Business Employment Dynamics in South Carolina — Third Quarter 2023

From June 2023 to September 2023, gross job gains from opening and expanding private-sector establishments were 126,620, while gross job losses from closing and contracting private-sector establishments in South Carolina were 107,643, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Regional Commissioner Victoria G. Lee noted that the difference between the number of gross job gains and the number of gross job losses yielded a net employment gain of 18,977 jobs in the private sector during the third quarter of 2023. During the previous quarter, gross job losses exceeded gross job gains by 6,582. (See chart 1.)

Chart 1. Private-sector gross job gains and losses in South Carolina, September 2018–September 2023, seasonally adjusted

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Chart 1. Private-sector gross job gains and losses in South Carolina, September 2018–September 2023, seasonally adjusted
Period	Gross job gains	Gross job losses
Sep. 2018	99,727	113,647
Dec. 2018	126,533	94,486
Mar. 2019	115,623	113,754
Jun. 2019	114,407	107,883
Sep. 2019	105,893	103,398
Dec. 2019	114,208	104,849
Mar. 2020	100,131	117,901
Jun. 2020	86,002	245,151
Sep. 2020	145,487	97,041
Dec. 2020	134,971	88,349
Mar. 2021	110,580	103,327
Jun. 2021	108,881	110,149
Sep. 2021	125,351	104,035
Dec. 2021	138,945	93,401
Mar. 2022	128,049	110,679
Jun. 2022	118,590	111,896
Sep. 2022	133,853	103,467
Dec. 2022	128,661	115,506
Mar. 2023	127,086	108,926
Jun. 2023	120,255	126,837
Sep. 2023	126,620	107,643

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 the Business Employment Dynamics Technical Note.)

Gross job gains

In the third quarter of 2023, gross job gains represented 6.8 percent of private-sector employment in South Carolina; nationally, gross job gains accounted for 5.8 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 South Carolina, gross job gains at expanding establishments totaled 95,451 in the third quarter of 2023, an increase of 1,558 jobs compared to the previous quarter. (See table 1.) Opening establishments accounted for 31,169 jobs gained in the third quarter of 2023, an increase of 4,807 jobs from the previous quarter.

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Chart 2. Private-sector gross job gains as a percent of employment, United States and South Carolina, September 2018–September 2023, seasonally adjusted
Period	South Carolina	United States
Sep. 2018	5.7	6.0
Dec. 2018	7.2	6.2
Mar. 2019	6.5	6.0
Jun. 2019	6.5	6.1
Sep. 2019	6.0	5.9
Dec. 2019	6.4	6.2
Mar. 2020	5.7	5.5
Jun. 2020	5.1	4.8
Sep. 2020	8.8	9.4
Dec. 2020	7.9	7.4
Mar. 2021	6.4	7.0
Jun. 2021	6.3	6.8
Sep. 2021	7.3	7.3
Dec. 2021	7.9	7.7
Mar. 2022	7.1	6.7
Jun. 2022	6.6	6.6
Sep. 2022	7.3	6.9
Dec. 2022	6.9	6.3
Mar. 2023	6.8	6.2
Jun. 2023	6.4	6.2
Sep. 2023	6.8	5.8

Gross job losses

In the third quarter of 2023, gross job losses represented 5.7 percent of private-sector employment in South Carolina; nationally, gross job losses accounted for 5.9 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 South Carolina, contracting establishments lost 86,872 jobs in the third quarter of 2023, a decrease of 10,139 jobs from the prior quarter. Closing establishments lost 20,771 jobs, a decrease of 9,055 jobs from the previous quarter.

View Chart Data

Chart 3. Private-sector gross job losses as a percent of employment, United States and South Carolina, September 2018–September 2023, seasonally adjusted
Period	South Carolina	United States
Sep. 2018	6.5	6.0
Dec. 2018	5.4	5.6
Mar. 2019	6.4	5.5
Jun. 2019	6.1	5.9
Sep. 2019	5.9	5.8
Dec. 2019	5.9	5.6
Mar. 2020	6.6	6.2
Jun. 2020	14.5	16.9
Sep. 2020	5.9	6.0
Dec. 2020	5.2	5.7
Mar. 2021	6.0	5.5
Jun. 2021	6.4	5.9
Sep. 2021	6.0	6.1
Dec. 2021	5.3	5.4
Mar. 2022	6.1	5.5
Jun. 2022	6.2	6.2
Sep. 2022	5.6	5.9
Dec. 2022	6.2	5.9
Mar. 2023	5.8	5.4
Jun. 2023	6.8	5.9
Sep. 2023	5.7	5.9

Industries

Gross job gains exceeded gross job losses in 10 of the 11 industry sectors in South Carolina in the third quarter of 2023. Leisure and hospitality had the largest over-the-quarter net job increase, with a gain of 4,328 jobs. This was the result of 28,313 gross job gains and 23,985 gross job losses. The professional and business services sector had a net gain of 4,005 jobs, followed by the education and health services sector with a net gain of 3,933 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 the Business Employment Dynamics Home.

