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News Release Information

14-1398-CHI
Wednesday, August 13, 2014

Contacts Technical information: Media contact:
  • (312) 353-1138

County Employment and Wages in Illinois – Fourth Quarter 2013

Eight of Illinois’ 13 large counties reported employment increases from December 2012 to December 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.) Regional Commissioner Charlene Peiffer noted that three of the state's large counties experienced over-the-year employment gains above the national increase of 1.8 percent.

Nationally, employment increased in 292 of the 334 largest U.S. counties. Weld, Colo., recorded the largest percentage increase in the country, up 6.0 percent over the year. St. Clair, Ill., registered the largest percentage employment decline, down 3.1 percent.

Among the 13 largest counties in Illinois, employment was highest in Cook County (2,463,300) in December 2013. Two other large counties, Du Page (596,000) and Lake (330,700), had employment levels of more than 300,000. Collectively, Illinois' 13 large counties accounted for 80.2 percent of the state's employment with Cook County alone accounting for 42.8 percent. Nationwide, the 334 largest counties made up 71.7 percent of total U.S. employment.

Average weekly wages rose in 10 of 13 large counties in Illinois from the fourth quarter of 2012 to the fourth quarter of 2013. Lake County had the highest average weekly wage in the state at $1,289, followed by Du Page ($1,180), and Cook ($1,174) Counties. (See table 1.) Nationally, the average weekly wage was unchanged over the year, remaining at $1,000 in the fourth quarter of 2013.

Employment and wage levels (but not over-the-year changes) are also available for the 89 counties in Illinois with employment below 75,000. Eighty-five of these smaller counties had average weekly wages below the national average. (See table 2.)

Large county wage changes

Ten of Illinois' 13 large counties recorded wage gains from the fourth quarter of 2012 to the fourth quarter of 2013. (See table 1.) Champaign, Winnebago, and Madison Counties experienced the state's largest wage increases, ranking 27th, 41st, and 43rd, respectively, among the nation's 334 largest counties.

Nationally, 185 of the 334 largest counties registered over-the-year wage increases. Santa Cruz, Calif., had the largest wage gain, up 6.5 percent from the fourth quarter of 2012. Ada, Idaho, was second with a wage increase of 6.4 percent, followed by the counties of Washington, Ore. (5.9 percent), and Union, N.J. (5.2 percent).

Among the large U.S. counties, 140 experienced over-the-year wage decreases. Douglas, Colo., had the largest wage decrease with a loss of 29.7 percent. San Mateo, Calif., had the second largest decrease in average weekly wages, down 15.8 percent from the fourth quarter 2012, followed by Virginia Beach City, Va. (-10.0 percent), McHenry, Ill. (-8.8 percent), and Shawnee, Kan. (-5.1 percent).

Large county average weekly wages

Average weekly wages in 3 of Illinois' 13 large counties were above the national average of $1,000 in the fourth quarter of 2013 and ranked among the top 50 nationwide--Lake ($1,289, 22nd), Du Page ($1,180, 41st), and Cook ($1,174, 42nd). St. Claire ($779) reported the lowest average weekly wage among the state’s large counties and ranked 293rd nationwide.

Nationally, 98 large counties registered average weekly wages above the U.S. average of $1,000 in the fourth quarter of 2013. San Mateo, Calif., held the top position among the highest-paid large counties with an average weekly wage of $2,724. New York, N.Y., was second at $2,041, followed by Santa Clara, Calif. ($1,972).

Seventy percent of the largest U.S. counties (235) reported weekly wages below the national average. Horry, S.C., reported the lowest wage ($587), followed by the Texas counties of Cameron ($598) and Hidalgo ($620). Wages in these lowest-ranked counties were less than a quarter of the average weekly wage reported for the highest-ranked county, San Mateo, Calif.

Average weekly wages in Illinois' smaller counties

Eight-five of the 89 counties in Illinois with employment below 75,000 had average weekly wages lower than the national average of $1,000. The exceptions were Rock Island ($1,247), Tazewell ($1,103), De Witt ($1,090), and Grundy ($1,029). Calhoun reported the lowest weekly wage among all Illinois counties, averaging $470 in the fourth quarter of 2013. (See table 2.)

When all 102 counties in Illinois were considered, all but 7 had wages below the national average of $1,000. Two counties reported average weekly wages below $550, 22 reported wages from $550 to $649, 37 had wages from $650 to $749, 23 had wages from $750 to $849, and 18 had wages above $850. (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 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 contains selected data produced by Business Employment Dynamics (BED) on job gains and losses, as well as selected data from the first quarter 2013 version of the national news release. Tables and additional content from Employment and Wages Annual Averages 2012 are now available online at https://www.bls.gov/cew/publications/employment-and-wages-annual-averages/2012/home.htm. The 2013 edition of Employment and Wages Annual Averages Online will be available later 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.

