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News Release Information

24-1576-PHI
Friday, July 26, 2024

Contacts Technical information: Media contact:

Business Employment Dynamics in Pennsylvania — Fourth Quarter 2023

From September 2023 to December 2023, gross job gains from opening and expanding private-sector establishments in Pennsylvania were 278,168, while gross job losses from closing and contracting private-sector establishments were 260,921, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Regional Commissioner Alexandra Hall Bovee noted that the difference between the number of gross job gains and the number of gross job losses yielded a net employment gain of 17,247 jobs in the private sector during the fourth quarter of 2023. During the previous quarter, gross job gains exceeded gross job losses by 930. (See chart 1.)

The change in the number of jobs over time is the net result of increases and decreases in employment that occur at all private businesses in the economy. Business Employment Dynamics (BED) statistics track these changes in employment at private-sector establishments from the third month of one quarter to the third month of the next. The difference between the number of gross job gains and the number of gross job losses is the net change in employment. (See the Business Employment Dynamics Technical Note.)

Gross job gains

In the fourth quarter of 2023, gross job gains represented 5.2 percent of private-sector employment in Pennsylvania; nationally, gross job gains accounted for 5.9 percent of private-sector employment. (See chart 2.) Gross job gains are the sum of increases in employment due to expansions at existing establishments and the addition of new jobs at opening establishments. In Pennsylvania, gross job gains at expanding establishments totaled 234,056 in the fourth quarter of 2023, a decrease of 2,007 jobs compared to the previous quarter. (See table 1.) Opening establishments accounted for 44,112 jobs gained in the fourth quarter of 2023, an increase of 5,446 jobs from the previous quarter.

Gross job losses

In the fourth quarter of 2023, gross job losses represented 4.9 percent of private-sector employment in Pennsylvania; nationally, gross job losses accounted for 5.6 percent of private-sector employment. (See chart 3.) Gross job losses are the result of contractions in employment at existing establishments and the loss of jobs at closing establishments. In Pennsylvania, contracting establishments lost 217,947 jobs in the fourth quarter of 2023, a decrease of 15,593 jobs from the prior quarter. Closing establishments lost 42,974 jobs, an increase of 2,715 jobs from the previous quarter.

Industries

Gross job gains exceeded gross job losses in 6 of the 11 industry sectors in Pennsylvania in the fourth quarter of 2023. Education and health services had the largest over-the-quarter net job increase, with a gain of 13,184 jobs. This was the result of 50,608 gross job gains and 37,424 gross job losses. The transportation and warehousing industry had a net gain of 8,772 jobs. Professional and business services showed a net loss of 7,119 jobs, the largest loss of any sector in the state. Pennsylvania’s retail trade industry sector had a net loss of 4,850 jobs.

For more information

The BED data series include gross job gains and gross job losses by industry subsector, for the 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands, as well as gross job gains and gross job losses at the firm level by employer size class. BED data for the states have been included in table 2 of this release. Additional information is available online at the Business Employment Dynamics Home.

The Business Employment Dynamics for First Quarter 2024 are scheduled to be released on Wednesday, October 30, 2024.

Revisions to Business Employment Dynamics (BED) Data

The release of First Quarter 2024 Business Employment Dynamics data, scheduled for October 30, 2024, will incorporate annual revisions in accordance with standard procedures. The revisions will include the previous four quarters of not seasonally adjusted data and five years of seasonally adjusted data.


Technical Note

The Business Employment Dynamics (BED) data are a product of a federal-state cooperative program known as Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW). The BED data are compiled by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) from existing QCEW records.

More information on formal definitions of the data used in this release, along with coverage, concepts, and methodology, can be found in the Business Employment Dynamics Technical Note.

Information in this release will be made available to individuals with sensory impairments upon request. Voice phone: (202) 691-5200; Telecommunications Relay Service: 7-1-1.