The Business Employment Dynamics for Fourth Quarter 2023 are scheduled to be released on Wednesday, July 24, 2024.

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.

More information on formal definitions of the data used in this release, along with coverage, concepts, and methodology, can be found in the Business Employment Dynamics Technical Note.

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 1. Private sector gross job gains and losses by industry, South Carolina, seasonally adjusted
Category	Gross job gains and losses (3 months ended)					Gross job gains and losses as a percent of employment (3 months ended)
Category	Sept. 2022	Dec. 2022	Mar. 2023	June 2023	Sept. 2023	Sept. 2022	Dec. 2022	Mar. 2023	June 2023	Sept. 2023
Total private (1)
Gross job gains	133,853	128,661	127,086	120,255	126,620	7.3	6.9	6.8	6.4	6.8
At expanding establishments	107,070	100,000	99,017	93,893	95,451	5.8	5.4	5.3	5.0	5.1
At opening establishments	26,783	28,661	28,069	26,362	31,169	1.5	1.5	1.5	1.4	1.7
Gross job losses	103,467	115,506	108,926	126,837	107,643	5.6	6.2	5.8	6.8	5.7
At contracting establishments	81,188	92,350	86,331	97,011	86,872	4.4	5.0	4.6	5.2	4.6
At closing establishments	22,279	23,156	22,595	29,826	20,771	1.2	1.2	1.2	1.6	1.1
Net employment change (2)	30,386	13,155	18,160	-6,582	18,977	1.7	0.7	1.0	-0.4	1.1
Construction
Gross job gains	7,920	7,980	8,034	8,410	8,961	7.3	7.2	7.3	7.5	8.0
At expanding establishments	6,084	5,546	6,053	6,300	6,377	5.6	5.0	5.5	5.6	5.7
At opening establishments	1,836	2,434	1,981	2,110	2,584	1.7	2.2	1.8	1.9	2.3
Gross job losses	7,314	7,632	7,216	8,072	7,343	6.7	6.9	6.6	7.2	6.5
At contracting establishments	5,562	5,660	5,162	5,678	5,614	5.1	5.1	4.7	5.1	5.0
At closing establishments	1,752	1,972	2,054	2,394	1,729	1.6	1.8	1.9	2.1	1.5
Net employment change (2)	606	348	818	338	1,618	0.6	0.3	0.7	0.3	1.5
Manufacturing
Gross job gains	9,567	8,834	8,610	8,305	8,551	3.6	3.3	3.3	3.2	3.2
At expanding establishments	8,711	7,703	7,492	7,374	7,368	3.3	2.9	2.9	2.8	2.8
At opening establishments	856	1,131	1,118	931	1,183	0.3	0.4	0.4	0.4	0.4
Gross job losses	6,785	10,263	8,295	8,383	7,663	2.5	3.9	3.2	3.2	2.9
At contracting establishments	6,136	9,346	7,356	7,418	7,084	2.3	3.6	2.8	2.8	2.7
At closing establishments	649	917	939	965	579	0.2	0.3	0.4	0.4	0.2
Net employment change (2)	2,782	-1,429	315	-78	888	1.1	-0.6	0.1	0.0	0.3
Wholesale trade
Gross job gains	4,560	4,570	4,309	4,342	3,946	5.7	5.6	5.2	5.3	4.8
At expanding establishments	3,901	3,408	3,630	3,588	3,068	4.9	4.2	4.4	4.4	3.7
At opening establishments	659	1,162	679	754	878	0.8	1.4	0.8	0.9	1.1
Gross job losses	3,398	4,267	3,636	3,660	3,260	4.2	5.2	4.4	4.5	4.0
At contracting establishments	2,652	3,192	2,808	2,663	2,714	3.3	3.9	3.4	3.3	3.3
At closing establishments	746	1,075	828	997	546	0.9	1.3	1.0	1.2	0.7
Net employment change (2)	1,162	303	673	682	686	1.5	0.4	0.8	0.8	0.8
Retail trade
Gross job gains	17,388	15,469	15,323	15,358	13,607	6.6	5.9	5.7	5.7	5.1
At expanding establishments	14,755	12,740	13,105	13,115	11,191	5.6	4.9	4.9	4.9	4.2
At opening establishments	2,633	2,729	2,218	2,243	2,416	1.0	1.0	0.8	0.8	0.9
Gross job losses	14,031	14,537	13,338	15,120	14,200	5.4	5.5	5.1	5.7	5.3
At contracting establishments	11,994	12,583	11,350	12,711	12,091	4.6	4.8	4.3	4.8	4.5
At closing establishments	2,037	1,954	1,988	2,409	2,109	0.8	0.7	0.8	0.9	0.8
Net employment change (2)	3,357	932	1,985	238	-593	1.2	0.4	0.6	0.0	-0.2
Transportation and warehousing
Gross job gains	4,991	7,171	4,736	4,212	4,417	6.2	8.7	5.6	5.2	5.5
At expanding establishments	4,109	6,040	4,060	3,553	3,490	5.1	7.3	4.8	4.4	4.3
At opening establishments	882	1,131	676	659	927	1.1	1.4	0.8	0.8	1.2
