Workers in the Cincinnati, OH-KY-IN Metropolitan Statistical Area had an average (mean) hourly wage of $25.79 in May 2020, about 5 percent below the nationwide average of $27.07, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Regional Commissioner Jason Palmer noted that, after testing for statistical significance, wages in the local area were higher than their respective national averages in 2 of the 22 major occupational groups: sales and related and also production. Fourteen groups had significantly lower wages than their respective national averages, including arts, design, entertainment, sports, and media; computer and mathematical; and management.

When compared to the nationwide distribution, Cincinnati area employment was more highly concentrated in 6 of the 22 occupational groups, including production, transportation and material moving, and business and financial operations. Eleven groups had employment shares significantly below their national representation, including healthcare support, construction and extraction, and sales and related. (See table A.)

One occupational group—production—was chosen to illustrate the diversity of data available for any of the 22 major occupational categories. Cincinnati had 83,360 jobs in production, accounting for 8.1 percent of local area employment, significantly higher than the 6.1-percent share nationally. The average hourly wage for this occupational group locally was $20.57, significantly above the national wage of $20.08.

Some of the larger detailed occupations within the production group included miscellaneous assemblers and fabricators (10,590); packaging and filling machine operators and tenders (7,520); and inspectors, testers, sorters, samplers, and weighers (6,180). Among the higher-paying jobs in this group were power plant operators and petroleum pump system operators, refinery operators, and gaugers, with mean hourly wages of $43.17 and $36.90, respectively. At the lower end of the wage scale were laundry and dry-cleaning workers ($12.22) and pressers, textile, garment, and related materials ($12.33). (Detailed data for the production occupations are presented in table 1; for a complete listing of detailed occupations available go to www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes_17140.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 Cincinnati area, above-average concentrations of employment were found in some of the occupations within the production group. For instance, prepress technicians and workers were employed at 3.1 times the national rate in Cincinnati, and packaging and filling machine operators and tenders, at 2.7 times the U.S. average. Welders, cutters, solderers, and brazers had a location quotient of 1.0 in Cincinnati, indicating that this particular occupation’s local and national employment shares were similar.

These statistics are from the Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey, a federal-state cooperative program between BLS and State Workforce Agencies, in this case, the Ohio Department of Job & Family Services, Kentucky Center for Statistics and Indiana Department of Workforce Development.

Technical Note

The Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey is a semiannual survey measuring occupational employment and wage rates for wage and salary workers in nonfarm establishments in the United States. The OEWS 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. OEWS data are available at www.bls.gov/oes/tables.htm.

The OEWS 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. OEWS estimates are constructed from a sample of about 1.1 million establishments. Each year, two semiannual panels of approximately 180,000 to 185,000 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 2020 estimates are based on responses from six semiannual panels collected over a 3-year period: May 2020, November 2019, May 2019, November 2018, May 2018, and November 2017. The unweighted sample employment of 83 million across all six semiannual panels represents approximately 56 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 69 percent based on establishments and 66 percent based on weighted sampled employment. The sample in the Cincinnati, OH-KY-IN Metropolitan Statistical Area included 6,906 establishments with a response rate of 69 percent. For more information about OEWS 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.

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 Cincinnati, OH-KY-IN Metropolitan Statistical Area includes Dearborn, Ohio, and Union Counties in Indiana, Boone, Bracken, Campbell, Gallatin, Grant, Kenton, and Pendleton Counties in Kentucky, and Brown, Butler, Clermont, Hamilton, and Warren Counties in Ohio.

For more information

Answers to frequently asked questions about the OEWS data are available at www.bls.gov/oes/oes_ques.htm. Detailed information about the OEWS program is available at www.bls.gov/oes/oes_doc.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. Employment and wage data for production occupations, Cincinnati metropolitan area, May 2020

