Eight of the 12 largest counties in Virginia registered employment increases from March 2013 to March 2014, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. (Large counties are defined as those with employment of 75,000 or more as measured by 2013 annual average employment.) Chesterfield County had the fastest employment increase at 2.0 percent, followed by Loudoun County at 1.5 percent. Sheila Watkins, the Bureau’s regional commissioner, noted that Chesterfield’s and Loudoun’s employment growth rates were in the upper half of the nation’s 339 largest counties. Arlington and Fairfax Counties along with Alexandria and Norfolk cities recorded the only employment declines among Virginia’s large counties

Nationally, employment grew 1.7 percent during this 12-month period, as 281 of the 339 large counties nationwide gained jobs. Weld, Colo., experienced the largest percentage increase in employment, up 7.5 percent over the year. Peoria, Ill., had the largest employment decrease with a loss of 2.6 percent.

Among the 12 largest counties in Virginia, employment was highest in Fairfax County (576,400) in March 2014. No other county in the Commonwealth had employment above 200,000. Together, Virginia’s large counties accounted for 56.4 percent of total employment within the Commonwealth. Nationwide, the 339 largest counties made up 72.0 percent of total U.S. employment.

The average weekly wage in Henrico County, Va., rose 6.2 percent from the first quarter of 2013 to the first quarter of 2014, the fastest increase among Virginia’s 12 largest counties, ranking 18th nationwide. Alexandria City had the second-highest rate of wage growth at 5.3 percent. Arlington County had the highest average weekly wage among the largest counties in the Commonwealth at $1,669, followed by Fairfax County ($1,580) and Alexandria City ($1,368). (See table 1.) Nationally, the average weekly wage rose 3.8 percent over the year to $1,027 in the first quarter of 2014.

Employment and wage levels (but not over-the-year changes) are also available for the 122 counties in Virginia with employment below 75,000. All but 5 (Goochland, Surry, King George, Falls Church City, and Manassas City) of these 122 counties had average weekly wages below the national average. (See table 2.)

Large county wage changes

From the first quarter of 2013 to the first quarter of 2014, 10 of the 12 large counties in Virginia recorded wage increases. Three of these counties, led by Henrico County (6.2 percent), recorded wage gains greater than the national increase of 3.8 percent. Seven other counties recorded increases in average weekly wages ranging from 3.7 to 1.2 percent. Cheasapeake City had a 0.7-percent decrease from the first quarter of 2013, while wages in Prince William County were almost unchanged, declining 0.1 percent.

Of the 339 largest counties nationwide, 323 had over-the-year increases in average weekly wages. Chester, Pa., led the nation in average weekly wage growth with an increase of 13.9 percent from the first quarter of 2013. New York, N.Y., was second with a gain of 12.0 percent, followed by San Mateo, Calif., and Forsyth, N.C., each at 9.6 percent.

Nationwide, 15 large counties recorded decreases in average weekly wages over the year. Benton, Ark., had the largest decrease in wages with a decline of 3.2 percent from the first quarter of 2013. Cumberland, N.C., had the second largest decrease in average weekly wages (-2.0 percent), followed by Dutchess, N.Y. (-1.6 percent); Ocean, N.J. (-1.3 percent); and McLean, Ill. (-1.0 percent).

Large county average weekly wages

Arlington County had the ninth highest average weekly wage among the 339 large U.S. counties. Five other large counties in Virginia—Fairfax, Alexandria City, Loudoun, Richmond City, and Henrico—also had average wages greater than $1,000, placing them in the top fifth of all large counties. These six counties were the only large counties in Virginia to record wages above the national average.

In Virginia Beach City and Chesapeake City, average weekly wages placed in the bottom fifth of the national ranking at 297th and 303rd, respectively.

Average weekly wages in Virginia’s smaller counties

All but 5 of the 122 counties in Virginia with employment below 75,000 had average weekly wages lower than the national average of $1,027. Highland County reported the lowest wage level at $480. The highest wage among Virginia’s 122 small counties was Goochland County’s $1,902, followed by Surry County’s $1,545 and King George County’s $1,504. (See table 2.)

When all 134 counties in Virginia were considered, 123 had wages below the national average of $1,027. One county—Highland—reported  average weekly wages below $500, 69 reported wages from $501 to $700, 41 had wages from $701 to $900, 12 had wages from $901 to $1,100, and 11 had wages above $1,101. Of the 11 counties with above-average wages, 6 were concentrated in the metropolitan area of Washington, D.C., and 3 were located in the Richmond area.

Additional statistics and other information

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

Employment and Wages Annual Averages Online features comprehensive information by detailed industry on establishments, employment, and wages for the nation and all states. The 2012 edition of this publication, which is now available, contains selected data produced by Business Employment Dynamics (BED) on job gains and losses, as well data through the first quarter 2013 version of the national news release and the 2012 annual averages. Tables and additional content from the Employment and Wages Annual 2012 are now available online at www.bls.gov/cew/publications/employment-and-wages-annual-averages/2012/home.htm

Information in this release will be made available to sensory impaired individuals upon request. Voice phone: 202-691-5200; TDD message referral phone number: 1-800-877-8339.

Technical Note

Average weekly wage data by county are compiled under the Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW) program, also known as the ES-202 program. The data are derived from summaries of employment and total pay of workers covered by state and federal unemployment insurance (UI) legislation and provided by State Workforce Agencies (SWAs). The 9.4 million employer reports cover 134.6 million full- and part-time workers. The average weekly wage values are calculated by dividing quarterly total wages by the average of the three monthly employment levels of those covered by UI programs. The result is then divided by 13, the number of weeks in a quarter. It is to be noted, therefore, that over-the-year wage changes for geographic areas may reflect shifts in the composition of employment by industry, occupation, and such other factors as hours of work. Thus, wages may vary among counties, metropolitan areas, or states for reasons other than changes in the average wage level. Data for all states, Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs), counties, and the nation are available on the BLS Web site at www.bls.gov/cew/; however, data in QCEW press releases have been revised and may not match the data contained on the Bureau’s Web site.

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

The preliminary QCEW data presented in this release may differ from data released by the individual states as well as from the data presented on the BLS Web site. These potential differences result from the states’ continuing receipt, review and editing of UI data over time. On the other hand, differences between data in this release and the data found on the BLS Web site are the result of adjustments made to improve over-the-year comparisons. Specifically, these adjustments account for administrative (noneconomic) changes such as a correction to a previously reported location or industry classification. Adjusting for these administrative changes allows users to more accurately assess changes of an economic nature (such as a firm moving from one county to another or changing its primary economic activity) over a 12-month period. Currently, adjusted data are available only from BLS press releases.