9 5.5 1.4 7.3 5.9 1.4
June -0.1 7.0 5.6 1.4 7.1 5.7 1.4
September 0.1 6.9 5.5 1.4 6.8 5.5 1.3
December 0.3 7.0 5.6 1.4 6.7 5.4 1.3
2004 March 0.4 7.1 5.7 1.4 6.7 5.4 1.3
June 0.6 7.2 5.8 1.4 6.6 5.2 1.4
September 0.3 7.1 5.6 1.5 6.8 5.4 1.4
December 0.8 7.3 5.8 1.5 6.5 5.2 1.3
2005 March 0.3 6.9 5.6 1.3 6.6 5.3 1.3
June 0.5 7.1 5.7 1.4 6.6 5.3 1.3
September 0.6 7.2 5.8 1.4 6.6 5.3 1.3
December 0.6 7.1 5.7 1.4 6.5 5.3 1.2
2006 March 0.8 6.9 5.6 1.3 6.1 5.0 1.1
June 0.4 6.9 5.6 1.3 6.5 5.3 1.2
September 0.1 6.7 5.4 1.3 6.6 5.4 1.2
December 0.5 7.0 5.6 1.4 6.5 5.3 1.2
2007 March 0.4 6.6 5.4 1.2 6.2 5.1 1.1
June 0.2 6.7 5.5 1.2 6.5 5.3 1.2
September -0.2 6.4 5.1 1.3 6.6 5.4 1.2
(1) The rates measure gross job gains and job losses as a percentage of the average of the previous and current employment.
(2) See footnote 1, table 1.
Table 3: Private sector gross job gains and losses by industry, seasonally adjusted
Gross job gains and job losses Gross job gains and job losses
(in thousands) as a percent of employment
Category 3 months ended 3 months ended
Sept. Dec. March June Sept. Sept. Dec. March June Sept.
2006 2006 2007 2007 2007 2006 2006 2007 2007 2007
Total private(1)
Gross job gains 7,473 7,809 7,509 7,644 7,249 6.7 7.0 6.6 6.7 6.4
At expanding establishments 6,032 6,271 6,158 6,257 5,821 5.4 5.6 5.4 5.5 5.1
At opening establishments 1,441 1,538 1,351 1,387 1,428 1.3 1.4 1.2 1.2 1.3
Gross job losses 7,462 7,297 7,071 7,403 7,484 6.6 6.5 6.2 6.5 6.6
At contracting establishments 6,110 5,943 5,796 6,008 6,134 5.4 5.3 5.1 5.3 5.4
At closing establishments 1,352 1,354 1,275 1,395 1,350 1.2 1.2 1.1 1.2 1.2
Net employment change 11 512 438 241 -235 0.1 0.5 0.4 0.2 -0.2
Goods-producing
Gross job gains 1,572 1,636 1,629 1,622 1,486 6.6 7.0 6.9 6.9 6.4
At expanding establishments 1,329 1,381 1,398 1,385 1,256 5.6 5.9 5.9 5.9 5.4
At opening establishments 243 255 231 237 230 1.0 1.1 1.0 1.0 1.0
Gross job losses 1,739 1,719 1,682 1,691 1,703 7.4 7.3 7.1 7.2 7.3
At contracting establishments 1,463 1,452 1,421 1,415 1,436 6.2 6.2 6.0 6.0 6.2
At closing establishments 276 267 261 276 267 1.2 1.1 1.1 1.2 1.1
Net employment change -167 -83 -53 -69 -217 -0.8 -0.3 -0.2 -0.3 -0.9
Natural resources and mining
Gross job gains 269 287 279 286 257 15.1 15.9 15.3 15.7 14.2
At expanding establishments 230 245 241 248 221 12.9 13.6 13.2 13.6 12.2
At opening establishments 39 42 38 38 36 2.2 2.3 2.1 2.1 2.0
Gross job losses 263 266 287 269 270 14.8 14.7 15.6 14.7 14.9
At contracting establishments 223 230 248 230 230 12.5 12.7 13.5 12.6 12.7
At closing establishments 40 36 39 39 40 2.3 2.0 2.1 2.1 2.2
Net employment change 6 21 -8 17 -13 0.3 1.2 -0.3 1.0 -0.7
Construction
Gross job gains 791 825 850 814 762 10.3 10.8 11.1 10.6 10.1
At expanding establishments 636 663 699 658 614 8.3 8.7 9.1 8.6 8.1
At opening establishments 155 162 151 156 148 2.0 2.1 2.0 2.0 2.0
Gross job losses 868 845 816 855 869 11.4 11.1 10.6 11.2 11.5
