Total nonfarm employment for the Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL, metropolitan area increased by 61,300 over the year in February, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Regional Commissioner Victoria G. Lee noted that the local rate of job gain, 2.1 percent, compared to the 1.8-percent national increase. (See chart 1 and table 1.) (All data in this release are not seasonally adjusted; accordingly, over-the-year analysis is used throughout.)

Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL, is made up of three metropolitan divisions—separately identifiable employment centers within the greater metropolitan area. Miami-Miami Beach-Kendal, FL, with 45 percent of the metropolitan area’s total nonfarm employment, gained 35,600 jobs over the year. Fort Lauderdale-Pompano Beach-Deerfield Beach, FL, accounted for 31 percent of the area’s employment and West Palm Beach-Boca Raton-Delray Beach, FL, accounted for 24 percent of area employment.

Industry employment

In Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL, education and health services had the largest gain (+17,700) among the metropolitan area’s private-industry supersectors. (See chart 2.) The Miami-Miami Beach-Kendal, FL, division added 8,100 jobs, or 46 percent, of the metropolitan area’s employment gained in this industry. The 4.0-percent increase in the metropolitan area’s education and health services supersector compared to the 4.2-percent increase for the nation.

Leisure and hospitality added 14,000 jobs over the year in the metropolitan area, with the accommodation and food services sector accounting for 10,600 of the jobs added. The metropolitan area had a 4.1-percent gain in the leisure and hospitality supersector, compared to the 2.8-percent increase for the nation.

Twelve largest metropolitan areas

Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL, was 1 of the nation’s 12 largest metropolitan statistical areas in February 2024. Six of twelve areas gained total nonfarm payroll employment over the year. The largest job gain occurred in New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA (+92,300). Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD, had the smallest employment increase (+33,200) among the areas with significant changes. (See table 2 and chart 3.)

Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX, had a 2.4-percent rate of job gain. The rates of job gain in the remaining five areas with significant changes ranged from 2.2 percent in Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ, to 0.9 percent in New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA.

The Metropolitan Area Employment and Unemployment release for March 2024 is scheduled to be released on Wednesday, May 1, 2024, at 10:00 a.m. (ET).

Technical Note

This release presents nonfarm payroll employment estimates from the CES program. The CES survey is a Federal-State cooperative endeavor between State employment security agencies and the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. More information about the CES data is available in the State Employment and Unemployment Summary and the Metropolitan Area Employment and Unemployment Summary.

Definitions. Employment data refer to persons on establishment payrolls who receive pay for any part of the pay period which includes the 12th of the month. Persons are counted at their place of work rather than at their place of residence; those appearing on more than one payroll are counted on each payroll. Industries are classified on the basis of their principal activity in accordance with the 2022 version of the North American Industry Classification System.

Method of estimation. CES State and Area employment data are produced using several estimation procedures. Where possible these data are produced using a "weighted link relative" estimation technique in which a ratio of current-month weighted employment to that of the previous-month weighted employment is computed from a sample of establishments reporting for both months. The estimates of employment for the current month are then obtained by multiplying these ratios by the previous month's employment estimates. The weighted link relative technique is utilized for data series where the sample size meets certain statistical criteria. For some employment series, the estimates are produced with a model that uses direct sample estimates (described above) combined with other regressors to compensate for smaller sample sizes.

Annual revisions. Employment estimates are adjusted annually to a complete count of jobs, called benchmarks, derived principally from tax reports which are submitted by employers who are covered under state unemployment insurance (UI) laws. The benchmark information is used to adjust the monthly estimates between the new benchmark and the preceding one and also to establish the level of employment for the new benchmark month. Thus, the benchmarking process establishes the level of employment, and the sample is used to measure the month-to-month changes in the level for the subsequent months. Information on recent benchmark revisions is available in the CES State and Area benchmark article.

Reliability of the estimates. The estimates presented in this release are based on sample surveys, administrative data, and modeling and, thus, are subject to sampling and other types of errors. Sampling error is a measure of sampling variability—that is, variation that occurs by chance because a sample rather than the entire population is surveyed. Survey data also are subject to nonsampling errors, such as those which can be introduced into the data collection and processing operations. Estimates not directly derived from sample surveys are subject to additional errors resulting from the specific estimation processes used. The sums of individual items may not always equal totals shown in the same tables due to rounding.