Table 1. Private-sector gross job gains and losses by industry, Pennsylvania, seasonally adjusted
Category Gross job gains and losses
(3 months ended)
Gross job gains and losses
as a percent of employment
(3 months ended)
Dec.
2022
Mar.
2023
June
2023
Sept.
2023
Dec.
2023
Dec.
2022
Mar.
2023
June
2023
Sept.
2023
Dec.
2023

Total private (1)

Gross job gains

289,349 291,327 278,274 274,729 278,168 5.5 5.5 5.2 5.2 5.2

At expanding establishments

249,125 249,109 241,061 236,063 234,056 4.7 4.7 4.5 4.5 4.4

At opening establishments

40,224 42,218 37,213 38,666 44,112 0.8 0.8 0.7 0.7 0.8

Gross job losses

269,933 246,312 293,852 273,799 260,921 5.2 4.6 5.5 5.2 4.9

At contracting establishments

224,343 207,179 249,827 233,540 217,947 4.3 3.9 4.7 4.4 4.1

At closing establishments

45,590 39,133 44,025 40,259 42,974 0.9 0.7 0.8 0.8 0.8

Net employment change (2)

19,416 45,015 -15,578 930 17,247 0.3 0.9 -0.3 0.0 0.3

Construction

Gross job gains

21,659 22,522 20,624 17,653 21,027 8.4 8.5 7.9 6.8 8.2

At expanding establishments

18,196 18,311 17,779 14,976 17,454 7.1 6.9 6.8 5.8 6.8

At opening establishments

3,463 4,211 2,845 2,677 3,573 1.3 1.6 1.1 1.0 1.4

Gross job losses

20,614 19,388 22,007 21,135 21,099 8.0 7.4 8.4 8.2 8.2

At contracting establishments

16,671 15,982 17,614 17,455 17,515 6.5 6.1 6.7 6.8 6.8

At closing establishments

3,943 3,406 4,393 3,680 3,584 1.5 1.3 1.7 1.4 1.4

Net employment change (2)

1,045 3,134 -1,383 -3,482 -72 0.4 1.1 -0.5 -1.4 0.0

Manufacturing

Gross job gains

18,114 16,428 15,878 14,124 16,602 3.2 2.9 2.8 2.5 3.0

At expanding establishments

16,958 15,185 14,890 13,235 15,109 3.0 2.7 2.6 2.3 2.7

At opening establishments

1,156 1,243 988 889 1,493 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.3

Gross job losses

15,357 15,556 17,394 16,789 15,674 2.8 2.7 3.1 2.9 2.7

At contracting establishments

13,931 14,144 16,262 15,556 14,262 2.5 2.5 2.9 2.7 2.5

At closing establishments

1,426 1,412 1,132 1,233 1,412 0.3 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2

Net employment change (2)

2,757 872 -1,516 -2,665 928 0.4 0.2 -0.3 -0.4 0.3

Wholesale trade

Gross job gains

8,581 9,111 8,599 8,213 8,582 4.0 4.2 4.0 3.8 4.0

At expanding establishments

7,557 7,657 7,564 7,140 7,346 3.5 3.5 3.5 3.3 3.4

At opening establishments

1,024 1,454 1,035 1,073 1,236 0.5 0.7 0.5 0.5 0.6

Gross job losses

7,905 7,364 8,313 8,027 7,816 3.6 3.4 3.8 3.7 3.5

At contracting establishments

6,076 5,748 6,568 6,652 6,186 2.8 2.7 3.0 3.1 2.8

At closing establishments

1,829 1,616 1,745 1,375 1,630 0.8 0.7 0.8 0.6 0.7

Net employment change (2)

676 1,747 286 186 766 0.4 0.8 0.2 0.1 0.5

Retail trade

Gross job gains

28,686 32,557 31,371 29,105 26,937 4.8 5.5 5.2 4.9 4.6

At expanding establishments

25,165 29,084 27,895 25,662 23,477 4.2 4.9 4.6 4.3 4.0

At opening establishments

3,521 3,473 3,476 3,443 3,460 0.6 0.6 0.6 0.6 0.6

Gross job losses

32,949 25,815 34,335 33,953 31,787 5.6 4.3 5.7 5.7 5.4

At contracting establishments

29,072 22,928 30,312 29,973 27,772 4.9 3.8 5.0 5.0 4.7

At closing establishments

3,877 2,887 4,023 3,980 4,015 0.7 0.5 0.7 0.7 0.7

Net employment change (2)