At contracting establishments 702 683 655 688 704 9.2 9.0 8.5 9.0 9.3
At closing establishments 166 162 161 167 165 2.2 2.1 2.1 2.2 2.2
Net employment change -77 -20 34 -41 -107 -1.1 -0.3 0.5 -0.6 -1.4
Manufacturing
Gross job gains 512 524 500 522 467 3.6 3.8 3.6 3.7 3.3
At expanding establishments 463 473 458 479 421 3.3 3.4 3.3 3.4 3.0
At opening establishments 49 51 42 43 46 0.3 0.4 0.3 0.3 0.3
Gross job losses 608 608 579 567 564 4.3 4.3 4.1 4.1 4.0
At contracting establishments 538 539 518 497 502 3.8 3.8 3.7 3.6 3.6
At closing establishments 70 69 61 70 62 0.5 0.5 0.4 0.5 0.4
Net employment change -96 -84 -79 -45 -97 -0.7 -0.5 -0.5 -0.4 -0.7
Service-providing(1)
Gross job gains 5,901 6,173 5,880 6,022 5,763 6.6 6.9 6.5 6.7 6.3
At expanding establishments 4,703 4,890 4,760 4,872 4,565 5.3 5.5 5.3 5.4 5.0
At opening establishments 1,198 1,283 1,120 1,150 1,198 1.3 1.4 1.2 1.3 1.3
Gross job losses 5,723 5,578 5,389 5,712 5,781 6.4 6.2 6.0 6.3 6.4
At contracting establishments 4,647 4,491 4,375 4,593 4,698 5.2 5.0 4.9 5.1 5.2
At closing establishments 1,076 1,087 1,014 1,119 1,083 1.2 1.2 1.1 1.2 1.2
Net employment change 178 595 491 310 -18 0.2 0.7 0.5 0.4 -0.1
Wholesale trade
Gross job gains 311 322 314 318 305 5.3 5.4 5.3 5.3 5.1
At expanding establishments 253 262 256 264 245 4.3 4.4 4.3 4.4 4.1
At opening establishments 58 60 58 54 60 1.0 1.0 1.0 0.9 1.0
Gross job losses 305 303 296 300 303 5.1 5.1 5.0 5.1 5.0
At contracting establishments 238 236 230 231 240 4.0 4.0 3.9 3.9 4.0
At closing establishments 67 67 66 69 63 1.1 1.1 1.1 1.2 1.0
Net employment change 6 19 18 18 2 0.2 0.3 0.3 0.2 0.1
Retail trade
Gross job gains 1,030 1,081 1,087 1,023 996 6.7 7.0 7.0 6.6 6.3
At expanding establishments 850 898 941 872 817 5.5 5.8 6.1 5.6 5.2
At opening establishments 180 183 146 151 179 1.2 1.2 0.9 1.0 1.1
Gross job losses 1,085 1,004 971 1,028 1,055 7.0 6.5 6.2 6.6 6.8
At contracting establishments 923 857 827 890 918 6.0 5.5 5.3 5.7 5.9
At closing establishments 162 147 144 138 137 1.0 1.0 0.9 0.9 0.9
Net employment change -55 77 116 -5 -59 -0.3 0.5 0.8 0.0 -0.5
Transportation and warehousing
Gross job gains 241 269 224 242 220 5.7 6.3 5.2 5.6 5.0
At expanding establishments 207 231 192 208 188 4.9 5.4 4.5 4.8 4.3
At opening establishments 34 38 32 34 32 0.8 0.9 0.7 0.8 0.7
Gross job losses 224 225 245 222 228 5.3 5.2 5.7 5.2 5.3
At contracting establishments 186 185 211 185 190 4.4 4.3 4.9 4.3 4.4
At closing establishments 38 40 34 37 38 0.9 0.9 0.8 0.9 0.9
Net employment change 17 44 -21 20 -8 0.4 1.1 -0.5 0.4 -0.3
Utilities
Gross job gains 15 19 11 14 13 2.8 3.5 2.0 2.6 2.4
At expanding establishments 14 13 10 13 12 2.6 2.4 1.8 2.4 2.2
At opening establishments 1 6 1 1 1 0.2 1.1 0.2 0.2 0.2
Gross job losses 15 18 11 12 12 2.8 3.3 2.0 2.2 2.2
At contracting establishments 13 13 10 10 10 2.4 2.4 1.8 1.8 1.8
At closing establishments 2 5 1 2 2 0.4 0.9 0.2 0.4 0.4
Net employment change 0 1 0 2 1 0.0 0.2 0.0 0.4 0.2
Information
Gross job gains 148 167 138 160 153 4.8 5.5 4.6 5.3 5.1
