New York Office
Internet Address: http://www.bls.gov/ro2/home.htm
Fax-On-Demand: (212) 337-2412
Media Contact: (212) 337-2420
Information: (212) 337-2400 FOR RELEASE: May 31, 2007
AVERAGE WEEKLY WAGES IN NEW JERSEY: THIRD QUARTER 2006
MORRIS COUNTY'S 4.5-PERCENT WAGE GROWTH LEADS STATE,
SOMERSET COUNTY HAS HIGHEST WAGE
In the third quarter 2006, the average weekly wage in Morris
County increased 4.5 percent over the year, the largest increase
among New Jersey's 15 counties with 75,000 or more jobs (as measured
by 2005 annual average employment), according to the U.S. Department
of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics. Regional Commissioner Michael
L. Dolfman noted that Morris County's wage growth ranked 17th among
the 325 largest counties in the nation, well above the 0.9-percent
national average. Of the 15 largest counties in New Jersey, only 5
had over-the-year wage gains, and 10 had losses in the third quarter
of 2006. Nationally, 112 of the 325 large counties experienced over-
the-year wage declines.
Somerset's County's average weekly wage of $1,165 was the highest
in the State in the third quarter of 2006 and 10th highest in the
nation among the largest counties. Twelve of New Jersey's large
counties had an average weekly wage exceeding the national average of
$784.
Somerset County also had the highest percentage increase in
employment over the year, up 1.5 percent in September 2006, matching
the national average. Four other counties had job growth above 1.0
percent, but most large counties in New Jersey experienced little
change in their job count. (See table 1.)
Wage and employment levels (but not comparable over-the year-
changes) are also available for the six other counties in New Jersey,
those with less than 75,000 in employment. Four of these six
counties had a weekly wage below the national average. (See table
2.)
At the state level, the average weekly wage in New Jersey
increased 0.3 percent to $931 in the third quarter of 2006. While
New Jersey's wage growth was below the U.S. average, the State's
average weekly wage was about 19 percent higher than that for the
nation. The average weekly wage in New Jersey ranked fifth highest
nationwide behind wage levels in the District of Columbia ($1,307),
Connecticut ($957), and Massachusetts and New York (both $950) and
ahead of California's ($892). (See table 3.)
Over-the-year changes in wages
Four of New Jersey's large counties recorded over-the-year wage
growth greater than the national increase of 0.9 percent in the third
quarter of 2006, with Morris County ranking first in the State.
Middlesex and Hudson Counties had wage growth of approximately 3
percent, and ranked among the top 40 nationally. Somerset and Bergen
Counties recorded smaller increases-1.0 and 0.3 percent,
respectively. Two-thirds of New Jersey's 15 largest counties,
however, experienced an over-the-year decline in wages. In Passaic
County the average weekly wage dropped 10.2 percent, the largest
decline in the State as well as the nation. Two other counties,
Camden and Essex, had wage losses exceeding 1.0 percent.
Among the largest counties in the nation, Kent, R.I., had the
strongest wage growth, with an increase of 18.4 percent from the
third quarter of 2005. Orleans, La., was second with growth of 16.2
percent, followed by the counties of Trumbull, Ohio (12.3 percent),
and Jefferson, La., and Jefferson, Texas (10.5 percent each). The
high average weekly wage growth rate for Orleans County was related
to the disproportionate job losses in lower-paid industries due to
the impact of Hurricane Katrina. As noted, Passaic, N.J., had the
largest decrease, -10.2 percent, followed by the counties of
Williamson, Texas (-5.7 percent), Fort Bend, Texas (-5.0 percent),
Loudoun, Va. (-4.2 percent), and Ventura, Calif. (-4.0 percent).
Wage levels in the largest counties
Among the 15 largest counties in New Jersey, 12 had average weekly
wages exceeding the $784 nationwide average. Somerset and Morris
Counties led the State with weekly wages averaging $1,100 or more,
ranking them in the top 11 nationally; both of these counties were
located in the northern part of New Jersey. The lowest wages were
found in Ocean and Atlantic Counties ($669 and $694, respectively) in
the southern half of the State. Average weekly wages in Ocean and
Atlantic ranked in the bottom third nationwide.
Of the 325 large counties in the nation, New York County, N.Y.,
held the top position among the highest-paid large counties with an
average weekly wage of $1,421. Santa Clara, Calif., was a close
second with an average weekly wage of $1,414, followed by Arlington,
Va. ($1,323), Washington, D.C. ($1,307), and San Mateo, Calif.
