Department of Labor Logo United States Department of Labor
Dot gov

The .gov means it's official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you're on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

News Release Information

14-562-CHI
Wednesday, April 16, 2014

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

County Employment and Wages in Wisconsin – Third Quarter 2013

Five of the six large counties in Wisconsin recorded employment increases 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.) Outagamie County had the largest increase, up 1.7 percent, followed by Dane and Waukesha Counties, up 1.3 percent each. Regional Commissioner Charlene Peiffer noted that the employment gain in Outagamie County was equal to the national increase of 1.7 percent.

Among the six large counties in Wisconsin, employment was highest in Milwaukee (481,400) in September 2013, followed by Dane (310,300), and Waukesha (230,800). The three other counties—Brown, Outagamie, and Winnebago—had employment levels of less than 150,000. Collectively, Wisconsin's six large counties accounted for 49.6 percent of total employment within the state. Nationwide, the 334 largest counties made up 71.4 percent of total U.S. employment.

The average weekly wage in Dane County rose 9.3 percent from the third quarter of 2012 to the third quarter of 2013, the largest increase among Wisconsin's large counties. Dane County also had the highest average weekly wage in the state at $921, followed by Waukesha at $904. (See table 1.) Nationally, the average weekly wage rose 1.9 percent over the year to $922 in the third quarter of 2013.

Employment and wage levels (but not over-the-year changes) are also available for the 66 counties in Wisconsin with employment below 75,000. All of these smaller counties had average weekly wages below the national average. (See table 2.)

Large county wage changes

Three of Wisconsin’s large counties recorded wage gains greater than the national increase of 1.9 percent from the third quarter of 2012 to the third quarter of 2013. (See table 1.) As noted, Dane County experienced the state’s largest average weekly wage increase, up 9.3 percent, and ranked 2nd among the 334 largest counties across the nation. This was followed by Brown (3.1 percent, 45th) and Outagamie (2.3 percent, 92nd). Milwaukee County recorded the smallest wage increase among Wisconsin’s large counties, up 0.5 percent, ranking 255th nationwide.

Among the 334 largest U.S. counties, 291 had over-the-year increases in average weekly wages. San Mateo, Calif., had the largest increase with a gain of 9.9 percent. Dane, Wis., was second with wage growth of 9.3 percent, followed by Collier, Fla. (8.0 percent). Wage decreases were recorded in 40 large counties nationwide; Pinellas, Fla., experienced the largest over-the-year wage loss at 4.3 percent.

Large county average weekly wages

Average weekly wages in all of Wisconsin’s six large counties were below the national average of $922 in the third quarter of 2013. As noted, Dane County ($921) had the highest average weekly wage in the state, ranking 103rd among the 334 largest counties across the nation, followed by Waukesha ($904) and Milwaukee ($879) which placed 121st and 145th, respectively. Brown ($805) and Outagamie ($788) reported the lowest average weekly wage among the state’s largest counties and ranked among the bottom-third nationwide.

Nationally, weekly wages were higher than the U.S. average in 101 of the largest counties in the country. 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 at $1,698, followed by New York, N.Y. ($1,667), Washington, D.C. ($1,560), and San Francisco, Calif. ($1,549).

Of the largest counties in the United States, 232, or more than two-thirds, reported average weekly wages below the national average in the third quarter of 2013. The lowest wage was reported in Horry, S.C., at $564 per week. Pasco, Fla. ($635), joined the Texas counties of Cameron, Hidalgo, and Webb among the bottom five. Wages in these five lowest-ranked counties were about one-third or less of the average weekly wage in the highest-ranked county, Santa Clara, Calif.

Average weekly wages in Wisconsin's smaller counties

Of the 66 counties in Wisconsin with employment below 75,000, Wood County had the highest average weekly wage at $841. Florence County had the lowest weekly wage at $475. (See table 2.)

When all 72 counties in Wisconsin were considered, 2 reported average weekly wages less than $500, 17 had wages from $500 to $599, 28 reported wages from $600 to $699, 17 had wages from $700 to $799, and 8 had wages of $800 or more. (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 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.

Changes to QCEW Data Files

 

BLS discontinued its ftp service on February 28, 2014. As part of this transition, the QCEW data file collection was substantially reorganized and improved. For more information see www.bls.gov/cew/about-data/data-files-guide.htm.


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 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 (1) employment and wages in the United States and the 6 largest counties in Wisconsin, third quarter 2013 (2)
Area Employment Average weekly wage (3)
September 2013 (thousands) Percent change, September 2012-13 (4) National ranking by percent change (5) Average weekly wage National ranking by level (5) Percent change, third quarter 2012-13 (4) National ranking by percent change (5)

United States (6)

134,957.5 1.7 -- $922 -- 1.9 --

Wisconsin

2,752.7 1.1 -- 793 35 3.0 7

Brown, Wis.

149.7 1.0 214 805 220 3.1 45

Dane, Wis.

310.3 1.3 187 921 103 9.3 2

Milwaukee, Wis.

481.4 1.0 214 879 145 0.5 255

Outagamie, Wis.

102.3 1.7 148 788 244 2.3 92

Waukesha, Wis.

230.8 1.3 187 904 121 1.7 161

Winnebago, Wis.

89.9 -0.9 320 839 182 1.8 146

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) Percent changes were computed from quarterly employment and pay data adjusted for noneconomic county reclassifications.
(5) Ranking does not include data for Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands.
(6) Totals for the United States do not include data for Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands.
 