At expanding establishments 123 138 118 137 127 4.0 4.5 3.9 4.5 4.2
At opening establishments 25 29 20 23 26 0.8 1.0 0.7 0.8 0.9
Gross job losses 171 146 132 137 155 5.6 4.7 4.4 4.6 5.1
At contracting establishments 142 114 108 111 130 4.7 3.7 3.6 3.7 4.3
At closing establishments 29 32 24 26 25 0.9 1.0 0.8 0.9 0.8
Net employment change -23 21 6 23 -2 -0.8 0.8 0.2 0.7 0.0
Financial activities
Gross job gains 446 457 421 436 408 5.5 5.5 5.1 5.3 5.0
At expanding establishments 350 347 335 353 318 4.3 4.2 4.1 4.3 3.9
At opening establishments 96 110 86 83 90 1.2 1.3 1.0 1.0 1.1
Gross job losses 445 444 418 467 470 5.4 5.4 5.1 5.7 5.7
At contracting establishments 343 338 320 360 354 4.2 4.1 3.9 4.4 4.3
At closing establishments 102 106 98 107 116 1.2 1.3 1.2 1.3 1.4
Net employment change 1 13 3 -31 -62 0.1 0.1 0.0 -0.4 -0.7
Professional and business services
Gross job gains 1,335 1,427 1,276 1,389 1,301 7.6 8.1 7.2 7.7 7.3
At expanding establishments 1,093 1,149 1,064 1,148 1,054 6.2 6.5 6.0 6.4 5.9
At opening establishments 242 278 212 241 247 1.4 1.6 1.2 1.3 1.4
Gross job losses 1,279 1,313 1,242 1,322 1,315 7.3 7.4 7.0 7.4 7.3
At contracting establishments 1,029 1,057 996 1,022 1,056 5.9 6.0 5.6 5.7 5.9
At closing establishments 250 256 246 300 259 1.4 1.4 1.4 1.7 1.4
Net employment change 56 114 34 67 -14 0.3 0.7 0.2 0.3 0.0
Education and health services
Gross job gains 784 795 799 785 797 4.6 4.7 4.6 4.5 4.6
At expanding establishments 665 666 678 673 674 3.9 3.9 3.9 3.9 3.9
At opening establishments 119 129 121 112 123 0.7 0.8 0.7 0.6 0.7
Gross job losses 674 692 655 697 684 4.0 4.1 3.8 4.0 3.9
At contracting establishments 561 558 540 579 563 3.3 3.3 3.1 3.3 3.2
At closing establishments 113 134 115 118 121 0.7 0.8 0.7 0.7 0.7
Net employment change 110 103 144 88 113 0.6 0.6 0.8 0.5 0.7
Leisure and hospitality
Gross job gains 1,180 1,223 1,165 1,219 1,158 9.1 9.3 8.8 9.1 8.7
At expanding establishments 896 932 903 940 884 6.9 7.1 6.8 7.0 6.6
At opening establishments 284 291 262 279 274 2.2 2.2 2.0 2.1 2.1
Gross job losses 1,184 1,105 1,096 1,196 1,215 9.0 8.4 8.3 8.9 9.1
At contracting establishments 959 892 902 965 983 7.3 6.8 6.8 7.2 7.4
At closing establishments 225 213 194 231 232 1.7 1.6 1.5 1.7 1.7
Net employment change -4 118 69 23 -57 0.1 0.9 0.5 0.2 -0.4
Other services
Gross job gains 295 299 292 304 288 7.7 7.8 7.6 7.8 7.4
At expanding establishments 235 238 239 247 229 6.1 6.2 6.2 6.3 5.9
At opening establishments 60 61 53 57 59 1.6 1.6 1.4 1.5 1.5
Gross job losses 305 291 278 287 307 7.9 7.5 7.2 7.3 7.9
At contracting establishments 240 228 217 224 242 6.2 5.9 5.6 5.7 6.2
At closing establishments 65 63 61 63 65 1.7 1.6 1.6 1.6 1.7
Net employment change -10 8 14 17 -19 -0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5 -0.5
(1) Includes unclassified sector, not shown separately.
Table 4. Private sector percentage share (1) of gross job gains and losses, seasonally adjusted
(Percent)
3 months ended