Employment estimates. Changes in metropolitan area nonfarm payroll employment are cited in the analysis of this release only if they have been determined to be statistically significant at the 90-percent confidence level. Reliability of state and area estimates for the total nonfarm employment series are available for metropolitan areas and metropolitan divisions.

Area definitions. The substate area data published in this news release reflect the delineations issued by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget on April 10, 2018. The 12 metropolitan areas discussed in this release are the metropolitan areas with the largest population according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL Metropolitan Statistical Area includes Broward, Miami-Dade, and Palm Beach Counties.

• The Fort Lauderdale-Pompano Beach-Deerfield Beach, FL Metropolitan Division includes Broward County.

• The Miami-Miami Beach-Kendall, FL Metropolitan Division includes Miami-Dade County.

• The West Palm Beach-Boca Raton-Delray Beach, FL Metropolitan Division includes Palm Beach County.

Additional information

State and area employment data from the CES program are available on the BLS website.

Information in this release will be made available to individuals with sensory impairments upon request. Voice phone: (202) 691-5200; Telecommunications Relay Service: 7-1-1.

Table 2. Employees on nonfarm payrolls by industry supersector for the 12 largest metropolitan areas, not seasonally adjusted (numbers in thousands)

Area	Feb 2023	Dec 2023	Jan 2024	Feb 2024(p)	Feb 2023 to Feb 2024(p)
					Net change	Percent change
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA
Total nonfarm	3,035.3	3,095.5	3,047.7	3,061.3	26.0	0.9
Mining and logging	1.9	2.1	2.1	2.1	0.2	10.5
Construction	140.3	146.6	142.8	144.1	3.8	2.7
Manufacturing	179.1	184.2	181.4	182.0	2.9	1.6
Trade, transportation, and utilities	663.5	677.9	656.0	652.3	-11.2	-1.7
Information	118.7	98.2	97.2	98.1	-20.6	-17.4
Financial activities	202.6	208.0	207.6	207.8	5.2	2.6
Professional and business services	588.5	587.8	581.0	584.8	-3.7	-0.6
Education and health services	398.4	418.4	414.4	416.8	18.4	4.6
Leisure and hospitality	296.1	312.4	308.3	310.9	14.8	5.0
Other services	101.7	103.5	102.8	104.1	2.4	2.4
Government	344.5	356.4	354.1	358.3	13.8	4.0
Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH (NECTA)
Total nonfarm	2,772.8	2,814.7	2,761.8	2,780.8	8.0	0.3
Mining, logging, and construction	122.5	128.1	122.2	120.3	-2.2	-1.8
Manufacturing	183.9	183.7	182.6	182.1	-1.8	-1.0
Trade, transportation, and utilities	404.0	416.6	401.9	399.1	-4.9	-1.2
Information	83.1	79.4	78.4	78.3	-4.8	-5.8
Financial activities	184.5	185.1	182.8	182.9	-1.6	-0.9
Professional and business services	526.9	529.1	521.4	523.6	-3.3	-0.6
Education and health services	606.4	615.0	609.7	624.8	18.4	3.0
Leisure and hospitality	246.2	252.7	245.7	246.8	0.6	0.2
Other services	100.1	103.5	102.5	102.1	2.0	2.0
Government	315.2	321.5	314.6	320.8	5.6	1.8
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI
Total nonfarm	4,694.1	4,811.7	4,675.2	4,704.8	10.7	0.2
Mining and logging	1.3	1.5	1.5	1.5	0.2	15.4
Construction	163.0	179.4	162.0	163.8	0.8	0.5
Manufacturing	412.9	420.6	416.5	419.1	6.2	1.5
Trade, transportation, and utilities	962.2	995.9	962.9	952.8	-9.4	-1.0
