County Employment and Wages in West Virginia – Third Quarter 2012

Employment Little Changed, Average Weekly Wages Down Over the Year in Kanawha County

Employment inched down 0.1 percent in West Virginia’s only large county, Kanawha, from September 2011 to September 2012, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. (Large counties are defined as those with employment of 75,000 or more as measured by 2011 annual average employment.) Nationally, employment increased 1.6 percent, as 276 of the 328 largest U.S. counties gained jobs. Sheila Watkins, the Bureau’s regional commissioner, noted that Kanawha County was in the lowest fifth of the large counties for employment growth, ranking 280th.

Across the nation, Elkhart, Ind., posted the largest percentage increase in employment with a gain of 6.9 percent over the year. Benton, Wash., experienced the largest over-the-year decrease in employment among the largest counties in the U.S. with a loss of 5.2 percent.

Employment in Kanawha County stood at 104,913 in September 2012 and accounted for 14.7 percent of West Virginia’s total employment. Nationwide, the 328 largest counties made up 71.0 percent of total U.S. employment.

The average weekly wage in Kanawha County declined 3.0 percent from the third quarter of 2011 to the third quarter of 2012. Kanawha County placed in the bottom fifth of the national ranking for wage growth (276th). Over the year, the national average weekly wage decreased 1.1 percent.

Of the 328 largest counties, 274 experienced declines in average weekly wages. Yolo, Calif., had the largest over-the-year wage decline with a loss of 7.0 percent. Rockingham, N.H.; Lake, Ohio; and Benton, Wash. recorded over-the-year decreases of 6.9 percent each.

Among the 328 largest counties nationwide, 46 recorded growth in average weekly wages. San Mateo, Calif., led the nation with a wage increase of 7.3 percent from the third quarter of 2011. Douglas, Colo., had the second largest increase, 5.4 percent, followed by Pinellas, Fla., at 4.3 percent.

Kanawha County had an average weekly wage of $781—$125 below the national average of $906 in the third quarter of 2012. Among the 225 counties with average weekly wages below the national average, Horry, S.C. ($554), reported the lowest wage, followed by the counties of Cameron, Texas ($580); Hidalgo, Texas ($584); Yakima, Wash. ($620); and Pasco, Fla. ($624).

Average weekly wages were higher than the national average in 102 of the 328 largest U.S. counties. Santa Clara, Calif., held the top position as the highest paid among the large counties with an average weekly wage of $1,800. New York, N.Y., was second with an average weekly wage of $1,626 followed by San Mateo, Calif. ($1,537); and Washington, D.C. ($1,514). (See table 1.)

 

Average weekly wages in West Virginia's smaller counties

Employment and wage levels (but not over-the-year changes) are also available for the 54 counties in West Virginia with employment below 75,000. Boone County posted the highest average weekly wage in the state ($917) and was the only county in West Virginia to record a wage level exceeding the national average. The lowest weekly wage was in Wirt County, at $435. (See table 2.)

When all 55 counties were considered, 4 had wages of $500 or less, 11 had wages from $501 to $600, and 23 had wages from $601 to $700. Another 13 couties had wages from $701 to $800 and 4 counties had wages over $801. (See chart 1.) The highest-paid county—Boone—was part of the Charleston, W.Va. Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA).

 

Additional statistics and other information

QCEW data for states have been included in this release in table 3. For additional information about quarterly employment and wages data, please read the Technical Note or visit the QCEW Web site at www.bls.gov/cew/.

An annual bulletin, Employment and Wages Annual Averages Online, features comprehensive information by detailed industry on establishments, employment, and wages for the nation and all states. The 2011 edition of this bulletin, which was published in October 2012, contains selected data produced by Business Employment Dynamics (BED) on job gains and losses, as well as selected data from the first quarter 2012 version of the news release. Tables and additional content from Employment and Wages Annual Averages 2011 are now available online at www.bls.gov/cew/cewbultn11.htm. The 2012 edition of Employment and Wages Annual Averages will be available later in 2013.