Sept. 2006 Dec. 2006 March 2007 June 2007 Sept. 2007
Total private.................
Gross job gains............... 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
Expanding firms............ 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
Opening firms.............. 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
Gross job losses.............. 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
Contracting firms.......... 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
Closing firms.............. 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
Firm size 1 - 4 employees
Gross job gains............... 15.6 15.7 15.7 14.7 15.9
Expanding firms............ 7.4 7.1 7.4 7.0 7.4
Opening firms.............. 58.5 60.5 60.3 58.7 59.7
Gross job losses.............. 15.7 15.9 16.6 16.2 15.8
Contracting firms.......... 7.7 7.9 8.1 7.9 7.7
Closing firms.............. 58.7 58.4 60.6 59.5 59.7
Firm size 5 - 9 employees
Gross job gains............... 12.1 11.6 12.2 11.6 12.1
Expanding firms............ 11.2 10.8 11.4 10.7 11.2
Opening firms.............. 16.6 15.7 16.6 16.5 16.4
Gross job losses.............. 12.2 12.3 12.5 12.4 12.1
Contracting firms.......... 11.5 11.6 11.9 11.6 11.4
Closing firms.............. 15.9 16.1 15.9 16.6 16.2
Firm size 10 - 19 employees
Gross job gains............... 12.2 11.7 12.5 12.1 12.1
Expanding firms............ 12.5 12.0 12.8 12.2 12.4
Opening firms.............. 10.9 10.3 10.7 11.3 10.6
Gross job losses.............. 12.3 12.4 12.5 12.4 12.4
Contracting firms.......... 12.7 12.7 12.9 12.7 12.7
Closing firms.............. 10.5 10.5 10.2 10.9 10.6
Firm size 20 - 49 employees
Gross job gains............... 14.4 13.8 14.5 14.5 14.2
Expanding firms............ 15.5 14.9 15.8 15.6 15.5
Opening firms.............. 8.3 7.9 7.6 8.5 7.6
Gross job losses.............. 14.5 14.4 14.3 14.2 14.5
Contracting firms.......... 15.7 15.6 15.7 15.5 15.8
Closing firms.............. 8.0 8.0 7.4 7.8 7.9
Firm size 50 - 99 employees
Gross job gains............... 9.0 8.6 8.9 9.2 8.9
Expanding firms............ 10.2 9.7 10.1 10.3 10.1
Opening firms.............. 3.0 2.9 2.4 2.8 2.7
Gross job losses.............. 8.8 8.9 8.8 8.6 8.9
Contracting firms.......... 9.9 10.0 9.9 9.7 10.1
Closing firms.............. 3.1 3.0 2.8 2.6 2.7
Firm size 100 - 249 employees
Gross job gains............... 9.3 9.1 9.4 9.8 9.2
Expanding firms............ 10.8 10.6 10.9 11.3 10.7
Opening firms.............. 1.5 1.5 1.0 1.2 1.4
Gross job losses.............. 9.3 9.2 9.0 8.8 9.4
Contracting firms.......... 10.6 10.6 10.4 10.2 10.8
Closing firms.............. 1.9 1.9 1.7 1.3 1.6
Firm size 250 - 499 employees
Gross job gains............... 5.7 5.4 5.4 5.9 5.6
Expanding firms............ 6.7 6.4 6.4 6.8 6.6
Opening firms.............. .4 .4 .3 .3 .5
Gross job losses.............. 5.5 5.8 5.3 5.2 5.5
Contracting firms.......... 6.4 6.8 6.2 6.1 6.4
Closing firms.............. .7 .6 .5 .5 .5
Firm size 500 - 999 employees
