The Occupational Employment Statistics (OES) program produces employment and wage estimates for over 800 occupations. These are estimates of the number of people employed in certain occupations, and estimates of the wages paid to them. Self-employed persons are not included in the estimates. These estimates are available for the nation as a whole, for individual States, and for metropolitan and nonmetropolitan areas; national occupational estimates for specific industries are also available.

NOTICE The May 2011 OES estimates are scheduled to be released on Tuesday, March 27th

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OES Data Highlights

Occupational Employment Statistics (OES) Highlights:

Occupational Employment and Wage Patterns in Nonmetropolitan Areas

November 2011

This OES data highlight uses May 2010 estimates to examine occupational employment and wage patterns in nonmetropolitan areas . Employment patterns in nonmetropolitan areas (NMAs) are different from those in metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs) in multiple ways. Some occupations are found mainly in nonmetropolitan areas, even though such areas account for just 13 percent of employment in the United States. On the other hand, there are several occupations that are almost never found in nonmetropolitan areas, and there are some occupations that are found in approximately the same proportions in both metropolitan and nonmetropolitan areas.

Tables 1 and 2 list the 10 occupations with the highest location quotients (LQs) for nonmetropolitan areas and metropolitan areas.

Table 1. Occupations with high location quotients in NMAs
Occupation NMA Location Quotient

Loading machine operators, underground mining

 6.300

Mine shuttle car operators

 5.938

Roof bolters, mining

 5.494

Log graders and scalers

 5.334

Logging equipment operators

 5.289

Fallers

 5.097

Continuous mining machine operators

 5.009

Forest and conservation technicians

 4.313

Slaughterers and meat packers

 4.257

Forest fire inspectors and prevention specialists

 4.174

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

Location quotients are useful for comparing the composition of jobs in an area relative to the average, or for finding areas that have high concentrations of jobs in certain occupations. More...
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Previous OES Highlights
  • Using Location Quotients to Analyze Occupational Data (HTML) (PDF)
  • Using Occupational Employment Statistics (OES) Data in a Job Search (HTML) (PDF)
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Latest OES News Release

Occupational Employment and Wages

May 17, 2011

The 10 largest occupations accounted for more than 20 percent of total U.S. employment in May 2010. All of these occupations except registered nurses had wages below the U.S. all-occupations mean of $21.35 per hour or $44,410 annually. More...
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  1. What does the OES program produce?
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  3. What basic concepts are essential to understanding the OES survey?
  4. What are the differences between the Bureau's Occupational Employment Statistics (OES) wage estimates and National Compensation Survey (NCS) wage estimates?
  5. Does the BLS have OES estimates for specific industries?
  6. Does the BLS have OES estimates for individual States?
  7. Does the BLS have OES estimates for metropolitan and nonmetropolitan areas?

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OES Special Notices

  • Notice about wage estimates for teaching occupations in New York for November 2003 to May 2006

  • Upcoming Reduction in Sample Size of Occupational Employment Statistics Survey

    Due to budget constraints, Occupational Employment Statistics has reduced the sample size of the May 2008 panel by 20 percent. Because OES estimates are produced from three years of pooled data, this one-time sample reduction will affect estimates for May 2008, May 2009, and May 2010. This reduction is expected to decrease the number of published employment estimates by at least five percent, or about 25,000 estimates, and will decrease the accuracy of the remaining estimates. The number and quality of wage estimates are also expected to decline. These cutbacks are being implemented in response to a reduction in funding to the BLS that resulted from The 2008 Consolidated Appropriations Act enacted on December 26, 2007.

  • With the issuance of data for May 2005, the OES program has incorporated redefined metropolitan areas as designated by the Office of Management and Budget. OES data are available for 375 metropolitan statistical areas and 34 metropolitan divisions.

  • Change in Occupational Employment Statistics Publication Schedule
    Due to budget constraints in the Occupational Employment Statistics (OES) program, beginning with the release of the May 2005 estimates in the Spring of 2006, OES will return to once a year publication. Estimates for November 2005 will not be published.

  • The Bureau of Labor Statistics is able to produce the occupational employment and wage estimates displayed on this website because of the timely co-operation of employers throughout the United States. If your workplace received an Occupational Employment Statistics survey form please complete it and return it to the State employment security agency that sent it to you. If you have returned a completed survey form, Thank you!

 

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For additional information concerning the Occupational Employment Statistics (OES) Survey, contact an OES staff member at:

  • Email: Contact us
  • Telephone number: 202-691-6569
  • Fax number: 202-691-6444
  • Mail address: Office of Employment and Unemployment Statistics, Occupational Employment Statistics, Suite 2135, 2 Massachusetts Avenue, NE, Washington DC 20212-0001

 

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