Wages grew in 13 of the 15 largest counties in New Jersey from the fourth quarter of 2013 to the fourth quarter of 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.) Atlantic County posted the largest increase, with a gain of 7.0 percent, followed by Union County, up 4.5 percent. (See chart 1 and table 1.) Chief Regional Economist Martin Kohli noted that Atlantic County’s wage increase ranked 11^th among the 339 largest counties nationwide.

Ten of New Jersey’s large counties reported average weekly wages above the $1,035 national average in the fourth quarter of 2014. Average weekly wages in Somerset and Morris Counties exceeded $1,500.

The largest employment gain among New Jersey’s largest counties was in Mercer, up 3.7 percent. Nationally, employment grew by 2.2 percent from December 2013 to December 2014. (See chart 2.)

Employment and wage levels (but not over-the-year changes) are also available for the six counties in New Jersey with employment below 75,000. Two of these counties had average weekly wages above the U.S. average of $1,035. Cape May County reported the lowest average weekly wage, $742. (See table 2.)

Large County Wage Changes

In addition to Atlantic County’s 7.0-percent wage gain, four other counties in the state—Union, Bergen, Hudson, and Somerset—posted over-the-year wage gains above the 3.5 percent national average. Wage gains ranged from 2.4 to 0.2 percent in eight additional counties. Conversely, two New Jersey counties experienced over-the-year wage losses. Morris County’s 2.9-percent loss ranked 337^th and Camden’s 0.8-percent decline ranked 334^th nationwide.

Among the 339 largest U.S. counties, 332 recorded gains in average weekly wages. Benton, Ark., had the largest wage increase (9.9 percent). In contrast, seven counties nationwide experienced over-the-year decreases in average weekly wages. San Mateo, Calif., had the largest over-the-year wage decline (-20.4 percent).

Large County Average Weekly Wages

As noted, 10 of New Jersey’s large counties reported average weekly wages above the national average. The state’s three highest-paying counties—Somerset, Morris, and Union—ranked among the nation’s top 20. Ocean County reported average weekly wages of $845, the lowest of all New Jersey’s large counties, ranking it in the bottom quartile nationally at 278^th.

Nationally, 95 large counties registered average weekly wages above the U.S. average of $1,035 in the fourth quarter of 2014. San Mateo, Calif., held the top position with an average weekly wage of $2,166. New York, N.Y., was second at $2,138, followed by Santa Clara, Calif. ($2,114).

Among the 244 counties with an average weekly wage below the U.S. average in the fourth quarter 2014, Horry County, S.C., reported the lowest average weekly wage ($610), followed by the Texas counties of Cameron ($621) and Hidalgo ($641).

Large County Employment

Employment grew in 13 of the 15 largest counties in New Jersey from December 2013 to December 2014. Mercer (3.7 percent), Monmouth (2.5 percent), and Gloucester (2.3 percent) were the only large counties in New Jersey to post increases above the national job growth rate of 2.2 percent. Somerset County’s employment growth matched the national rate. Atlantic (-5.0 percent) and Passaic (-0.5 percent) Counties experienced over-the-year employment losses.

Nationally, employment grew in 319 of the 339 large U.S. counties. Weld, Colo., and Midland, Texas, posted the largest percentage increases in employment with gains of 8.0 percent each over the year. The 5.0-percent decline in Atlantic, N.J., was the largest over-the-year employment decrease nationwide.

In New Jersey, employment was highest in Bergen (448,400), followed by Middlesex (401,600), and Essex (338,700). Altogether, New Jersey’s large counties accounted for 90.9 percent of total employment within the state. Nationwide, the 339 largest counties made up 72.1 percent of total U.S. employment.

Average Weekly Wages in New Jersey's Smaller Counties

Two of New Jersey’s six counties with employment below 75,000 had average weekly wages above the national average—Hunterdon ($1,187) and Salem ($1,140).(See table 2.)

When all 21 counties in New Jersey were considered, 9 had an average weekly above $1,150. All of these counties were clustered in northern and central New Jersey. Counties with average weekly wages below $850 were located in the southeastern part of the state.(See chart 3.)