-4,263 6,742 -2,964 -4,848 -4,850 -0.8 1.2 -0.5 -0.8 -0.8

Transportation and warehousing

Gross job gains

19,797 12,189 13,392 18,119 22,579 6.5 4.0 4.5 6.1 7.4

At expanding establishments

18,520 11,106 12,123 15,752 19,140 6.1 3.6 4.1 5.3 6.3

At opening establishments

1,277 1,083 1,269 2,367 3,439 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.8 1.1

Gross job losses

13,433 18,615 19,872 16,438 13,807 4.4 6.1 6.7 5.5 4.6

At contracting establishments

11,859 17,264 18,114 15,116 11,968 3.9 5.7 6.1 5.1 4.0

At closing establishments

1,574 1,351 1,758 1,322 1,839 0.5 0.4 0.6 0.4 0.6

Net employment change (2)

6,364 -6,426 -6,480 1,681 8,772 2.1 -2.1 -2.2 0.6 2.8

Information

Gross job gains

4,065 5,278 4,167 3,858 4,218 4.4 5.6 4.4 4.1 4.5

At expanding establishments

3,151 4,214 3,389 2,884 3,159 3.4 4.5 3.6 3.1 3.4

At opening establishments

914 1,064 778 974 1,059 1.0 1.1 0.8 1.0 1.1

Gross job losses

6,470 3,749 6,142 4,488 4,511 6.9 4.0 6.6 4.9 4.9

At contracting establishments

5,360 3,014 5,028 3,589 3,714 5.7 3.2 5.4 3.9 4.0

At closing establishments

1,110 735 1,114 899 797 1.2 0.8 1.2 1.0 0.9

Net employment change (2)

-2,405 1,529 -1,975 -630 -293 -2.5 1.6 -2.2 -0.8 -0.4

Financial activities

Gross job gains

15,530 13,450 13,545 11,361 10,929 4.6 4.0 4.0 3.4 3.2

At expanding establishments

13,405 11,491 11,642 9,450 8,508 4.0 3.4 3.4 2.8 2.5

At opening establishments

2,125 1,959 1,903 1,911 2,421 0.6 0.6 0.6 0.6 0.7

Gross job losses

16,393 12,870 12,822 12,848 11,138 4.8 3.8 3.8 3.8 3.3

At contracting establishments

13,912 10,320 10,034 10,375 9,080 4.1 3.0 3.0 3.1 2.7

At closing establishments

2,481 2,550 2,788 2,473 2,058 0.7 0.8 0.8 0.7 0.6

Net employment change (2)

-863 580 723 -1,487 -209 -0.2 0.2 0.2 -0.4 -0.1

Professional and business services

Gross job gains

52,252 48,670 48,671 51,260 45,463 6.1 5.7 5.8 6.1 5.4

At expanding establishments

42,669 40,089 40,498 42,337 36,653 5.0 4.7 4.8 5.0 4.4

At opening establishments

9,583 8,581 8,173 8,923 8,810 1.1 1.0 1.0 1.1 1.0

Gross job losses

51,051 49,036 59,175 49,294 52,582 6.0 5.8 7.0 5.9 6.2

At contracting establishments

40,660 39,874 50,354 40,368 42,357 4.8 4.7 6.0 4.8 5.0

At closing establishments

10,391 9,162 8,821 8,926 10,225 1.2 1.1 1.0 1.1 1.2

Net employment change (2)

1,201 -366 -10,504 1,966 -7,119 0.1 -0.1 -1.2 0.2 -0.8

Education and health services

Gross job gains

46,822 52,024 50,998 52,218 50,608 3.8 4.2 4.1 4.1 3.9

At expanding establishments

41,431 47,192 46,851 47,964 45,207 3.4 3.8 3.8 3.8 3.5

At opening establishments

5,391 4,832 4,147 4,254 5,401 0.4 0.4 0.3 0.3 0.4

Gross job losses

39,997 33,744 41,172 38,138 37,424 3.3 2.8 3.3 3.0 3.0

At contracting establishments

33,711 27,860 34,881 32,902 31,664 2.8 2.3 2.8 2.6 2.5

At closing establishments

6,286 5,884 6,291 5,236 5,760 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.4 0.5

Net employment change (2)

