Workers in the Milwaukee-Waukesha-West Allis Metropolitan Statistical Area had an average (mean) hourly wage of $24.07 in May 2017, not significantly different from the nationwide average of $24.34, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Assistant Commissioner for Regional Operations Charlene Peiffer noted that, after testing for statistical significance, wages in the local area were higher than their respective national averages in 6 of the 22 major occupational groups, including construction and extraction; sales and related; and production. Nine groups had significantly lower wages than their respective national averages, including architecture and engineering; computer and mathematical; and arts, design, entertainment, sports, and media.

When compared to the nationwide distribution, local employment was more highly concentrated in 5 of the 22 occupational groups, including production; personal care and service; and business and financial operations. Conversely, 12 groups had employment shares significantly below their national representation, including food preparation and serving related; office and administrative support; and transportation and material moving. (See table A and box note at end of release.)

One occupational group—production—was chosen to illustrate the diversity of data available for any of the 22 major occupational categories. Milwaukee-Waukesha-West Allis had 84,780 jobs in production, accounting for 10.1 percent of local area employment, significantly higher than the 6.3-percent share nationally. The average hourly wage for this occupational group locally was $18.82, significantly above the national wage of $18.30.

Some of the larger detailed occupations within the production group included assemblers and fabricators, all other, including team assemblers (11,120); first-line supervisors of production and operating workers (6,010); and machinists (5,200). Among the higher paying jobs in this group were power distributors and dispatchers with mean hourly wages of $43.36 and drilling and boring machine tool setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic, $41.13. At the lower end of the wage scale were laundry and dry-cleaning workers ($11.45) and food and tobacco roasting, baking, and drying machine operators and tenders ($11.65). (Detailed data for production occupations are presented in table 1; for a complete listing of detailed occupations available go to www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes_33340.htm.)

Location quotients allow us to explore the occupational make-up of a metropolitan area by comparing the composition of jobs in an area relative to the national average. (See table 1.) For example, a location quotient of 2.0 indicates that an occupation accounts for twice the share of employment in the area than it does nationally. In the Milwaukee-Waukesha-West Allis Metropolitan Statistical Area, above-average concentrations of employment were found in many of the occupations within the production group. For instance, foundry mold and coremakers were employed at 7.9 times the national rate in Milwaukee, and print binding and finishing workers, at 5.2 times the U.S. average. On the other hand, cabinetmakers and bench carpenters had a location quotient of 1.0 in Milwaukee, indicating that this particular occupation’s local and national employment shares were similar.

These statistics are from the Occupational Employment Statistics (OES) survey, a federal-state cooperative program between BLS and State Workforce Agencies, in this case, the Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development.

Technical Note

The Occupational Employment Statistics (OES) survey is a semiannual survey measuring occupational employment and wage rates for wage and salary workers in nonfarm establishments in the United States. The OES data available from BLS include cross-industry occupational employment and wage estimates for the nation; over 650 areas, including states and the District of Columbia, metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs), metropolitan divisions, nonmetropolitan areas, and territories; national industry-specific estimates at the NAICS sector, 3-, 4-, and selected 5- and 6-digit industry levels, and national estimates by ownership across all industries and for schools and hospitals. OES data are available at www.bls.gov/oes/tables.htm.

OES estimates are constructed from a sample of about 1.2 million establishments. Each year, two semiannual panels of approximately 200,000 sampled establishments are contacted, one panel in May and the other in November. Responses are obtained by mail, Internet or other electronic means, email, telephone, or personal visit. The May 2017 estimates are based on responses from six semiannual panels collected over a 3-year period: May 2017, November 2016, May 2016, November 2015, May 2015, and November 2014. The overall national response rate for the six panels, based on the 50 states and the District of Columbia, is 72 percent based on establishments and 68 percent based on weighted sampled employment. The unweighted sample employment of 82 million across all six semiannual panels represents approximately 58 percent of total national employment. The sample in the Milwaukee-Waukesha-West Allis Metropolitan Statistical Area included 4,933 establishments with a response rate of 76 percent. For more information about OES concepts and methodology, go to www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes_tec.htm.