($1,278). Four of the 11 counties with the highest wages were
located in the greater New York metropolitan area (New York, N.Y.;
Fairfield, Conn.; and Somerset and Morris, both in N.J.), 3 others
were located in and around the San Francisco area (Santa Clara, San
Mateo, and San Francisco in California), while 3 more were located in
or around the Washington D.C. metropolitan area (Arlington, Va.;
Washington, D.C.; and Fairfax, Va.). The lowest average weekly wages
were reported in Cameron County, Texas ($493), followed by the
counties of Hidalgo, Texas ($514); Horry, S.C. ($517); Webb, Texas
($525); and Yakima, Wash. ($537).
Wage levels in New Jersey's smaller counties
Wage and employment levels (but not comparable over-the year-
changes) are also available for the six counties in New Jersey with
employment of less than 75,000. Four of these counties-Cape May,
Cumberland, Sussex, and Warren-had wages below the national level.
Cape May had the lowest wage averaging $551 in the third quarter of
2006. The highest wage among the six was recorded in Hunterdon at
$956, followed by Salem at $802.
When all 21 counties in New Jersey are considered, eight of the
largest counties had higher wage levels than Hunterdon, but none of
the largest had wages lower than Cape May. (See table 3.)
Statewide, three counties had average weekly wages below $700-Cape
May, Atlantic, and Ocean and all were located in the southern part of
the State along the Atlantic coast; nine counties had wages above
$900 and were clustered in the northern half. (See chart 1.)
Employment
Among the 15 large counties in New Jersey, employment ranged from
a high of 450,700 in Bergen to a low of 104,700 in Gloucester in
September 2006. Five counties had employment growth of 1.0 percent
or more over the year. After Somerset, Atlantic and Morris Counties
followed closely, with rates of 1.4 and 1.3 percent, respectively.
Jobs in Hudson County were down 0.8 percent.
Nationally, Jefferson County, La., had the largest over-the-year
percentage increase in employment, 22.4 percent. Employment gains in
Jefferson County reflected significant recovery from substantial
losses that occurred in September 2005 due to Hurricane Katrina.
Snohomish, Wash., had the next largest increase, 8.2 percent,
followed by the counties of Collin, Texas (7.2 percent), Harrison,
Miss. (6.8 percent), and Montgomery, Texas (5.7 percent). The
largest percentage decline in employment in the nation, -12.3
percent, was in Orleans County, La., which was also affected by
Hurricane Katrina. Trumbull, Ohio, had the next largest employment
decline (-4.5 percent), followed by the counties of Macomb, Mich. (-
4.0 percent), Oakland, Mich.(-3.5 percent), and Rock Island, Ill.(-
3.0 percent).
Average weekly data by county are compiled under the Quarterly
Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW) program, also known as the ES-
202 program. The data are derived from reports submitted by
employers subject to state and federal unemployment insurance (UI)
laws. The 8.8 million employer reports cover 135.0 million full- and
part-time jobs. The average weekly wage is compiled by dividing the
total quarterly payroll of employees covered by UI programs by the
average monthly number of these employees. This number, then, is
divided by the number of weeks in the quarter. It is to be noted,
therefore, that over-the-year wage changes for geographic areas may
reflect shifts in the composition of employment by industry,
occupation, and such other factors as hours of work. Thus, wages may
vary among counties, metropolitan areas, or states for reasons other
than changes in the average wage level. Data for all states,
Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs), counties, and the nation are
available on the BLS Web site at http://www.bls.gov/cew/; however,
data in QCEW press releases have been revised (see Technical Note
below) and may not match the data contained on the Bureau's Web site.
Additional statistics and other information
An annual bulletin, Employment and Wages, features comprehensive
information by detailed industry on establishments, employment, and
wages for the nation and all states. Employment and Wages Annual
Averages, 2005 is now available for sale from the United States
Government Printing Office, Superintendent of Documents, P.O. Box
371954, Pittsburgh, PA 15250, telephone 866-512-1800, outside of
Washington, D.C. Within Washington, D.C., the telephone number is
202-512-1800. The fax number is 202-512-2104. The bulletin is
available in a portable document format (PDF) on the BLS Web site at
http://www.bls.gov/cew/cewbultn05.htm. Also, the quarterly press
release, County Employment and Wages, presents employment and wage
data for the largest counties in the United States and is available
at http://www.bls.gov/cew/.
