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Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages
Bureau of Labor Statistics > Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages > Methods > Classifications

QCEW Introduces NAICS 2022 Industry Coding

To ensure the accuracy, timeliness, and relevance of the industry classification, the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) is reviewed every five years to determine what, if any, changes are required. In conjunction with its counterparts in Mexico and Canada, the U.S. Office of Management and Budget developed NAICS 2022. This revision will be introduced by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) on September 7, 2022, with the full data release of first quarter 2022 Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW) data.

NAICS 2022 Revision At-a-Glance

There are five types of revisions for NAICS 2022:

  1. Direct NAICS Changes: A direct change means a change in numbering. All establishments in NAICS 2017 industry A will transfer directly into the new NAICS 2022 industry B. Fourteen existing NAICS 2017 codes (at the six-digit level) will be direct conversions in which one NAICS 2017 code will convert directly to one NAICS 2022 code, affecting about 196,000 establishments and 2.4 million employment.
  2. Direct+ NAICS Changes: A direct-plus change means a change in numbering, but not specifically a one-to-one industry match. Basically, all establishments in NAICS 2017 industry A will transfer directly into NAICS 2022 industry B, but NAICS 2022 industry B is comprised of additional establishments from other NAICS 2017 industries. In total, 47 existing NAICS 2017 codes (at the six-digit level) will be involved in "Direct+" conversions, with one NAICS 2017 code converting directly to one NAICS 2022 code, with some portion of that NAICS 2022 code including other NAICS 2017 6-digit industry data. This affects about 610,000 establishments and 8.1 million employment.
  3. Consolidated NAICS Changes: A consolidated change means that NAICS codes are being rolled up (or combined) into a new code. All establishments in NAICS 2017 industries A, B, and C will consolidate into the new NAICS 2022 industry D. In all, 73 existing NAICS 2017 codes (at the six-digit level) will consolidate (rolled up or combined) into 30 NAICS 2022 codes, affecting about 456,000 establishments and 4.1 million employment.
  4. Split NAICS Changes: A split NAICS change means that a NAICS code is being broken down into finer detail. All establishments in NAICS 2017 industry A will need to be re-coded into either NAICS 2022 industry B or C, depending on the economic activity of the establishment. In total, seven existing NAICS 2017 codes (at the six-digit level) will split into new or existing NAICS 2022 codes, affecting about 92,500 establishments and about 1.1 million employment.
  5. Remove NAICS Changes: A removed NAICS change means that a NAICS 2017 code was removed. All establishments in NAICS 2017 industry A were re-coded into a NAICS 2022 code. There were 139 NAICS 2017 codes (at the six-digit level) removed, with affected worksites reclassified into a NAICS 2022 code. In total, these reclassifications affected about 1.4 million establishments and about 15.5 million employment.

This NAICS 2022 revision was undertaken to achieve one main goal—to modify or create industries to reflect new, emerging, or changing activities and technologies. Additionally, some industry titles and descriptions were also updated. Overall, in QCEW, there are 21 sectors and 1,030 industries in NAICS 2022, including the BLS-specific residential and non-residential industry codes within NAICS 238 (Specialty Trade Contractors), as well as the inclusion of an "Unclassified" (NAICS 999999) industry designation, for worksites where an economic activity has not been identified.

All figures cited are from QCEW 2019 annual average data. For further information on the NAICS 2022 revision, including the implementation schedules of other BLS programs, please see the BLS NAICS Web site.

For detailed information on QCEW establishment, employment, and wage levels for each industry affected by the NAICS 2022 conversion, please refer to this QCEW 2022 revision table.

For a complete list of NAICS 2022 codes, titles, descriptions, and index items, please access the BLS QCEW Industry Finder.

Last Modified Date: September 7, 2022