From December 2020 to March 2021, gross job gains from opening and expanding private-sector establishments in Pennsylvania were 318,356, while gross job losses from closing and contracting private-sector establishments were 227,213, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. The difference between the number of gross job gains and the number of gross job losses yielded a net employment gain of 91,143 jobs. During the previous quarter, gross job gains exceeded gross job losses by 40,337. (See chart 1.) Regional Commissioner Alexandra Hall Bovee noted that the gross job losses of 227,213 in March 2021 was a series low for Pennsylvania.

The change in the number of jobs over time is the net result of increases and decreases in employment that occur at all private businesses in the economy. Business Employment Dynamics (BED) statistics track these changes in employment at private-sector establishments from the third month of one quarter to the third month of the next. The difference between the number of gross job gains and the number of gross job losses is the net change in employment. (See Technical Note.)

Gross job gains

In the first quarter of 2021, gross job gains represented 6.4 percent of private-sector employment in Pennsylvania; nationally, gross job gains accounted for 6.8 percent of private-sector employment. (See chart 2.) Gross job gains are the sum of increases in employment due to expansions at existing establishments and the addition of new jobs at opening establishments. In Pennsylvania, gross job gains at expanding establishments totaled 271,810 in the first quarter of 2021, an increase of 19,439 jobs compared to the previous quarter. (See table 1.) Opening establishments accounted for 46,546 jobs gained in the first quarter of 2021, a decrease of 73 jobs from the previous quarter.

Gross job losses

In the first quarter of 2021, gross job losses represented 4.6 percent of private-sector employment in Pennsylvania; nationally, gross job losses accounted for 5.4 percent of private-sector employment. (See chart 3.) Gross job losses are the result of contractions in employment at existing establishments and the loss of jobs at closing establishments. In Pennsylvania, contracting establishments lost 193,458 jobs in the first quarter of 2021, a decrease of 24,850 jobs from the prior quarter. Closing establishments lost 33,755 jobs, a decrease of 6,590 jobs from the previous quarter.

Industries

Gross job gains exceeded gross job losses in 10 of the 11 industry sectors in Pennsylvania in the first quarter of 2021. Leisure and hospitality had the largest over-the-quarter net job increase, with a gain of 51,899 jobs. This was the result of 82,054 gross job gains and 30,155 gross job losses. The retail trade industry had a net gain of 10,847 jobs. Pennsylvania’s education and health services sector had a net gain of 6,529 jobs. Transportation and warehousing had a net loss of 490 jobs.

For more information

The BED data series include gross job gains and gross job losses by industry subsector, 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. BED data for the states have been included in table 2 of this release. Additional information is available online at www.bls.gov/bdm/.

The Business Employment Dynamics for Second Quarter 2021 are scheduled to be released on Wednesday, January 26, 2022, at 10:00 a.m. (ET).

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). The BED data are compiled by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) from existing QCEW records. Most employers in the U.S. are required to file quarterly reports on the employment and wages of workers covered by unemployment insurance (UI) laws, and to pay quarterly UI taxes. The QCEW is based largely on quarterly UI reports which are sent by businesses to the State Workforce Agencies (SWAs). These UI reports are supplemented by two additional BLS data collections to render administrative data into economic statistics. Together these data comprise the QCEW and form the basis of the Bureau’s establishment universe sampling frame.

In the BED program, the QCEW 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 units and jobs lost at closing and contracting units.

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 establishments 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 establishments and the addition of new jobs at opening establishments. Gross job losses are the result of contractions in employment at existing establishments and the loss of jobs at closing establishments. The difference between the number of gross jobs gained and the number of gross jobs lost is the net change in employment.

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 quarters. 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.

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 employment 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 either units with positive third month employment in the previous 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.

The full Technical Note for the Business Employment Dynamics program, which includes information on coverage, concepts, and methodology, can be found in the current quarterly news release online at www.bls.gov/news.release/cewbd.htm.

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

Table 1. Private sector gross job gains and losses by industry, Pennsylvania, seasonally adjusted

