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News Release Information

16-716-KAN
Thursday, April 07, 2016

Contacts Technical information: Media contact:
  • (816) 285-7000

County Employment and Wages in Missouri – Third Quarter 2015

Employment rose in all seven large counties in Missouri from September 2014 to September 2015, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported today. (Large counties are defined as those with employment of 75,000 or more as measured by 2014 annual average employment. The independent city of St. Louis has been designated as a county by the Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages program.) Regional Commissioner Stanley W. Suchman noted that Clay County reported the largest increase at 5.1 percent followed by St. Charles, 4.8 percent. These two counties registered employment gains that exceeded the national average of 1.9 percent.

Nationally, employment increased in 312 of the 342 largest U.S. counties from September 2014 to September 2015. Williamson, Tenn., posted the largest percentage increase with a gain of 6.5 percent over the year. Ector, Texas, had the largest over-the-year percentage decrease in employment among the largest counties in the U.S. with a loss of 8.3 percent.

Among the seven largest counties in Missouri, employment was highest in St. Louis (593,300) in September 2015. Jackson County and St. Louis City also had employment levels exceeding 200,000. Together, Missouri’s seven large counties accounted for 61.2 percent of total employment within the state. Nationwide, the 342 largest counties made up 72.2 percent of total U.S. employment.

Average weekly wages increased in all seven large counties in Missouri from the third quarter of 2014 to the third quarter of 2015. Wages in Greene County experienced the largest growth (3.9 percent), followed by Boone (3.7 percent) and Clay (3.0 percent). Nationally, average weekly wages increased 2.6 percent. St. Louis City had the highest average weekly wage among the largest counties in the state at $1,045, followed by St. Louis ($1,004) and Jackson ($989). Average weekly wages in these three counties exceeded the national average of $974. Greene County recorded the lowest average weekly wage at $753. (See table 1.)

Employment and wage levels (but not over-the-year changes) are also available for the 108 counties in Missouri with employment below 75,000. All of these smaller counties had average weekly wages below the national average. (See table 2.)

Large county wage changes

As mentioned, the 7 large counties in Missouri recorded wage gains from the third quarter of 2014 to the third quarter of 2015, with 3 counties posting wage increases greater than the U.S. average of 2.6 percent. (See table 1.) Greene County had the largest wage gain (3.9 percent), placing 47th in the national ranking, followed by Boone (3.7 percent, 60th) and Clay (3.0 percent, 117th). Jackson County’s wage growth of 2.6 percent matched the national average, and placed 154th. St. Louis City (1.6 percent, 259th), St. Charles (1.2 percent, 286th), and St. Louis (0.9 percent, 305th) placed in the bottom quarter of the national ranking.

Among the 342 largest counties in the U.S., 319 had over-the-year increases in average weekly wages in the third quarter of 2015. Rockland, N.Y., ranked first in average weekly wage growth with an increase of 24.9 percent. Twenty of the 342 largest counties experienced over-the-year decreases in average weekly wages. Midland, Texas, had the largest percentage decline in average weekly wages with a loss of 6.7 percent.

Large county average weekly wages

Three of the state’s large counties had average weekly wage levels that placed in the top 100 of the 342 largest U.S. counties in the third quarter of 2015. Average weekly wages in St. Louis City ($1,045) and St. Louis County ($1,004) ranked 72nd and 84th, respectively. Jackson County’s average weekly wage of $989 was also above the national average of $974 and ranked 91st. Wage levels in Missouri’s four other large counties were below the national average, and placed in the bottom half of the national ranking.

Nationally, weekly wages were higher than the average of $974 in 100 of the 342 largest U.S. counties. Santa Clara, Calif., held the top position among the highest-paid large counties with an average weekly wage of $2,090, followed by San Mateo, Calif. ($1,894), and New York, N.Y. ($1,829). Among the 242 large counties with an average weekly wage below the U.S. average in the third quarter of 2015, Horry, S.C. ($598), reported the lowest wage.

Average weekly wages in Missouri’s smaller counties

Of the 108 counties in Missouri with employment below 75,000, Platte County recorded the highest average weekly wage at $821. Ozark County reported the lowest weekly wage in the state at $411 in the third quarter of 2015. (See table 2.)

When all 115 counties in Missouri were considered, 60 reported average weekly wages of $599 or less, 43 reported wages from $600 to $749, 9 had wages from $750 to $899, and 3 had wages of $900 or higher. (See chart 1.) Of the 12 counties with wages of $750 or higher, half were located in the major metropolitan areas of Kansas City and St. Louis.

