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Economic News Release
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Quarterly Data Series on Business Employment Dynamics News Release

For release 10:00 a.m. (EDT), Wednesday, April 26, 2017                                        	USDL-17-0476

Technical Information: (202) 691-6553   *   BDMInfo@bls.gov   *   www.bls.gov/bdm
Media Contact:         (202) 691-5902   *   PressOffice@bls.gov

BUSINESS EMPLOYMENT DYNAMICS – THIRD QUARTER 2016

From June 2016 to September 2016, gross job gains from opening and expanding private-sector 
establishments were 7.7 million, an increase of 187,000 jobs over the quarter, the U.S. Bureau of Labor 
Statistics reported today. Over this period, gross job losses from closing and contracting private-sector 
establishments were 7.0 million, a decrease of 194,000 jobs from the previous quarter. The difference 
between the number of gross job gains and the number of gross job losses yielded a net employment 
gain of 688,000 jobs in the private-sector during the third quarter of 2016. (See tables A and 1.)

The change in the number of jobs over time is the net result of increases and decreases in employment 
that occur at all private businesses in the economy. Business Employment Dynamics (BED) statistics 
track these changes in employment at private-sector establishments from the third month of one quarter 
to the third month of the next. The difference between the number of gross job gains and the number of 
gross job losses is the net change in employment. (See Technical Note.)  The BED data series include 
gross job gains and gross job losses by industry subsector, for the 50 states, the District of Columbia, 
Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands, as well as gross job gains and gross job losses at the firm level by 
employer size class.

Gross Job Gains

In the third quarter of 2016, gross job gains represented 6.4 percent of private-sector employment. Gross 
job gains are the sum of increases in employment due to expansions at existing establishments and the 
addition of new jobs at opening establishments. Gross job gains at expanding establishments totaled 6.2 
million in the third quarter of 2016, an increase of 151,000 compared to the previous quarter. Opening 
establishments accounted for 1.4 million of the jobs gained in the third quarter of 2016, an increase of 
36,000 jobs from the previous quarter. (See tables A, 1, 2, and 3.)

Gross Job Losses

In the third quarter of 2016, gross job losses represented 5.8 percent of private-sector employment. 
Gross job losses are the result of contractions in employment at existing establishments and the loss of 
jobs at closing establishments. Contracting establishments lost 5.7 million jobs in the third quarter of 
2016, a decrease of 109,000 jobs from the prior quarter. In the third quarter of 2016, closing 
establishments lost 1.2 million jobs, a decrease of 85,000 jobs from the previous quarter. (See tables A, 
1, 2, and 3.)

Establishment Births and Deaths

In the third quarter of 2016, the number of establishment births (a subset of the openings data, see the 
Technical Note for more information) decreased by 14,000, to a total of 238,000 establishments. These 
new establishments accounted for 866,000 jobs, a decrease of 23,000 jobs from the previous quarter. 
Data for establishment deaths (a subset of the closings data) are available through the fourth quarter of 
2015, when 733,000 jobs were lost at 208,000 establishments. (See table 8.) 

Industries

Gross job gains exceeded gross job losses in 9 of 13 industries in the third quarter of 2016. The service 
providing industries experienced a net job increase of 686,000 jobs in the third quarter of 2016. 
Education and health services had the largest over-the-quarter net job increase, with a gain of 212,000 
jobs. The net job increase in education and health services was the result of 1.0 million gross job gains 
and 0.8 million gross job losses. The goods-producing industries experienced a net job increase of 2,000 
jobs in the third quarter of 2016, the result of 1.3 million gross job gains and 1.3 million gross job losses. 
Within the goods-producing sector, a net gain of 36,000 jobs in the construction sector offset the net job 
losses of 29,000 in manufacturing and of 5,000 in the natural resource and mining sector. (See table 3.)

 Table A. Three-month private sector gross job gains and losses, seasonally adjusted

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                          |                  3 months ended                 
                 Category                 |   Sept. |    Dec. |    Mar. |    June |   Sept.
                                          |    2015 |    2015 |    2016 |    2016 |    2016
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                          |              Levels (in thousands)              
                                          |--------------------------------------------------
 Gross job gains......................... |   7,338 |   7,843 |   6,977 |   7,463 |   7,650
        At expanding establishments...... |   5,972 |   6,375 |   5,778 |   6,056 |   6,207
        At opening establishments........ |   1,366 |   1,468 |   1,199 |   1,407 |   1,443
                                          |         |         |         |         |        
 Gross job losses........................ |   6,911 |   6,842 |   6,783 |   7,156 |   6,962
        At contracting establishments.... |   5,698 |   5,573 |   5,617 |   5,829 |   5,720
        At closing establishments........ |   1,213 |   1,269 |   1,166 |   1,327 |   1,242
                                          |         |         |         |         |        
 Net employment change (1)............... |     427 |   1,001 |     194 |     307 |     688
                                          |         |         |         |         |        
                                          |--------------------------------------------------
                                          |                 Rates (percent)                 
                                          |--------------------------------------------------
 Gross job gains......................... |     6.3 |     6.6 |     5.8 |     6.2 |     6.4
        At expanding establishments...... |     5.1 |     5.4 |     4.8 |     5.0 |     5.2
        At opening establishments........ |     1.2 |     1.2 |     1.0 |     1.2 |     1.2
                                          |         |         |         |         |        
 Gross job losses........................ |     5.8 |     5.8 |     5.7 |     6.0 |     5.8
        At contracting establishments.... |     4.8 |     4.7 |     4.7 |     4.9 |     4.8
        At closing establishments........ |     1.0 |     1.1 |     1.0 |     1.1 |     1.0
                                          |         |         |         |         |        
 Net employment change (1)............... |     0.5 |     0.8 |     0.1 |     0.2 |     0.6
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
(1) The net employment change is the difference between total gross job gains and total gross 
    job losses. See the Technical Note for further information.

Firm Size

In the third quarter of 2016, firms with 1-49 employees had a net employment gain of 133,000. Firms 
with 50-249 employees had a net employment gain of 84,000. Firms with 250 or more employees had a 
net employment gain of 464,000. Of the 2.1 million net jobs created over the last four quarters, firms 
with 1-49 employees contributed 30.0 percent of net job growth, while firms with 50-249 employees 
contributed 17.0 percent, and firms with 250 or more employees contributed 53.0 percent. (See tables 4 
and 5.)

States

Gross job gains exceeded gross job losses in 39 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico in the 
third quarter of 2016. Alaska had the highest rate of gross job gains as a percent of employment, at 9.0 
percent, above the U.S. rate of 6.4 percent. Alaska also had the highest rate of gross job losses as a 
percent of employment at 11.1 percent, above the national rate of 5.8 percent. Connecticut had the 
lowest rate of gross job gains as a percent of employment at 5.2 percent. Hawaii had the lowest rate of 
gross job losses as a percent of employment at 5.0 percent. (See tables 6 and 7.)

For More Information

Additional information on gross job gains and gross job losses is available online at www.bls.gov/bdm. 
This information includes data on the levels and rates of gross job gains and gross job losses by firm-
size, not seasonally adjusted data and other seasonally adjusted time series not presented in this release, 
charts of gross job gains and gross job losses by industry and firm-size, and frequently asked questions 
on firm-size data. Additional information about the Business Employment Dynamics data can be found 
in the Technical Note of this release or can be obtained by emailing BDMinfo@bls.gov.

The Business Employment Dynamics for Fourth Quarter 2016 are scheduled to be released on 
Wednesday, July 26, 2017 at 10:00 a.m. (EDT).






Technical Note

The Business Employment Dynamics (BED) data are a product of a federal-state cooperative 
program known as Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW). The BED data are 
compiled by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) from existing QCEW records. Most 
employers in the U.S. are required to file quarterly reports on the employment and wages of 
workers covered by unemployment insurance (UI) laws, and to pay quarterly UI taxes. The QCEW 
is based largely on quarterly UI reports which are sent by businesses to the State Workforce 
Agencies (SWAs). These UI reports are supplemented by two additional BLS data collections to 
render administrative data into economic statistics. Together these data comprise the QCEW and 
form the basis of the Bureau’s establishment universe sampling frame.

These reports are used to produce the quarterly QCEW data on total employment and wages and 
the longitudinal BED data on gross job gains and losses. The QCEW is also the employment 
benchmark for the Current Employment Statistics (CES), Occupational Employment Statistics 
(OES), and Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) programs and is a major input to 
the Bureau of Economic Analysis’s Personal Income Accounts.

In the BED program, the quarterly QCEW records are linked across quarters to provide a 
longitudinal history for each establishment. The linkage process allows the tracking of net 
employment changes at the establishment level, which in turn allows the estimation of jobs gained 
at opening and expanding units and jobs lost at closing and contracting units.