Category	Gross job gains and job losses (3 months ended)					Gross job gains and job losses as a percent of employment (3 months ended)
	Mar. 2020	June 2020	Sept 2020	Dec. 2020	Mar. 2021	Mar. 2020	June 2020	Sept 2020	Dec. 2020	Mar. 2021
Total private (1)
Gross job gains	262,222	175,690	487,751	298,990	318,356	5.0	3.6	10.3	6.2	6.4
At expanding establishments	227,623	140,783	388,732	252,371	271,810	4.3	2.9	8.2	5.2	5.5
At opening establishments	34,599	34,907	99,019	46,619	46,546	0.7	0.7	2.1	1.0	0.9
Gross job losses	299,656	901,158	232,669	258,653	227,213	5.7	18.3	4.9	5.3	4.6
At contracting establishments	246,421	763,041	197,271	218,308	193,458	4.7	15.5	4.2	4.5	3.9
At closing establishments	53,235	138,117	35,398	40,345	33,755	1.0	2.8	0.7	0.8	0.7
Net employment change (2)	-37,434	-725,468	255,082	40,337	91,143	-0.7	-14.7	5.4	0.9	1.8
Construction
Gross job gains	23,651	17,179	27,503	24,656	22,940	8.9	6.8	11.5	10.0	9.0
At expanding establishments	19,686	13,906	21,490	20,210	18,535	7.4	5.5	9.0	8.2	7.3
At opening establishments	3,965	3,273	6,013	4,446	4,405	1.5	1.3	2.5	1.8	1.7
Gross job losses	20,574	46,652	20,142	19,155	20,016	7.8	18.5	8.4	7.7	7.9
At contracting establishments	16,970	39,371	16,978	15,491	17,011	6.4	15.6	7.1	6.2	6.7
At closing establishments	3,604	7,281	3,164	3,664	3,005	1.4	2.9	1.3	1.5	1.2
Net employment change (2)	3,077	-29,473	7,361	5,501	2,924	1.1	-11.7	3.1	2.3	1.1
Manufacturing
Gross job gains	15,267	9,235	24,296	19,675	18,905	2.7	1.6	4.5	3.6	3.5
At expanding establishments	14,626	8,472	22,532	18,432	18,024	2.6	1.5	4.2	3.4	3.3
At opening establishments	641	763	1,764	1,243	881	0.1	0.1	0.3	0.2	0.2
Gross job losses	16,612	53,246	19,587	14,830	14,109	2.9	9.7	3.7	2.8	2.7
At contracting establishments	14,938	50,597	18,023	13,990	12,696	2.6	9.2	3.4	2.6	2.4
At closing establishments	1,674	2,649	1,564	840	1,413	0.3	0.5	0.3	0.2	0.3
Net employment change (2)	-1,345	-44,011	4,709	4,845	4,796	-0.2	-8.1	0.8	0.8	0.8
Wholesale trade
Gross job gains	7,893	5,665	11,892	9,277	8,898	3.6	2.8	5.9	4.5	4.4
At expanding establishments	6,736	4,262	10,074	7,805	7,450	3.1	2.1	5.0	3.8	3.7
At opening establishments	1,157	1,403	1,818	1,472	1,448	0.5	0.7	0.9	0.7	0.7
Gross job losses	8,003	23,761	7,991	7,235	7,214	3.7	11.5	4.0	3.5	3.5
At contracting establishments	6,182	21,153	6,526	5,714	5,714	2.9	10.2	3.3	2.8	2.8
At closing establishments	1,821	2,608	1,465	1,521	1,500	0.8	1.3	0.7	0.7	0.7
Net employment change (2)	-110	-18,096	3,901	2,042	1,684	-0.1	-8.7	1.9	1.0	0.9
Retail trade
Gross job gains	35,430	28,371	66,882	32,532	37,905	5.8	4.9	11.9	5.7	6.4
At expanding establishments	32,344	25,600	57,383	29,216	33,555	5.3	4.4	10.2	5.1	5.7
At opening establishments	3,086	2,771	9,499	3,316	4,350	0.5	0.5	1.7	0.6	0.7
Gross job losses	33,811	111,559	28,502	31,709	27,058	5.5	19.3	5.0	5.5	4.7
At contracting establishments	29,270	97,616	25,623	27,557	23,821	4.8	16.9	4.5	4.8	4.1
At closing establishments	4,541	13,943	2,879	4,152	3,237	0.7	2.4	0.5	0.7	0.6
Net employment change (2)	1,619	-83,188	38,380	823	10,847	0.3	-14.4	6.9	0.2	1.7
Transportation and warehousing
Gross job gains	16,033	15,681	24,602	28,989	19,021	5.7	6.0	9.5	10.6	6.8
At expanding establishments	14,612	14,184	20,139	24,557	17,734	5.2	5.4	7.8	9.0	6.3
At opening establishments	1,421	1,497	4,463	4,432	1,287	0.5	0.6	1.7	1.6	0.5
Gross job losses	20,051	39,200	15,939	12,305	19,511	7.2	14.9	6.1	4.5	6.9
At contracting establishments	18,046	36,322	14,814	10,584	18,591	6.5	13.8	5.7	3.9	6.6
At closing establishments	2,005	2,878	1,125	1,721	920	0.7	1.1	0.4	0.6	0.3
Net employment change (2)	-4,018	-23,519	8,663	16,684	-490	-1.5	-8.9	3.4	6.1	-0.1
Information
