Wages declined in all 15 of New Jersey’s largest counties from the fourth quarter of 2015 to the fourth quarter of 2016, 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 2015 annual average employment.) Passaic County had the largest decline, with a loss of 6.0 percent, followed by Morris and Burlington Counties, down 5.0 and 4.2 percent, respectively. (See chart 1 and table 1.) Chief Regional Economist Martin Kohli noted that Passaic County had the fifth largest wage decline among the 344 largest counties nationwide.  

Eleven of New Jersey’s large counties reported average weekly wages above the $1,067 national average in the fourth quarter of 2016. Average weekly wages in Somerset and Morris Counties exceeded $1,500.

 

 

The largest employment gain among New Jersey’s largest counties was in Hudson, up 3.3 percent. Nationally, employment grew by 1.2 percent from December 2015 to December 2016. (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 $1,067. Cape May County reported the lowest average weekly wage, $811. (See table 2.)

Large County Wage Changes

In addition to Passaic County’s 6.0-percent wage decline, eight other large counties in the state had over-the-year wage declines greater than the 1.5 percent national average. The smallest wage declines among New Jersey’s largest counties occurred in Mercer, Essex, and Union Counties.

Among the 344 largest U.S. counties, 290 recorded declines in average weekly wages. McLean, Ill., had the largest wage decrease, down 9.2 percent. In contrast, 48 counties nationwide experienced over-the-year increases in average weekly wages. Clayton, Ga., had the largest over-the-year wage increase (11.3 percent).

Large County Average Weekly Wages

As noted, 11 of New Jersey’s large counties reported average weekly wages above the national average. The state’s five highest-paying counties—Somerset, Morris, Union, Hudson, and Mercer—ranked among the nation’s top 25. Ocean County had an average weekly wage of $871, the lowest of all New Jersey’s large counties, ranking it nationally at 269^th.

Nationally, 100 large counties registered average weekly wages above the U.S. average of $1,067 in the fourth quarter of 2016. Santa Clara, Calif., held the top position with an average weekly wage of $2,365. New York, N.Y., was second at $2,212, followed by San Mateo, Calif. ($2,098).

Among the 243 counties with an average weekly wage below the U.S. average in the fourth quarter 2016, Cameron County, Texas, reported the lowest average weekly wage ($640), followed by Hidalgo, Texas ($648), and Horry, S.C. ($654).

Large County Employment

Employment grew in 14 of the 15 largest counties in New Jersey from December 2015 to December 2016. Seven of the counties had increases equal to or above the national job growth rate of 1.2 percent, led by Hudson (3.3 percent) and Gloucester and Middlesex (3.0 percent each). One large county in New Jersey, Atlantic, had an over-the-year employment loss of 1.7 percent.

Nationally, employment grew in 280 of the 344 large U.S. counties. Williamson, Tenn., had the largest percentage increase in employment with a gain of 5.1 percent over the year. Lafayette, La., had the largest over-the-year employment decrease, down 5.1 percent.

In New Jersey, employment was highest in Bergen (458,700), followed by Middlesex (430,400), and Essex (343,900). Altogether, New Jersey’s large counties accounted for 91.2 percent of total employment within the state. Nationwide, the 344 largest counties made up 72.8 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 ($1,236) and Salem ($1,092). (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. The one county with average weekly wages below $850 was located at the southern tip 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 2015 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 2016 version of this news release. Tables and additional content from the 2015 edition of Employment and Wages Annual Averages Online are now available at www.bls.gov/cew/publications/employment-and-wages-annual-averages/2015/home.htm. The 2016 edition of Employment and Wages Annual Averages Online will be available in September 2017.

The County Employment and Wages release for first quarter 2017 is scheduled to be released on Wednesday, September 6, 2017, 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 9.9 million employer reports cover 143.7 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 2016

Area	Employment			Average weekly wage (1)
	December 2016 (thousands)	Percent change, December 2015-16 (2)	National ranking by percent change (3)	Average weekly wage	National ranking by level (3)	Percent change, fourth quarter 2015-16 (2)	National ranking by percent change (3)
United States (4)	143,749.9	1.2	--	$1,067	--	-1.5	--
New Jersey	4,042.1	1.4	--	1,239	6	-1.9	30
Atlantic, N.J.	122.7	-1.7	335	885	255	-1.3	144
Bergen, N.J.	458.7	0.8	211	1,289	32	-2.7	259
Burlington, N.J.	208.1	3.0	39	1,077	90	-4.2	317
Camden, N.J.	205.5	1.7	130	1,076	92	-1.1	127
Essex, N.J.	343.9	0.9	205	1,297	29	-0.2	60
Gloucester, N.J.	109.6	3.0	39	918	222	-2.4	237
Hudson, N.J.	260.6	3.3	24	1,355	22	-1.6	168
Mercer, N.J.	252.0	0.4	250	1,346	23	-0.1	55
Middlesex, N.J.	430.4	3.0	39	1,240	42	-2.2	223
Monmouth, N.J.	260.2	0.6	230	1,068	100	-2.1	213
Morris, N.J.	290.9	0.1	268	1,524	12	-5.0	332
Ocean, N.J.	162.5	1.4	156	871	269	-3.1	275
Passaic, N.J.	170.1	1.1	184	1,042	113	-6.0	340
Somerset, N.J.	187.6	1.3	164	1,563	10	-0.7	95
Union, N.J.	221.9	1.1	184	1,362	21	-0.4	70
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, fourth quarter 2016