Differences between QCEW, BED, and CES employment measures

The Bureau publishes three different establishment-based employment measures for any given 
quarter. Each of these measures--Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW), Business 
Employment Dynamics (BED), and Current Employment Statistics (CES)--makes use of the 
quarterly UI employment reports in producing data; however, each measure has a somewhat 
different universe coverage, estimation procedure, and publication product.

Differences in coverage and estimation methods can result in somewhat different measures of 
employment change over time. It is important to understand program differences and the intended 
uses of the program products. (See table.) Additional information on each program can be obtained 
from the program Web sites shown in the table.

Summary of Major Differences between QCEW, BED, and CES Employment Measures
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
           |         QCEW        |         BED          |         CES
-----------|---------------------|----------------------|------------------------
Source     |--Count of UI admini-|--Count of longitudi- |--Sample survey: 
           |  strative records   |  nally-linked UI ad- |  623,000 establish-
           |  submitted by 9.6   |  ministrative records|  ments
           |  million employers  |  submitted by 7.7    |
           |                     |  million private sec-|
           |                     |  tor employers       |
-----------|---------------------|----------------------|------------------------
Coverage   |--UI and UCFE cover- |--UI Coverage, exclud-|Nonfarm wage and sal-
           |  age:  all employers|  ing government, pri-|  ary jobs:
           |  subject to state   |  vate households, and|--UI Coverage, exclud-
           |  and federal UI Laws|  establishments with |  ing: agriculture, pri-
           |                     |  zero employment     |  vate households, and
           |                     |                      |  self-employed;
           |                     |                      |  including: railroads,
           |                     |                      |  religious organiza-
           |                     |                      |  tions, and other non-
           |                     |                      |  UI-covered jobs
           |                     |                      |
-----------|---------------------|----------------------|------------------------
Publication|--Quarterly          |--Quarterly           |--Monthly 
frequency  |  -6 months after the|  -7 months after the |  -First Friday
           |   end of each quar- |   end of each quarter|   of following month
           |   ter               |                      |
-----------|---------------------|----------------------|------------------------
Use of UI  |--Directly summarizes|--Links each new UI   |--Uses UI file as a sam-
file       |  and publishes each |  quarter to longitu- |  pling frame and annu-
           |  new quarter of UI  |  dinal database and  |  ally realigns (bench-
           |  data               |  directly summarizes |  marks) sample esti-    
           |                     |  gross job gains and |  mates to first quar-  
           |                     |  losses              |  ter UI levels
-----------|---------------------|----------------------|------------------------
Principal  |--Provides a quarter-|--Provides quarterly  |--Provides current month-
products   |  ly and annual uni- |  employer dynamics   |  ly estimates of employ-
           |  verse count of es- |  data on establish-  |  ment, hours, and earn-
           |  tablishments, em-  |  ment openings, clos-|  ings at the MSA, state,
           |  ployment, and wages|  ings, expansions,   |  and national level by
           |  at the county, MSA,|  and contractions at |  industry
           |  State, and national|  the national level  |
           |  levels by detailed |  by NAICS super-     |
           |  industry           |  sectors,3-digit     |
           |                     |  NAICS, and by size  |
           |                     |  of firm, and at the |   
           |                     |  state private-sector|
           |                     |  total level         | 
           |                     |--Future expansions   |
           |                     |  will include        |
           |                     |  data at the county  |
           |                     |  and MSA level       |
-----------|---------------------|----------------------|------------------------
Principal  |--Major uses include:|--Major uses include: |--Major uses include:
uses       |  -Detailed locality |  -Business cycle     |  -Principal national
           |   data              |   analysis           |   economic indicator
           |  -Periodic universe |  -Analysis of employ-|  -Official time series 
           |   counts for bench- |   er dynamics under- |   for employment change
           |   marking sample    |   lying economic ex- |   measures
           |   survey estimates  |   pansions and con-  |  -Input into other ma-
           |  -Sample frame for  |   tractions          |   jor economic indi-
           |   BLS establishment |  -Analysis of employ-|   cators
           |   surveys           |   ment expansion and |
           |                     |   contraction by size|   
           |                     |   of firm            |
           |                     |                      |
-----------|---------------------|----------------------|------------------------
Program    |--www.bls.gov/cew/   |--www.bls.gov/bdm/    |--www.bls.gov/ces/
Web sites  |                     |                      |
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Coverage

Employment and wage data for workers covered by state UI and Unemployment Compensation for 
Federal Employees (UCFE) laws are compiled from quarterly contribution reports submitted to the 
SWAs by employers. In addition to the quarterly contribution reports, employers who operate 
multiple establishments within a state complete a questionnaire, called the “Multiple Worksite 
Report,” which provides detailed information on the location of their establishments.  These 
reports are based on place of employment rather than place of residence. UI and UCFE coverage is 
broad and basically comparable from state to state. 

Major exclusions from UI coverage are self-employed workers, religious organizations, most 
agricultural workers on small farms, all members of the Armed Forces, elected officials in most 
states, most employees of railroads, some domestic workers, most student workers at schools, and 
employees of certain small nonprofit organizations.

Gross job gains and gross job losses in this release are derived from longitudinal histories of 7.7 
million private sector employer reports out of 9.6 million total reports of employment and wages 
submitted by states to BLS in the first quarter of 2016. Gross job gains and gross job losses data in 
this release do not report estimates for government employees or private households (NAICS 
814110), and do not include establishments with zero employment in both previous and current 
quarters. Data from Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands are also excluded from the national data. As 
an illustration, the table below shows, in millions of establishments, the number of establishments 
excluded from the national gross job gains and gross job losses data in the first quarter 2016:

                         Number of active establishments included in                       
                   Business Employment Dynamics data at the national level                 
                                                                                           
                                                                                           
 Total establishments QCEW program.................................................... 9.6 
                                                                                           
   Excluded: Public sector............................................................ 0.3 
           Private households......................................................... 0.2 
           Zero employment............................................................ 1.3 
           Establishments in Puerto Rico..............................................     
                 and the Virgin Islands............................................... 0.1 
                                                                                           
 Total establishments included in Business                                                 
 Employment Dynamics data............................................................. 7.7 

Unit of analysis

Establishments are used in the tabulation of the BED statistics by industry and firms are used in the 
tabulation of the BED size class statistics. An establishment is defined as an economic unit that 
produces goods or services, usually at a single physical location, and engages in one or 
predominantly one activity. A firm is a legal business, either corporate or otherwise, and may 
consist of several establishments. Firm-level data are compiled based on an aggregation of 
establishments under common ownership by a corporate parent using employer tax identification 
numbers. The firm level aggregation which is consistent with the role of corporations as the 
economic decision makers are used for the measurement of the BED data elements by size class.

Because of the difference in the unit of analysis, total gross job gains and gross job losses by size 
class are lower than total gross job gains and gross job losses by industry, as some establishment 
gains and losses within a firm are offset during the aggregation process. However, the total net 
changes in employment are the same for not seasonally adjusted data and are similar for seasonally 
adjusted data.

Concepts and methodology

The Business Employment Dynamics data measure the net change in employment at the 
establishment or firm level. These changes come about in one of four ways. A net increase in 
employment can come from either opening units or expanding units. A net decrease in 
employment can come from either closing units or contracting units. Gross job gains include the 
sum of all jobs added at either opening or expanding units. Gross job losses include the sum of all 
jobs lost in either closing or contracting units. The net change in employment is the difference 
between gross job gains and gross job losses.

The formal definitions of employment changes are as follows:

Openings. These are either units with positive third month employment for the first time in the 
current quarter, with no links to the prior quarter, or with positive third month employment in the 
current quarter following zero employment in the previous quarter.

Expansions. These are units with positive employment in the third month in both the previous and 
current quarters, with a net increase in employment over this period.

Closings. These are either units with positive third month employment in the previous quarter, with 
no employment or zero employment reported in the current quarter.

Contractions. These are units with positive employment in the third month in both the previous and 
current quarters, with a net decrease in employment over this period.

Births. These are units with positive third month employment for the first time in the current 
quarter with no links to the prior quarter, or units with positive third month employment in the 
current quarter and zero employment in the third month of the previous four quarters. Births are a 
subset of openings not including re-openings of seasonal businesses.

Deaths. These are units with no employment or zero employment reported in the third month of 
four consecutive quarters following the last quarter with positive employment. Deaths are a subset 
of closings not including temporary shutdowns of seasonal businesses. A unit that closes during the 
quarter may be a death, but we wait three quarters to determine whether it is a permanent closing 
or a temporary shutdown. Therefore, there is always a lag of three quarters for the publication of 
death statistics.

All employment changes are measured from the third month of the previous quarter to the third 
month of the current quarter. Not all establishments and firms change their employment levels. 
Units with no change in employment count towards estimates of total employment, but not for 
levels of gross job gains and gross job losses.