Gross job gains	3,999	2,410	6,244	3,724	5,731	4.5	2.9	7.8	4.6	6.9
At expanding establishments	3,443	1,828	5,146	2,864	4,482	3.9	2.2	6.4	3.5	5.4
At opening establishments	556	582	1,098	860	1,249	0.6	0.7	1.4	1.1	1.5
Gross job losses	4,499	12,566	3,470	4,463	4,177	5.1	15.1	4.3	5.5	5.1
At contracting establishments	3,860	10,342	2,808	3,638	3,620	4.4	12.4	3.5	4.5	4.4
At closing establishments	639	2,224	662	825	557	0.7	2.7	0.8	1.0	0.7
Net employment change (2)	-500	-10,156	2,774	-739	1,554	-0.6	-12.2	3.5	-0.9	1.8
Financial activities
Gross job gains	11,272	8,896	13,997	11,287	12,480	3.4	2.7	4.3	3.5	3.8
At expanding establishments	9,517	7,010	11,302	9,069	9,799	2.9	2.1	3.5	2.8	3.0
At opening establishments	1,755	1,886	2,695	2,218	2,681	0.5	0.6	0.8	0.7	0.8
Gross job losses	10,948	21,675	11,109	11,839	10,226	3.3	6.6	3.5	3.6	3.2
At contracting establishments	8,660	18,777	9,227	9,808	8,068	2.6	5.7	2.9	3.0	2.5
At closing establishments	2,288	2,898	1,882	2,031	2,158	0.7	0.9	0.6	0.6	0.7
Net employment change (2)	324	-12,779	2,888	-552	2,254	0.1	-3.9	0.8	-0.1	0.6
Professional and business services
Gross job gains	42,509	34,838	59,771	64,237	47,949	5.2	4.5	8.0	8.4	6.1
At expanding establishments	35,237	26,264	48,816	54,573	39,313	4.3	3.4	6.5	7.1	5.0
At opening establishments	7,272	8,574	10,955	9,664	8,636	0.9	1.1	1.5	1.3	1.1
Gross job losses	50,849	111,777	44,970	40,271	43,136	6.3	14.4	6.0	5.3	5.5
At contracting establishments	40,284	99,270	36,954	31,967	35,629	5.0	12.8	4.9	4.2	4.5
At closing establishments	10,565	12,507	8,016	8,304	7,507	1.3	1.6	1.1	1.1	1.0
Net employment change (2)	-8,340	-76,939	14,801	23,966	4,813	-1.1	-9.9	2.0	3.1	0.6
Education and health services
Gross job gains	43,205	23,276	62,899	41,485	43,953	3.5	1.9	5.4	3.5	3.7
At expanding establishments	39,548	18,404	52,682	36,576	38,684	3.2	1.5	4.5	3.1	3.3
At opening establishments	3,657	4,872	10,217	4,909	5,269	0.3	0.4	0.9	0.4	0.4
Gross job losses	43,653	114,539	37,278	41,865	37,424	3.5	9.6	3.2	3.5	3.2
At contracting establishments	35,729	101,414	32,719	36,874	32,055	2.9	8.5	2.8	3.1	2.7
At closing establishments	7,924	13,125	4,559	4,991	5,369	0.6	1.1	0.4	0.4	0.5
Net employment change (2)	-448	-91,263	25,621	-380	6,529	0.0	-7.7	2.2	0.0	0.5
Leisure and hospitality
Gross job gains	47,297	19,728	141,502	45,412	82,054	8.2	4.3	36.7	10.8	19.0
At expanding establishments	38,619	13,159	112,849	35,598	69,961	6.7	2.9	29.3	8.5	16.2
At opening establishments	8,678	6,569	28,653	9,814	12,093	1.5	1.4	7.4	2.3	2.8
Gross job losses	70,542	287,572	28,007	57,927	30,155	12.3	63.1	7.2	13.9	7.0
At contracting establishments	56,944	237,423	21,358	48,886	24,791	9.9	52.1	5.5	11.7	5.8
At closing establishments	13,598	50,149	6,649	9,041	5,364	2.4	11.0	1.7	2.2	1.2
Net employment change (2)	-23,245	-267,844	113,495	-12,515	51,899	-4.1	-58.8	29.5	-3.1	12.0
Other services (3)
Gross job gains	11,598	6,872	43,508	13,015	14,363	5.9	4.1	27.9	7.7	8.3
At expanding establishments	9,631	4,754	22,300	9,665	10,672	4.9	2.8	14.3	5.7	6.2
At opening establishments	1,967	2,118	21,208	3,350	3,691	1.0	1.3	13.6	2.0	2.1
Gross job losses	15,160	70,020	10,543	12,764	10,110	7.7	41.5	6.8	7.5	5.9
At contracting establishments	11,242	42,693	7,907	10,191	7,931	5.7	25.3	5.1	6.0	4.6
At closing establishments	3,918	27,327	2,636	2,573	2,179	2.0	16.2	1.7	1.5	1.3
Net employment change (2)	-3,562	-63,148	32,965	251	4,253	-1.8	-37.4	21.1	0.2	2.4
Footnotes: (1) Includes unclassified sector not shown separately. (2) The net employment change is the difference between total gross job gains and total gross job losses. See the Technical Note for further information. (3) Except public administration.