Information	80.5	76.9	76.8	77.3	-3.2	-4.0
Financial activities	316.8	319.5	316.2	315.8	-1.0	-0.3
Professional and business services	838.5	837.9	797.8	803.4	-35.1	-4.2
Education and health services	753.0	773.3	761.1	777.6	24.6	3.3
Leisure and hospitality	440.3	463.4	446.1	448.4	8.1	1.8
Other services	192.5	196.9	196.6	199.1	6.6	3.4
Government	533.1	546.4	537.7	546.0	12.9	2.4
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX
Total nonfarm	4,171.6	4,303.7	4,227.0	4,246.7	75.1	1.8
Mining, logging, and construction	238.7	251.6	246.8	248.8	10.1	4.2
Manufacturing	304.2	311.2	308.4	310.5	6.3	2.1
Trade, transportation, and utilities	889.6	931.6	903.0	896.1	6.5	0.7
Information	92.7	90.8	90.4	90.1	-2.6	-2.8
Financial activities	363.3	369.1	368.2	369.6	6.3	1.7
Professional and business services	778.6	784.6	766.3	778.0	-0.6	-0.1
Education and health services	494.3	511.5	508.0	511.6	17.3	3.5
Leisure and hospitality	408.4	427.0	416.6	417.6	9.2	2.3
Other services	131.7	139.2	140.5	140.2	8.5	6.5
Government	470.1	487.1	478.8	484.2	14.1	3.0
Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX
Total nonfarm	3,339.0	3,442.1	3,394.2	3,418.8	79.8	2.4
Mining and logging	71.4	72.2	71.2	70.9	-0.5	-0.7
Construction	232.9	234.5	229.5	234.0	1.1	0.5
Manufacturing	230.1	236.7	236.3	237.6	7.5	3.3
Trade, transportation, and utilities	680.1	711.1	690.6	688.1	8.0	1.2
Information	33.3	33.1	32.7	32.5	-0.8	-2.4
Financial activities	186.7	186.7	186.0	186.9	0.2	0.1
Professional and business services	551.2	563.7	554.6	560.0	8.8	1.6
Education and health services	441.1	462.3	460.2	464.5	23.4	5.3
Leisure and hospitality	346.4	354.1	349.0	352.9	6.5	1.9
Other services	124.1	128.1	129.8	130.1	6.0	4.8
Government	441.7	459.6	454.3	461.3	19.6	4.4
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA
Total nonfarm	6,204.8	6,318.0	6,200.2	6,238.3	33.5	0.5
Mining and logging	2.0	1.9	1.9	1.9	-0.1	-5.0
Construction	252.6	258.9	252.3	253.0	0.4	0.2
Manufacturing	477.5	475.8	471.5	471.6	-5.9	-1.2
Trade, transportation, and utilities	1,083.2	1,123.0	1,090.4	1,082.7	-0.5	0.0
Information	243.5	206.2	199.4	206.0	-37.5	-15.4
Financial activities	316.4	316.2	312.7	312.9	-3.5	-1.1
Professional and business services	977.9	974.7	956.1	961.7	-16.2	-1.7
Education and health services	1,160.0	1,217.1	1,203.6	1,220.4	60.4	5.2
Leisure and hospitality	743.7	770.8	749.4	757.3	13.6	1.8
Other services	207.9	216.6	212.5	215.7	7.8	3.8
Government	740.1	756.8	750.4	755.1	15.0	2.0
Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL
Total nonfarm	2,886.1	2,979.2	2,942.7	2,947.4	61.3	2.1
Construction	149.1	158.1	155.8	155.7	6.6	4.4
Manufacturing	96.4	100.7	99.0	98.8	2.4	2.5
Trade, transportation, and utilities	644.5	678.1	659.0	655.5	11.0	1.7
Information	57.2	55.5	54.7	55.5	-1.7	-3.0
Financial activities	214.0	220.6	217.9	216.3	2.3	1.1
Professional and business services	519.6	525.4	513.6	514.5	-5.1	-1.0
Education and health services	442.8	460.3	458.1	460.5	17.7	4.0
Leisure and hospitality	339.2	344.4	349.8	353.2	14.0	4.1
Other services	112.7	117.2	115.6	116.5	3.8	3.4
Government	309.8	318.0	318.3	320.0	10.2	3.3
New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA
Total nonfarm	9,911.3	10,219.5	9,967.6	10,003.6	92.3	0.9
Mining, logging, and construction	389.9	398.1	379.9	377.5	-12.4	-3.2