Gross job gains and gross job losses are expressed as rates by dividing their levels by the average 
of employment in the current and previous quarters. This provides a symmetric growth rate. The 
rates are calculated for the components of gross job gains and gross job losses and then summed to 
form their respective totals. These rates can be added and subtracted just as their levels can. For 
instance, the difference between the gross job gains rate and the gross job losses rate is the net 
growth rate.

Establishment Births and Deaths

For the purpose of BED statistics, births are defined as establishments that appear in the 
longitudinal database for the first time with positive employment in the third month of a quarter, or 
showed four consecutive quarters of zero employment in the third month followed by a quarter in 
which it shows positive employment in the third month. Similarly, deaths are defined as 
establishments that either drop out of the longitudinal database or an establishment that had 
positive employment in the third month of a given quarter followed by four consecutive quarters of 
showing zero employment in the third month. Although the data for establishment births and 
deaths are tabulated independently from the data for openings and closings, the concepts are not 
mutually exclusive. An establishment that is defined as a birth in a given quarter is necessarily an 
opening as well, and an establishment defined as a death in a quarter must also be a closing. Since 
openings include seasonal and other re-openings and closings include temporary shutdowns, the 
not seasonally adjusted values for births and deaths must be less than those for openings and 
closings. However, because some BED series do not have many re-openings or temporary 
shutdowns, as well as the fact that births and deaths are independently seasonally adjusted from 
openings and closings, there may be instances in which the seasonally adjusted value of the former 
is greater than the latter.

Linkage methodology

Prior to the measurement of gross job gains and gross job losses, QCEW records are linked across 
two quarters. The linkage process matches establishments' unique SWA identification numbers 
(SWA-ID). Between 95 to 97 percent of establishments identified as continuous from quarter to 
quarter are matched by SWA-ID. The rest are linked in one of three ways. The first method uses 
predecessor and successor information, identified by the States, which relates records with 
different SWA-IDs across quarters. Predecessor and successor relations can come about for a 
variety of reasons, including a change in ownership, a firm restructuring, or a UI account 
restructuring. If a match cannot be attained in this manner, a probability-based match is used. This 
match attempts to identify two establishments with different SWA-IDs as continuous. The match is 
based upon comparisons such as the same name, address, and phone number. Third, an analyst 
examines unmatched records individually and makes a possible match.

In order to ensure the highest possible quality of data, SWAs verify with employers and update, if 
necessary, the industry, location, and ownership classification of all establishments on a 4-year 
cycle. Changes in establishment classification codes resulting from the verification process are 
introduced with the data reported for the first quarter of the year. Changes resulting from improved 
employer reporting also are introduced in the first quarter. 
 
Sizing methodology

The method of dynamic sizing is used in calculations for the BED size class data series. Dynamic 
sizing allocates each firm’s employment gain or loss during a quarter to each respective size class 
in which the change occurred. For example, if a firm grew from 2 employees in quarter 1 to 38 
employees in quarter 2, then, of the 36-employee increase, 2 would be allocated to the first size 
class, 5 to the size class 5 to 9, 10 to size class 10 to 19, and 19 to size class 20 to 49.

Dynamic sizing provides symmetrical firm size estimates and eliminates any systematic effects 
which may be caused by the transitory and reverting changes in firms’ sizes over time. 
Additionally, it allocates each job gain or loss to the actual size class where it occurred.

Annual Data

The annual gross job gains and gross job losses measure the net change in employment at the 
establishment level from the third month of a quarter in the previous year to the third month of the 
same quarter in the current year. The BLS publishes annual BED data based on March-to-March 
changes once a year with the release of the first quarter BED data. The annual data based on over-
the-year changes for other quarters of the year are available upon request. The definitions and 
methodology in measuring annual gross job gains and gross job losses are similar to the quarterly 
measures. The linkage method considers all predecessor and successor relations that may come 
about due to changes in ownership and corporate restructuring over the entire year. At the 
establishment level, some of the quarterly job gains and job losses are offset during the estimation 
over the year. Therefore, the sum of four quarters of gross job gains and gross job losses are not 
equal to annual gross job gains and gross job losses. The net change in employment over the year, 
however, is equal to the sum of four quarterly net changes on a not seasonally adjusted basis. 

Seasonal adjustment

Over the course of a year, the levels of employment and the associated job flows undergo sharp 
fluctuations due to such seasonal events as changes in the weather, reduced or expanded 
production, harvests, major holidays, and the opening and closing of schools. The effect of such 
seasonal variation can be very large.

Because these seasonal events follow a more or less regular pattern each year, their influence can 
be eliminated by adjusting these statistics from quarter to quarter. These adjustments make 
nonseasonal developments, such as declines in economic activity, easier to recognize. For 
example, the large number of youths taking summer jobs is likely to obscure other changes that 
have taken place in June relative to March, making it difficult to determine if the level of economic 
activity has risen or declined. However, because the effect of students finishing school in previous 
years is known, the statistics for the current year can be adjusted to allow for a comparable change. 
The adjusted figures provide a more useful tool with which to analyze changes in economic 
activity.

The employment data series for opening, expanding, closing, and contracting units are 
independently seasonally adjusted; net changes are calculated based on the difference between 
gross job gains and gross job losses. Similarly, for industry data, the establishment counts data 
series for opening, expanding, closing, and contracting establishments are independently adjusted, 
and the net changes are calculated based on the difference between the number of opening and 
closing establishments. Additionally establishment and employment levels are independently 
seasonally adjusted to calculate the seasonally adjusted rates. Concurrent seasonal adjustment is 
run using X-12 ARIMA. Seasonally adjusted data series for total private are the sum of seasonally 
adjusted data of all sectors including the unclassified sector, which is not separately published.

The net over-the-quarter change derived by summing the BED component series will differ from 
the net employment change estimated from the seasonally adjusted total private employment series 
from the CES program. The intended use of BED statistics is to show the dynamic labor market 
changes that underlie the net employment change statistic. As such, data users interested 
particularly in the net employment change and not in the gross job flows underlying this change 
should refer to CES data for over-the-quarter net employment changes.

Reliability of the data

Since the data series on Business Employment Dynamics are based on administrative rather than 
sample data, there are no issues related to sampling error. Nonsampling error, however, still exists. 
Nonsampling errors can occur for many reasons, such as the employer submitting corrected 
employment data after the end of the quarter or typographical errors made by businesses when 
providing information. Such errors, however, are likely to be distributed randomly throughout the 
dataset. 

Changes in administrative data sometimes create complications for the linkage process. This can 
result in overstating openings and closings while understating expansions and contractions. The 
BLS continues to refine methods for improving the linkage process to alleviate the effects of these 
complications.

 The BED data series are subject to periodic minor changes based on corrections in QCEW 
records, updates on predecessors and successors information, and seasonal adjustment revisions.

Annual revisions are published each year with the release of the first quarter data. These revisions 
cover the last four quarters of not seasonally adjusted data and 5 years of seasonally adjusted data.

Additional statistics and other information

Several other programs within BLS produce closely related information. The QCEW program 
provides both quarterly and annual estimates of employment by state, county, and detailed 
industry. News releases on quarterly county employment and wages and an annual bulletin: 
Employment and Wages Annual Averages, are available upon request from the Division of 
Administrative Statistics and Labor Turnover, Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of 
Labor, Washington, DC 20212; telephone 202-691-6567; (http://www.bls.gov/cew/); (e-mail: 
QCEWInfo@bls.gov). 

The CES program produces monthly estimates of employment, its net change, and earnings by 
detailed industry. These estimates are part of the Employment Situation report put out monthly by 
BLS. 

The Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) program provides monthly measures of 
job openings, as well as employee hires and separations. 
Information in this release will be made available to sensory impaired individuals upon request. 
Voice phone: 202-691-5200; TDD message referral number: 1-800-877-8339.