Information in this release will be made available to sensory impaired individuals upon request. Voice phone: 202-691-5200; Federal Relay Service: 1-800-877-8339.

 

Technical Note

Average weekly wage 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 summaries of employment and total pay of workers covered by state and federal unemployment insurance (UI) legislation and provided by State Workforce Agencies (SWAs). The 9.2 million employer reports cover 132.6 million full- and part-time workers. The average weekly wage values are calculated by dividing quarterly total wages by the average of the three monthly employment levels of those covered by UI programs. The result is then divided by 13, the number of weeks in a 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 www.bls.gov/cew/; however, data in QCEW press releases have been revised and may not match the data contained on the Bureau’s Web site.

QCEW data are not designed as a time series. QCEW data are simply the sums of individual establishment records reflecting the number of establishments that exist in a county or industry at a point in time. Establishments can move in or out of a county or industry for a number of reasons—some reflecting economic events, others reflecting administrative changes.

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. These potential differences result from the states’ 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.

Table 1. Covered(1) employment and wages in the top 10 large counties ranked by average weekly wage and Kanawha, W.Va., third quarter 2012(2)

Area	Employment			Average weekly wage(3)
	September 2012 (thousands)	Percent change, September 2011-12(4)	National ranking by percent change(5)	Average weekly wage	Ranking by level	Percent change, third quarter 2011-12(4)	National ranking by percent change(5)
United States (6)	132,624.7	1.6	--	$906	--	-1.1	--
Santa Clara, Calif.	907.7	3.3	26	1,800	1	-1.5	155
New York, N.Y.	2,385.9	2.2	79	1,626	2	-1.3	140
San Mateo, Calif.	342.9	3.6	17	1,537	3	7.3	1
Washington, D.C.	714.9	0.6	233	1,514	4	-0.7	96
Arlington, Va.	165.1	-1.4	317	1,488	5	-3.7	304
San Francisco, Calif.	593.9	3.6	17	1,473	6	1.0	19
Fairfax, Va.	590.1	0.8	209	1,410	7	-2.4	240
Suffolk, Mass.	598.7	1.3	161	1,397	8	-2.1	213
Fairfield, Conn.	409.5	0.8	209	1,371	9	-4.1	311
King, Wash.	1,171.9	2.4	54	1,354	10	2.3	4
Kanawha, W.Va.	104.9	-0.1	280	781	235	-3.0	276
Footnotes: (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. Covered(1) employment and wages in the United States and all of the counties in West Virginia, third quarter 2012(2)

Area	Employment September 2012 (thousands)	Average weekly wage(3)
United States (4)	132,624,657	$906
West Virginia	715,427	724
Barbour	3,547	623
Berkeley	30,864	700
Boone	7,494	917
Braxton	3,841	554
Brooke	7,671	647
Cabell	51,962	714
Calhoun	1,463	640
Clay	1,759	642
Doddridge	1,307	668
Fayette	12,457	618
Gilmer	2,207	669
Grant	3,861	687
Greenbrier	13,667	604
Hampshire	4,199	506
Hancock	11,187	633
Hardy	5,778	542
Harrison	34,547	762
Jackson	7,817	586
Jefferson	15,139	632
Kanawha	104,913	781
Lewis	7,358	820
Lincoln	3,255	679
Logan	11,650	796
McDowell	6,302	844
Marion	20,762	735
Marshall	11,166	792
Mason	6,510	677
Mercer	20,923	630
Mineral	7,934	654
Mingo	8,104	868
Monongalia	54,015	800
Monroe	1,981	557
Morgan	2,875	513
Nicholas	8,476	649
Ohio	29,476	632
Pendleton	1,631	543
Pleasants	2,798	768
Pocahontas	3,019	511
Preston	7,025	650
Putnam	20,358	792
Raleigh	33,741	708
Randolph	11,697	570
Ritchie	3,331	642
Roane	3,053	582
Summers	2,260	469
Taylor	2,862	496
Tucker	2,364	488
Tyler	2,408	748
Upshur	8,064	670
Wayne	9,176	756
Webster	1,965	612
Wetzel	4,701	530
Wirt	669	435
Wood	38,252	666
Wyoming	5,220	774
Footnotes: (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. Covered (1) employment and wages by state, third quarter 2012 (2)

