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News Release Information

17-612-CHI
Thursday, July 13, 2017

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

County Employment and Wages in Michigan — Fourth Quarter 2016

Nine of the 10 large counties in Michigan had employment increases from December 2015 to December 2016, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported today. (Large counties are defined as those with employment of 75,000 or more as measured by 2015 annual average employment.) Assistant Commissioner for Regional Operations Charlene Peiffer noted that Ingham County had the largest increase, up 2.2 percent, followed by Ottawa and Wayne Counties, up 1.7 percent each. (See table 1.)

Nationally, employment advanced 1.2 percent from December 2015 to December 2016 with 280 of the 344 largest U.S. counties registering increases. Williamson, Tenn., had the largest percentage increase in the country, up 5.1 percent over the year. Lafayette, La., registered the largest percentage employment decline among the large counties, down 5.1 percent.

Among the 10 largest counties in Michigan, employment was highest in Oakland County (731,900) and Wayne County (722,700) in December 2016. Two other counties, Kent (398,000) and Macomb (322,800) had employment levels of more than 300,000. Collectively, Michigan’s 10 large counties accounted for 70.0 percent of total employment within the state. Nationwide, the 344 largest counties made up 72.8 percent of total U.S. employment.

Ottawa and Ingham Counties had average weekly wage increases of 0.4 percent and 0.1 percent, respectively, from the fourth quarter of 2015 to the fourth quarter of 2016, the only large counties in Michigan which had wage increases. Oakland County had the highest average weekly wage in the state at $1,201, followed by Wayne County at $1,188. (See table 1.) Nationally, the average weekly wage decreased 1.5 percent over the year, declining to $1,067 in the fourth quarter of 2016. This is one of only eight declines in the history of the series, which dates back to 1978.

Employment and wage levels (but not over-the-year changes) are also available for the 73 counties in Michigan with employment levels below 75,000. All of these smaller counties had average weekly wages below the national average. (See table 2.)

Large county wage changes

Eight of Michigan’s large counties had over-the-year wage declines. Genesee County recorded a wage decrease of 3.6 percent, followed by Macomb County (-2.7 percent), Wayne County (-1.8 percent), and Oakland County (-1.7 percent). As noted, two large counties in the state had over-the-year wage gains. Ottawa County’s 0.4-percent wage gain ranked 37th and Ingham County’s 0.1-percent increase ranked  40th among the nation’s 344 largest counties. (See table 1.)

Among the 344 large U.S. counties, 290 had over-the-year wage decreases. McLean, Ill., had the largest percentage decline in average weekly wages with a loss of 9.2 percent. Clay, Mo., had the second largest decrease in average weekly wages, down 8.3 percent from the fourth quarter of 2015, followed by Lafayette, La. (-8.0 percent), and Douglas, Colo. (-6.8 percent).

Forty-eight large U.S. counties experienced over-the-year increases in average weekly wages. Clayton, Ga., had the largest wage gain, up 11.3 percent from the fourth quarter of 2015. Washington, Pa., was second with a wage gain of 4.9 percent, followed by the counties of Marin, Calif. (4.3 percent), and Elkhart, Ind. (4.0 percent).

Large county average weekly wages

As noted, Oakland County ($1,201) had the highest average weekly wage in the state and ranked 54th among the 344 largest U.S. counties. Wayne ($1,188, 57th), Washtenaw ($1,100, 75th), and Macomb ($1,069, 99th) Counties also reported average weekly wages above the national average of $1,067. Two other counties—Ingham ($1,032) and Kalamazoo ($985)—had average weekly wages that placed in the top-half of the national ranking. Saginaw ($865) reported the lowest average weekly wage among the state’s large counties and ranked 276th nationwide.

Seventy-one percent of the large U.S. counties (243) reported average weekly wages below the national average of $1,067. Cameron, Texas, reported the lowest weekly wage ($640), followed by Hidalgo, Texas ($648), and Horry, S.C. ($654).