Table 1.  Private sector gross job gains and job losses, seasonally adjusted

Total private

(In thousands)

                                                  Gross job gains                       Gross job losses
Year  3 months ended  Net change(1) Total     Expanding      Opening      Total     Contracting      Closing
                                           establishments establishments           establishments establishments

2006  March                896      7,880       6,383         1,497       6,984       5,661           1,323
      June                 342      7,766       6,228         1,538       7,424       6,026           1,398
      September             92      7,545       6,076         1,469       7,453       6,067           1,386
      December             431      7,770       6,226         1,544       7,339       5,964           1,375

2007  March                584      7,815       6,331         1,484       7,231       5,894           1,337
      June                 132      7,647       6,205         1,442       7,515       6,084           1,431
      September           -209      7,376       5,870         1,506       7,585       6,190           1,395
      December             268      7,687       6,181         1,506       7,419       6,040           1,379

2008  March               -199      7,320       5,860         1,460       7,519       6,111           1,408
      June                -593      7,281       5,833         1,448       7,874       6,363           1,511
      September           -913      6,944       5,535         1,409       7,857       6,436           1,421
      December          -1,838      6,738       5,345         1,393       8,576       7,056           1,520

2009  March             -2,680      5,918       4,675         1,243       8,598       7,142           1,456
      June              -1,667      6,425       5,080         1,345       8,092       6,674           1,418
      September           -849      6,399       5,139         1,260       7,248       5,854           1,394
      December            -264      6,665       5,308         1,357       6,929       5,605           1,324

2010  March               -247      6,325       5,108         1,217       6,572       5,324           1,248
      June                 698      6,995       5,674         1,321       6,297       5,090           1,207
      September            237      6,741       5,438         1,303       6,504       5,231           1,273
      December             566      7,052       5,639         1,413       6,486       5,219           1,267

2011  March                334      6,540       5,322         1,218       6,206       5,025           1,181
      June                 582      6,966       5,625         1,341       6,384       5,115           1,269
      September            841      7,205       5,810         1,395       6,364       5,172           1,192
      December             335      6,865       5,503         1,362       6,530       5,273           1,257

2012  March                954      7,080       5,751         1,329       6,126       5,002           1,124
      June                 603      7,048       5,721         1,327       6,445       5,272           1,173
      September            271      6,898       5,581         1,317       6,627       5,429           1,198
      December             688      7,103       5,744         1,359       6,415       5,224           1,191

2013  March                565      6,933       5,704         1,229       6,368       5,190           1,178
      June                 661      7,154       5,832         1,322       6,493       5,284           1,209
      September            487      7,060       5,719         1,341       6,573       5,428           1,145
      December             712      7,261       5,927         1,334       6,549       5,344           1,205

2014  March                447      6,947       5,681         1,266       6,500       5,357           1,143
      June                 870      7,456       6,116         1,340       6,586       5,364           1,222
      September            540      7,243       5,912         1,331       6,703       5,517           1,186
      December           1,071      7,634       6,260         1,374       6,563       5,324           1,239

2015  March                237      7,036       5,727         1,309       6,799       5,600           1,199
      June                 815      7,588       6,244         1,344       6,773       5,573           1,200
      September            427      7,338       5,972         1,366       6,911       5,698           1,213
      December           1,001      7,843       6,375         1,468       6,842       5,573           1,269

2016  March                194      6,977       5,778         1,199       6,783       5,617           1,166
      June                 307      7,463       6,056         1,407       7,156       5,829           1,327
      September            688      7,650       6,207         1,443       6,962       5,720           1,242

(1) Net change is the difference between total gross job gains and total gross job losses.

Table 2.  Private sector gross job gains and losses, as a percent of employment(1), seasonally adjusted

Total private

(Percent)

                                                  Gross job gains                       Gross job losses
Year  3 months ended  Net change(2) Total     Expanding      Opening      Total     Contracting      Closing
                                           establishments establishments           establishments establishments

2006  March                 .8       7.0         5.7           1.3         6.2          5.0            1.2
      June                  .4       6.9         5.5           1.4         6.5          5.3            1.2
      September             .1       6.7         5.4           1.3         6.6          5.4            1.2
      December              .4       6.9         5.5           1.4         6.5          5.3            1.2

2007  March                 .5       6.9         5.6           1.3         6.4          5.2            1.2
      June                  .1       6.7         5.4           1.3         6.6          5.3            1.3
      September            -.2       6.4         5.1           1.3         6.6          5.4            1.2
      December              .2       6.7         5.4           1.3         6.5          5.3            1.2

2008  March                -.1       6.4         5.1           1.3         6.5          5.3            1.2
      June                 -.5       6.4         5.1           1.3         6.9          5.6            1.3
      September            -.9       6.1         4.9           1.2         7.0          5.7            1.3
      December            -1.7       6.0         4.8           1.2         7.7          6.3            1.4

2009  March               -2.4       5.4         4.3           1.1         7.8          6.5            1.3
      June                -1.5       6.0         4.7           1.3         7.5          6.2            1.3
      September            -.8       6.0         4.8           1.2         6.8          5.5            1.3
      December             -.3       6.3         5.0           1.3         6.6          5.3            1.3

2010  March                -.2       6.0         4.8           1.2         6.2          5.0            1.2
      June                  .7       6.6         5.4           1.2         5.9          4.8            1.1
      September             .2       6.3         5.1           1.2         6.1          4.9            1.2
      December              .5       6.6         5.3           1.3         6.1          4.9            1.2

2011  March                 .3       6.1         5.0           1.1         5.8          4.7            1.1
      June                  .5       6.4         5.2           1.2         5.9          4.7            1.2
      September             .8       6.7         5.4           1.3         5.9          4.8            1.1
      December              .4       6.4         5.1           1.3         6.0          4.8            1.2

2012  March                 .8       6.4         5.2           1.2         5.6          4.6            1.0
      June                  .5       6.4         5.2           1.2         5.9          4.8            1.1
      September             .2       6.2         5.0           1.2         6.0          4.9            1.1
      December              .6       6.4         5.2           1.2         5.8          4.7            1.1

2013  March                 .5       6.2         5.1           1.1         5.7          4.6            1.1
      June                  .6       6.4         5.2           1.2         5.8          4.7            1.1
      September             .5       6.3         5.1           1.2         5.8          4.8            1.0
      December              .6       6.4         5.2           1.2         5.8          4.7            1.1

2014  March                 .4       6.1         5.0           1.1         5.7          4.7            1.0
      June                  .7       6.5         5.3           1.2         5.8          4.7            1.1
      September             .5       6.3         5.1           1.2         5.8          4.8            1.0
      December              .9       6.6         5.4           1.2         5.7          4.6            1.1

2015  March                 .2       6.0         4.9           1.1         5.8          4.8            1.0
      June                  .7       6.4         5.3           1.1         5.7          4.7            1.0
      September             .5       6.3         5.1           1.2         5.8          4.8            1.0
      December              .8       6.6         5.4           1.2         5.8          4.7            1.1

2016  March                 .1       5.8         4.8           1.0         5.7          4.7            1.0
      June                  .2       6.2         5.0           1.2         6.0          4.9            1.1
      September             .6       6.4         5.2           1.2         5.8          4.8            1.0

(1) The rates measure gross job gains and gross job losses as a percentage
    of the previous and current quarter employment levels.

(2) Net change is the difference between total gross job gains and total gross job losses.

Table 3. Private sector gross job gains and losses by industry, seasonally adjusted

                                      Gross job gains and job losses      Gross job gains and job losses
                                           (in thousands)                   as a percent of employment

    Category                                 3 months ended                      3 months ended

                                   Sept.   Dec.    Mar.    June    Sept.  Sept.  Dec.   Mar.   June   Sept. 
                                   2015    2015    2016    2016    2016   2015   2015   2016   2016   2016
Total private(1)

Gross job gains                   7,338   7,843   6,977   7,463   7,650    6.3    6.6    5.8    6.2    6.4
 At expanding establishments      5,972   6,375   5,778   6,056   6,207    5.1    5.4    4.8    5.0    5.2
 At opening establishments        1,366   1,468   1,199   1,407   1,443    1.2    1.2    1.0    1.2    1.2
Gross job losses                  6,911   6,842   6,783   7,156   6,962    5.8    5.8    5.7    6.0    5.8
 At contracting establishments    5,698   5,573   5,617   5,829   5,720    4.8    4.7    4.7    4.9    4.8
 At closing establishments        1,213   1,269   1,166   1,327   1,242    1.0    1.1    1.0    1.1    1.0
Net employment change               427   1,001     194     307     688     .5     .8     .1     .2     .6

Goods-producing

Gross job gains                   1,292   1,368   1,292   1,332   1,299    6.2    6.6    6.1    6.4    6.3
 At expanding establishments      1,104   1,162   1,119   1,145   1,101    5.3    5.6    5.3    5.5    5.3
 At opening establishments          188     206     173     187     198     .9    1.0     .8     .9    1.0
Gross job losses                  1,312   1,316   1,282   1,381   1,297    6.3    6.3    6.2    6.6    6.2
 At contracting establishments    1,117   1,120   1,099   1,171   1,105    5.4    5.4    5.3    5.6    5.3
 At closing establishments          195     196     183     210     192     .9     .9     .9    1.0     .9
Net employment change               -20      52      10     -49       2    -.1     .3    -.1    -.2     .1

Natural resources and mining

Gross job gains                     246     248     254     260     248   12.5   12.8   13.1   13.8   13.5
 At expanding establishments        212     214     223     228     215   10.8   11.0   11.5   12.1   11.7
 At opening establishments           34      34      31      32      33    1.7    1.8    1.6    1.7    1.8
Gross job losses                    288     301     272     297     253   14.6   15.5   14.1   15.9   13.7
 At contracting establishments      252     266     239     264     223   12.8   13.7   12.4   14.1   12.1
 At closing establishments           36      35      33      33      30    1.8    1.8    1.7    1.8    1.6
Net employment change               -42     -53     -18     -37      -5   -2.1   -2.7   -1.0   -2.1    -.2

