Workers in the Providence-Warwick, RI-MA Metropolitan Statistical Area had an average (mean) hourly wage of $26.89 in May 2019, about 5 percent above the nationwide average of $25.72, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Regional Commissioner William J. Sibley noted that, after testing for statistical significance, wages in the local area were higher than their respective national averages in 14 of the 22 major occupational groups, including management, educational instruction and library, and healthcare practitioners and technical. Three groups had significantly lower wages than their respective national averages: legal, computer and mathematical, and transportation and material moving.

When compared to the nationwide distribution, Providence area employment was more highly concentrated in 6 of the 22 occupational groups, including healthcare practitioners and technical, food preparation and serving related, and healthcare support. Conversely, eight groups had employment shares significantly below their national representation, including transportation and material moving, management, and construction and extraction. (See table A and box note at end of release.)

One occupational group—healthcare practitioners and technical—was chosen to illustrate the diversity of data available for any of the 22 major occupational categories. Providence had 40,460 jobs in healthcare practitioners and technical, accounting for 7.0 percent of local area employment, significantly higher than the 5.9-percent share nationally. The average hourly wage for this occupational group locally was $44.74, significantly above the national wage of $40.21.

Some of the larger detailed occupations within the healthcare practitioners and technical group included registered nurses (15,070), physicians, all other; and ophthalmologists, except pediatric (3,130), and pharmacy technicians (2,130). Among the higher-paying jobs in this group were surgeons, except ophthalmologists with a mean hourly wage of $134.00, and obstetricians and gynecologists with a mean hourly wage of $127.89. At the lower end of the wage scale were veterinary technologists and technicians ($17.95) and pharmacy technicians ($18.06). (Detailed data for the healthcare practitioners and technical occupations are presented in table 1; for a complete listing of detailed occupations available go to www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes_77200.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 Providence area, above-average concentrations of employment were found in some of the occupations within the healthcare practitioners and technical group. For instance, physicians, all other; and ophthalmologists, except pediatric were employed at 2.0 times the national rate in Providence, and veterinary technologists and technicians, at 1.6 times the U.S. average. Nurse practitioners had a location quotient of 1.0 in Providence, 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 Rhode Island Labor Market Information and the Massachusetts Division of Unemployment Assistance.

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 580 areas, including states and the District of Columbia, metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs), nonmetropolitan areas, and territories; national industry-specific estimates at the NAICS sector, 3-digit, most 4-digit, 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.

The OES survey is a cooperative effort between BLS and the State Workforce Agencies (SWAs). BLS funds the survey and provides the procedures and technical support, while the State Workforce Agencies collect most of the data. OES estimates are constructed from a sample of about 1.1 million establishments. Each year, two semiannual panels of approximately 180,000 to 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 2019 estimates are based on responses from six semiannual panels collected over a 3-year period: May 2019, November 2018, May 2018, November 2017, May 2017, and November 2016. The unweighted sample employment of 83 million across all six semiannual panels represents approximately 57 percent of total national employment. The overall national response rate for the six panels, based on the 50 states and the District of Columbia, is 71 percent based on establishments and 68 percent based on weighted sampled employment. The sample in the Providence-Warwick, RI-MA Metropolitan Statistical Area included 4,806 establishments with a response rate of 75 percent. For more information about OES concepts and methodology, go to www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes_tec.htm.

A value that is statistically different from another does not necessarily mean that the difference has economic or practical significance. Statistical significance is concerned with the ability to make confident statements about a universe based on a sample. It is entirely possible that a large difference between two values is not significantly different statistically, while a small difference is, since both the size and heterogeneity of the sample affect the relative error of the data being tested.

The May 2019 OES estimates are the first set of OES estimates to be based in part on survey data collected using the 2018 SOC. These estimates use a hybrid of the 2010 and 2018 SOC systems. More information on the hybrid classification system is available at www.bls.gov/oes/soc_2018.htm.

The May 2019 OES estimates are based on the 2017 North American Industry Classification System (NAICS). More 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 Providence-Warwick, RI-MA Metropolitan Statistical Area includes Attleboro city MA, Fall River city MA, North Attleborough town MA, Rehoboth town MA, Seekonk town MA, Somerset town MA, Swansea town MA, Westport town MA, Ballingham town MA, Plainville town MA, Blackstone town MA, Millville town MA, Barrington town RI, Bristol town RI, Warren town RI, Coventry town RI, Eat Greenwich town RI, Warwick city RI, West Greenwich town RI, West Warwick town RI, Jamestone RI, Little Compton town RI, Middletown RI, Newport city RI, Portsmouth town RI, Tiverton town RI, Burrillville town RI, Central Falls city RI, Cranston city RI, Cumberland town RI, East Providence city RI, Foster town RI, Glocester town RI, Johnston town RI, Lincoln town RI, North Providence town RI, North Smithfield town RI, Pawticket city RI, Providence city RI, Scituate town RI, Smithfield town RI, Woonsocket city RI, Charlestown town RI, Exeter town RI, Narragansett town RI, North Kingstown RI, Richmond RI, South Kingstown RI.

