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News Release Information

15-435-CHI
Friday, May 01, 2015

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

County Employment and Wages in Minnesota — Third Quarter 2014

Seven of the eight large counties in Minnesota reported employment increases from September 2013 to September 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.) Anoka County had the largest increase, up 1.9 percent followed by Hennepin, up 1.5 percent. Employment in Dakota County rose 1.3 percent. Regional Commissioner Charlene Peiffer noted that these same three large counties experienced over-the-year rates of employment growth below the 2.0 percent national increase. (See table 1.)

Among the eight largest counties in Minnesota, employment was highest in Hennepin (872,800) in September 2014, followed by Ramsey (326,100). Two other counties—Dakota and Anoka—had employment levels of more than 100,000. Collectively, Minnesota's eight large counties accounted for 67.0 percent of total employment within the state. Nationwide, the 339 largest counties made up 71.8 percent of total U.S. employment.

The average weekly wage in Olmsted County rose 11.1 percent from the third quarter of 2013 to the third quarter of 2014, the largest increase among Minnesota's large counties. Hennepin County had the highest average weekly wage in the state at $1,175, followed by Olmsted ($1,077) and Ramsey ($1,057). (See table 1.) Nationally, the average weekly wage rose 2.9 percent over the year to $949 in the third quarter of 2014.

Employment and wage levels (but not over-the-year changes) are also available for the 79 counties in Minnesota with employment below 75,000. Of these 79, only Faribault County ($1,037) and Le Sueur County ($1,008) had average weekly wages above the national average. (See table 2.)

Large county wage changes

Five of the 8 large counties in Minnesota recorded wage increases greater than the national increase of 2.9 percent from the third quarter of 2013 to the third quarter of 2014. (See table 1.) As noted, Olmsted County experienced the state’s largest average weekly wage increase, up 11.1 percent. This was followed by Stearns (5.7 percent) and St. Louis (4.2 percent). Hennepin and Washington had the smallest wage increases among Minnesota’s large counties, up 1.1 percent and 2.6 percent respectively.

Among the 339 largest U.S. counties, 328 had over-the-year increases in average weekly wages. Olmsted, Minn., had the largest increase with a gain of 11.1 percent. San Francisco, Calif., was second with wage growth of 8.7 percent, followed by Santa Clara, Calif., (7.4 percent). Wage decreases were recorded in 10 large counties nationwide; Collier, Fla., experienced the largest over-the-year wage loss at 3.9 percent.

Large county average weekly wages

Average weekly wages in three of Minnesota’s eight large counties were above the national average of $949 in the third quarter of 2014. As noted, Hennepin County ($1,175) had the highest average weekly wage in the state, ranking 27th among the 339 largest U.S. counties, followed by Olmsted ($1,077) and Ramsey ($1,057) which placed 46th and 54th respectively. Washington ($783) reported the lowest average weekly wage among the state’s largest counties and ranked 267th nationwide.

Nationally, Santa Clara, Calif., held the top position among the highest-paid large counties with an average weekly wage of $2,012. San Mateo, Calif., was second at $1,824, followed by New York, N.Y. ($1,733), San Francisco, Calif. ($1,685) and Washington, D.C. ($1,631).

Average weekly wages in Minnesota’s smaller counties

Among the 79 smaller counties in the state (those with employment below 75,000), Faribault County had the highest average weekly wage at $1,037 followed by Le Sueur County ($1,008). These two counties were the only smaller counties to have wages greater than the $949 national average. Cass County had the lowest weekly wage among the smaller counties at $521. (See table 2.)

When all 87 counties in Minnesota were considered, all but 5 had wages below the national average of $949. Eleven reported average weekly wages under $600, 36 had wages from $600 to $699, 28 reported wages from $700 to $799, 4 reported wages from $800 to $899, and 8 had wages of $900 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 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 fourth quarter 2014 is scheduled to be released on Wednesday, June 17, 2015, at 9:00 a.m. (CT).