Construction

Gross job gains                     652     705     661     657     654   10.1   10.8   10.0    9.8    9.9
 At expanding establishments        534     574     550     541     529    8.3    8.8    8.3    8.1    8.0
 At opening establishments          118     131     111     116     125    1.8    2.0    1.7    1.7    1.9
Gross job losses                    606     589     607     650     618    9.5    9.1    9.1    9.7    9.3
 At contracting establishments      492     474     499     523     503    7.7    7.3    7.5    7.8    7.6
 At closing establishments          114     115     108     127     115    1.8    1.8    1.6    1.9    1.7
Net employment change                46     116      54       7      36     .6    1.7     .9     .1     .6

Manufacturing

Gross job gains                     394     415     377     415     397    3.2    3.3    3.1    3.4    3.2
 At expanding establishments        358     374     346     376     357    2.9    3.0    2.8    3.1    2.9
 At opening establishments           36      41      31      39      40     .3     .3     .3     .3     .3
Gross job losses                    418     426     403     434     426    3.4    3.5    3.2    3.5    3.5
 At contracting establishments      373     380     361     384     379    3.0    3.1    2.9    3.1    3.1
 At closing establishments           45      46      42      50      47     .4     .4     .3     .4     .4
Net employment change               -24     -11     -26     -19     -29    -.2    -.2    -.1    -.1    -.3

Service-providing(1)

Gross job gains                   6,046   6,475   5,685   6,131   6,351    6.2    6.6    5.7    6.2    6.4
 At expanding establishments      4,868   5,213   4,659   4,911   5,106    5.0    5.3    4.7    5.0    5.1
 At opening establishments        1,178   1,262   1,026   1,220   1,245    1.2    1.3    1.0    1.2    1.3
Gross job losses                  5,599   5,526   5,501   5,775   5,665    5.7    5.6    5.6    5.8    5.7
 At contracting establishments    4,581   4,453   4,518   4,658   4,615    4.7    4.5    4.6    4.7    4.6
 At closing establishments        1,018   1,073     983   1,117   1,050    1.0    1.1    1.0    1.1    1.1
Net employment change               447     949     184     356     686     .5    1.0     .1     .4     .7

Wholesale trade

Gross job gains                     271     294     256     276     274    4.6    4.9    4.4    4.7    4.6
 At expanding establishments        225     244     216     227     225    3.8    4.1    3.7    3.9    3.8
 At opening establishments           46      50      40      49      49     .8     .8     .7     .8     .8
Gross job losses                    264     268     265     273     262    4.5    4.5    4.5    4.6    4.5
 At contracting establishments      209     209     208     213     208    3.6    3.5    3.5    3.6    3.6
 At closing establishments           55      59      57      60      54     .9    1.0    1.0    1.0     .9
Net employment change                 7      26      -9       3      12     .1     .4    -.1     .1     .1

Retail trade

Gross job gains                     928     925     948     926     947    5.8    5.9    6.0    5.8    5.9
 At expanding establishments        795     798     833     798     812    5.0    5.1    5.3    5.0    5.1
 At opening establishments          133     127     115     128     135     .8     .8     .7     .8     .8
Gross job losses                    937     921     850     900     949    5.9    5.8    5.4    5.7    6.0
 At contracting establishments      823     789     747     790     827    5.2    5.0    4.7    5.0    5.2
 At closing establishments          114     132     103     110     122     .7     .8     .7     .7     .8
Net employment change                -9       4      98      26      -2    -.1     .1     .6     .1    -.1

Transportation and warehousing

Gross job gains                     268     343     229     246     288    5.8    7.3    4.8    5.2    6.0
 At expanding establishments        230     305     200     209     250    5.0    6.5    4.2    4.4    5.2
 At opening establishments           38      38      29      37      38     .8     .8     .6     .8     .8
Gross job losses                    227     227     293     250     227    4.9    4.8    6.1    5.3    4.7
 At contracting establishments      191     188     258     211     188    4.1    4.0    5.4    4.5    3.9
 At closing establishments           36      39      35      39      39     .8     .8     .7     .8     .8
Net employment change                41     116     -64      -4      61     .9    2.5   -1.3    -.1    1.3

Utilities

Gross job gains                      13      12       9      13      11    2.4    2.2    1.6    2.4    2.0
 At expanding establishments         11      11       8      11      10    2.0    2.0    1.4    2.0    1.8
 At opening establishments            2       1       1       2       1     .4     .2     .2     .4     .2
Gross job losses                     13      11      10      13      14    2.4    2.0    1.8    2.4    2.6
 At contracting establishments       12      10       9      11      12    2.2    1.8    1.6    2.0    2.2
 At closing establishments            1       1       1       2       2     .2     .2     .2     .4     .4
Net employment change                 0       1      -1       0      -3     .0     .2    -.2     .0    -.6

Information

Gross job gains                     145     162     135     157     152    5.3    5.9    4.9    5.6    5.4
 At expanding establishments        121     135     116     132     124    4.4    4.9    4.2    4.7    4.4
 At opening establishments           24      27      19      25      28     .9    1.0     .7     .9    1.0
Gross job losses                    145     140     138     139     149    5.2    5.0    5.0    5.0    5.4
 At contracting establishments      122     112     110     109     125    4.4    4.0    4.0    3.9    4.5
 At closing establishments           23      28      28      30      24     .8    1.0    1.0    1.1     .9
Net employment change                 0      22      -3      18       3     .1     .9    -.1     .6     .0

Financial activities

Gross job gains                     370     394     344     389     386    4.7    5.0    4.3    4.9    4.9
 At expanding establishments        299     307     278     313     308    3.8    3.9    3.5    3.9    3.9
 At opening establishments           71      87      66      76      78     .9    1.1     .8    1.0    1.0
Gross job losses                    349     353     333     354     347    4.5    4.5    4.2    4.4    4.3
 At contracting establishments      273     270     258     272     274    3.5    3.4    3.3    3.4    3.4
 At closing establishments           76      83      75      82      73    1.0    1.1     .9    1.0     .9
Net employment change                21      41      11      35      39     .2     .5     .1     .5     .6

Professional and business services

Gross job gains                   1,417   1,600   1,237   1,426   1,469    7.2    8.1    6.3    7.2    7.3
 At expanding establishments      1,143   1,292   1,026   1,165   1,201    5.8    6.5    5.2    5.9    6.0
 At opening establishments          274     308     211     261     268    1.4    1.6    1.1    1.3    1.3
Gross job losses                  1,315   1,311   1,355   1,363   1,272    6.7    6.6    6.8    6.9    6.4
 At contracting establishments    1,054   1,037   1,111   1,065   1,014    5.4    5.2    5.6    5.4    5.1
 At closing establishments          261     274     244     298     258    1.3    1.4    1.2    1.5    1.3
Net employment change               102     289    -118      63     197     .5    1.5    -.5     .3     .9

Education and health services

Gross job gains                     970   1,006     878     962   1,034    4.6    4.8    4.1    4.5    4.8
 At expanding establishments        806     824     726     776     867    3.8    3.9    3.4    3.6    4.0
 At opening establishments          164     182     152     186     167     .8     .9     .7     .9     .8
Gross job losses                    827     801     813     888     822    3.9    3.8    3.8    4.2    3.8
 At contracting establishments      659     635     658     701     650    3.1    3.0    3.1    3.3    3.0
 At closing establishments          168     166     155     187     172     .8     .8     .7     .9     .8
Net employment change               143     205      65      74     212     .7    1.0     .3     .3    1.0

Leisure and hospitality

Gross job gains                   1,270   1,344   1,247   1,312   1,330    8.4    8.8    8.0    8.4    8.5
 At expanding establishments        994   1,048   1,013   1,025   1,045    6.6    6.9    6.5    6.6    6.7
 At opening establishments          276     296     234     287     285    1.8    1.9    1.5    1.8    1.8
Gross job losses                  1,211   1,184   1,138   1,273   1,297    8.0    7.8    7.4    8.2    8.4
 At contracting establishments    1,009     977     939   1,055   1,082    6.7    6.4    6.1    6.8    7.0
 At closing establishments          202     207     199     218     215    1.3    1.4    1.3    1.4    1.4
Net employment change                59     160     109      39      33     .4    1.0     .6     .2     .1

Other services

Gross job gains                     284     294     272     301     305    7.0    7.2    6.7    7.4    7.4
 At expanding establishments        227     232     219     235     240    5.6    5.7    5.4    5.8    5.8
 At opening establishments           57      62      53      66      65    1.4    1.5    1.3    1.6    1.6
Gross job losses                    282     273     266     284     285    6.9    6.8    6.5    7.0    7.0
 At contracting establishments      220     213     207     219     221    5.4    5.3    5.1    5.4    5.4
 At closing establishments           62      60      59      65      64    1.5    1.5    1.4    1.6    1.6
Net employment change                 2      21       6      17      20     .1     .4     .2     .4     .4

