For Release: Wednesday, October 14, 2015

15-1845-CHI

MIDWEST INFORMATION OFFICE: Chicago, Ill.
Technical information: (312) 353-1880 BLSInfoChicago@bls.gov www.bls.gov/regions/midwest
Media contact: (312) 353-1138

County Employment and Wages in Ohio — First Quarter 2015

All 13 large counties in Ohio reported employment gains from March 2014 to March 2015, 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 2014 annual average employment.) Regional Commissioner Charlene Peiffer noted that Franklin County had the largest increase, up 2.5 percent, followed by Warren County, up 2.0 percent. (See table 1.)

Nationally, employment advanced 2.1 percent from March 2014 to March 2015 as 323 of the 342 largest U.S. counties registered increases. Utah, Utah, recorded the largest percentage increase in the country, up 6.1 percent over the year. Atlantic, N.J., had the largest over-the-year percentage decrease in employment among the largest counties in the U.S. with a loss of 4.3 percent.

Among the 13 largest counties in Ohio, employment was highest in Franklin County (703,400) and Cuyahoga County (699,700) in March 2015. Four other counties—Hamilton (495,300), Summit (259,400), Montgomery (244,700), and Lucas (202,800)—had employment levels of more than 200,000. Collectively, Ohio's 13 large counties accounted for 65.1 percent of total employment within the state. Nationwide, the 342 largest counties made up 72.3 percent of total U.S. employment, which stood at 137.4 million in March 2015.

From the first quarter of 2014 to the first quarter of 2015, Butler County recorded the fastest rate of increase in average weekly wages among the 13 large counties in Ohio, registering a gain of 3.6 percent. (See table 1.) Hamilton County recorded the highest average weekly wage among the state’s large counties at $1,122, followed by Delaware County at $1,107. Nationally, the average weekly wage increased 2.1 percent over the year to $1,048 in the first quarter of 2015.

Employment and wage levels (but not over-the-year changes) are also available for the 75 counties in Ohio with employment levels below 75,000. Wage levels in all of these smaller counties were below the national average in the first quarter of 2015. (See table 2.)

Large county wage changes

Butler County’s 3.6-percent rise in average weekly wages from the first quarter of 2014 to the first quarter of 2015 ranked 45th among the nation’s 342 largest counties. (See table 1.)  Two other counties registered wage increases at or above the national increase: Mahoning County (2.2 percent, 127th) and Lucas County (2.1 percent, 133rd). Of the 13 large counties in Ohio, Delaware County was the only large county to record a wage decrease, down 0.5 percent from a year ago.

Nationally, 297 of the 342 largest counties registered over-the-year wage increases. Olmsted, Minn., experienced the largest wage gain in the nation, up 11.7 percent from the first quarter of 2014. Washington, Pa., had the second largest increase (10.7 percent), followed by Riverside, Calif. (10.1 percent).

Among the nation’s 342 largest counties, 39 experienced over-the-year wage decreases. Snohomish, Wash., had the largest percentage decrease in average weekly wages, with a loss of 4.8 percent. Chester, Pa., had the second largest wage decline (-4.0 percent), followed by Williamson, Texas (-3.1 percent).

Large county average weekly wages

As noted, Hamilton County ($1,122) had the highest average weekly wage in the state and ranked 66th among the 342 largest U.S. counties. Delaware County ($1,107, 68th) and Cuyahoga County ($1,071, 82nd) also reported average weekly wages above the national average of $1,048. Mahoning ($698, 330th) reported the lowest average weekly wage among the state’s large counties.

In the first quarter of 2015, nearly three-fourths of the largest U.S. counties (248) reported wages below the national weekly average of $1,048. Horry County, S.C., reported the lowest wage ($583), followed by the Texas counties of Cameron ($593) and Hidalgo ($607).