Gross job losses	4,271	3,923	6,331	6,086	4,318	5.2	4.7	7.5	7.5	5.4
At contracting establishments	3,189	3,259	5,634	5,212	3,592	3.9	3.9	6.7	6.4	4.5
At closing establishments	1,082	664	697	874	726	1.3	0.8	0.8	1.1	0.9
Net employment change (2)	720	3,248	-1,595	-1,874	99	1.0	4.0	-1.9	-2.3	0.1
Information
Gross job gains	3,129	2,130	1,780	1,854	1,715	10.4	6.8	6.0	6.3	6.0
At expanding establishments	2,464	1,279	1,282	1,287	1,183	8.2	4.1	4.3	4.4	4.1
At opening establishments	665	851	498	567	532	2.2	2.7	1.7	1.9	1.9
Gross job losses	1,952	2,352	1,960	2,402	1,662	6.5	7.5	6.6	8.2	5.7
At contracting establishments	1,051	1,819	1,400	1,582	1,219	3.5	5.8	4.7	5.4	4.2
At closing establishments	901	533	560	820	443	3.0	1.7	1.9	2.8	1.5
Net employment change (2)	1,177	-222	-180	-548	53	3.9	-0.7	-0.6	-1.9	0.3
Financial activities
Gross job gains	7,967	7,163	6,770	7,100	6,857	7.1	6.3	5.9	6.1	5.9
At expanding establishments	6,457	5,148	5,169	5,444	4,727	5.8	4.5	4.5	4.7	4.1
At opening establishments	1,510	2,015	1,601	1,656	2,130	1.3	1.8	1.4	1.4	1.8
Gross job losses	6,182	6,962	5,561	6,134	5,166	5.5	6.1	4.9	5.3	4.4
At contracting establishments	4,706	5,110	3,760	4,489	3,996	4.2	4.5	3.3	3.9	3.4
At closing establishments	1,476	1,852	1,801	1,645	1,170	1.3	1.6	1.6	1.4	1.0
Net employment change (2)	1,785	201	1,209	966	1,691	1.6	0.2	1.0	0.8	1.5
Professional and business services
Gross job gains	28,534	24,175	25,883	25,108	27,103	9.3	7.8	8.3	8.2	8.7
At expanding establishments	22,394	17,336	19,584	17,814	20,323	7.3	5.6	6.3	5.8	6.5
At opening establishments	6,140	6,839	6,299	7,294	6,780	2.0	2.2	2.0	2.4	2.2
Gross job losses	22,419	26,914	22,854	27,927	23,098	7.3	8.7	7.4	9.0	7.4
At contracting establishments	17,088	21,439	17,667	21,961	17,769	5.6	6.9	5.7	7.1	5.7
At closing establishments	5,331	5,475	5,187	5,966	5,329	1.7	1.8	1.7	1.9	1.7
Net employment change (2)	6,115	-2,739	3,029	-2,819	4,005	2.0	-0.9	0.9	-0.8	1.3
Education and health services
Gross job gains	15,160	15,336	16,792	17,176	16,154	6.1	6.1	6.6	6.6	6.1
At expanding establishments	12,539	11,906	12,726	13,492	12,299	5.0	4.7	5.0	5.2	4.6
At opening establishments	2,621	3,430	4,066	3,684	3,855	1.1	1.4	1.6	1.4	1.5
Gross job losses	10,197	12,798	11,659	12,379	12,221	4.1	5.1	4.5	4.7	4.6
At contracting establishments	7,558	9,587	8,751	8,683	9,451	3.0	3.8	3.4	3.3	3.6
At closing establishments	2,639	3,211	2,908	3,696	2,770	1.1	1.3	1.1	1.4	1.0
Net employment change (2)	4,963	2,538	5,133	4,797	3,933	2.0	1.0	2.1	1.9	1.5
Leisure and hospitality
Gross job gains	27,581	29,202	27,920	23,187	28,313	10.4	10.8	10.0	8.4	10.2
At expanding establishments	20,885	23,889	20,928	18,143	20,698	7.9	8.8	7.5	6.6	7.5
At opening establishments	6,696	5,313	6,992	5,044	7,615	2.5	2.0	2.5	1.8	2.7
Gross job losses	22,070	20,252	22,862	30,267	23,985	8.3	7.5	8.3	11.0	8.7
At contracting establishments	17,746	16,466	18,533	22,110	19,902	6.7	6.1	6.7	8.0	7.2
At closing establishments	4,324	3,786	4,329	8,157	4,083	1.6	1.4	1.6	3.0	1.5
Net employment change (2)	5,511	8,950	5,058	-7,080	4,328	2.1	3.3	1.7	-2.6	1.5
Other services (3)
Gross job gains	4,819	5,019	5,307	4,328	5,290	8.8	9.2	9.4	7.6	9.1
At expanding establishments	3,606	3,669	3,773	3,100	3,360	6.6	6.7	6.7	5.4	5.8
At opening establishments	1,213	1,350	1,534	1,228	1,930	2.2	2.5	2.7	2.2	3.3
Gross job losses	4,022	4,225	3,897	4,448	3,771	7.4	7.6	6.9	7.8	6.6
At contracting establishments	2,897	2,726	2,858	2,929	2,760	5.3	4.9	5.1	5.1	4.8
At closing establishments	1,125	1,499	1,039	1,519	1,011	2.1	2.7	1.8	2.7	1.8
Net employment change (2)	797	794	1,410	-120	1,519	1.4	1.6	2.5	-0.2	2.5
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.