(1) Includes unclassified sector, not shown separately

Table 4.  Private sector gross job gains and losses by firm size, seasonally adjusted

(In thousands)

                      Total private by firm(1)       Firm size 1 - 49 employees      Firm size 50 - 249 employees      Firm size 250 or more employees
Year  3 months        Net        Gross job            Net          Gross job          Net           Gross job           Net           Gross job
        ended      change(2,3)  gains   losses       change      gains   losses      change       gains   losses       change       gains   losses

2006  March            782      6,460    5,678         312       3,538    3,226        211        1,216    1,005         259        1,706    1,447
      June             369      6,329    5,960         111       3,425    3,314        102        1,179    1,077         156        1,725    1,569
      September         86      6,120    6,034          -5       3,334    3,339         48        1,133    1,085          43        1,653    1,610
      December         446      6,388    5,942         137       3,406    3,269         80        1,153    1,073         229        1,829    1,600

2007  March            478      6,333    5,855         173       3,445    3,272         98        1,158    1,060         207        1,730    1,523
      June             163      6,239    6,076         -33       3,330    3,363         99        1,171    1,072          97        1,738    1,641
      September       -215      5,920    6,135        -116       3,263    3,379        -34        1,079    1,113         -65        1,578    1,643
      December         270      6,251    5,981          10       3,317    3,307         56        1,139    1,083         204        1,795    1,591

2008  March           -274      5,831    6,105        -152       3,235    3,387        -11        1,079    1,090        -111        1,517    1,628
      June            -548      5,850    6,398        -287       3,174    3,461        -44        1,090    1,134        -217        1,586    1,803
      September       -956      5,532    6,488        -343       3,051    3,394       -140        1,020    1,160        -473        1,461    1,934
      December      -1,886      5,338    7,224        -689       2,910    3,599       -375          947    1,322        -822        1,481    2,303

2009  March         -2,638      4,617    7,255        -983       2,721    3,704       -616          810    1,426      -1,039        1,086    2,125
      June          -1,763      5,169    6,932        -474       2,946    3,420       -281          950    1,231      -1,008        1,273    2,281
      September       -906      5,164    6,070        -372       2,826    3,198       -110          932    1,042        -424        1,406    1,830
      December        -317      5,403    5,720        -159       2,940    3,099        -45          962    1,007        -113        1,501    1,614

2010  March           -234      5,115    5,349        -195       2,863    3,058         -2          914      916         -37        1,338    1,375
      June             664      5,805    5,141         235       3,093    2,858        204        1,071      867         225        1,641    1,416
      September        226      5,525    5,299          26       2,946    2,920         87          998      911         113        1,581    1,468
      December         502      5,781    5,279          92       3,051    2,959         92        1,034      942         318        1,696    1,378

2011  March            340      5,375    5,035          99       2,983    2,884        122          971      849         119        1,421    1,302
      June             537      5,746    5,209         190       3,073    2,883        169        1,063      894         178        1,610    1,432
      September        852      5,974    5,122         272       3,137    2,865        171        1,066      895         409        1,771    1,362
      December         297      5,585    5,288          45       2,970    2,925         44          981      937         208        1,634    1,426

2012  March            975      5,903    4,928         397       3,178    2,781        221        1,055      834         357        1,670    1,313
      June             605      5,828    5,223         170       3,039    2,869        160        1,076      916         275        1,713    1,438
      September        245      5,595    5,350          57       2,965    2,908         55        1,007      952         133        1,623    1,490
      December         623      5,767    5,144         174       3,019    2,845         90        1,011      921         359        1,737    1,378

2013  March            593      5,741    5,148         230       3,082    2,852        156        1,026      870         207        1,633    1,426
      June             642      5,909    5,267         219       3,084    2,865        138        1,075      937         285        1,750    1,465
      September        458      5,764    5,306         210       3,056    2,846         62        1,018      956         186        1,690    1,504
      December         632      5,881    5,249         126       3,021    2,895        100        1,031      931         406        1,829    1,423

2014  March            469      5,663    5,194         260       3,084    2,824        154        1,033      879          55        1,546    1,491
      June             878      6,140    5,262         293       3,177    2,884        218        1,125      907         367        1,838    1,471
      September        516      5,858    5,342         168       3,052    2,884        102        1,059      957         246        1,747    1,501
      December         969      6,154    5,185         218       3,107    2,889        151        1,083      932         600        1,964    1,364

2015  March            244      5,662    5,418         191       3,106    2,915         81        1,022      941         -28        1,534    1,562
      June             823      6,253    5,430         312       3,197    2,885        191        1,136      945         320        1,920    1,600
      September        397      5,898    5,501         114       3,040    2,926         58        1,038      980         225        1,820    1,595
      December         882      6,258    5,376         247       3,179    2,932         98        1,075      977         537        2,004    1,467

2016  March            224      5,624    5,400         175       3,020    2,845         57        1,002      945          -8        1,602    1,610
      June             302      6,072    5,770          72       3,133    3,061        116        1,111      995         114        1,828    1,714
      September        681      6,223    5,542         133       3,106    2,973         84        1,082      998         464        2,035    1,571


(1) Total gross job gains and gross job losses by firm are lower
    than total gross job gains and gross job losses by establishment,
    as some establishment gains and losses within a firm are offset during the aggregation process.
(2) Net change is the difference between total gross job gains and total gross job losses.
(3) Net change totals for firm-level data shown differ from the establishment-level data
    due to independent seasonal adjustment of the series.
NOTE: See http://www.bls.gov/bdm/bdmfirmsize.htm for additional firm size class data.

Table 5. Components of private sector gross job gains and losses by firm size, seasonally adjusted

                                      Gross job gains and job losses      Gross job gains and job losses
                                           (in thousands)                   as a percent of employment

    Category                                 3 months ended                      3 months ended

                                   Sept.   Dec.    Mar.    June    Sept.  Sept.  Dec.   Mar.   June   Sept. 
                                   2015    2015    2016    2016    2016   2015   2015   2016   2016   2016
Total private by firm(1)

Gross job gains                   5,898   6,258   5,624   6,072   6,223    5.0    5.3    4.7    5.1    5.2
 At expanding firms               5,010   5,295   4,790   5,149   5,283    4.2    4.5    4.0    4.3    4.4
 At opening firms                   888     963     834     923     940     .8     .8     .7     .8     .8

Gross job losses                  5,501   5,376   5,400   5,770   5,542    4.7    4.5    4.5    4.8    4.6
 At contracting firms             4,675   4,528   4,579   4,842   4,692    4.0    3.8    3.8    4.0    3.9
 At closing firms                   826     848     821     928     850     .7     .7     .7     .8     .7

Net employment change               397     882     224     302     681     .3     .8     .2     .3     .6


Firm size 1 to 49 employees

Gross job gains                   3,040   3,179   3,020   3,133   3,106    9.2    9.5    9.0    9.3    9.3
 At expanding firms               2,191   2,265   2,218   2,253   2,208    6.6    6.8    6.6    6.7    6.6
 At opening firms                   849     914     802     880     898    2.6    2.7    2.4    2.6    2.7

Gross job losses                  2,926   2,932   2,845   3,061   2,973    8.8    8.8    8.4    9.1    8.8
 At contracting firms             2,139   2,123   2,057   2,175   2,157    6.4    6.4    6.1    6.5    6.4
 At closing firms                   787     809     788     886     816    2.4    2.4    2.3    2.6    2.4

Net employment change               114     247     175      72     133     .4     .7     .6     .2     .5


Firm size 50 to 249 employees

Gross job gains                   1,038   1,075   1,002   1,111   1,082    4.8    5.0    4.6    5.1    5.0
 At expanding firms               1,002   1,041     974   1,072   1,044    4.6    4.8    4.5    4.9    4.8
 At opening firms                    36      34      28      39      38     .2     .2     .1     .2     .2

Gross job losses                    980     977     945     995     998    4.5    4.6    4.3    4.6    4.6
 At contracting firms               952     943     917     962     969    4.4    4.4    4.2    4.4    4.5
 At closing firms                    28      34      28      33      29     .1     .2     .1     .2     .1

Net employment change                58      98      57     116      84     .3     .4     .3     .5     .4


Firm size 250 or more employees

Gross job gains                   1,820   2,004   1,602   1,828   2,035    2.9    3.1    2.5    2.8    3.1
 At expanding firms               1,817   1,989   1,598   1,824   2,031    2.9    3.1    2.5    2.8    3.1
 At opening firms                     3      15       4       4       4     .0     .0     .0     .0     .0

Gross job losses                  1,595   1,467   1,610   1,714   1,571    2.5    2.3    2.5    2.6    2.4
 At contracting firms             1,584   1,462   1,605   1,705   1,566    2.5    2.3    2.5    2.6    2.4
 At closing firms                    11       5       5       9       5     .0     .0     .0     .0     .0

Net employment change               225     537      -8     114     464     .4     .8     .0     .2     .7


(1) Total gross job gains and gross job losses by firm are lower
    than total gross job gains and gross job losses by establishment,
    as some establishment gains and losses within a firm are offset during the aggregation process.