Gross job gains............... 4.6 4.5 4.4 4.8 4.7
Expanding firms............ 5.4 5.3 5.2 5.6 5.6
Opening firms.............. .4 .1 .2 .2 .2
Gross job losses.............. 4.4 4.5 4.0 4.4 4.5
Contracting firms.......... 5.2 5.3 4.8 5.2 5.3
Closing firms.............. .2 .4 .3 .3 .2
Firm size 1,000 or more employees
Gross job gains............... 16.7 19.2 16.5 17.0 16.9
Expanding firms............ 19.9 22.8 19.5 20.0 20.1
Opening firms.............. .1 .1 .5 .1 .5
Gross job losses.............. 16.9 16.2 16.5 17.3 16.4
Contracting firms.......... 19.9 19.1 19.7 20.6 19.4
Closing firms.............. .5 .7 .3 .2 .3
(1) Share measures the percent of the category represented by each firm size class,
and rates may not sum to 100.0 due to rounding.
Table 5. Private sector gross job gains and losses by state, seasonally adjusted
Gross job gains Gross job losses
State (3 months ended) (3 months ended)
Sept. Dec. March June Sept. Sept. Dec. March June Sept.
2006 2006 2007 2007 2007 2006 2006 2007 2007 2007
United States1..... 7,473,000 7,809,000 7,509,000 7,644,000 7,249,000 7,462,000 7,297,000 7,071,000 7,403,000 7,484,000
Alabama..... 100,446 106,892 112,765 99,726 99,906 103,700 104,477 89,364 105,984 101,198
Alaska..... 22,123 25,702 24,244 27,957 22,188 26,742 26,432 22,400 23,632 26,070
Arizona..... 174,546 161,693 156,804 154,110 155,205 152,200 165,067 153,133 158,011 160,904
Arkansas..... 58,160 62,275 60,704 54,946 56,127 63,784 58,778 52,796 61,452 56,475
California..... 910,172 982,478 947,540 932,830 906,739 927,374 907,888 912,613 966,693 923,409
Colorado..... 142,546 150,220 146,688 150,523 148,053 142,570 138,889 131,774 135,876 144,857
Connecticut..... 81,794 85,126 75,957 89,363 77,587 82,496 77,497 81,107 75,883 82,650
Delaware..... 23,470 26,159 29,733 24,896 23,502 27,718 23,392 28,414 23,872 27,334
District of Columbia 27,044 25,599 28,423 27,543 26,296 25,381 26,443 23,213 26,428 28,871
Florida..... 508,541 501,285 464,050 493,122 490,069 493,363 522,827 451,580 513,917 542,595
Georgia..... 247,388 263,872 249,091 243,732 242,926 251,362 252,232 227,479 250,468 240,332
Hawaii..... 28,211 27,446 27,483 29,341 25,956 26,129 26,250 26,630 27,098 30,711
Idaho..... 45,061 47,395 48,396 44,803 41,792 41,378 40,019 40,735 44,881 45,176
Illinois..... 278,177 293,431 281,177 301,138 269,429 288,515 281,099 268,855 270,862 286,551
Indiana..... 148,107 153,325 145,342 153,439 142,702 154,760 148,985 140,603 146,834 152,980
Iowa..... 75,093 79,518 72,577 79,866 71,751 74,910 73,886 73,448 72,256 74,880
Kansas..... 78,985 85,024 78,808 71,219 75,069 74,864 68,067 67,661 76,280 67,646
Kentucky..... 92,740 106,958 101,623 96,978 86,047 96,675 90,552 95,549 92,980 95,032
Louisiana..... 120,127 123,095 121,990 109,826 107,177 108,558 104,159 99,462 113,176 104,800
Maine..... 35,951 40,832 37,283 40,238 37,722 39,975 37,567 37,189 38,294 39,681
Maryland..... 131,708 136,491 130,873 129,262 136,177 136,408 130,083 125,994 128,857 138,351