Additional statistics and other information

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

Employment and Wages Annual Averages Online features comprehensive information by detailed industry on establishments, employment, and wages for the nation and all states. The 2014 edition of this publication contains selected data produced by Business Employment Dynamics (BED) on job gains and losses, as well as selected data from the first quarter 2015 version of the national news release. Tables and additional content from the 2014 edition of Employment and Wages Annual Averages Online are now available at www.bls.gov/cew/publications/employment-and-wages-annual-averages/2014/home.htm. The 2015 edition of Employment and Wages Annual Averages Online will be available in September 2016.

Information in this release will be made available to sensory impaired individuals upon request. Voice phone: 202-691-5200; Federal Relay Service: 1-800-877-8339.

The County Employment and Wages release for fourth quarter 2015 is scheduled to be released on Wednesday, June 8, 2016.


Technical Note

Average weekly wage data by county are compiled under the Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW) program, also known as the ES-202 program. The data are derived from summaries of employment and total pay of workers covered by state and federal unemployment insurance (UI) legislation and provided by State Workforce Agencies (SWAs). The 9.6 million employer reports cover 140.4 million full- and part-time workers. The average weekly wage values are calculated by dividing quarterly total wages by the average of the three monthly employment levels of those covered by UI programs. The result is then divided by 13, the number of weeks in a quarter. It is to be noted, therefore, that over-the-year wage changes for geographic areas may reflect shifts in the composition of employment by industry, occupation, and such other factors as hours of work. Thus, wages may vary among counties, metropolitan areas, or states for reasons other than changes in the average wage level. Data for all states, Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs), counties, and the nation are available on the BLS Web site at www.bls.gov/cew/; however, data in QCEW press releases have been revised and may not match the data contained on the Bureau’s Web site.

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

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

Table 1. Covered employment and wages in the United States and the 7 largest counties in Missouri, third quarter 2015
AreaEmploymentAverage weekly wage (1)
September 2015 (thousands)Percent change, September 2014-15 (2)National ranking by percent change (3)Average weekly wageNational ranking by level (3)Percent change, third quarter 2014-15 (2)National ranking by percent change (3)

United States (4)

140,442.21.9--$974--2.6--

Missouri

2,737.91.9--846322.234

Boone, Mo.

92.51.81727952793.760

Clay, Mo.

99.25.198562083.0117

Greene, Mo.

162.01.12277533163.947

Jackson, Mo.

358.02.0151989912.6154

St. Charles, Mo.

141.24.8127743011.2286

St. Louis City, Mo.

228.31.91621,045721.6259

St. Louis, Mo.

593.31.61921,004840.9305

Footnotes:
(1) Average weekly wages were calculated using unrounded data.
(2) Percent changes were computed from quarterly employment and pay data adjusted for noneconomic county reclassifications.
(3) Ranking does not include data for Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands.
(4) Totals for the United States do not include data for Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands.
 

Note: Data are preliminary. Covered employment and wages includes workers covered by Unemployment Insurance (UI) and Unemployment Compensation for Federal Employees (UCFE) programs.
 

Table 2. Covered employment and wages in the United States and all counties in Missouri, 3rd quarter 2015
AreaEmployment September 2015Average Weekly Wage (1)

United States (2)