Additional Statistics and Other Information

QCEW data for states has 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 2013 edition of this publication contains selected data produced by Business Employment Dynamics (BED) on job gains and losses, as well as selected data from the first quarter 2014 version of the national news release. Tables and additional content from Employment and Wages Annual Averages 2013 are now available online at www.bls.gov/cew/publications/employment-and-wages-annual-averages/2013/home.htm. The 2014 edition of Employment and Wages Annual Averages Online will be available in September 2015.

The County Employment and Wages release for first quarter 2015 is scheduled to be released on Thursday, September 17, 2015, at 10:00 a.m. (ET).

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 9.5 million employer reports cover 139.2 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.

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

Table 1. Covered employment and wages in the United States and the 15 largest counties in New Jersey, fourth quarter 2014

Area	Employment			Average weekly wage (1)
	December 2014 (thousands)	Percent change, December 2013-14 (2)	National ranking by percent change (3)	Average weekly wage	National ranking by level (3)	Percent change, fourth quarter 2013-14 (2)	National ranking by percent change (3)
United States (4)	139,204.8	2.2	--	$1,035	--	3.5	--
New Jersey	3,933.6	1.3	--	1,211	5	2.0	49
Atlantic, N.J.	124.1	-5.0	339	872	241	7.0	11
Bergen, N.J.	448.4	0.7	272	1,291	26	4.2	99
Burlington, N.J.	200.8	0.6	284	1,060	83	2.4	258
Camden, N.J.	200.7	1.1	236	1,017	114	-0.8	334
Essex, N.J.	338.7	0.4	297	1,234	36	0.2	331
Gloucester, N.J.	103.1	2.3	130	909	202	1.5	306
Hudson, N.J.	244.1	1.7	183	1,335	22	3.9	125
Mercer, N.J.	243.8	3.7	51	1,306	25	1.1	315
Middlesex, N.J.	401.6	1.0	249	1,217	42	2.4	258
Monmouth, N.J.	252.1	2.5	118	1,053	85	1.7	303
Morris, N.J.	284.6	0.2	311	1,512	11	-2.9	337
Ocean, N.J.	157.6	2.0	158	845	266	2.1	278
Passaic, N.J.	170.6	-0.5	330	1,016	115	2.4	258
Somerset, N.J.	183.4	2.2	140	1,543	10	3.6	157
Union, N.J.	223.5	0.5	291	1,341	19	4.5	73
Footnotes: (1) Average weekly wages were calculated using unrounded data. (2) Percent changes were computed from quarterly employment and pay data adjusted for noneconomic county reclassifications. (3) Ranking does not include data for Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands. (4) Totals for the United States do not include data for Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands.
Note: Data are preliminary. Covered employment and wages includes workers covered by Unemployment Insurance (UI) and Unemployment Compensation for Federal Employees (UCFE) programs.

Table 2. Covered employment and wages in the United States and all counties in New Jersey, 4th quarter 2014

Area	Employment December 2014 (thousands)	Average weekly wage(1)
United States (2)	139,204.8	$1,035
New Jersey	3,933.6	1,211
Atlantic	124.1	872
Bergen	448.4	1,291
Burlington	200.8	1,060
Camden	200.7	1,017
Cape May	35.4	742
Cumberland	58.8	878
Essex	338.7	1,234
Gloucester	103.1	909
Hudson	244.1	1,335
Hunterdon	47.5	1,187
Mercer	243.8	1,306
Middlesex	401.6	1,217
Monmouth	252.1	1,053
Morris	284.6	1,512
Ocean	157.6	845
Passaic	170.6	1,016
Salem	20.4	1,140
Somerset	183.4	1,543
Sussex	38.3	880
Union	223.5	1,341
Warren	34.1	947
Footnotes: (1) Average weekly wages were calculated using unrounded data. (2) Totals for the United States do not include data for Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands.