The May 2017 OES estimates are based on the 2010 Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) system and the 2017 North American Industry Classification System (NAICS). Information about the 2010 SOC is available on the BLS website at www.bls.gov/soc and information about the 2017 NAICS is available at www.bls.gov/bls/naics.htm.

Metropolitan area definitions

The substate area data published in this release reflect the standards and definitions established by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget.

The Milwaukee-Waukesha-West Allis, Wis. Metropolitan Statistical Area includes Milwaukee, Ozaukee, Washington, and Waukesha Counties.

Additional information

OES data are available on our regional web page at www.bls.gov/regions/midwest. Answers to frequently asked questions about the OES data are available at www.bls.gov/oes/oes_ques.htm. Detailed technical information about the OES survey is available in our Survey Methods and Reliability Statement on the BLS website at www.bls.gov/oes/current/methods_statement.pdf.

Information in this release will be made available to sensory impaired individuals upon request . Voice phone: (202) 691-5200; Federal Relay Service: (800) 877-8339.

Table 1. Employment and wage data from the Occupational Employment Statistics survey, by occupation, Milwaukee-Waukesha-West Allis Metropolitan Statistical Area, May 2017

Occupation (1)	Employment		Mean wages
	Level (2)	Location quotient (3)	Hourly	Annual (4)
Production occupations	84,780	1.6	$18.82	$39,150
First-line supervisors of production and operating workers	6,010	1.7	30.37	63,160
Coil winders, tapers, and finishers	(5)	(5)	16.38	34,060
Electrical, electronic, and electromechanical assemblers, except coil winders, tapers, and finishers	4,360	2.8	19.52	40,590
Engine and other machine assemblers	300	1.4	18.53	38,550
Structural metal fabricators and fitters	990	2.2	21.60	44,920
Assemblers and fabricators, all other, including team assemblers	11,120	1.4	15.61	32,470
Bakers	1,040	1.0	13.87	28,840
Butchers and meat cutters	420	0.5	20.18	41,960
Meat, poultry, and fish cutters and trimmers	480	0.5	12.66	26,340
Slaughterers and meat packers	400	0.9	12.10	25,160
Food and tobacco roasting, baking, and drying machine operators and tenders	430	3.4	11.65	24,220
Food batchmakers	1,200	1.3	13.05	27,150
Food cooking machine operators and tenders	100	0.5	17.44	36,280
Computer-controlled machine tool operators, metal and plastic	4,330	5.1	21.72	45,170
Computer numerically controlled machine tool programmers, metal and plastic	440	3.2	27.79	57,810
Extruding and drawing machine setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic	(5)	(5)	20.24	42,100
Forging machine setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic	(5)	(5)	16.13	33,540
Rolling machine setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic	110	0.8	21.07	43,820
Cutting, punching, and press machine setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic	3,000	2.7	18.45	38,380
Drilling and boring machine tool setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic	150	2.3	41.13	85,550
Grinding, lapping, polishing, and buffing machine tool setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic	1,960	4.5	17.09	35,540
Lathe and turning machine tool setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic	450	2.6	20.95	43,570
Milling and planing machine setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic	60	0.5	22.02	45,800
Machinists	5,200	2.3	20.59	42,820
Metal-refining furnace operators and tenders	120	1.1	18.28	38,030
Pourers and casters, metal	210	4.6	16.79	34,920
Model makers, metal and plastic	40	1.3	26.84	55,830
Patternmakers, metal and plastic	50	2.8	19.77	41,110
Foundry mold and coremakers	650	7.9	18.60	38,680
Molding, coremaking, and casting machine setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic	2,350	2.6	17.08	35,520
Multiple machine tool setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic	1,330	1.9	17.59	36,600
Tool and die makers	1,200	2.8	24.20	50,340
Welders, cutters, solderers, and brazers	3,010	1.4	21.76	45,260