Occupation (1)	Employment		Mean wages
	Level (2)	Location quotient (3)	Hourly	Annual (4)
Production occupations	83,360	1.3	$20.57	$42,790
First-line supervisors of production and operating workers	5,600	1.3	32.74	68,090
Coil winders, tapers, and finishers	100	1.1	18.02	37,480
Electrical, electronic, and electromechanical assemblers, except coil winders, tapers, and finishers	2,060	1.0	19.28	40,090
Structural metal fabricators and fitters	220	0.4	21.50	44,720
Fiberglass laminators and fabricators	140	1.0	16.59	34,510
Miscellaneous assemblers and fabricators	10,590	1.1	16.56	34,440
Bakers	990	0.8	16.02	33,320
Butchers and meat cutters	990	0.9	16.40	34,110
Slaughterers and meat packers	640	1.1	14.17	29,470
Food and tobacco roasting, baking, and drying machine operators and tenders	(5)	(5)	18.97	39,450
Food batchmakers	1,520	1.3	18.47	38,430
Food cooking machine operators and tenders	(5)	(5)	18.31	38,090
Food processing workers, all other	180	0.6	15.05	31,300
Extruding and drawing machine setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic	890	1.8	19.73	41,040
Forging machine setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic	(5)	(5)	17.32	36,030
Rolling machine setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic	(5)	(5)	21.88	45,500
Cutting, punching, and press machine setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic	2,020	1.5	18.82	39,160
Drilling and boring machine tool setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic	100	1.5	23.11	48,070
Grinding, lapping, polishing, and buffing machine tool setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic	910	1.8	18.48	38,450
Lathe and turning machine tool setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic	390	2.2	22.40	46,580
Milling and planing machine setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic	50	0.5	22.12	46,020
Machinists	5,230	2.0	24.57	51,110
Metal-refining furnace operators and tenders	180	1.6	19.50	40,560
Pourers and casters, metal	130	2.5	18.08	37,600
Foundry mold and coremakers	100	0.9	20.30	42,230
Molding, coremaking, and casting machine setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic	1,500	1.3	18.19	37,830
Multiple machine tool setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic	2,190	2.2	19.80	41,190
Tool and die makers	850	1.9	27.30	56,780
Welders, cutters, solderers, and brazers	2,940	1.0	21.11	43,900
Welding, soldering, and brazing machine setters, operators, and tenders	280	1.1	17.42	36,240
Heat treating equipment setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic	210	1.7	21.70	45,140
Plating machine setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic	400	1.4	22.41	46,600
Tool grinders, filers, and sharpeners	50	1.2	24.88	51,760
Metal workers and plastic workers, all other	50	0.4	19.45	40,460
Prepress technicians and workers	640	3.1	20.44	42,520
Printing press operators	1,920	1.6	19.14	39,820
Print binding and finishing workers	710	2.3	16.83	35,010
Laundry and dry-cleaning workers	1,450	1.1	12.22	25,430
Pressers, textile, garment, and related materials	240	1.0	12.33	25,650
Sewing machine operators	570	0.7	14.97	31,140
Tailors, dressmakers, and custom sewers	100	0.6	19.45	40,460
Upholsterers	60	0.3	20.07	41,750
Textile, apparel, and furnishings workers, all other	90	0.7	15.90	33,060
Cabinetmakers and bench carpenters	350	0.5	19.35	40,250
Furniture finishers	110	1.0	16.27	33,830
Sawing machine setters, operators, and tenders, wood	30	0.1	15.56	32,370
Woodworking machine setters, operators, and tenders, except sawing	370	0.7	15.67	32,600
Power plant operators	220	0.9	43.17	89,780
Stationary engineers and boiler operators	150	0.7	31.49	65,490
Water and wastewater treatment plant and system operators	830	0.9	24.52	51,010
Chemical plant and system operators	250	1.2	34.29	71,330
Petroleum pump system operators, refinery operators, and gaugers	30	0.1	36.90	76,750
Chemical equipment operators and tenders	1,260	1.8	25.71	53,480
Separating, filtering, clarifying, precipitating, and still machine setters, operators, and tenders	350	1.0	29.66	61,700
Crushing, grinding, and polishing machine setters, operators, and tenders	(5)	(5)	20.91	43,500
Grinding and polishing workers, hand	210	1.2	19.05	39,630
Mixing and blending machine setters, operators, and tenders	1,530	1.8	20.37	42,370
Cutting and slicing machine setters, operators, and tenders	530	1.4	18.00	37,430
Extruding, forming, pressing, and compacting machine setters, operators, and tenders	540	1.2	19.97	41,540
Furnace, kiln, oven, drier, and kettle operators and tenders	200	1.6	19.03	39,580
Inspectors, testers, sorters, samplers, and weighers	6,180	1.5	22.28	46,340
Jewelers and precious stone and metal workers	80	0.6	19.46	40,480
Dental laboratory technicians	70	0.3	27.17	56,510
Medical appliance technicians	70	0.7	19.33	40,200
Ophthalmic laboratory technicians	280	1.4	18.21	37,880
Packaging and filling machine operators and tenders	7,520	2.7	17.82	37,060
Painting, coating, and decorating workers	(5)	(5)	15.42	32,060
Coating, painting, and spraying machine setters, operators, and tenders	990	1.0	18.66	38,810
Computer numerically controlled tool operators	2,270	2.1	21.15	43,980
Computer numerically controlled tool programmers	290	1.6	29.94	62,270
Adhesive bonding machine operators and tenders	320	3.5	16.91	35,170
Cleaning, washing, and metal pickling equipment operators and tenders	210	2.0	16.92	35,200
Etchers and engravers	80	1.2	16.86	35,080
Molders, shapers, and casters, except metal and plastic	300	1.0	15.60	32,450
Paper goods machine setters, operators, and tenders	1,720	2.3	19.42	40,390
Helpers--production workers	2,340	1.3	16.73	34,810
Production workers, all other	1,450	1.0	20.49	42,610
Footnotes: (1) For a complete listing of all detailed occupations in the Cincinnati, OH-KY-IN Metropolitan Statistical Area, see www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes_17140.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.