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 9.4 million employer reports cover 137.7 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: 1-800-877-8339.

Table 1. Covered employment and wages in the United States and the 8 largest counties in Minnesota, third quarter 2014
Area Employment Average Weekly Wage (1)
September 2014 (thousands) Percent change, September 2013-14 (2) National ranking by percent change (3) Average weekly wage National ranking by level (3) Percent change, third quarter 2013-14 (2) National ranking by percent change (3)

United States (4)

137,724.1 2.0 -- $949 -- 2.9 --

Minnesota

2,757.9 1.1 -- 965 15 2.9 22

Anoka, Minn.

118.2 1.9 147 937 112 3.8 50

Dakota, Minn.

181.5 1.3 192 919 129 3.6 61

Hennepin, Minn.

872.8 1.5 171 1,175 27 1.1 293

Olmsted, Minn.

92.5 -0.3 322 1,077 46 11.1 1

Ramsey, Minn.

326.1 0.3 290 1,057 54 2.7 140

St. Louis, Minn.

97.6 0.5 276 827 213 4.2 31

Stearns, Minn.

83.6 0.7 263 793 258 5.7 12

Washington, Minn.

76.7 0.4 282 783 267 2.6 154

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 Minnesota, third quarter 2014
Area Employment September 2014 Average Weekly Wage (1)

United States (2)

137,724,117 $949

Minnesota

2,757,863 965

Aitkin

3,827 608

Anoka

118,232 937

Becker

13,786 676

Beltrami

19,169 716

Benton

17,652 684

Big Stone

1,809 636

Blue Earth

38,078 757

Brown

13,502 730

Carlton

13,820 765

Carver

36,539 914

Cass

10,452 521

Chippewa

5,776 652

Chisago

14,546 694

Clay

18,535 694

Clearwater

2,729 687

Cook

3,189 542

Cottonwood

4,760 629

Crow Wing

28,995 671

Dakota

181,501 919

Dodge

5,740 773

Douglas

18,377 742

Faribault

5,077 1,037

Fillmore

6,154 578

Freeborn

12,037 708

Goodhue

21,929 787

Grant

1,925 676

Hennepin

872,765 1,175

Houston

4,922 576

Hubbard

6,168 618

Isanti

10,906 700

Itasca

16,349 745

Jackson

5,696 659

Kanabec

3,813 663

Kandiyohi

23,171 672

Kittson

1,457 688

Koochiching

4,711 713

Lac qui Parle

2,223 607

Lake

4,472 791

Lake of the Woods

1,527 548

Le Sueur

8,786 1,008

Lincoln

1,677 597

Lyon

15,079 725

McLeod

17,415 765

Mahnomen

1,910 590

Marshall

2,489 731

Martin

8,345 722

Meeker

7,277 652

Mille Lacs

9,643 624

Morrison

10,606 631

Mower

16,334 816

Murray

3,012 602

Nicollet

14,331 729

Nobles

10,327 669

Norman

1,699 615

Olmsted

92,485 1,077

Otter Tail

22,846 665

Pennington

10,645 755

Pine

8,218 564

Pipestone

4,519 611

Polk

12,537 670

Pope

4,280 751

Ramsey

326,129 1,057

Red Lake

1,030 582

Redwood

6,390 619

Renville

5,858 684

Rice

23,445 778

Rock

3,515 636

Roseau

8,959 808

St. Louis

97,570 827

Scott

45,384 854

Sherburne

26,586 754

Sibley

4,044 675

Stearns

83,593 793

Steele

21,938 720

Stevens

5,374 765

Swift

3,473 687

Todd

6,160 627

Traverse

1,071 594

Wabasha

7,127 635

Wadena

5,822 690

Waseca

6,838 772

Washington

76,694 783

Watonwan

3,973 584

Wilkin

2,045 697

Winona

25,013 731

Wright

39,910 726

Yellow Medicine

3,981 652

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

Table 3. Covered employment and wages by state, third quarter 2014
State Employment Average weekly wage (1)
September 2014 (thousands) Percent change, September 2013-14 Average weekly wage National ranking by level Percent change, third quarter 2013-14 National ranking by percent change