Nationally, 101 large counties registered average weekly wages at or above the U.S. average in the fourth quarter of 2016. Santa Clara, Calif., held the top position with an average weekly wage of $2,365. New York, N.Y., was second at $2,212, followed by San Mateo, Calif., at $2,098.

Average weekly wages in Michigan’s smaller counties

All 73 counties in Michigan with employment below 75,000 had average weekly wages below the national average of $1,067. Among these smaller counties, Midland had the highest average weekly wage at $1,050, while Keweenaw had the lowest at $489. (See table 2.)

When the 83 counties in Michigan were considered, all but 4 had wages below the national average. Nine reported average weekly wages of $649 or lower, 21 reported wages from $650 to $749, 28 had wages from $750 to $849, 15 reported wages from $850 to $949, and 10 had wages of $950 or higher. (See chart 1.)

Additional statistics and other information

Quarterly 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 the QCEW Web site at 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 2015 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 2016 version of the national news release. Tables and additional content from Employment and Wages Annual Averages 2015 are now available online at www.bls.gov/cew/publications/employment-and-wages-annual-averages/2015/home.htm. The 2016 edition of Employment and Wages Annual Averages Online will be available in September 2017.

The County Employment and Wages release for first quarter 2017 is scheduled to be released on Wednesday, September 6, 2017.

Upcoming Industry Changes to QCEW Data

Beginning with the release of first quarter 2017 data, the program will switch to the 2017 version of the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) as the basis for the assignment and tabulation of economic data by industry. For more information on the change, please see the Federal Register notice at www.census.gov/eos/www/naics/federal_register_notices/notices/fr08au16.pdf.


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 9.9 million employer reports cover 143.7 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: (800) 877-8342.

Table 1. Covered employment and wages in the United States and the 10 largest counties in Michigan, fourth quarter 2016
AreaEmploymentAverage weekly wage (1)
December 2016 (thousands)Percent change, December 2015-16 (2)National ranking by percent change (3)Average weekly wageNational ranking by level (3)Percent change, fourth quarter 2015-16 (2)National ranking by percent change (3)

United States (4)

143,749.91.2--$1,067---1.5--

Michigan

4,283.01.5--1,02619-1.625

Genesee, Mich.

135.40.6230889252-3.6294

Ingham, Mich.

151.92.2901,0321190.140

Kalamazoo, Mich.

118.21.4156985163-1.4149

Kent, Mich.

398.01.6139936209-1.4149

Macomb, Mich.

322.81.01941,06999-2.7259

Oakland, Mich.

731.91.51461,20154-1.7181

Ottawa, Mich.

122.51.71309521840.437

Saginaw, Mich.

85.7-0.3302865276-0.9110

Washtenaw, Mich.

211.31.51461,10075-1.4149

Wayne, Mich.

722.71.71301,18857-1.8183

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 Michigan, fourth quarter 2016
AreaEmployment December 2016Average weekly wage(1)

United States(2)