6,825 18,280 9,826 14,080 13,184 0.5 1.4 0.8 1.1 0.9

Leisure and hospitality

Gross job gains

56,745 60,180 54,093 51,975 54,245 10.4 10.8 9.7 9.3 9.6

At expanding establishments

47,855 48,930 44,219 42,546 43,977 8.8 8.8 7.9 7.6 7.8

At opening establishments

8,890 11,250 9,874 9,429 10,268 1.6 2.0 1.8 1.7 1.8

Gross job losses

48,496 45,494 54,720 55,951 49,470 8.9 8.1 9.7 10.0 8.7

At contracting establishments

39,279 38,525 46,166 47,776 40,945 7.2 6.9 8.2 8.5 7.2

At closing establishments

9,217 6,969 8,554 8,175 8,525 1.7 1.2 1.5 1.5 1.5

Net employment change (2)

8,249 14,686 -627 -3,976 4,775 1.5 2.7 0.0 -0.7 0.9

Other services (3)

Gross job gains

12,674 13,749 12,719 12,829 12,964 6.5 7.0 6.5 6.5 6.6

At expanding establishments

10,503 11,341 10,577 10,625 10,649 5.4 5.8 5.4 5.4 5.4

At opening establishments

2,171 2,408 2,142 2,204 2,315 1.1 1.2 1.1 1.1 1.2

Gross job losses

12,542 11,226 12,950 12,381 11,567 6.4 5.8 6.6 6.3 5.9

At contracting establishments

10,155 8,746 10,211 10,014 9,054 5.2 4.5 5.2 5.1 4.6

At closing establishments

2,387 2,480 2,739 2,367 2,513 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.2 1.3

Net employment change (2)

132 2,523 -231 448 1,397 0.1 1.2 -0.1 0.2 0.7

Footnotes:
(1) Includes unclassified sector not shown separately.
(2) The net employment change is the difference between total gross job gains and total gross job losses. See the Technical Note for further information.
(3) Except public administration.

Table 2. Private-sector gross job gains and losses as a percent of total employment by state, seasonally adjusted
Category Gross job gains as a percent of employment
(3 months ended)
Gross job losses as a percent of employment
(3 months ended)
Dec.
2022
Mar.
2023
June
2023
Sept.
2023
Dec.
2023
Dec.
2022
Mar.
2023
June
2023
Sept.
2023
Dec.
2023

United States(1)