State	Employment		Average weekly wage (3)
	September 2012 (thousands)	Percent change, September 2011-12	Average weekly wage	National ranking by level	Percent change, third quarter 2011-12	National ranking by percent change
United States (4)	132,624.7	1.6	$906	--	-1.1	--
Alabama	1,833.5	0.6	784	33	-2.4	45
Alaska	343.6	0.6	961	9	-0.2	7
Arizona	2,437.5	2.2	846	22	-2.0	43
Arkansas	1,156.7	0.3	708	47	-1.0	17
California	15,109.1	2.8	1,036	6	-1.2	21
Colorado	2,284.6	2.2	936	12	-1.3	25
Connecticut	1,638.9	0.8	1,087	4	-2.8	49
Delaware	407.3	0.1	925	14	-2.5	47
District of Columbia	714.9	0.6	1,514	1	-0.7	15
Florida	7,307.9	1.9	800	31	-1.4	27
Georgia	3,841.2	1.1	854	21	-1.5	31
Hawaii	605.5	1.7	827	26	-1.0	17
Idaho	630.4	1.1	687	49	-1.4	27
Illinois	5,688.6	1.1	945	11	-1.4	27
Indiana	2,849.9	1.8	772	35	-1.7	36
Iowa	1,486.7	1.1	756	41	-0.5	10
Kansas	1,325.5	1.0	761	39	-1.4	27
Kentucky	1,779.5	1.2	751	42	-1.7	36
Louisiana	1,864.3	0.3	805	30	-1.8	38
Maine	597.0	0.2	722	46	-1.6	34
Maryland	2,533.3	1.4	1,007	8	-1.6	34
Massachusetts	3,271.6	1.2	1,102	2	-1.2	21
Michigan	3,984.2	1.5	862	19	-1.5	31
Minnesota	2,675.4	1.1	915	15	0.0	4
Mississippi	1,089.4	0.6	672	51	-1.2	21
Missouri	2,628.8	0.7	793	32	-1.2	21
Montana	441.6	1.8	689	48	0.3	3
Nebraska	924.4	2.0	742	43	-0.5	10
Nevada	1,140.1	1.5	820	27	-3.0	50
New Hampshire	620.6	1.1	874	17	-3.1	51
New Jersey	3,811.2	1.1	1,053	5	-1.8	38
New Mexico	788.7	0.0	761	39	-2.3	44
New York	8,616.8	1.2	1,088	3	-1.1	19
North Carolina	3,934.1	1.6	806	29	-0.2	7
North Dakota	422.2	7.8	872	18	6.3	1
Ohio	5,073.0	1.1	828	24	-0.7	15
Oklahoma	1,545.6	1.3	779	34	-0.5	10
Oregon	1,667.3	1.2	834	23	0.0	4
Pennsylvania	5,598.4	0.6	899	16	-1.3	25
Rhode Island	460.5	0.8	855	20	-1.9	42
South Carolina	1,814.7	1.3	738	44	-1.1	19
South Dakota	405.3	1.6	683	50	-0.1	6
Tennessee	2,674.3	1.7	814	28	-0.6	14
Texas	10,773.4	2.7	930	13	-0.2	7
Utah	1,231.0	3.3	766	37	-1.8	38
Vermont	302.0	1.2	763	38	-1.8	38
Virginia	3,631.1	0.9	960	10	-1.5	31
Washington	2,944.6	1.5	1,024	7	1.3	2
West Virginia	715.4	0.5	724	45	-2.4	45
Wisconsin	2,718.7	0.7	770	36	-2.7	48
Wyoming	284.7	0.0	828	24	-0.5	10
Puerto Rico	933.4	2.1	506	(5)	0.0	(5)
Virgin Islands	38.6	-9.8	711	(5)	-1.1	(5)
Footnotes: (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. (5) Data not included in the national ranking.