Table 2. Private-sector gross job gains and losses as a percent of total employment by state, seasonally adjusted
Category	Gross job gains as a percent of employment (3 months ended)					Gross job losses as a percent of employment (3 months ended)
Category	Sept. 2022	Dec. 2022	Mar. 2023	June 2023	Sept. 2023	Sept. 2022	Dec. 2022	Mar. 2023	June 2023	Sept. 2023
United States(1)	6.9	6.3	6.2	6.2	5.8	5.9	5.9	5.4	5.9	5.9
Alabama	6.9	6.6	6.4	5.9	5.9	5.9	6.1	5.5	5.7	6.0
Alaska	8.5	10.9	10.4	11.0	8.5	10.4	9.2	8.0	8.9	10.5
Arizona	7.1	6.6	5.9	7.0	6.7	5.5	6.0	5.4	6.5	5.9
Arkansas	6.5	6.2	5.8	5.8	5.6	5.2	5.2	5.0	6.0	5.7
California	6.8	6.6	6.1	6.7	6.2	6.2	6.6	6.4	6.4	6.5
Colorado	7.0	7.6	7.2	7.3	5.5	7.1	6.9	6.5	6.6	6.2
Connecticut	6.3	5.9	6.1	6.4	5.8	6.2	5.9	5.3	5.7	6.2
Delaware	8.6	7.0	6.7	6.0	6.0	6.2	7.5	5.2	5.7	6.5
District of Columbia	7.2	5.6	5.9	5.4	5.5	5.0	5.5	4.8	5.3	5.4
Florida	7.8	6.2	6.3	6.8	6.5	5.6	6.0	5.6	5.8	5.8
Georgia	7.1	6.7	6.2	6.4	6.1	5.9	5.9	5.8	6.5	6.1
Hawaii	6.4	6.0	5.5	5.7	5.3	4.9	4.9	5.0	5.2	6.9
Idaho	7.8	8.4	7.9	7.9	7.3	7.5	6.9	7.5	7.5	8.2
Illinois	5.8	5.4	5.8	5.4	4.8	5.3	5.1	4.8	5.3	5.5
Indiana	6.4	5.7	5.5	5.5	5.8	5.5	5.2	5.0	6.1	5.8
Iowa	5.9	6.4	6.0	6.0	5.5	5.9	6.2	5.4	5.9	5.8
Kansas	7.4	6.3	6.1	6.1	5.7	5.5	5.6	5.4	6.0	6.0
Kentucky	6.6	6.0	6.1	5.6	5.7	5.4	5.3	4.9	5.9	5.5
Louisiana	6.9	6.1	6.3	6.1	6.2	5.7	6.2	5.6	6.4	6.0
Maine	7.6	7.4	7.7	7.6	6.8	7.3	6.8	6.2	7.6	7.8
Maryland	7.4	6.6	6.8	6.7	6.4	6.0	6.9	5.6	6.3	6.5
Massachusetts	6.2	5.5	5.8	5.9	5.4	6.1	5.8	4.7	5.7	6.1
Michigan	5.7	5.9	5.7	5.9	5.2	5.8	5.2	4.9	5.3	5.9
Minnesota	6.5	5.9	5.7	6.0	3.1	5.9	5.8	4.9	5.6	4.2
Mississippi	7.2	6.8	6.1	6.3	6.2	6.3	6.2	5.7	6.6	6.2
Missouri	6.8	6.1	6.5	5.9	5.6	6.3	5.8	5.1	5.9	5.8
Montana	8.7	9.2	8.7	7.8	7.7	7.8	7.8	7.1	8.4	8.5
