Employment decreased 1.0 percent in West Virginia’s only large county, Kanawha, from September 2012 to September 2013, 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 2012 annual average employment.) Nationally, employment increased 1.7 percent, as 286 of the 334 largest U.S. counties gained jobs. Sheila Watkins, the Bureau’s regional commissioner, noted that Kanawha County was in the bottom 10th of the large counties for employment growth, ranking 322nd.

Across the nation, Fort Bend, Texas, posted the largest percentage increase in employment with a gain of 6.0 percent over the year. Peoria, Ill., experienced the largest over-the-year decrease in employment among the largest U.S. counties with a loss of 3.7 percent.

Employment in Kanawha County stood at 104,000 in September 2013 and accounted for 14.6 percent of West Virginia’s total employment. Nationwide, the 334 largest counties made up 71.4 percent of total U.S. employment.

The average weekly wage in Kanawha County increased 1.8 percent from the third quarter of 2012 to the third quarter of 2013. Kanawha County placed near the middle of the national ranking for wage growth (146th) and close to the national average weekly wage increase of 1.9 percent.

Among the 334 largest counties nationwide, 291 recorded growth in average weekly wages. San Mateo, Calif., led the nation with a wage increase of 9.9 percent from the third quarter of 2012. Dane, Wis., had the second largest increase, 9.3 percent, followed by Collier, Fla., at 8.0 percent. Of the 334 largest counties, 40 experienced declines in average weekly wages. Pinellas, Fla., had the largest over-the-year wage decline with a loss of 4.3 percent. Rockland, N.Y., had the second largest decrease at 4.1 percent.

Kanawha County had an average weekly wage of $804—$118 below the national average of $922 in the third quarter of 2013. Among the 232 counties with average weekly wages below the national average, Horry, S.C. ($564) reported the lowest wage, followed by the counties of Cameron, Texas ($587) and Hidalgo, Texas ($595).

Average weekly wages were higher than the national average in 101 of the 334 largest U.S. counties. Santa Clara, Calif., held the top position among the highest-paid large counties with an average weekly wage of $1,868. San Mateo, Calif., was second with an average weekly wage of $1,698 followed by New York, N.Y. ($1,667); Washington, D.C. ($1,560); and San Francisco, Calif. ($1,549). (See table 1.)

Average weekly wages in West Virginia's smaller counties

Employment and wage levels (but not over-the-year changes) are also available for the 54 counties in West Virginia with employment below 75,000. Average weekly wages in all 54 counties were below the national average of $922. Among the smaller counties, Marshall County posted the highest average weekly wage in the state ($892). The lowest weekly wage was in Wirt County, at $452. (See table 2.)

When all 55 counties were considered, 11 had wages of $600 or less, and 19 had wages from $601 to $700. Another 15 counties had wages from $701 to $800 and 10 counties had wages greater than $800. (See chart 1.)

 

Additional statistics and other information

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

An annual bulletin, Employment and Wages Annual Averages Online, features comprehensive information by detailed industry on establishments, employment, and wages for the nation and all states. The 2012 edition of this bulletin, which was published in September 2013, contains selected data produced by Business Employment Dynamics (BED) on job gains and losses, as well as selected data from the first quarter 2012 version of the national news release. Tables and additional content from Employment and Wages Annual Averages 2012 are now available online at www.bls.gov/cew/publications/employment-and-wages-annual-averages/2012/home.htm. The 2013 edition of Employment and Wages Annual Averages will be available in September 2014.

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

Technical Note

Average weekly wage data by county are compiled under the Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW) program, also known as the ES-202 program. The data are derived from summaries of employment and total pay of workers covered by state and federal unemployment insurance (UI) legislation and provided by State Workforce Agencies (SWAs). The 9.3 million employer reports cover 135.0 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 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.