The County Employment and Wages release for first quarter 2015 is scheduled to be released on Thursday, September 17, 2015.


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 136.1 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 (see Technical Note below) 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.

Table 1. Covered employment and wages in the United States and the 13 largest counties in Illinois, fourth quarter 2013
Area Employment Average weekly wage (1)
December 2013 (thousands) Percent change, December 2012-13 (2) National ranking by percent change (3) Average weekly wage National ranking by level (3) Percent change, fourth quarter 2012-13 (2) National ranking by percent change (3)

United States (4)

136,129.4 1.8 -- $1,000 -- 0.0 --

Illinois

5,758.9 1.0 -- 1,060 8 0.2 27

Champaign, Ill.

89.0 0.7 230 827 252 2.7 27

Cook, Ill.

2,463.3 1.1 200 1,174 42 -1.0 253

Du Page, Ill.

596.0 1.2 188 1,180 41 1.5 69

Kane, Ill.

203.9 1.9 130 876 198 1.2 91

Lake, Ill.

330.7 1.2 188 1,289 22 0.3 160

Madison, Ill.

95.4 -0.4 308 822 260 2.1 43

McHenry, Ill.

95.1 1.9 130 825 254 -8.8 331

McLean, Ill.

85.2 -0.7 317 956 135 1.1 95

Peoria, Ill.

101.8 -2.2 332 935 151 0.5 141

Sangamon, Ill.

126.8 0.6 239 999 100 1.6 64

St. Clair, Ill.

92.2 -3.1 334 779 293 -0.3 214

Will, Ill.

214.6 3.1 59 860 218 1.3 83

Winnebago, Ill.

124.6 -0.1 296 849 231 2.2 41

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: Covered employment and wages includes workers covered by Unemployment Insurance (UI) and Unemployment Compensation for Federal Employees (UCFE) programs. Data are preliminary.
 

Table 2. Covered (1) employment and wages in the United States and all counties in Illinois, fourth quarter 2013 (2)
Area Employment December 2013 Average weekly wage (3)

United States (4)