Welding, soldering, and brazing machine setters, operators, and tenders	270	1.2	25.90	53,870
Heat treating equipment setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic	420	3.7	19.05	39,620
Plating and coating machine setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic	380	1.7	15.19	31,580
Tool grinders, filers, and sharpeners	110	2.3	20.60	42,840
Prepress technicians and workers	530	2.8	21.37	44,440
Printing press operators	2,670	2.6	18.75	39,000
Print binding and finishing workers	1,500	5.2	16.12	33,520
Laundry and dry-cleaning workers	930	0.8	11.45	23,820
Pressers, textile, garment, and related materials	240	1.0	11.99	24,940
Sewing machine operators	520	0.7	13.36	27,790
Shoe and leather workers and repairers	120	2.8	11.67	24,260
Tailors, dressmakers, and custom sewers	(5)	(5)	14.50	30,150
Textile knitting and weaving machine setters, operators, and tenders	110	0.9	11.94	24,830
Upholsterers	30	0.2	19.42	40,390
Cabinetmakers and bench carpenters	570	1.0	20.49	42,630
Furniture finishers	80	0.8	16.56	34,450
Sawing machine setters, operators, and tenders, wood	(5)	(5)	19.88	41,350
Woodworking machine setters, operators, and tenders, except sawing	270	0.6	15.29	31,790
Power distributors and dispatchers	70	1.0	43.36	90,190
Power plant operators	150	0.7	38.52	80,130
Stationary engineers and boiler operators	150	0.8	27.26	56,710
Water and wastewater treatment plant and system operators	330	0.5	29.93	62,250
Chemical equipment operators and tenders	520	1.1	20.07	41,750
Separating, filtering, clarifying, precipitating, and still machine setters, operators, and tenders	500	1.7	20.87	43,410
Crushing, grinding, and polishing machine setters, operators, and tenders	110	0.6	17.66	36,740
Grinding and polishing workers, hand	(5)	(5)	13.72	28,540
Mixing and blending machine setters, operators, and tenders	1,220	1.6	18.27	38,010
Cutting and slicing machine setters, operators, and tenders	810	2.3	16.58	34,490
Extruding, forming, pressing, and compacting machine setters, operators, and tenders	330	0.7	14.93	31,050
Furnace, kiln, oven, drier, and kettle operators and tenders	50	0.4	(5)	(5)
Inspectors, testers, sorters, samplers, and weighers	4,280	1.4	19.86	41,320
Jewelers and precious stone and metal workers	(5)	(5)	28.52	59,310
Dental laboratory technicians	170	0.8	20.40	42,440
Medical appliance technicians	120	1.5	15.21	31,630
Ophthalmic laboratory technicians	230	1.3	14.51	30,180
Packaging and filling machine operators and tenders	4,490	1.9	13.08	27,200
Coating, painting, and spraying machine setters, operators, and tenders	1,220	2.4	18.50	38,490
Painters, transportation equipment	300	1.0	19.98	41,550
Photographic process workers and processing machine operators	260	1.9	13.40	27,880
Cleaning, washing, and metal pickling equipment operators and tenders	(5)	(5)	16.93	35,210
Etchers and engravers	(5)	(5)	16.14	33,560
Molders, shapers, and casters, except metal and plastic	280	1.1	15.84	32,950
Paper goods machine setters, operators, and tenders	1,320	2.4	18.54	38,550
Helpers--production workers	2,850	1.2	12.27	25,520
Production workers, all other	780	0.5	17.90	37,230
Footnotes: (1) For a complete listing of all detailed occupations in Milwaukee-Waukesha-West Allis, WI, see www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes_33340.htm. (2) Estimates for detailed occupations do not sum to the totals because the totals include occupations not shown separately. Estimates do not include self-employed workers. (3) The location quotient is the ratio of the area concentration of occupational employment to the national average concentration. A location quotient greater than one indicates the occupation has a higher share of employment than average, and a location quotient less than one indicates the occupation is less prevalent in the area than average. (4) Annual wages have been calculated by multiplying the hourly mean wage by a "year-round, full-time" hours figure of 2,080 hours; for those occupations where there is not an hourly mean wage published, the annual wage has been directly calculated from the reported survey data. (5) Estimate not released.