Among the nation’s 342 largest counties, 93 registered weekly wages above the U.S. average. New York, N.Y., held the top position with an average weekly wage of $2,847. Santa Clara, Calif., was second at $2,203, followed by Somerset, N.J. ($2,080), San Francisco, Calif. ($2,070), and San Mateo, Calif. ($2,066). Average wages in the highest-ranked county, New York, N.Y., were nearly five times the average wage in the lowest-ranked county, Horry, S.C. ($583).

Average weekly wages in Ohio’s smaller counties

All 75 counties in Ohio with employment below 75,000 had average weekly wages below the national average of $1,048. Among these smaller counties, Union had the highest average weekly wage at $1,016, while Meigs had the lowest at $569. (See table 2.)

When all 88 counties in Ohio were considered, all but 3 had wages below the national average. Two reported average weekly wages less than $600, 31 had wages from $600 to $699, 30 reported wages from $700 to $799, 16 had wages from $800 to $899, and 9 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 2014 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 2015 version of the national QCEW news release. Tables and additional content from Employment and Wages Annual Averages 2014 are now available online at www.bls.gov/cew/publications/employment-and-wages-annual-averages/2014/home.htm. The 2015 edition of Employment and Wages Annual Averages Online will be available in September 2016.

The County Employment and Wages release for second quarter 2015 is scheduled to be released on Thursday, December 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 9.5 million employer reports cover 137.4 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 13 largest counties in Ohio, first quarter 2015
Table 1. Covered employment and wages in the United States and the 13 largest counties in Ohio, first quarter 2015
AreaEmploymentAverage weekly wage (1)
March 2015 (thousands)Percent change, March 2014-15 (2)National ranking by percent change (3)Average weekly wageNational ranking by level (3)Percent change, first quarter 2014-15 (2)National ranking by percent change (3)
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
- ContinuedNote: See footnotes at end of table.

United States (4)

137,412.42.1--$1,048--2.1--

Ohio

5,144.51.4--922241.438

Butler, Ohio

141.61.42149091773.645

Cuyahoga, Ohio

699.70.33091,071821.8162

Delaware, Ohio

81.20.23141,10768-0.5314

Franklin, Ohio

703.42.51271,045951.9150

Hamilton, Ohio

495.31.32231,122660.6279

Lake, Ohio

92.90.72828292551.0245

Lorain, Ohio

94.10.72828092740.7274

Lucas, Ohio

202.80.82678871952.1133

Mahoning, Ohio

96.40.72826983302.2127

Montgomery, Ohio

244.71.61998582240.4286

Stark, Ohio

155.40.82677593151.3223

Summit, Ohio

259.41.22349381581.5195

Warren, Ohio

83.92.01638732091.7175
 

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.
 

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 Ohio, first quarter 2015
Table 2. Covered employment and wages in the United States and all counties in Ohio, first quarter 2015
AreaEmployment March 2015Average weekly wage (1)
 
 
 
- Continued

United States (2)