United States (2)

137,724.1 2.0 $949 -- 2.9 --

Alabama

1,871.2 1.3 815 34 2.5 30

Alaska

344.7 -0.1 1,019 9 3.0 19

Arizona

2,539.6 1.8 876 24 2.0 40

Arkansas

1,170.9 1.3 737 47 1.8 44

California

16,013.4 3.1 1,095 5 3.7 7

Colorado

2,443.0 3.7 982 12 3.0 19

Connecticut

1,663.2 0.8 1,124 4 1.4 49

Delaware

426.1 1.9 961 16 2.2 37

District of Columbia

732.9 0.8 1,631 1 4.5 2

Florida

7,748.4 3.3 826 32 2.1 38

Georgia

4,059.0 3.4 891 21 2.8 23

Hawaii

625.1 0.9 870 25 3.9 4

Idaho

658.4 2.1 721 50 2.6 26

Illinois

5,807.4 1.2 982 12 2.5 30

Indiana

2,924.7 1.4 799 39 1.9 42

Iowa

1,528.8 1.1 800 38 3.6 10

Kansas

1,363.1 1.2 794 40 2.3 35

Kentucky

1,827.8 1.8 781 42 2.5 30

Louisiana

1,928.3 1.7 852 27 3.1 16

Maine

604.5 0.3 754 46 2.6 26

Maryland

2,574.5 1.1 1,042 8 3.1 16

Massachusetts

3,386.7 1.8 1,164 2 3.0 19

Michigan

4,141.0 1.7 896 19 2.4 33

Minnesota

2,757.9 1.1 965 15 2.9 22

Mississippi

1,105.0 0.5 697 51 1.3 50

Missouri

2,686.4 1.0 828 31 2.7 25

Montana

449.5 0.7 732 49 3.7 7

Nebraska

950.0 1.1 779 43 1.8 44

Nevada

1,215.8 4.0 840 28 0.5 51

New Hampshire

633.5 1.4 927 18 3.6 10

New Jersey

3,880.4 0.8 1,087 6 1.7 47

New Mexico

804.0 1.1 786 41 2.6 26

New York

8,902.1 2.0 1,145 3 3.2 15

North Carolina

4,085.5 1.9 839 29 2.8 23

North Dakota

455.9 4.3 977 14 6.1 1

Ohio

5,219.1 1.4 863 26 3.1 16

Oklahoma

1,592.3 1.0 826 32 3.6 10

Oregon

1,752.8 2.4 887 22 3.6 10

Pennsylvania

5,676.2 1.0 937 17 2.6 26

Rhode Island

471.8 1.4 895 20 1.8 44

South Carolina

1,902.7 2.4 768 45 2.4 33

South Dakota

415.8 1.7 733 48 3.7 7

Tennessee

2,775.5 2.4 837 30 2.1 38

Texas

11,433.6 3.1 988 11 3.8 6

Utah

1,304.7 3.1 803 37 1.5 48

Vermont

306.5 1.2 805 36 2.3 35

Virginia

3,667.9 0.6 989 10 2.0 40

Washington

3,112.8 3.2 1,087 6 3.9 4

West Virginia

709.3 -0.2 778 44 3.5 14

Wisconsin

2,783.1 1.1 808 35 1.9 42

Wyoming

291.3 1.7 877 23 4.4 3

Puerto Rico

896.7 -1.5 505 (3) 0.8 (3)

Virgin Islands

37.5 -1.0 720 (3) 2.0 (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.
 

 Chart 1. Average weekly wages by county in Minnesota, third quarter 2014

 

Last Modified Date: Friday, May 01, 2015