Massachusetts..... 167,647 166,346 154,124 180,439 164,658 169,849 163,458 157,024 148,702 174,134
Michigan..... 226,583 229,109 216,604 239,038 225,219 255,227 261,024 234,035 229,300 248,071
Minnesota..... 138,439 146,430 140,915 151,477 149,125 165,270 147,210 133,393 144,135 139,939
Mississippi..... 68,823 67,302 60,198 59,332 62,205 62,884 58,428 62,486 65,842 58,290
Missouri..... 137,786 151,637 148,426 142,012 144,851 142,506 144,042 133,861 144,000 144,113
Montana..... 27,503 32,922 32,066 30,014 28,913 29,606 26,893 26,215 30,643 29,185
Nebraska..... 47,050 47,973 44,773 48,229 48,216 44,754 45,236 41,131 43,827 43,706
Nevada..... 73,442 80,115 79,439 74,310 69,465 76,814 77,068 70,468 76,036 82,366
New Hampshire..... 37,381 39,715 36,043 40,902 35,921 40,708 37,503 37,188 37,071 39,656
New Jersey..... 217,626 226,397 200,823 242,670 214,184 230,836 221,251 216,208 212,994 227,208
New Mexico..... 46,361 49,483 45,658 43,638 45,901 46,285 45,992 39,391 47,327 46,835
New York..... 451,199 491,296 439,880 501,731 444,186 454,776 436,426 450,887 469,097 469,763
North Carolina..... 228,819 271,718 238,694 230,301 221,288 222,867 209,905 203,669 223,702 219,644
North Dakota..... 19,561 19,077 19,613 19,321 19,514 17,615 18,029 17,877 18,673 17,975
Ohio..... 266,494 273,486 259,261 283,177 249,393 286,805 285,789 260,711 266,721 276,817
Oklahoma..... 85,999 87,109 85,616 85,428 82,042 80,220 80,850 73,657 89,207 78,243
Oregon..... 103,167 107,374 104,745 101,225 100,856 94,670 97,684 96,037 104,666 98,132
Pennsylvania..... 281,640 286,900 282,273 302,265 266,822 278,525 278,568 266,506 270,874 285,414
Rhode Island..... 28,749 28,621 25,073 28,796 23,339 28,340 28,374 27,137 26,256 29,513
South Carolina..... 124,764 109,561 113,532 105,523 99,544 103,809 97,192 98,842 107,074 100,422
South Dakota..... 21,559 22,548 21,003 21,989 20,788 20,198 19,873 19,153 19,784 20,345
Tennessee..... 143,225 156,388 148,938 142,856 140,708 143,136 157,013 144,012 139,122 139,828
Texas..... 545,573 566,668 542,825 553,947 538,651 480,295 476,908 461,745 485,096 497,118
Utah..... 77,218 79,960 80,804 77,611 73,755 68,620 64,989 62,978 70,542 74,169
Vermont..... 16,515 18,861 16,966 19,085 18,877 18,832 18,099 18,899 19,073 20,024
Virginia..... 181,450 193,009 192,908 192,077 176,798 196,437 181,525 174,760 184,266 190,227
Washington..... 176,707 184,842 190,639 183,840 168,602 170,405 166,948 154,634 165,511 174,458
West Virginia..... 37,841 40,697 38,687 37,037 35,591 40,489 36,849 37,621 37,733 38,633
Wisconsin..... 143,515 146,759 144,613 146,916 127,659 146,137 143,350 141,179 134,163 144,918
Wyoming..... 20,984 22,692 22,362 18,932 20,910 19,491 16,482 18,199 21,853 19,706
Puerto Rico..... 50,294 56,039 43,159 47,784 51,566 56,054 47,988 55,059 50,761 50,852
Virgin Islands..... 2,727 2,358 2,091 3,531 2,119 2,766 1,980 2,501 2,376 3,282
(1) Totals for the United States do not include data for Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands.