For more information

Answers to frequently asked questions about the OES data are available at www.bls.gov/oes/oes_ques.htm. Detailed information about the OES program is available at www.bls.gov/oes/oes_doc.htm.

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 for healthcare practitioners and technical occupations, Providence-Warwick, RI-MA Metropolitan Statistical Area, May 2019

Occupation (1)	Employment		Mean wages
	Level (2)	Location quotient (3)	Hourly	Annual (4)
Healthcare practitioners and technical occupations	40,460	1.2	$44.74	$93,050
Chiropractors	120	0.8	(5)	(5)
Dentists, general	400	0.9	122.22	254,220
Dietitians and nutritionists	300	1.1	30.49	63,420
Optometrists	(5)	(5)	52.69	109,590
Pharmacists	1,760	1.4	60.02	124,840
Physician assistants	350	0.7	(5)	(5)
Podiatrists	40	1.1	55.84	116,150
Occupational therapists	760	1.5	42.54	88,490
Physical therapists	1,260	1.4	41.47	86,250
Radiation therapists	(5)	(5)	48.09	100,020
Recreational therapists	40	0.5	19.79	41,170
Respiratory therapists	400	0.8	31.37	65,260
Speech-language pathologists	670	1.1	41.36	86,020
Therapists, all other	260	5.4	35.55	73,930
Veterinarians	270	0.9	57.05	118,670
Registered nurses	15,070	1.3	39.51	82,170
Nurse midwives	60	2.2	51.54	107,200
Nurse practitioners	800	1.0	55.83	116,130
Audiologists	30	0.6	44.38	92,310
Family medicine physicians	160	0.4	91.76	190,860
General internal medicine physicians	160	0.9	92.14	191,660
Obstetricians and gynecologists	90	1.3	127.89	266,020
Pediatricians, general	260	2.3	95.90	199,470
Psychiatrists	230	2.3	108.59	225,870
Physicians, all other; and ophthalmologists, except pediatric	3,130	2.0	99.93	207,850
Surgeons, except ophthalmologists	80	0.6	134.00	278,710
Dental hygienists	1,270	1.5	36.36	75,620
Acupuncturists and healthcare diagnosing or treating practitioners, all other	(5)	(5)	52.95	110,130
Clinical laboratory technologists and technicians	1,110	0.9	31.42	65,350
Cardiovascular technologists and technicians	240	1.1	36.41	75,730
Diagnostic medical sonographers	360	1.2	41.52	86,360
Nuclear medicine technologists	60	0.8	48.19	100,230
Radiologic technologists and technicians	1,000	1.2	34.34	71,430
Magnetic resonance imaging technologists	200	1.3	41.49	86,300
Emergency medical technicians and paramedics	860	0.8	21.47	44,670
Dietetic technicians	140	1.2	18.52	38,530
Pharmacy technicians	2,130	1.3	18.06	37,560
Psychiatric technicians	310	1.0	19.07	39,670
Surgical technologists	470	1.1	25.37	52,770
Veterinary technologists and technicians	700	1.6	17.95	37,340
Ophthalmic medical technicians	(5)	(5)	20.04	41,680
Licensed practical and licensed vocational nurses	1,610	0.6	27.61	57,420
Opticians, dispensing	350	1.2	(5)	(5)
Orthotists and prosthetists	50	1.3	37.53	78,050
Medical dosimetrists, medical records specialists, and health technologists and technicians, all other	1,180	0.9	25.21	52,430
Athletic trainers	80	0.7	(6)	55,990
Health information technologists, medical registrars, surgical assistants, and healthcare practitioners and technical workers, all other	480	2.3	29.48	61,320
Footnotes: (1) For a complete listing of all detailed occupations in the Providence-Warwick, RI-MA Metropolitan Statistical Area, see www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes_77200.htm. (2) Estimates for detailed occupations may not sum to the totals due to rounding, and because the totals may include occupations that are 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. (6) Wages for some occupations that do not generally work year-round, full time, are reported either as hourly wages or annual salaries depending on how they are typically paid.