Table 6.  Private sector gross job gains and losses by state, seasonally adjusted

                                         Gross job gains                                          Gross job losses
State                                    (3 months ended)                                         (3 months ended)
                        Sept.      Dec.       Mar.        June      Sept.      Sept.        Dec.       Mar.        June      Sept.
                        2015       2015       2016        2016      2016       2015         2015       2016        2016      2016

United States(1)...  7,338,000  7,843,000  6,977,000   7,463,000  7,650,000  6,911,000   6,842,000   6,783,000  7,156,000  6,962,000

Alabama.....            88,622     96,646     89,239      90,468     95,974     84,726      81,804      84,673     90,158     89,745
Alaska.....             23,091     24,329     23,755      26,030     22,411     26,099      26,571      24,612     29,972     27,596
Arizona.....           150,812    154,720    136,475     137,186    163,612    120,509     123,146     130,066    138,390    119,918
Arkansas.....           59,893     62,679     53,819      53,228     61,167     51,688      52,402      53,379     57,344     54,494
California.....        961,980  1,075,178    921,636     969,310    987,259    820,337     929,638     889,698    946,963    872,725
Colorado.....          146,856    147,332    140,016     148,006    153,349    134,443     134,691     130,052    138,701    135,109
Connecticut.....        72,563     77,156     74,339      77,489     74,208     83,562      70,694      70,865     75,829     75,109
Delaware.....           22,774     27,199     24,510      25,219     23,511     22,653      23,117      24,200     25,084     24,397
District of Columbia    30,577     31,569     26,719      29,684     31,411     27,128      23,562      28,186     31,218     28,869
Florida.....           484,767    510,696    439,847     460,188    537,172    410,423     412,905     410,669    428,183    416,981

Georgia.....           228,996    247,757    218,517     252,375    243,567    209,021     202,861     199,712    240,381    214,828
Hawaii.....             26,318     30,040     25,200      28,174     30,518     23,717      23,183      25,729     31,217     25,963
Idaho.....              43,304     43,766     46,359      40,993     44,973     38,689      38,441      35,558     40,443     40,480
Illinois.....          277,259    321,551    271,116     299,699    293,311    291,760     283,941     274,351    301,559    289,298
Indiana.....           140,328    158,633    141,057     137,024    149,640    136,850     126,844     136,213    134,813    132,940
Iowa.....               73,876     77,648     77,795      72,903     78,243     77,550      73,121      69,140     79,614     74,162
Kansas.....             63,692     70,502     64,980      63,336     70,015     64,622      62,764      66,896     70,605     63,173
Kentucky.....           94,081    103,547     88,881      96,696    104,901     87,585      83,693      90,733     91,777     97,403
Louisiana.....          99,727    106,451     96,609      94,903    105,759    100,776     103,367     105,846    111,231    102,408
Maine.....              33,041     43,068     40,502      39,055     33,573     35,925      35,516      34,636     34,077     37,485

Maryland.....          135,443    141,865    130,869     134,394    139,730    131,139     124,463     127,811    134,582    128,257
Massachusetts.....     163,806    176,932    158,738     181,391    173,891    167,776     156,781     152,250    158,315    166,349
Michigan.....          194,705    218,432    196,117     218,793    206,985    203,207     192,084     179,106    194,637    205,425
Minnesota.....         130,507    145,443    131,059     143,945    149,566    137,770     137,636     126,838    135,847    134,632
Mississippi.....        54,741     62,596     51,367      50,079     55,451     51,454      47,996      54,142     58,052     49,333
Missouri.....          131,354    145,011    131,177     133,514    132,069    126,763     121,021     124,222    128,070    125,311
Montana.....            27,896     31,491     29,163      29,552     28,143     28,117      26,762      26,815     32,061     28,704
Nebraska.....           48,003     49,121     47,050      45,488     51,210     45,106      44,211      44,379     48,210     47,154
Nevada.....             68,252     76,024     70,313      73,080     76,079     60,927      58,645      64,506     63,512     61,819
New Hampshire.....      33,637     37,269     33,406      36,483     35,989     35,115      31,119      32,615     33,058     35,405

New Jersey.....        211,844    227,731    198,701     220,836    210,721    205,236     197,598     198,223    195,999    197,194
New Mexico.....         40,870     43,231     39,261      40,168     42,559     40,917      42,850      39,633     41,720     38,728
New York.....          479,956    492,245    469,294     484,162    488,741    461,323     445,177     442,368    451,921    457,571
North Carolina.....    217,286    232,642    213,396     221,808    219,357    197,780     192,138     195,124    206,971    206,445
North Dakota.....       25,567     24,038     23,501      23,222     27,858     30,767      28,948      31,279     31,169     24,555
Ohio.....              249,218    274,448    251,839     257,809    260,780    255,390     236,802     234,642    260,094    258,978
Oklahoma.....           76,416     79,854     72,627      71,683     78,448     77,755      81,960      80,611     84,340     74,654
Oregon.....            105,022    106,625    106,558     104,631    105,869     96,128      93,530      88,983    100,510     98,653
Pennsylvania.....      266,576    288,170    271,355     267,682    285,600    266,221     258,949     264,903    272,140    258,787
Rhode Island.....       24,083     27,173     24,014      25,497     23,215     23,788      23,455      24,234     25,797     24,839

South Carolina.....     98,740    115,442     98,841     103,090    104,132     94,015      85,611      95,873     96,435     93,785
South Dakota.....       20,438     22,966     21,499      21,895     22,031     21,045      20,376      21,188     21,613     21,592
Tennessee.....         139,965    153,086    130,023     140,634    146,834    124,699     116,059     125,798    131,687    128,999
Texas.....             587,566    600,731    460,303     617,972    615,542    549,814     543,729     543,545    531,640    537,088
Utah.....               78,739     81,519     84,042      78,366     86,072     67,620      68,467      68,450     73,446     75,466
Vermont.....            17,668     18,140     16,825      18,741     18,293     19,407      16,671      17,717     18,300     18,753
Virginia.....          213,437    195,967    181,750     196,598    187,117    178,417     172,197     182,918    185,928    188,363
Washington.....        174,162    177,055    187,946     192,605    177,742    176,404     159,981     148,670    154,150    169,322
West Virginia.....      32,589     36,337     32,562      31,986     35,381     37,564      35,335      37,995     37,599     35,652
Wisconsin.....         133,980    145,150    136,563     137,744    133,492    134,844     126,012     126,353    139,248    134,073

Wyoming.....            17,885     19,048     16,868      15,896     16,789     19,549      19,747      19,826     21,419     17,993
Puerto Rico.....        40,437     42,057     38,292      37,884     39,108     42,986      38,537      40,072     38,038     38,260
Virgin Islands.....      1,643      1,979      1,549       1,746      1,712      1,980       1,451       1,469      1,602      1,794

The sum of the states will not necessarily add to the U.S. total because of the independent seasonal adjustment of each state.
(1) Totals for the United States do not include data for Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands.

Table 7.  Private sector gross job gains and losses as a percent of total employment by state, seasonally adjusted

                        Gross job gains as a percent of employment    Gross job losses as a percent of employment
State                              (3 months ended)                               (3 months ended)

                        Sept.   Dec.     Mar.     June    Sept.       Sept.    Dec.      Mar.    June     Sept.
                        2015    2015     2016     2016    2016        2015     2015      2016    2016     2016

United States(1)...      6.3     6.6      5.8      6.2     6.4         5.8      5.8       5.7      6.0     5.8

Alabama.....             5.8     6.2      5.8      5.8     6.2         5.5      5.3       5.4      5.8     5.7
Alaska.....              9.1     9.6      9.4     10.3     9.0        10.3     10.5       9.7     11.9    11.1
Arizona.....             6.8     6.9      6.0      6.1     7.1         5.4      5.4       5.7      6.1     5.2
Arkansas.....            6.1     6.3      5.4      5.4     6.2         5.3      5.3       5.3      5.8     5.4
California.....          6.9     7.6      6.5      6.8     6.9         5.9      6.7       6.3      6.7     6.1
Colorado.....            7.0     7.0      6.6      6.9     7.1         6.4      6.4       6.1      6.5     6.2
Connecticut.....         5.1     5.5      5.2      5.4     5.2         5.9      4.9       5.0      5.3     5.3
Delaware.....            6.1     7.3      6.5      6.7     6.3         6.1      6.2       6.4      6.6     6.5
District of Columbia..   6.1     6.2      5.2      5.8     6.2         5.4      4.6       5.6      6.1     5.7
Florida.....             6.9     7.2      6.1      6.4     7.4         5.8      5.8       5.8      5.9     5.7

