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For release 10:00 a.m. (ET) Wednesday, February 19, 2025 USDL-25-0224 Technical information: (202) 691-6567 * QCEWInfo@bls.gov * www.bls.gov/cew Media contact: (202) 691-5902 * PressOffice@bls.gov COUNTY EMPLOYMENT AND WAGES - THIRD QUARTER 2024 From September 2023 to September 2024, employment increased in 264 of the 369 largest U.S. counties, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. In September 2024, national employment increased to 155.4 million, a 0.8-percent increase over the year, as measured by the Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW) program. Kings, NY, had the largest over-the-year increase in employment, with a gain of 4.9 percent. Employment data in this release are presented for September 2024, and average weekly wage data are presented for third quarter 2024. __________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Resumption of Publication of Colorado Employment and Wage Data On November 20, 2024, the Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW) suspended publication of industry and substate data for Colorado due to data quality concerns. These quality concerns were due to ongoing issues with the modernization of the state’s unemployment insurance (UI) system. The quality concerns with Colorado data have been sufficiently addressed to resume publication. Effective with this release, QCEW is resuming publication of substate and industry employment and wage data for Colorado. For more information, see www.bls.gov/cew/ notices/2025/resumption-of-publication-of-colorado-employment-and-wage-data.htm. __________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Among the 369 largest counties, 363 had over-the-year increases in average weekly wages. In the third quarter of 2024, average weekly wages for the nation increased to $1,394, a 4.5-percent increase over the year. Benton, AR, had the largest third quarter over-the-year wage gain at 15.5 percent. (See table 1.) Large County Employment in September 2024 Kings, NY, had the largest over-the-year percentage increase in employment (+4.9 percent). Within Kings, the largest employment increase occurred in education and health services, which rose by 40,483 (+11.1 percent). Elkhart, IN, had the largest over-the-year percentage decrease in employment (-2.7 percent). Within Elkhart, the largest employment decrease occurred in manufacturing, which fell by 2,668 (-4.2 percent). Large County Average Weekly Wage in Third Quarter 2024 Benton, AR, had the largest over-the-year percentage increase in average weekly wages (+15.5 percent). Within Benton, an average weekly wage gain of $615 (+28.9 percent) in professional and business services made the largest contribution to the county's increase in average weekly wages. Weld, CO, had the largest over-the-year percentage decrease in average weekly wages (-1.3 percent). Within Weld, an average weekly wage loss of $722 (-30.2 percent) in natural resources and mining made the largest contribution to the county's decrease in average weekly wages. Ten Largest Counties Eight of the 10 largest counties had over-the-year percentage increases in employment. In September 2024, Miami-Dade, FL, had the largest over-the-year employment percentage gain (+1.7 percent). Within Miami-Dade, education and health services had the largest employment increase, with a gain of 5,228 (+2.5 percent). (See table 2.) All of the 10 largest counties had over-the-year percentage increases in average weekly wages. In the third quarter of 2024, King, WA, experienced the largest over-the-year percentage gain in average weekly wages (+6.4 percent). Within King, information had the largest impact, with an average weekly wage increase of $903 (+14.4 percent). For More Information The tables included in this release contain data for the nation and for the 369 U.S. counties with annual average employment levels of 75,000 or more in 2023. September 2024 employment and third quarter 2024 average weekly wages for all states are provided in table 3 of this release. Over-the-year changes of employment and wages presented in this news release are adjusted and may differ from unadjusted data used in BLS data tools and interactive charts. More information is available in the QCEW Technical Note at www.bls.gov/cew/news-release-technical-note.htm. QCEW reporting rates tables are available at www.bls.gov/cew/reporting-rates/. The most current news release on quarterly measures of gross job flows is available from QCEW Business Employment Dynamics at www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/cewbd.pdf. Several BLS regional offices issue QCEW news releases targeted to local data users. Links to these releases are available at www.bls.gov/cew/regional-resources.htm. QCEW data are available in the Census Business Builder suite of web tools assisting business owners and regional analysts in data-driven decision making at www.census.gov/data/data-tools/cbb.html. The QCEW news release schedule is available at www.bls.gov/cew/release-calendar.htm. If you are deaf, hard of hearing, or have a speech disability, please dial 7-1-1 to access telecommunications relay services. ____________ The County Employment and Wages full data update for third quarter 2024 is scheduled to be released on Wednesday, March 5, 2025, at 10:00 a.m. (ET). The County Employment and Wages news release for fourth quarter 2024 is scheduled to be released on Wednesday, May 21, 2025, at 10:00 a.m. (ET).