Table 6. Private sector gross job gains and losses as a percent of total employment by state, seasonally adjusted
Gross job gains as a percent of employment Gross job losses as a percent of employment
State (3 months ended) (3 months ended)
Sept. Dec. March June Sept. Sept. Dec. March June Sept.
2006 2006 2007 2007 2007 2006 2006 2007 2007 2007
United States1..... 6.7 7.0 6.6 6.7 6.4 6.6 6.5 6.2 6.5 6.6
Alabama..... 6.4 6.8 7.1 6.2 6.3 6.6 6.7 5.7 6.7 6.3
Alaska..... 9.4 11.0 10.3 11.9 9.4 11.5 11.4 9.5 10.0 11.1
Arizona..... 7.8 7.2 7.0 6.8 6.9 6.7 7.3 6.8 7.0 7.1
Arkansas..... 5.9 6.4 6.2 5.6 5.7 6.6 6.0 5.4 6.3 5.8
California..... 7.1 7.6 7.3 7.2 7.0 7.2 7.0 7.0 7.4 7.1
Colorado..... 7.5 7.9 7.6 7.8 7.7 7.5 7.3 6.8 7.0 7.4
Connecticut..... 5.7 6.0 5.3 6.2 5.4 5.8 5.4 5.7 5.3 5.8
Delaware..... 6.5 7.2 8.1 6.8 6.5 7.6 6.4 7.7 6.6 7.5
District of Columbia.. 6.2 5.9 6.4 6.1 6.0 5.8 6.0 5.2 5.9 6.5
Florida..... 7.4 7.3 6.7 7.1 7.1 7.1 7.5 6.6 7.4 7.8
Georgia..... 7.3 7.8 7.3 7.1 7.1 7.4 7.4 6.7 7.3 7.1
Hawaii..... 5.6 5.4 5.5 5.8 5.1 5.1 5.2 5.2 5.4 6.0
Idaho..... 8.5 8.7 8.8 8.1 7.6 7.7 7.4 7.4 8.1 8.2
Illinois..... 5.5 5.8 5.5 5.9 5.3 5.8 5.6 5.4 5.3 5.7
Indiana..... 5.9 6.1 5.8 6.1 5.7 6.2 6.0 5.6 5.8 6.1
Iowa..... 6.1 6.4 5.8 6.4 5.7 6.1 5.9 5.9 5.8 6.0
Kansas..... 7.3 7.8 7.1 6.4 6.8 6.9 6.2 6.1 6.9 6.1
Kentucky..... 6.3 7.2 6.8 6.4 5.7 6.6 6.1 6.4 6.2 6.3
Louisiana..... 8.1 8.2 8.0 7.2 7.0 7.4 7.0 6.5 7.4 6.8
Maine..... 7.2 8.2 7.4 8.0 7.6 8.1 7.5 7.4 7.6 7.9
Maryland..... 6.3 6.6 6.3 6.2 6.5 6.5 6.3 6.1 6.1 6.6
Massachusetts..... 6.1 6.0 5.6 6.4 5.9 6.1 5.8 5.6 5.3 6.2
Michigan..... 6.2 6.4 6.1 6.7 6.3 7.0 7.2 6.5 6.4 6.9
Minnesota..... 6.1 6.4 6.1 6.5 6.4 7.2 6.4 5.8 6.2 6.0