143,749,910$1,067

Michigan

4,282,9501,026

Alcona

1,658725

Alger

2,334795

Allegan

37,423894

Alpena

11,810714

Antrim

4,971632

Arenac

4,369727

Baraga

2,815797

Barry

12,191776

Bay

34,711850

Benzie

3,976663

Berrien

60,471909

Branch

13,086783

Calhoun

56,958977

Cass

9,151756

Charlevoix

9,916848

Cheboygan

5,831639

Chippewa

12,281738

Clare

6,778750

Clinton

16,513854

Crawford

3,717787

Delta

13,300766

Dickinson

13,701868

Eaton

42,869911

Emmet

16,967822

Genesee

135,430889

Gladwin

3,860702

Gogebic

5,452734

Grand Traverse

49,789865

Gratiot

12,951832

Hillsdale

12,812836

Houghton

11,363805

Huron

10,975764

Ingham

151,8691,032

Ionia

20,793639

Iosco

7,418695

Iron

3,872701

Isabella

29,882747

Jackson

57,475928

Kalamazoo

118,222985

Kalkaska

3,832964

Kent

398,032936

Keweenaw

353489

Lake

1,594643

Lapeer

20,714773

Leelanau

5,863735

Lenawee

27,133817

Livingston

59,479869

Luce

1,816714

Mackinac

3,130711

Macomb

322,8391,069

Manistee

6,950784

Marquette

26,636798

Mason

10,240743

Mecosta

14,139808

Menominee

7,032701

Midland

36,8571,050

Missaukee

3,206662

Monroe

40,926912

Montcalm

15,782811

Montmorency

1,950637

Muskegon

62,108846

Newaygo

12,036759

Oakland

731,9131,201

Oceana

6,174716

Ogemaw

5,673651

Ontonagon

1,208606

Osceola

6,480855

Oscoda

1,529630

Otsego

10,000752

Ottawa

122,541952

Presque Isle

2,869734

Roscommon

5,325607

Saginaw

85,651865

St. Clair

44,669845

St. Joseph

23,923755

Sanilac

10,967711

Schoolcraft

2,616773

Shiawassee

16,154734

Tuscola

11,222791

Van Buren

20,633862

Washtenaw

211,3231,100

Wayne

722,6791,188

Wexford

13,339756

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, fourth quarter 2016
StateEmploymentAverage weekly wage (1)
December 2016 (thousands)Percent change, December 2015-16Average weekly wageNational ranking by levelPercent change, fourth quarter 2015-16National ranking by percent change

United States (2)

143,749.91.2$1,067---1.5--

Alabama

1,932.60.790135-1.321

Alaska

310.0-1.91,03817-5.251

Arizona

2,760.12.194525-2.234

Arkansas

1,205.40.482747-1.422

California

16,923.31.91,2715-0.34

Colorado

2,588.62.01,08612-1.524

Connecticut

1,685.50.01,2894-3.446

Delaware

441.2-0.11,05515-2.944

District of Columbia

760.90.51,76310.62

Florida

8,538.92.794227-1.828

Georgia

4,349.32.499320-0.914

Hawaii

658.30.795424-0.34

Idaho

691.63.280050-0.48

Illinois

5,947.60.41,1229-2.031

Indiana

3,021.70.988338-0.914

Iowa

1,542.00.191133-1.016

Kansas

1,384.50.187739-2.234

Kentucky

1,894.20.687441-1.422

Louisiana

1,907.4-1.691432-2.944

Maine

602.60.885543-2.133

Maryland

2,666.71.01,1697-0.48

Massachusetts

3,530.41.31,3522-2.439

Michigan

4,283.01.51,02619-1.625

Minnesota

2,839.71.21,06214-1.118

Mississippi

1,134.00.075651-1.828

Missouri

2,783.20.991831-1.727

Montana

456.50.7822480.53

Nebraska

972.40.087640-0.510

Nevada

1,307.82.792429-1.220

New Hampshire

656.91.31,09210-4.148

New Jersey

4,042.11.41,2396-1.930

New Mexico

811.40.084445-2.541

New York

9,332.51.21,3423-2.336

North Carolina

4,326.31.893228-0.713

North Dakota

414.4-3.297821-4.249

Ohio

5,365.60.794326-2.336

Oklahoma

1,587.7-1.286442-3.547

Oregon

1,860.72.497022-1.016

Pennsylvania

5,799.80.71,03916-2.336

Rhode Island

478.30.01,02718-1.625

South Carolina

2,024.31.885543-0.612

South Dakota

419.90.582846-0.510

Tennessee

2,947.51.897022-1.118

Texas

11,974.71.21,07213-2.541

Utah

1,415.12.991034-0.34

Vermont

312.60.189736-2.439

Virginia

3,831.60.61,09111-0.34

Washington

3,227.92.81,15081.71

West Virginia

693.1-1.680949-2.541

Wisconsin

2,842.40.592429-2.031

Wyoming

265.8-3.989437-4.750

Puerto Rico

928.2-0.3555(3)-1.9(3)

Virgin Islands

38.50.2769(3)-1.8(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.
 


 

 

Last Modified Date: Thursday, July 13, 2017