Nebraska	7.1	6.0	6.3	6.0	6.0	6.1	5.7	5.1	5.6	5.9
Nevada	7.4	6.4	6.2	6.6	6.5	5.8	6.1	5.7	6.0	5.5
New Hampshire	6.9	6.7	7.0	6.7	5.9	6.7	6.0	5.9	6.3	6.7
New Jersey	6.8	6.8	6.1	6.8	5.9	6.4	5.9	5.7	5.9	5.9
New Mexico	8.0	6.7	6.8	6.4	6.1	5.9	6.2	5.9	6.2	6.7
New York	6.6	5.9	6.5	6.3	5.8	5.9	6.0	5.1	5.7	6.1
North Carolina	6.7	6.6	6.4	6.1	5.6	5.8	5.7	5.3	5.7	6.2
North Dakota	7.6	6.4	7.6	6.9	6.6	6.3	6.7	5.6	6.7	6.6
Ohio	5.8	5.9	5.8	5.6	5.2	5.5	5.7	4.9	5.7	5.7
Oklahoma	7.4	6.6	6.3	6.2	6.2	5.6	5.9	5.3	6.0	6.0
Oregon	6.7	6.5	7.3	6.4	6.1	6.0	6.2	6.1	6.9	6.9
Pennsylvania	6.1	5.5	5.5	5.2	5.2	5.1	5.2	4.6	5.5	5.2
Rhode Island	6.7	6.9	7.5	6.7	6.5	7.3	6.4	5.9	7.0	6.8
South Carolina	7.3	6.9	6.8	6.4	6.8	5.6	6.2	5.8	6.8	5.7
South Dakota	7.3	6.5	7.2	6.8	6.3	6.4	6.5	5.9	6.2	6.3
Tennessee	7.0	5.8	5.9	5.9	2.7	5.5	5.6	5.0	5.5	4.2
Texas	7.2	6.2	5.9	5.8	5.7	5.3	5.3	5.0	5.4	5.5
Utah	7.5	6.9	7.0	6.8	6.8	6.8	6.6	6.2	6.2	6.5
Vermont	7.2	7.8	8.2	7.4	6.3	7.8	7.0	6.0	7.5	8.0
Virginia	7.5	6.2	6.2	6.0	5.8	6.1	5.8	5.2	5.8	6.0
Washington	7.2	5.9	6.4	6.0	5.4	6.3	5.3	5.5	5.6	6.0
West Virginia	8.1	6.6	7.1	6.1	6.5	6.9	6.4	5.3	6.1	6.5
Wisconsin	6.0	6.0	6.0	5.6	5.2	5.8	5.5	4.9	5.9	5.9
Wyoming	9.2	9.2	8.9	8.4	8.2	8.4	7.9	7.8	8.7	8.2
Puerto Rico	6.2	6.6	5.1	5.8	5.7	5.3	6.1	5.7	4.9	5.4
Virgin Islands	8.5	5.9	7.5	7.4	8.2	5.5	4.7	6.5	6.8	7.1
Footnotes (1) Totals for the United States do not include data for Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands. The sum of the states will not necessarily add to the U.S. total because of the independent seasonal adjustment of each state.

Last Modified Date: Tuesday, May 07, 2024

Southeast Information Office

Business Employment Dynamics in South Carolina — Third Quarter 2023