Manufacturing	348.1	349.4	343.1	346.5	-1.6	-0.5
Trade, transportation, and utilities	1,659.5	1,729.2	1,668.6	1,651.1	-8.4	-0.5
Information	327.6	309.0	306.7	309.1	-18.5	-5.6
Financial activities	813.9	832.7	821.3	821.8	7.9	1.0
Professional and business services	1,634.0	1,669.0	1,610.0	1,609.8	-24.2	-1.5
Education and health services	2,188.2	2,285.6	2,258.6	2,292.5	104.3	4.8
Leisure and hospitality	856.4	914.6	872.8	877.9	21.5	2.5
Other services	399.4	411.7	406.3	404.5	5.1	1.3
Government	1,294.3	1,320.2	1,300.3	1,312.9	18.6	1.4
Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD
Total nonfarm	3,030.5	3,117.7	3,047.0	3,063.7	33.2	1.1
Mining, logging, and construction	120.1	122.8	117.4	117.8	-2.3	-1.9
Manufacturing	180.5	183.4	181.8	181.9	1.4	0.8
Trade, transportation, and utilities	543.7	563.5	541.2	534.2	-9.5	-1.7
Information	54.7	52.9	52.3	52.6	-2.1	-3.8
Financial activities	228.6	229.6	229.3	229.7	1.1	0.5
Professional and business services	492.2	496.0	487.2	488.6	-3.6	-0.7
Education and health services	697.0	727.0	713.8	728.8	31.8	4.6
Leisure and hospitality	254.8	269.3	259.1	259.7	4.9	1.9
Other services	120.7	124.0	123.3	122.3	1.6	1.3
Government	338.2	349.2	341.6	348.1	9.9	2.9
Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ
Total nonfarm	2,392.7	2,469.9	2,433.1	2,445.4	52.7	2.2
Mining and logging	3.2	3.7	3.7	3.8	0.6	18.8
Construction	163.2	174.2	170.5	170.5	7.3	4.5
Manufacturing	149.8	149.8	148.1	148.1	-1.7	-1.1
Trade, transportation, and utilities	464.8	490.3	476.2	475.5	10.7	2.3
Information	43.9	42.1	41.2	40.7	-3.2	-7.3
Financial activities	212.5	215.5	210.6	211.3	-1.2	-0.6
Professional and business services	393.5	397.3	391.5	394.9	1.4	0.4
Education and health services	381.5	410.7	406.7	408.7	27.2	7.1
Leisure and hospitality	253.0	251.7	249.1	250.8	-2.2	-0.9
Other services	76.0	78.1	77.0	78.0	2.0	2.6
Government	251.3	256.5	258.5	263.1	11.8	4.7
San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA
Total nonfarm	2,456.6	2,490.7	2,446.0	2,450.8	-5.8	-0.2
Mining and logging	0.4	0.4	0.4	0.4	0.0	0.0
Construction	121.6	123.8	117.8	118.4	-3.2	-2.6
Manufacturing	152.8	150.8	148.2	148.6	-4.2	-2.7
Trade, transportation, and utilities	348.6	359.7	350.1	346.4	-2.2	-0.6
Information	151.8	138.4	136.6	135.7	-16.1	-10.6
Financial activities	139.0	137.7	135.0	134.6	-4.4	-3.2
Professional and business services	511.7	506.3	496.4	498.4	-13.3	-2.6
Education and health services	387.9	409.9	404.6	408.2	20.3	5.2
Leisure and hospitality	241.3	253.8	247.5	249.5	8.2	3.4
Other services	84.1	86.4	85.3	86.0	1.9	2.3
Government	317.4	323.5	324.1	324.6	7.2	2.3
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV
Total nonfarm	3,327.8	3,392.6	3,338.4	3,347.4	19.6	0.6
Mining, logging, and construction	161.5	164.5	160.2	158.7	-2.8	-1.7
Manufacturing	56.6	57.9	57.1	57.3	0.7	1.2
Trade, transportation, and utilities	398.2	422.2	405.7	401.3	3.1	0.8
Information	82.1	79.9	78.3	78.9	-3.2	-3.9
Financial activities	154.4	153.5	150.4	149.8	-4.6	-3.0
Professional and business services	812.5	808.8	802.9	803.7	-8.8	-1.1
Education and health services	451.8	464.0	461.2	464.6	12.8	2.8
Leisure and hospitality	303.8	316.5	304.4	305.9	2.1	0.7
Other services	191.2	195.3	193.3	193.0	1.8	0.9
Government	715.7	730.0	724.9	734.2	18.5	2.6
Footnotes (p) Preliminary