137,412,381$1,048

Ohio

5,144,476922

Adams

5,646661

Allen

49,469777

Ashland

17,871703

Ashtabula

29,552680

Athens

19,994759

Auglaize

20,782767

Belmont

23,053734

Brown

7,723652

Butler

141,596909

Carroll

6,829685

Champaign

10,451736

Clark

48,250687

Clermont

56,042812

Clinton

15,756819

Columbiana

30,400659

Coshocton

10,246804

Crawford

13,173668

Cuyahoga

699,7241,071

Darke

17,871685

Defiance

15,522815

Delaware

81,2061,107

Erie

33,743704

Fairfield

41,490654

Fayette

11,104615

Franklin

703,3941,045

Fulton

17,705688

Gallia

10,766692

Geauga

32,784759

Greene

69,340979

Guernsey

15,374722

Hamilton

495,3261,122

Hancock

43,770931

Hardin

8,435649

Harrison

3,709745

Henry

10,458703

Highland

10,236596

Hocking

6,346608

Holmes

18,270618

Huron

19,226707

Jackson

10,185639

Jefferson

20,307704

Knox

20,091778

Lake

92,872829

Lawrence

12,271622

Licking

51,916755

Logan

19,118759

Lorain

94,101809

Lucas

202,848887

Madison

15,045772

Mahoning

96,440698

Marion

23,808726

Medina

57,126765

Meigs

3,456569

Mercer

18,918675

Miami

39,692733

Monroe

2,857630

Montgomery

244,732858

Morgan

2,633662

Morrow

5,029703

Muskingum

31,603722

Noble

3,160725

Ottawa

11,911838

Paulding

4,708669

Perry

5,525606

Pickaway

13,445768

Pike

8,907889

Portage

53,002794

Preble

10,323697

Putnam

11,256676

Richland

49,891667

Ross

27,176816

Sandusky

25,775718

Scioto

23,004658

Seneca

18,930646

Shelby

26,761850

Stark

155,412759

Summit

259,402938

Trumbull

68,268800

Tuscarawas

35,981692

Union

30,0261,016

Van Wert

10,634666

Vinton

2,166649

Warren

83,874873

Washington

24,846835

Wayne

44,133754

Williams

16,937703

Wood

61,787844

Wyandot

8,753717

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, first quarter 2015
Table 3. Covered employment and wages by state, first quarter 2015
StateEmploymentAverage weekly wage (1)
March 2015 (thousands)Percent change, March 2014-15Average weekly wageNational ranking by levelPercent change, first quarter 2014-15National ranking by percent change
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
- ContinuedNote: See footnotes at end of table.

United States (2)

137,412.42.1$1,048--2.1--

Alabama

1,873.51.3844392.219

Alaska

322.21.01,051152.610

Arizona

2,605.62.5926231.045

Arkansas

1,166.61.3790470.847

California

16,029.53.01,20763.73

Colorado

2,458.03.71,071132.416

Connecticut

1,640.50.81,38231.535

Delaware

422.82.51,1059-0.551

District of Columbia

732.61.41,76413.24

Florida

8,018.03.6885281.827

Georgia

4,107.03.5989181.731

Hawaii

633.71.3881312.89

Idaho

650.33.1736502.219

Illinois

5,724.61.21,13072.416

Indiana

2,894.81.8857351.438

Iowa

1,504.31.3848372.97

Kansas

1,357.11.0851361.438

Kentucky

1,810.31.5823411.535

Louisiana

1,927.11.0885282.021

Maine

571.40.9793450.946

Maryland

2,540.81.21,11382.512

Massachusetts

3,338.61.71,34143.24

Michigan

4,079.51.8969211.924

Minnesota

2,709.21.81,079124.31

Mississippi

1,102.30.6711510.748

Missouri

2,678.01.7882301.827

Montana

441.02.7750492.610

Nebraska

943.11.4818422.512

Nevada

1,227.73.786534-0.250

New Hampshire

623.51.5982201.243

New Jersey

3,834.61.41,28851.924

New Mexico

798.71.4805431.535

New York

8,865.01.91,46320.249

North Carolina

4,099.42.5930221.924

North Dakota

436.01.6984194.22

Ohio

5,144.51.4922241.438

Oklahoma

1,592.71.3869332.021

Oregon

1,748.73.5919252.97

Pennsylvania

5,606.90.91,031162.416

Rhode Island

456.11.41,008171.243

South Carolina

1,919.12.5801441.827

South Dakota

406.51.5763483.06

Tennessee

2,772.72.1886271.438

Texas

11,557.02.91,089102.512

Utah

1,318.83.7845381.731

Vermont

303.90.9824402.021

Virginia

3,649.31.11,068141.731

Washington

3,064.43.21,087111.827

West Virginia

692.4-0.3792461.438

Wisconsin

2,734.31.5877322.512

Wyoming

277.80.8892261.731

Puerto Rico

904.9-1.1524(3)1.0(3)

Virgin Islands

38.50.0738(3)-0.7(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.
 

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 Ohio, first quarter 2015