6.3 6.2 6.2 5.8 5.9 5.9 5.4 5.9 5.9 5.6

Alabama

6.6 6.4 5.9 5.9 6.2 6.1 5.5 5.7 6.0 5.8

Alaska

10.9 10.4 11.0 8.5 10.1 9.2 8.0 8.9 10.5 9.9

Arizona

6.6 5.9 7.0 6.7 6.6 6.0 5.4 6.5 5.9 6.9

Arkansas

6.2 5.8 5.8 5.6 6.1 5.2 5.0 6.0 5.7 5.3

California

6.6 6.1 6.7 6.2 6.3 6.6 6.4 6.4 6.5 6.5

Colorado

7.6 7.2 7.3 5.5 8.4 6.9 6.5 6.6 6.2 7.5

Connecticut

5.9 6.1 6.4 5.8 5.6 5.9 5.3 5.7 6.2 5.7

Delaware

7.0 6.7 6.0 6.0 6.2 7.5 5.2 5.7 6.5 5.9

District of Columbia

5.6 5.9 5.4 5.5 5.2 5.5 4.8 5.3 5.4 5.6

Florida

6.2 6.3 6.8 6.5 5.9 6.0 5.6 5.8 5.8 5.8

Georgia

6.7 6.2 6.4 6.1 6.1 5.9 5.8 6.5 6.1 5.7

Hawaii

6.0 5.5 5.7 5.3 6.1 4.9 5.0 5.2 6.9 5.0

Idaho

8.4 7.9 7.9 7.3 8.5 6.9 7.5 7.5 8.2 5.8

Illinois

5.4 5.8 5.4 4.8 4.9 5.1 4.8 5.3 5.5 5.1

Indiana

5.7 5.5 5.5 5.8 5.6 5.2 5.0 6.1 5.8 5.3

Iowa

6.4 6.0 6.0 5.5 6.0 6.2 5.4 5.9 5.8 5.7

Kansas

6.3 6.1 6.1 5.7 5.8 5.6 5.4 6.0 6.0 5.4

Kentucky

6.0 6.1 5.6 5.7 5.7 5.3 4.9 5.9 5.5 5.2

Louisiana

6.1 6.3 6.1 6.2 6.2 6.2 5.6 6.4 6.0 6.1

Maine

7.4 7.7 7.6 6.8 7.3 6.8 6.2 7.6 7.8 7.0

Maryland

6.6 6.8 6.7 6.4 6.3 6.9 5.6 6.3 6.5 5.9

Massachusetts

5.5 5.8 5.9 5.4 5.3 5.8 4.7 5.7 6.1 5.6

Michigan

5.9 5.7 5.9 5.2 5.5 5.2 4.9 5.3 5.9 5.6

Minnesota

5.9 5.7 6.0 3.1 6.8 5.8 4.9 5.6 4.2 7.0

Mississippi

6.8 6.1 6.3 6.2 6.1 6.2 5.7 6.6 6.2 5.7

Missouri

6.1 6.5 5.9 5.6 6.0 5.8 5.1 5.9 5.8 5.6

Montana

9.2 8.7 7.8 7.7 8.8 7.8 7.1 8.4 8.5 7.2

Nebraska

6.0 6.3 6.0 6.0 5.9 5.7 5.1 5.6 5.9 5.6

Nevada

6.4 6.2 6.6 6.5 6.6 6.1 5.7 6.0 5.5 5.1

New Hampshire

6.7 7.0 6.7 5.9 6.2 6.0 5.9 6.3 6.7 5.9

New Jersey

6.8 6.1 6.8 5.9 5.9 5.9 5.7 5.9 5.9 5.8

New Mexico

6.7 6.8 6.4 6.1 6.9 6.2 5.9 6.2 6.7 5.8

New York

5.9 6.5 6.3 5.8 5.8 6.0 5.1 5.7 6.1 5.7

North Carolina

6.6 6.4 6.1 5.6 6.1 5.7 5.3 5.7 6.2 4.7

North Dakota

6.4 7.6 6.9 6.6 6.7 6.7 5.6 6.7 6.6 6.3

Ohio

5.9 5.8 5.6 5.2 5.3 5.7 4.9 5.7 5.7 5.2

Oklahoma

6.6 6.3 6.2 6.2 6.1 5.9 5.3 6.0 6.0 5.7

Oregon

6.5 7.3 6.4 6.1 6.1 6.2 6.1 6.9 6.9 6.3

Pennsylvania

5.5 5.5 5.2 5.2 5.2 5.2 4.6 5.5 5.2 4.9

Rhode Island

6.9 7.5 6.7 6.5 6.8 6.4 5.9 7.0 6.8 6.4

South Carolina

6.9 6.8 6.4 6.8 6.2 6.2 5.8 6.8 5.7 5.4

South Dakota

6.5 7.2 6.8 6.3 6.6 6.5 5.9 6.2 6.3 5.9

Tennessee

5.8 5.9 5.9 2.7 4.9 5.6 5.0 5.5 4.2 4.6

Texas

6.2 5.9 5.8 5.7 5.7 5.3 5.0 5.4 5.5 5.2

Utah

6.9 7.0 6.8 6.8 6.4 6.6 6.2 6.2 6.5 6.2

Vermont

7.8 8.2 7.4 6.3 7.2 7.0 6.0 7.5 8.0 6.6

Virginia

6.2 6.2 6.0 5.8 5.9 5.8 5.2 5.8 6.0 5.6

Washington

5.9 6.4 6.0 5.4 6.0 5.3 5.5 5.6 6.0 5.2

West Virginia

6.6 7.1 6.1 6.5 6.1 6.4 5.3 6.1 6.5 6.5

Wisconsin

6.0 6.0 5.6 5.2 5.4 5.5 4.9 5.9 5.9 5.1

Wyoming

9.2 8.9 8.4 8.2 8.8 7.9 7.8 8.7 8.2 8.3

Puerto Rico

6.6 5.1 5.8 5.7 4.9 6.1 5.7 4.9 5.4 4.8

Virgin Islands

5.9 7.5 7.4 8.2 5.7 4.7 6.5 6.8 7.1 5.8

Footnotes
(1) Totals for the United States do not include data for Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands. The sum of the states will not necessarily add to the U.S. total because of the independent seasonal adjustment of each state.

 

Last Modified Date: Friday, July 26, 2024