136,129,407 $1,000

Illinois

5,758,892 1,060

Adams

32,938 782

Alexander

1,378 640

Bond

4,703 644

Boone

16,540 838

Brown

3,707 852

Bureau

11,459 717

Calhoun

783 470

Carroll

4,033 630

Cass

5,638 676

Champaign

88,964 827

Christian

10,768 686

Clark

4,611 624

Clay

4,987 673

Clinton

12,107 681

Coles

23,015 683

Cook

2,463,282 1,174

Crawford

7,894 829

Cumberland

2,324 647

De Kalb

36,366 756

De Witt

5,239 1,090

Douglas

7,145 714

Du Page

596,015 1,180

Edgar

6,655 736

Edwards

2,204 726

Effingham

20,272 719

Fayette

5,608 642

Ford

4,548 753

Franklin

8,365 601

Fulton

8,070 614

Gallatin

1,061 722

Greene

2,558 566

Grundy

17,167 1,029

Hamilton

1,869 743

Hancock

3,953 646

Hardin

902 643

Henderson

1,139 529

Henry

14,082 697

Iroquois

8,260 607

Jackson

25,204 775

Jasper

2,046 698

Jefferson

19,073 772

Jersey

4,612 617

Jo Daviess

7,676 633

Johnson

2,317 852

Kane

203,874 876

Kankakee

44,525 741

Kendall

25,749 738

Knox

19,377 639

La Salle

42,954 800

Lake

330,705 1,289

Lawrence

4,407 737

Lee

12,918 785

Livingston

13,869 808

Logan

8,888 745

Macon

48,609 891

Macoupin

9,938 656

Madison

95,374 822

Marion

12,816 699

Marshall

2,961 708

Mason

3,102 689

Massac

3,381 788

McDonough

11,548 710

McHenry

95,141 825

McLean

85,200 956

Menard

1,843 605

Mercer

2,978 659

Monroe

8,207 650

Montgomery

8,718 766

Morgan

14,576 724

Moultrie

4,603 685

Ogle

15,057 850

Peoria

101,806 935

Perry

4,818 688

Piatt

3,264 656

Pike

4,137 563

Pope

572 566

Pulaski

1,418 761

Putnam

1,676 823

Randolph

12,276 766

Richland

6,127 631

Rock Island

74,273 1,247

Saline

8,473 747

Sangamon

126,764 999

Schuyler

1,936 864

Scott

1,038 659

Shelby

4,589 589

St. Clair

92,198 779

Stark

1,362 693

Stephenson

17,267 768

Tazewell

56,915 1,103

Union

4,764 654

Vermilion

27,312 764

Wabash

3,254 724

Warren

6,346 605

Washington

5,579 853

Wayne

4,200 622

White

4,430 740

Whiteside

20,788 659

Will

214,591 860

Williamson

26,005 744

Winnebago

124,625 849

Woodford

10,735 756

Footnotes:
(1) Includes workers covered by Unemployment Insurance (UI) and Unemployment Compensation for Federal Employees (UCFE) programs.
(2) Data are preliminary.
(3) Average weekly wages were calculated using unrounded data.
(4) 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 2013
State Employment Average weekly wage (1)
December 2013 (thousands) Percent change, December 2012-13 Average weekly wage National ranking by level Percent change, fourth quarter 2012-13 National ranking by percent change

United States (2)

136,129.4 1.8 $1,000 -- 0.0 --

Alabama

1,866.5 1.0 851 34 -0.5 39

Alaska

315.1 0.0 1,022 14 1.6 7

Arizona

2,571.0 2.4 906 23 -0.5 39

Arkansas

1,154.3 -0.5 771 47 0.4 22

California

15,650.3 2.8 1,175 6 -0.9 43

Colorado

2,383.9 3.1 1,023 13 -0.9 43

Connecticut

1,661.2 0.3 1,238 4 -1.3 49

Delaware

419.6 1.8 1,035 9 -0.6 41

District of Columbia

727.3 0.6 1,638 1 -3.9 51

Florida

7,739.5 2.7 883 29 0.2 27

Georgia

3,986.9 2.5 924 21 -0.1 32

Hawaii

632.9 1.7 871 30 0.3 25

Idaho

634.5 2.6 754 50 3.0 2

Illinois

5,758.9 1.0 1,060 8 0.2 27

Indiana

2,896.9 1.6 814 40 -0.2 35

Iowa

1,510.9 1.4 834 38 1.6 7

Kansas

1,359.5 1.6 832 39 -0.4 38

Kentucky

1,818.0 1.2 804 42 0.2 27

Louisiana

1,911.6 0.9 889 26 0.5 20

Maine

586.8 0.8 786 46 1.7 5

Maryland

2,555.1 0.4 1,076 7 -0.9 43

Massachusetts

3,332.9 1.5 1,258 3 0.8 17

Michigan

4,072.4 2.0 952 20 -0.2 35

Minnesota

2,720.6 1.7 988 16 0.3 25

Mississippi

1,108.1 1.1 729 51 1.3 11

Missouri

2,670.4 1.1 861 32 -0.2 35

Montana

440.0 1.3 760 48 0.4 22

Nebraska

944.3 1.4 796 43 -0.1 32

Nevada

1,180.5 3.0 884 28 0.7 18

New Hampshire

629.3 1.4 1,017 15 -0.8 42

New Jersey

3,887.5 1.2 1,186 5 1.1 14

New Mexico

796.2 -0.1 814 40 1.4 10

New York

8,888.6 1.7 1,266 2 -1.1 48

North Carolina

4,045.5 1.9 860 33 0.7 18

North Dakota

435.0 3.3 980 17 3.8 1

Ohio

5,175.4 1.4 887 27 0.0 30

Oklahoma

1,581.3 0.6 851 34 -0.1 32

Oregon

1,699.6 2.5 894 25 2.6 3

Pennsylvania

5,650.3 0.4 976 18 0.4 22

Rhode Island

462.7 1.4 960 19 1.5 9

South Carolina

1,875.8 2.3 793 44 1.0 15

South Dakota

407.1 1.3 759 49 1.3 11

Tennessee

2,758.3 1.8 895 24 -0.9 43

Texas

11,246.3 2.6 1,027 12 0.0 30

Utah

1,284.7 3.1 836 37 -0.9 43

Vermont

308.5 0.6 848 36 2.3 4

Virginia

3,670.0 0.1 1,028 11 -1.3 49

Washington

2,976.0 2.5 1,034 10 1.7 5

West Virginia

710.1 -0.6 792 45 0.5 20

Wisconsin

2,751.8 1.0 865 31 1.2 13

Wyoming

279.2 0.6 917 22 1.0 15

Puerto Rico

958.3 -2.3 551 (3) 0.2 (3)

Virgin Islands

38.5 -3.6 754 (3) 2.4 (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: Covered employment and wages includes workers covered by Unemployment Insurance (UI) and Unemployment Compensation for Federal Employees (UCFE) programs. Data are preliminary.
 

 

Last Modified Date: Wednesday, August 13, 2014