Mississippi..... 7.7 7.5 6.7 6.6 7.0 7.0 6.5 7.0 7.3 6.5
Missouri..... 6.1 6.6 6.5 6.2 6.3 6.3 6.3 5.8 6.3 6.3
Montana..... 7.9 9.4 9.0 8.4 8.1 8.5 7.7 7.4 8.6 8.2
Nebraska..... 6.3 6.4 6.0 6.3 6.3 6.0 6.0 5.4 5.8 5.8
Nevada..... 6.5 7.1 6.9 6.5 6.1 6.8 6.8 6.2 6.7 7.3
New Hampshire..... 6.9 7.3 6.6 7.5 6.6 7.5 6.9 6.8 6.8 7.2
New Jersey..... 6.5 6.8 6.0 7.2 6.4 6.9 6.6 6.4 6.3 6.8
New Mexico..... 7.3 7.9 7.1 6.8 7.2 7.3 7.3 6.2 7.3 7.3
New York..... 6.5 7.0 6.2 7.0 6.2 6.5 6.2 6.3 6.6 6.6
North Carolina..... 7.0 8.1 7.1 6.8 6.6 6.8 6.3 6.1 6.6 6.5
North Dakota..... 7.2 7.0 7.0 7.0 7.0 6.5 6.6 6.5 6.8 6.5
Ohio..... 5.8 6.0 5.7 6.2 5.5 6.2 6.3 5.7 5.8 6.0
Oklahoma..... 7.2 7.2 7.0 7.0 6.7 6.7 6.8 6.1 7.3 6.4
Oregon..... 7.2 7.4 7.1 6.9 6.9 6.6 6.8 6.5 7.1 6.7
Pennsylvania..... 5.7 5.8 5.7 6.1 5.4 5.7 5.7 5.4 5.5 5.7
Rhode Island..... 6.9 6.8 5.9 6.8 5.6 6.8 6.7 6.4 6.2 7.0
South Carolina..... 8.2 7.1 7.3 6.7 6.3 6.8 6.2 6.3 6.9 6.4
South Dakota..... 6.9 7.1 6.5 6.8 6.4 6.5 6.2 5.9 6.1 6.3
Tennessee..... 6.1 6.7 6.4 6.1 6.0 6.1 6.7 6.1 6.0 6.0
Texas..... 6.6 6.8 6.4 6.5 6.3 5.8 5.7 5.5 5.7 5.8
Utah..... 7.8 8.0 8.0 7.6 7.2 7.0 6.5 6.2 6.9 7.2
Vermont..... 6.6 7.6 6.8 7.6 7.5 7.5 7.3 7.6 7.7 8.0
Virginia..... 6.1 6.5 6.5 6.3 5.9 6.6 6.1 5.9 6.1 6.3
Washington..... 7.6 7.9 8.0 7.7 7.0 7.4 7.1 6.5 6.9 7.3
West Virginia..... 6.7 7.2 6.8 6.5 6.2 7.1 6.5 6.6 6.6 6.8
Wisconsin..... 6.0 6.2 6.0 6.1 5.4 6.1 6.0 5.9 5.6 6.0
Wyoming..... 10.1 10.7 10.2 8.8 9.8 9.4 7.8 8.4 10.0 9.1
Puerto Rico..... 6.7 7.5 5.8 6.4 7.0 7.5 6.4 7.4 6.9 6.9
Virgin Islands..... 8.3 7.1 6.4 10.6 6.4 8.4 6.0 7.6 7.2 9.8
(1) Totals for the United States do not include data for Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands.
United States Department of Labor