Georgia.....             6.5     6.9      6.1      7.0     6.7         5.9      5.7       5.6      6.6     5.9
Hawaii.....              5.1     5.8      4.9      5.4     5.8         4.6      4.4       4.9      6.0     5.0
Idaho.....               7.8     7.9      8.2      7.1     7.9         7.0      6.9       6.3      7.1     7.1
Illinois.....            5.4     6.4      5.3      5.9     5.7         5.8      5.6       5.4      5.9     5.7
Indiana.....             5.5     6.2      5.5      5.2     5.8         5.3      4.9       5.3      5.2     5.1
Iowa.....                5.7     6.0      6.0      5.6     6.0         6.0      5.7       5.3      6.1     5.8
Kansas.....              5.7     6.2      5.8      5.6     6.2         5.8      5.6       5.9      6.3     5.6
Kentucky.....            6.1     6.7      5.7      6.2     6.7         5.7      5.4       5.8      5.8     6.2
Louisiana.....           6.2     6.5      6.0      5.9     6.6         6.2      6.4       6.6      6.9     6.5
Maine.....               6.6     8.6      8.0      7.7     6.7         7.1      7.1       6.9      6.7     7.4

Maryland.....            6.5     6.8      6.2      6.3     6.5         6.2      5.9       6.0      6.3     6.0
Massachusetts.....       5.4     5.9      5.2      6.0     5.7         5.6      5.2       5.0      5.2     5.5
Michigan.....            5.4     6.1      5.4      5.9     5.6         5.6      5.3       4.9      5.3     5.6
Minnesota.....           5.4     6.1      5.4      5.9     6.1         5.8      5.7       5.2      5.6     5.6
Mississippi.....         6.2     7.1      5.7      5.7     6.3         5.9      5.4       6.1      6.5     5.6
Missouri.....            5.7     6.3      5.7      5.7     5.7         5.5      5.3       5.3      5.4     5.4
Montana.....             7.6     8.5      7.8      7.9     7.6         7.7      7.3       7.2      8.6     7.8
Nebraska.....            6.0     6.1      5.8      5.7     6.4         5.6      5.5       5.5      6.0     5.9
Nevada.....              6.2     6.8      6.3      6.5     6.7         5.6      5.3       5.7      5.6     5.5
New Hampshire.....       6.1     6.7      6.0      6.5     6.4         6.4      5.6       5.8      5.9     6.3

New Jersey.....          6.3     6.7      5.9      6.5     6.3         6.2      5.9       5.9      5.8     5.8
New Mexico.....          6.5     7.0      6.2      6.5     6.8         6.6      6.9       6.3      6.7     6.2
New York.....            6.3     6.4      6.1      6.2     6.3         6.0      5.7       5.7      5.8     5.9
North Carolina.....      6.3     6.7      6.0      6.3     6.1         5.7      5.5       5.6      5.8     5.8
North Dakota.....        7.1     6.7      6.6      6.8     8.1         8.5      8.1       8.9      9.0     7.1
Ohio.....                5.5     6.0      5.4      5.6     5.6         5.6      5.1       5.1      5.6     5.6
Oklahoma.....            6.1     6.3      5.7      5.8     6.3         6.1      6.5       6.4      6.8     6.0
Oregon.....              7.0     7.0      7.0      6.7     6.9         6.4      6.2       5.8      6.5     6.4
Pennsylvania.....        5.3     5.7      5.4      5.3     5.7         5.3      5.1       5.2      5.4     5.1
Rhode Island.....        5.8     6.6      5.8      6.2     5.6         5.8      5.7       5.9      6.2     6.0

South Carolina.....      6.1     7.1      6.1      6.3     6.3         5.8      5.3       5.8      5.8     5.7
South Dakota.....        5.9     6.7      6.2      6.4     6.4         6.1      5.9       6.1      6.2     6.2
Tennessee.....           5.8     6.3      5.2      5.7     5.9         5.1      4.8       5.1      5.3     5.2
Texas.....               5.9     6.1      4.7      6.3     6.2         5.5      5.5       5.5      5.4     5.4
Utah.....                7.0     7.2      7.3      6.7     7.4         6.0      6.0       5.9      6.4     6.5
Vermont.....             6.9     7.2      6.6      7.4     7.2         7.7      6.5       6.9      7.2     7.4
Virginia.....            7.1     6.4      5.9      6.4     6.0         5.8      5.6       5.9      6.0     6.1
Washington.....          6.7     6.8      7.1      7.2     6.7         6.8      6.2       5.6      5.8     6.4
West Virginia.....       5.8     6.6      5.9      5.8     6.6         6.7      6.3       6.9      6.9     6.6
Wisconsin.....           5.6     6.0      5.6      5.7     5.5         5.6      5.2       5.2      5.7     5.5

Wyoming.....             8.5     9.0      7.9      7.7     8.3         9.2      9.3       9.4     10.4     8.9
Puerto Rico.....         5.9     6.3      5.7      5.6     5.8         6.3      5.7       6.0      5.6     5.7
Virgin Islands.....      6.0     7.3      5.7      6.3     6.2         7.3      5.3       5.4      5.8     6.5

(1) Totals for the United States do not include data for Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands.

Table 8.  Private sector establishment births and deaths, seasonally adjusted

Total private

(Levels in thousands)

                              Number of Establishments                     Employment
                             Births             Deaths(1)            Births             Deaths
Year  3 months ended     Level    Rate(2)   Level    Rate       Level      Rate    Level      Rate

2006  March               236      3.3       195     2.8          949        .8      767        .7
      June                233      3.3       206     2.9          987        .9      850        .8
      September           224      3.1       210     2.9          934        .8      843        .7
      December            236      3.3       207     2.9          976        .9      812        .7
  
2007  March               232      3.2       205     2.8          918        .8      787        .7
      June                225      3.1       215     3.0          898        .8      859        .8
      September           233      3.2       216     3.0          952        .8      845        .7
      December            228      3.1       218     3.0          922        .8      836        .7
  
2008  March               226      3.1       224     3.1          919        .8      832        .7
      June                221      3.0       238     3.3          876        .8      913        .8
      September           216      3.0       233     3.2          849        .8      881        .8
      December            211      2.9       253     3.5          819        .7      951        .9
  
2009  March               197      2.7       247     3.4          738        .7      869        .8
      June                201      2.8       238     3.3          767        .7      837        .8
      September           192      2.7       227     3.2          725        .7      793        .7
      December            202      2.8       218     3.1          728        .7      749        .7
  
2010  March               193      2.7       211     3.0          706        .7      687        .7
      June                193      2.7       202     2.9          730        .7      665        .6
      September           207      2.9       204     2.9          754        .7      701        .7
      December            216      3.0       201     2.8          805        .8      700        .7
  
2011  March               204      2.9       200     2.8          715        .7      632        .6
      June                210      2.9       205     2.9          767        .7      689        .6
      September           206      2.9       196     2.7          794        .7      675        .6
      December            214      3.0       198     2.8          800        .7      700        .6
  
2012  March               236      3.3       186     2.6          784        .7      614        .6
      June                216      3.0       195     2.7          799        .7      676        .6
      September           210      2.9       197     2.7          805        .7      693        .6
      December            218      3.0       183     2.5          809        .7      673        .6
  
2013  March               204      2.8       192     2.6          745        .7      645        .6
      June                222      3.0       215     2.9          790        .7      695        .6
      September           219      2.9       195     2.6          822        .7      678        .6
      December            216      2.9       187     2.5          806        .7      673        .6
  
2014  March               220      2.9       188     2.5          780        .7      629        .6
      June                220      2.9       205     2.7          806        .7      718        .6
      September           225      3.0       200     2.6          829        .7      705        .6
      December            223      2.9       197     2.6          838        .7      709        .6
  
2015  March               234      3.1       206     2.7          813        .7      690        .6
      June                234      3.1       213     2.8          839        .7      735        .6
      September           242      3.1       207     2.7          882        .7      704        .6
      December            246      3.2       208     2.7          895        .8      733        .6
  
2016  March               220      2.8       N/A     N/A          734        .6      N/A       N/A
      June                252      3.2       N/A     N/A          889        .7      N/A       N/A
      September           238      3.0       N/A     N/A          866        .7      N/A       N/A

(1) Values for deaths are not available for the most recent three quarters
    by definition.  See the Technical Note for more information.

(2) The rates measure births and deaths as a percentage
    of the average of the previous and current quarter employment levels or
    total number of establishments.

Last Modified Date: April 26, 2017