Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics
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May 2021 OEWS Charts
Charts highlighting selected industry, occupation, and area data for May 2021.
For any state or area, this chart will show which occupations are most concentrated relative to the national average. To get started, click on the chart to the right, choose a state, then an area within the state orstatewide. The chart will then show the occupations with the highest location quotients (1) in that area.
The largest occupations in the U.S. include retail salespersons, cashiers, and general office clerks. To find the largest occupations in any area, click the chart to the right; select a state, then an area within the state or statewide.
Each industry has a unique combination of workers. To see the largest occupations in each industry, click the chart on the right. You can
select a particular sector for a broader combination of industries, or select detailed industries within eac from the second drop down menu.
Some occupations, such as general office clerks, are found in a large number of industries, while others, such as avionics technicians,
are concentrated in a smaller number of industries. To see the industries with the largest employment for over 800 occupations,
click the chart to the right.
The larger states, including California, New York, and Texas have the most employment for many occupations. However, some occupations, such as logging equipment operators and tire builders, have more employment in some smaller states.
Location quotients (1) are a convenient and useful tool for analyzing differences in the mix of occupations
in states and metropolitan areas. While many occupations have most of their employment in large states, this measure shows the
areas in which an occupation is most prevalent relative to the national verage. LQs are the ratio of the area's 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. To see the states with
the highest location quotient, click the chart to the right.
Like large states, large metropolitan areas account for most of the employment for many occupations. Some occupations, such as ship engineers, are also found in smaller areas.
Some occupations, like gaming dealers, are concentrated in a few geographic areas, while others, like coaches and scouts, are concentrated
in a mix of metropolitan and nonmetropolitan areas. To see the areas with the highest location quotient (1) of each occupation, click the chart to the right.
This mapping tool allows the user to first select a major occupational group, then a detailed occupation, and show either a State or MSA
map by employment, location quotient (1), or mean wage
(1) 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.
Last Modified Date: April 25, 2023
United States Department of Labor