Information in this release will be made available to sensory
impaired individuals upon request. Voice phone: 202-691-5200; TDD
message referral phone number: 1-800-877-8339. For personal
assistance or further information on the Quarterly Covered Employment
and Wages Program, as well as other Bureau programs, contact the New
York-New Jersey Information Office at (212) 337-2400 from 9:00 a.m.
to 12:30 p.m. and 1:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. ET.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
| Hurricane Katrina |
| |
| The employment and wages reported in this news release reflect the |
| impact of Hurricane Katrina and ongoing labor market trends in |
| certain counties. The effects of Hurricane Katrina, which hit the |
| Gulf Coast on August 29, 2005, were first apparent in the September |
| QCEW employment counts and in the wage totals for the third quarter |
| of 2005. This catastrophic storm continued to affect monthly |
| employment and quarterly wage totals in parts of Louisiana and |
| Mississippi in the third quarter of 2006. For more information, see |
| the QCEW section of the Katrina coverage on the BLS Web site at |
| http://www.bls.gov/katrina/qcewquestions.htm. |
------------------------------------------------------------------------
TECHNICAL NOTE
QCEW data are the sums of individual establishment records
reflecting the number of establishments that exist in a county or
industry at a point in time. For this reason, county and industry
data are not designed to be used as a time series.
The preliminary QCEW data presented in this release may differ
from data released by the individual states as well as from the data
presented on the BLS Web site. The potential differences result from
several causes. Differences between BLS and state published data may
be due to the continuing receipt, review and editing of UI data over
time. On the other hand, differences between data in this release
and the data found on the BLS Web site are the result of adjustments
made to improve over-the-year comparisons. Specifically, these
adjustments account for administrative (noneconomic) changes such as
a correction to a previously reported location or industry
classification. Adjusting for these administrative changes allows
users to more accurately assess changes of an economic nature (such
as a firm moving from one county to another or changing its primary
economic activity) over a 12-month period. Currently, adjusted data
are available only from BLS press releases.
NYLS - 7285 New York Labor
05/31/07
Table 1.Covered1 employment and wages in the United States and New Jersey and its 15 large counties,
third quarter 20062
Employment Average weekly wage3
______________________ ____________________________________________
Percent National
Area September change, Third National Percent rank by
2006 September quarter rank by change, percent
(thousands) 2005-064 2006 level5 2005-064 change5
___________________________________________________________________________________________________
United States6.............. 134,988.9 1.5 $ 784 -- 0.9 --
New Jersey................ 3,984.7 0.7 931 -- 0.3 --
Atlantic................. 152.5 1.4 694 222 -.3 225
Bergen................... 450.7 0.6 969 29 .3 182
Burlington............... 202.0 0.4 843 73 -.6 249
Camden................... 213.3 1.1 794 102 -1.5 291
Essex.................... 360.1 0.4 990 22 -1.1 277
Gloucester............... 104.7 0.2 714 194 -.4 234
Hudson................... 236.1 -0.8 1,061 13 2.9 36
Mercer................... 227.7 1.1 980 27 -.4 234
Middlesex................ 396.4 0.2 996 21 3.2 30
Monmouth................. 259.2 0.3 830 79 -.2 219
Morris................... 288.6 1.3 1,136 11 4.5 17
Ocean.................... 152.4 0.3 669 259 -.1 212
Passaic.................. 177.3 -0.2 835 75 -10.2 323
Somerset................. 173.1 1.5 1,165 10 1.0 127
Union.................... 229.6 0.3 967 30 -.7 257
___________________________________________________________________________________________________
1 Includes workers covered by Unemployment Insurance (UI) and Unemployment Compensation for
Federal Employees (UCFE) programs.
2 Data are preliminary.
3 Average weekly wages were calculated using unrounded data.
4 Percent changes were computed from quarterly employment and pay data adjusted for noneconomic
county reclassifications.