Area	Employment December 2016 (thousands)	Average weekly wage (1)
United States (2)	143,749.9	$1,067
New Jersey	4,042.1	1,239
Atlantic	122.7	885
Bergen	458.7	1,289
Burlington	208.1	1,077
Camden	205.5	1,076
Cape May	35.4	811
Cumberland	59.4	907
Essex	343.9	1,297
Gloucester	109.6	918
Hudson	260.6	1,355
Hunterdon	47.3	1,236
Mercer	252.0	1,346
Middlesex	430.4	1,240
Monmouth	260.2	1,068
Morris	290.9	1,524
Ocean	162.5	871
Passaic	170.1	1,042
Salem	20.3	1,092
Somerset	187.6	1,563
Sussex	39.3	896
Union	221.9	1,362
Warren	33.6	978
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.
Note: Data are preliminary. Includes workers covered by Unemployment Insurance (UI) and Unemployment Compensation for Federal Employees (UCFE) programs.

Table 3. Covered employment and wages by state, fourth quarter 2016

State	Employment		Average weekly wage (1)
	December 2016 (thousands)	Percent change, December 2015-16	Average weekly wage	National ranking by level	Percent change, fourth quarter 2015-16	National ranking by percent change
United States (2)	143,749.9	1.2	1067	--	-1.5	--
Alabama	1,932.6	0.7	901	35	-1.3	21
Alaska	310.0	-1.9	1038	17	-5.2	51
Arizona	2,760.1	2.1	945	25	-2.2	34
Arkansas	1,205.4	0.4	827	47	-1.4	22
California	16,923.3	1.9	1271	5	-0.3	4
Colorado	2,588.6	2.0	1086	12	-1.5	24
Connecticut	1,685.5	0.0	1289	4	-3.4	46
Delaware	441.2	-0.1	1055	15	-2.9	44
District of Columbia	760.9	0.5	1763	1	0.6	2
Florida	8,538.9	2.7	942	27	-1.8	28
Georgia	4,349.3	2.4	993	20	-0.9	14
Hawaii	658.3	0.7	954	24	-0.3	4
Idaho	691.6	3.2	800	50	-0.4	8
Illinois	5,947.6	0.4	1122	9	-2	31
Indiana	3,021.7	0.9	883	38	-0.9	14
Iowa	1,542.0	0.1	911	33	-1	16
Kansas	1,384.5	0.1	877	39	-2.2	34
Kentucky	1,894.2	0.6	874	41	-1.4	22
Louisiana	1,907.4	-1.6	914	32	-2.9	44
Maine	602.6	0.8	855	43	-2.1	33
Maryland	2,666.7	1.0	1169	7	-0.4	8
Massachusetts	3,530.4	1.3	1352	2	-2.4	39
Michigan	4,283.0	1.5	1026	19	-1.6	25
Minnesota	2,839.7	1.2	1062	14	-1.1	18
Mississippi	1,134.0	0.0	756	51	-1.8	28
Missouri	2,783.2	0.9	918	31	-1.7	27
Montana	456.5	0.7	822	48	0.5	3
Nebraska	972.4	0.0	876	40	-0.5	10
Nevada	1,307.8	2.7	924	29	-1.2	20
New Hampshire	656.9	1.3	1092	10	-4.1	48
New Jersey	4,042.1	1.4	1239	6	-1.9	30
New Mexico	811.4	0.0	844	45	-2.5	41
New York	9,332.5	1.2	1342	3	-2.3	36
North Carolina	4,326.3	1.8	932	28	-0.7	13
North Dakota	414.4	-3.2	978	21	-4.2	49
Ohio	5,365.6	0.7	943	26	-2.3	36
Oklahoma	1,587.7	-1.2	864	42	-3.5	47
Oregon	1,860.7	2.4	970	22	-1	16
Pennsylvania	5,799.8	0.7	1039	16	-2.3	36
Rhode Island	478.3	0.0	1027	18	-1.6	25
South Carolina	2,024.3	1.8	855	43	-0.6	12
South Dakota	419.9	0.5	828	46	-0.5	10
Tennessee	2,947.5	1.8	970	22	-1.1	18
Texas	11,974.7	1.2	1072	13	-2.5	41
Utah	1,415.1	2.9	910	34	-0.3	4
Vermont	312.6	0.1	897	36	-2.4	39
Virginia	3,831.6	0.6	1091	11	-0.3	4
Washington	3,227.9	2.8	1150	8	1.7	1
West Virginia	693.1	-1.6	809	49	-2.5	41
Wisconsin	2,842.4	0.5	924	29	-2	31
Wyoming	265.8	-3.9	894	37	-4.7	50
Puerto Rico	928.2	-0.3	555	(3)	-1.9	(3)
Virgin Islands	38.5	0.2	769	(3)	-1.8	(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.