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

United States (4)

134,957,493 $922

Wisconsin

2,752,732 793

Adams

4,781 599

Ashland

8,120 659

Barron

20,757 609

Bayfield

4,314 498

Brown

149,718 805

Buffalo

3,798 631

Burnett

4,837 550

Calumet

12,719 638

Chippewa

23,733 649

Clark

10,382 598

Columbia

21,903 671

Crawford

7,789 580

Dane

310,280 921

Dodge

34,370 733

Door

14,486 554

Douglas

15,525 706

Dunn

16,430 680

Eau Claire

54,956 703

Florence

966 475

Fond du Lac

45,997 736

Forest

3,135 605

Grant

17,465 603

Green

15,080 657

Green Lake

6,686 728

Iowa

10,214 713

Iron

1,693 513

Jackson

8,516 703

Jefferson

32,932 665

Juneau

8,927 663

Kenosha

54,184 713

Kewaunee

7,087 836

La Crosse

68,306 710

Lafayette

3,847 566

Langlade

7,594 600

Lincoln

10,458 672

Manitowoc

33,438 712

Marathon

66,156 747

Marinette

19,171 684

Marquette

3,686 550

Menominee

2,153 611

Milwaukee

481,446 879

Monroe

19,656 674

Oconto

8,846 594

Oneida

16,462 652

Outagamie

102,308 788

Ozaukee

39,396 768

Pepin

2,241 618

Pierce

9,734 576

Polk

15,612 637

Portage

32,911 704

Price

5,551 629

Racine

72,566 809

Richland

5,900 625

Rock

62,257 782

Rusk

4,787 564

St. Croix

31,853 677

Sauk

36,887 641

Sawyer

6,976 579

Shawano

12,510 556

Sheboygan

58,890 769

Taylor

8,191 613

Trempealeau

14,060 661

Vernon

8,564 586

Vilas

7,899 511

Walworth

39,846 635

Washburn

6,031 574

Washington

52,406 768

Waukesha

230,808 904

Waupaca

20,265 633

Waushara

6,577 592

Winnebago

89,940 839

Wood

42,213 841

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 (1) employment and wages by state, third quarter 2013 (2)
State Employment Average weekly wage (3)
September 2013 (thousands) Percent change, September 2012-13 Average weekly wage National ranking by level Percent change, third quarter 2012-13 National ranking by percent change

United States (4)

134,957.5 1.7 $922 -- 1.9 --

Alabama

1,847.6 0.8 794 34 1.3 43

Alaska

345.0 0.4 990 9 3.0 7

Arizona

2,490.9 2.2 859 22 1.5 36

Arkansas

1,156.5 0.1 723 47 2.1 21

California

15,526.4 2.7 1,057 6 2.1 21

Colorado

2,355.7 3.1 952 12 1.7 31

Connecticut

1,650.3 0.7 1,109 3 1.9 28

Delaware

416.8 2.1 941 14 2.1 21

District of Columbia

726.2 1.5 1,560 1 3.0 7

Florida

7,501.8 2.6 808 31 1.1 46

Georgia

3,928.2 2.3 867 21 1.5 36

Hawaii

617.7 1.7 839 25 1.6 33

Idaho

644.7 2.3 703 50 2.3 19

Illinois

5,731.7 0.7 959 11 1.5 36

Indiana

2,883.6 1.2 784 38 1.6 33

Iowa

1,512.0 1.5 772 40 2.1 21

Kansas

1,347.6 1.8 776 39 2.0 26

Kentucky

1,794.5 1.0 760 43 1.1 46

Louisiana

1,893.4 1.4 827 28 2.9 10

Maine

601.5 0.7 735 46 1.8 30

Maryland

2,546.4 0.6 1,011 8 0.4 51

Massachusetts

3,318.3 1.2 1,131 2 2.6 11

Michigan

4,069.7 2.1 875 20 1.5 36

Minnesota

2,724.2 1.7 938 15 2.6 11

Mississippi

1,099.1 0.8 688 51 2.5 15

Missouri

2,661.0 1.3 805 32 1.4 40

Montana

446.7 1.2 705 49 2.3 19

Nebraska

937.5 1.3 766 41 3.4 3

Nevada

1,169.4 2.5 836 27 2.0 26

New Hampshire

624.5 0.6 895 18 2.4 17

New Jersey

3,851.9 1.2 1,068 5 1.3 43

New Mexico

793.7 0.5 766 41 0.7 49

New York

8,724.8 1.3 1,108 4 1.7 31

North Carolina

4,006.4 1.7 817 30 1.4 40

North Dakota

436.7 3.4 921 16 5.5 1

Ohio

5,147.5 1.4 837 26 1.2 45

Oklahoma

1,572.6 1.4 797 33 2.4 17

Oregon

1,709.8 2.4 856 23 2.6 11

Pennsylvania

5,622.4 0.3 913 17 1.6 33

Rhode Island

465.2 1.3 878 19 2.6 11

South Carolina

1,859.3 2.3 751 44 1.9 28

South Dakota

408.9 0.9 706 48 3.4 3

Tennessee

2,712.8 1.5 819 29 0.6 50

Texas

11,091.9 2.8 952 12 2.5 15

Utah

1,265.5 2.9 791 36 3.1 6

Vermont

302.5 0.0 788 37 3.4 3

Virginia

3,650.1 0.6 971 10 1.1 46

Washington

3,017.9 2.4 1,044 7 2.1 21

West Virginia

710.3 -0.7 751 44 3.7 2

Wisconsin

2,752.7 1.1 793 35 3.0 7

Wyoming

286.1 0.2 840 24 1.4 40

Puerto Rico

910.9 -2.5 501 (5) -0.6 (5)

Virgin Islands

37.9 -1.9 706 (5) -0.6 (5)

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.
(5) Data not included in the national ranking.
 

 Chart 1. Average weekly wages by county in Wisconsin, third quarter 2013

 

Last Modified Date: Wednesday, April 16, 2014