5 Ranking does not include the county of San Juan, Puerto Rico.
6 Totals for the United States do not include data for Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands.
Table 2. Covered1 employment and wages in the
United States and all of the counties in New Jersey,
third quarter, 20062
Employment
September Average
2006 weekly
Area (thousands) wage3
____________________________________________________
United States4 134,988.9 $ 784
New Jersey 3,984.7 931
Atlantic 152.5 694
Bergen 450.7 969
Burlington 202.0 843
Camden 213.3 794
Cape May 48.1 551
Cumberland 63.6 705
Essex 360.1 990
Gloucester 104.7 714
Hudson 236.1 1,061
Hunterdon 49.7 956
Mercer 227.7 980
Middlesex 396.4 996
Monmouth 259.2 830
Morris 288.6 1,136
Ocean 152.4 669
Passaic 177.3 835
Salem 23.5 802
Somerset 173.1 1,165
Sussex 42.3 702
Union 229.6 967
Warren 37.6 764
____________________________________________________
1 Includes workers covered by Unemployment Insurance
(UI) and Unemployment Compensation for Federal
Employees (UCFE) programs.
2 Data are preliminary.
3 Average weekly wages were calculated using unrounded
data.
4 Totals for the United States do not include data for
Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands.
Table 3. Covered1 employment and wages by state, third quarter 20052
Employment Average weekly wage3
____________ ______________________________________________
National
Area September Average National Percent rank
2006 weekly rank by change, by percent
(thousands) wage level4 2005-06 change4
_________________________________________________________________________________________
United States5 134,988.9 $784 - 0.9 -
Alabama 1,938.9 682 34 1.9 13
Alaska 324.8 798 13 .1 42
Arizona 2,629.0 753 20 1.1 21
Arkansas 1,183.9 603 46 .7 26
California 15,655.0 892 6 .6 31
Colorado 2,260.1 819 11 1.4 16
Connecticut 1,680.7 957 2 -.9 51
Delaware 424.6 850 8 3.4 6
District of Columbia 674.2 1,307 1 3.6 5
Florida 7,941.7 713 26 .7 26
Georgia 4,039.3 752 21 .5 34
Hawaii 621.2 722 24 1.1 21
Idaho 661.2 613 45 1.3 19
Illinois 5,883.6 831 9 .7 26
Indiana 2,922.7 687 31 -.3 49
Iowa 1,480.7 641 41 .0 44
Kansas 1,347.3 662 36 .6 31
Kentucky 1,795.1 656 38 .6 31
Louisiana 1,835.7 683 33 7.1 2
Maine 610.2 636 42 .8 25
Maryland 2,545.0 858 7 .5 34
Massachusetts 3,228.1 950 3 .3 37
Michigan 4,278.9 790 14 .3 37
Minnesota 2,685.1 784 16 -.6 50
Mississippi 1,134.3 585 49 2.1 11
Missouri 2,725.1 691 30 .0 44
Montana 434.4 581 50 3.0 8
Nebraska 906.9 633 43 .0 44
Nevada 1,287.6 751 22 .0 44
New Hampshire 634.9 774 17 .3 37
New Jersey 3,984.7 931 5 .3 37
New Mexico 826.1 654 39 4.0 3
New York 8,471.7 950 3 1.1 21
North Carolina 3,982.6 700 28 1.6 15
North Dakota 342.2 589 48 1.4 16
Ohio 5,350.9 725 23 .3 37
Oklahoma 1,517.6 633 43 3.3 7
Oregon 1,729.2 719 25 .7 26
Pennsylvania 5,644.8 768 18 .5 34
Rhode Island 490.8 763 19 3.7 4
South Carolina 1,866.0 642 40 1.1 21
South Dakota 389.6 571 51 .7 26
Tennessee 2,761.1 698 29 1.2 20
Texas 10,019.0 786 15 2.5 10
Utah 1,188.7 660 37 2.0 12
Vermont 305.8 672 35 1.4 16
Virginia 3,649.5 815 12 -.1 48
Washington 2,911.9 823 10 2.7 9
West Virginia 711.8 599 47 1.7 14
Wisconsin 2,800.8 687 31 .1 42
Wyoming 274.1 706 27 10.1 1
Puerto Rico 1,020.9 439 (6) 1.2 (6)
Virgin Islands 43.2 692 (6) 12.5 (6)
_________________________________________________________________________________________
1/ Includes workers covered by Unemployment Insurance (UI) and Unemployment Compensation
for Federal Employees (UCFE) programs.
2/ Data are preliminary.
3/ Average weekly wages were calculated using unrounded data.
4/ Ranking does not include Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands.
5/ Totals for the United States do not include data for Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands.
6/ Data not included in the national ranking.
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