Table 3. Covered employment and wages by state, fourth quarter 2014

Area	Employment		Average weekly wage (1)
	December 2014 (thousands)	Percent change, December 2013-14 (2)	Average weekly wage	National ranking by level	Percent change, fourth quarter 2013-14 (2)	National ranking by percent change
United States (2)	139,204.8	2.2	$1,035	--	3.5	--
Alabama	1,891.4	1.3	881	35	3.5	31
Alaska	317.6	0.8	1,063	13	4.0	20
Arizona	2,630.8	2.2	926	25	2.3	47
Arkansas	1,180.5	2.2	807	47	4.5	5
California	16,068.5	2.6	1,209	6	2.9	41
Colorado	2,478.0	3.9	1,066	12	4.1	17
Connecticut	1,681.2	1.2	1,278	4	2.7	45
Delaware	433.0	2.9	1,049	16	1.5	51
District of Columbia	736.9	0.9	1,696	1	3.7	28
Florida	8,009.6	3.5	911	28	3.1	40
Georgia	4,131.9	3.7	958	21	3.8	25
Hawaii	638.3	0.7	908	29	4.2	15
Idaho	650.7	2.5	782	50	4.0	20
Illinois	5,844.1	1.4	1,089	8	2.8	42
Indiana	2,946.5	1.7	846	41	3.9	22
Iowa	1,527.6	1.1	870	38	4.3	11
Kansas	1,377.2	1.3	855	39	2.6	46
Kentucky	1,852.2	1.8	836	43	4.1	17
Louisiana	1,954.0	2.1	923	26	3.8	25
Maine	592.7	0.9	826	44	5.1	4
Maryland	2,590.3	1.3	1,113	7	3.5	31
Massachusetts	3,415.6	2.2	1,315	3	4.5	5
Michigan	4,158.9	2.1	984	20	3.3	37
Minnesota	2,762.9	1.4	1,024	17	3.6	30
Mississippi	1,118.6	1.0	747	51	2.3	47
Missouri	2,709.8	1.5	891	32	3.4	34
Montana	442.2	0.5	794	48	4.5	5
Nebraska	958.1	1.4	837	42	5.2	3
Nevada	1,229.6	4.2	899	30	1.6	50
New Hampshire	638.0	1.4	1,081	10	6.3	2
New Jersey	3,933.6	1.3	1,211	5	2.0	49
New Mexico	808.4	1.3	850	40	4.4	10
New York	9,067.6	2.0	1,321	2	4.3	11
North Carolina	4,141.8	2.4	890	33	3.4	34
North Dakota	454.8	4.5	1,050	15	7.1	1
Ohio	5,264.3	1.6	922	27	3.9	22
Oklahoma	1,614.3	2.1	876	36	2.8	42
Oregon	1,755.4	3.2	928	23	3.8	25
Pennsylvania	5,716.5	1.2	1,013	18	3.7	28
Rhode Island	471.5	1.9	1,003	19	4.5	5
South Carolina	1,931.4	2.9	817	46	3.2	39
South Dakota	412.5	1.3	791	49	4.2	15
Tennessee	2,822.1	2.4	927	24	3.5	31
Texas	11,662.7	3.7	1,070	11	4.3	11
Utah	1,324.2	3.0	872	37	4.3	11
Vermont	311.0	0.7	882	34	4.1	17
Virginia	3,691.4	0.6	1,057	14	2.8	42
Washington	3,069.7	3.2	1,082	9	4.5	5
West Virginia	712.0	0.1	818	45	3.3	37
Wisconsin	2,789.3	1.3	894	31	3.4	34
Wyoming	283.6	1.5	952	22	3.9	22
Puerto Rico	944.2	-1.5	556	(3)	0.7	(3)
Virgin Islands	38.5	-0.3	746	(3)	-1.2	(3)
Footnotes: (1) Average weekly wages were calculated using unrounded data. (2) Totals for the United States do not include data for Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands. (3) Data not included in the national ranking.
Note: Data are preliminary. Covered employment and wages includes workers covered by Unemployment Insurance (UI) and Unemployment Compensation for Federal Employees (UCFE) programs.