140,442,224$974

Missouri

2,737,871846

Adair

9,738605

Andrew

2,491555

Atchison

1,638531

Audrain

9,530640

Barry

13,878705

Barton

3,246528

Bates

3,649556

Benton

3,531521

Bollinger

1,847462

Boone

92,494795

Buchanan

47,029778

Butler

19,059611

Caldwell

1,655559

Callaway

14,504734

Camden

17,282555

Cape Girardeau

40,528733

Carroll

2,407571

Carter

1,467495

Cass

25,650615

Cedar

3,253499

Chariton

1,905575

Christian

16,785559

Clark

1,413471

Clay

99,239856

Clinton

3,920583

Cole

52,053753

Cooper

5,063596

Crawford

6,739655

Dade

1,718530

Dallas

2,521465

Daviess

1,551496

De Kalb

3,257579

Dent

3,797522

Douglas

2,232479

Dunklin

10,065478

Franklin

38,001734

Gasconade

5,350541

Gentry

2,219605

Greene

161,959753

Grundy

3,540609

Harrison

2,590509

Henry

7,524707

Hickory

1,285478

Holt

1,316583

Howard

2,666503

Howell

15,160610

Iron

3,822740

Jackson

358,043989

Jasper

60,448710

Jefferson

46,983644

Johnson

15,589635

Knox

1,090490

Laclede

12,980603

Lafayette

8,755572

Lawrence

9,090627

Lewis

2,684626

Lincoln

11,237670

Linn

3,798599

Livingston

6,055608

McDonald

7,035602

Macon

4,900581

Madison

3,657514

Maries

1,239564

Marion

13,565627

Mercer

1,782641

Miller

6,625595

Mississippi

4,116550

Moniteau

4,215575

Monroe

2,093568

Montgomery

2,844592

Morgan

4,388502

New Madrid

7,617713

Newton

17,191630

Nodaway

7,918601

Oregon

2,356445

Osage

3,529609

Ozark

1,603411

Pemiscot

5,946567

Perry

9,477681

Pettis

19,603606

Phelps

18,017699

Pike

6,049603

Platte

40,952821

Polk

7,956640

Pulaski

13,177663

Putnam

1,030537

Ralls

3,522787

Randolph

9,548664

Ray

4,342625

Reynolds

1,720447

Ripley

2,838437

St. Charles

141,156774

St. Clair

1,657474

Ste. Genevieve

5,474758

St. Francois

22,936568

St. Louis

593,2991,004

Saline

8,920617

Schuyler

640502

Scotland

1,188536

Scott

15,368631

Shannon

1,471416

Shelby

1,750504

Stoddard

10,284609

Stone

5,836536

Sullivan

2,399670

Taney

30,096557

Texas

5,727543

Vernon

7,006645

Warren

7,155650

Washington

5,217507

Wayne

2,807431

Webster

6,797589

Worth

353461

Wright

4,239543

St. Louis City

228,2691,045

Footnotes
(1) Average weekly wages were calculated using unrounded data.
(2) Totals for the United States do not include data for Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands.
 

Note: Includes workers covered by Unemployment Insurance (UI) and Unemployment Compensation for Federal Employees (UCFE) programs. Data are preliminary.
 

Table 3. Covered employment and wages by state, third quarter 2015
StateEmploymentAverage weekly wage (1)
September 2015 (thousands)Percent change, September 2014-15Average weekly wageNational ranking by levelPercent change, third quarter 2014-15National ranking by percent change

United States (2)

140,442.21.9$974--2.6--

Alabama

1,893.61.2830341.840

Alaska

346.40.41,04192.234

Arizona

2,613.92.9889241.542

Arkansas

1,193.41.9756482.622

California

16,474.43.01,13453.46

Colorado

2,513.02.91,006122.430

Connecticut

1,668.30.21,14742.038

Delaware

436.32.1963150.348

District of Columbia

743.61.41,66712.333

Florida

8,023.23.5852313.110

Georgia

4,171.12.8916222.819

Hawaii

635.41.4896233.110

Idaho

680.33.3736502.137

Illinois

5,888.61.31,020103.93

Indiana

2,971.71.6818392.430

Iowa

1,535.90.4823383.014

Kansas

1,370.90.6809411.840

Kentucky

1,852.51.4804422.918

Louisiana

1,926.3-0.2858300.747

Maine

609.70.7779463.37

Maryland

2,607.81.31,06782.430

Massachusetts

3,446.91.41,19723.014

Michigan

4,203.01.6921202.720

Minnesota

2,800.71.4990142.622

Mississippi

1,118.91.2706511.343

Missouri

2,737.91.9846322.234

Montana

457.91.9759473.74

Nebraska

964.01.4811404.22

Nevada

1,254.53.2862292.527

New Hampshire

642.81.5952182.720

New Jersey

3,933.91.41,11662.622

New Mexico

809.20.6798431.343

New York

9,065.41.81,18033.110

North Carolina

4,194.12.5863283.014

North Dakota

438.0-3.895617-2.351

Ohio

5,282.71.2878251.939

Oklahoma

1,598.00.2825370.049

Oregon

1,812.83.0924194.41

Pennsylvania

5,722.10.8961162.527

Rhode Island

477.41.2919212.622

South Carolina

1,959.72.9788442.622

South Dakota

419.50.9756483.110

Tennessee

2,850.62.7864273.28

Texas

11,681.02.1999131.145

Utah

1,353.93.7829353.28

Vermont

308.20.5829353.014

Virginia

3,759.72.51,014112.527

Washington

3,187.62.51,11172.234

West Virginia

702.4-1.1785450.946

Wisconsin

2,815.70.9834333.55

Wyoming

287.4-1.586626-1.150

Puerto Rico

891.1-0.7512(3)1.4(3)

Virgin Islands

36.8-2.1738(3)2.1(3)

Footnotes:
(1) Average weekly wages were calculated using unrounded data.
(2) Totals for the United States do not include data for Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands.
(3) Data not included in the national ranking.
 

Note: Data are preliminary. Covered employment and wages includes workers covered by Unemployment Insurance (UI) and Unemployment Compensation for Federal Employees (UCFE) programs.
 

 

Last Modified Date: Thursday, April 07, 2016