Employment rose in 7 of the 8 large counties in Indiana from March 2017 to March 2018, 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 2017 annual average employment.) Assistant Commissioner for Regional Operations Charlene Peiffer noted that Elkhart County had the largest increase, up 4.7 percent, followed by the counties of Hamilton (2.3 percent) and Vanderburgh (1.9 percent). (See table 1.)

Nationally, employment advanced 1.6 percent from March 2017 to March 2018, as 314 of the 349 largest U.S. counties registered increases. Midland, Texas, had the largest percentage increase in employment, up 12.6 percent over the year. Kanawha, W.Va., had the largest decrease with a loss of 1.4 percent.

Among the eight largest counties in Indiana, employment was highest in Marion County (591,900). Two other counties, Lake (185,900) and Allen (185,100), had employment levels above 175,000. Together, the eight largest Indiana counties accounted for 51.5 percent of total employment within the state. Nationwide, the 349 largest counties made up 73.1 percent of total U.S. employment, which stood at 144.6 million in March 2018.

Average weekly wages increased in all of the eight large counties in Indiana from the first quarter of 2017 to the first quarter of 2018. Tippecanoe County had the largest percentage increase in average weekly wages, up 6.6 percent, followed by Marion County at 5.0 percent. (See table 1.) Marion County recorded the highest average weekly wage among the state’s large counties at $1,218, followed by Hamilton County at $1,134. Nationally, the average weekly wage increased 3.7 percent over the year to $1,152 in the first quarter of 2018.

Employment and wage levels (but not over-the-year changes) are also available for the 84 counties in Indiana with employment levels below 75,000. Average weekly wages in these counties ranged from $1,273 to $506. (See table 2.)

Large county wage changes

As noted, average weekly wages rose in all of Indiana’s large counties from the first quarter of 2017 to the first quarter of 2018. Wage gains in two of the state’s large counties placed in the top 50 of the national ranking—Tippecanoe (6.6 percent, 17^th) and Marion (5.0 percent, 36^th). The counties of Allen, Elkhart, Hamilton, and St. Joseph each had a wage gain of 3.8 percent and ranked 101^st among the 349 largest U.S. counties.

Nationally, 336 of the 349 largest counties had over-the-year increases in average weekly wages. Peoria, Ill., had the largest wage gain, up 23.8 percent from the first quarter of 2017. Suffolk, Mass., followed with an increase of 12.1 percent.

Of the 349 largest U.S. counties, 13 experienced an over-the-year decrease in average weekly wages. Forsyth, N.C., had the largest percentage decrease in average weekly wages (-4.8 percent), followed by Washington, Ark. (-3.1 percent).

Large county average weekly wages

Marion County’s average weekly wage of $1,218 was the highest among the state’s large counties and ranked 70^th among the 349 largest U.S. counties. No other large county in Indiana had an average weekly wage that exceeded the national average of $1,152. Hamilton County ($1,134, 101^st) and Elkhart County ($1,006, 169^th) were the only other large counties in Indiana to report an average weekly wage above $1,000. St. Joseph ($857) reported the lowest average weekly wage among the state’s large counties and ranked 298^th nationwide.

Among the 349 largest U.S. counties, 259 had average weekly wages below the national average in the first quarter of 2018. Cameron, Texas, reported the lowest wage ($628), followed by Horry County, S.C. ($631), and the Texas counties of Hidalgo ($657) and Webb ($690).

Nationwide, 90 large counties had average weekly wages at or above the U.S. average of $1,152 in the first quarter of 2018. New York, N.Y., had the highest average weekly wage at $3,087. Santa Clara, Calif. ($2,651) was second, followed by San Mateo, Calif. ($2,606); San Francisco, Calif. ($2,485); Suffolk, Mass. ($2,268); and Somerset, N.J. ($2,078).

Average weekly wages in Indiana’s smaller counties

Among the 84 counties in Indiana with employment below 75,000, 3 counties had an average weekly wage above the national average of $1,152: Bartholomew ($1,273), Martin ($1,268), and Tipton ($1,199). Average weekly wages in Brown ($506) and Ohio ($520) were the lowest in the state. (See table 2.)

When all 92 counties in Indiana were considered, all but 4 had wages below the national average. Six reported average weekly wages less than $600, 12 had wage from $600 to $699, 41 reported wages from $700 to $799, 16 reported wages from $800 to $899, and 17 had wages of $900 or higher. (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 2017 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 2018 version of the national news release. Tables and additional content from Employment and Wages Annual Averages 2017 are now available online at www.bls.gov/cew/publications/employment-and-wages-annual-averages/2017/home.htm. The 2018 edition of Employment and Wages Annual Averages Online will be available in September 2019.

The County Employment and Wages release for second quarter 2018 is scheduled to be released on Wednesday, November 21, 2018.

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 10.0 million employer reports cover 144.6 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) 877-8339.

Table 1. Covered employment and wages in the United States and the 8 largest counties in Indiana, first quarter 2018

Area	Employment			Average weekly wage (1)
	March 2018 (thousands)	Percent change, March 2017-18 (2)	National ranking by percent change (3)	Average weekly wage	National ranking by level (3)	Percent change, first quarter 2017-18 (2)	National ranking by percent change (3)
United States (4)	144,562.9	1.6	--	$1,152	--	3.7	--
Indiana	3,018.8	1.2	--	954	32	3.9	10
Allen, Ind.	185.1	1.1	200	929	239	3.8	101
Elkhart, Ind.	137.5	4.7	6	1,006	169	3.8	101
Hamilton, Ind.	139.8	2.3	76	1,134	101	3.8	101
Lake, Ind.	185.9	0.7	247	920	248	2.1	264
Marion, Ind.	591.9	0.5	273	1,218	70	5.0	36
St. Joseph, Ind.	122.3	-0.1	319	857	298	3.8	101
Tippecanoe, Ind.	83.9	1.2	181	964	205	6.6	17
Vanderburgh, Ind.	108.4	1.9	113	888	275	2.3	243
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 3. Covered employment and wages by state, first quarter 2018

State	Employment		Average weekly wage (1)
	March 2018 (thousands)	Percent change, March 2017-18	Average weekly wage	National ranking by level	Percent change, first quarter 2017-18	National ranking by percent change
United States (2)	144,562.9	1.6	$1,152	--	3.7	--
Alabama	1,948.9	1.1	919	36	2.9	34
Alaska	311.2	-0.5	1,074	20	2.3	44
Arizona	2,822.5	2.8	1,025	22	3.5	19
Arkansas	1,211.4	0.9	879	44	2.4	40
California	17,152.5	2.1	1,352	6	4.4	6
Colorado	2,639.5	2.5	1,175	11	3.4	22
Connecticut	1,651.9	0.1	1,447	4	2.4	40
Delaware	438.7	1.2	1,202	10	1.3	51
District of Columbia	770.2	1.2	1,917	1	1.9	49
Florida	8,716.8	2.2	988	25	4.1	9
Georgia	4,409.1	2.3	1,095	17	2.3	44
Hawaii	658.4	0.3	974	29	2.3	44
Idaho	712.6	3.5	809	50	4.3	7
Illinois	5,909.3	1.0	1,241	8	3.9	10
Indiana	3,018.8	1.2	954	32	3.9	10
Iowa	1,525.8	0.5	921	35	2.4	40
Kansas	1,370.6	0.2	912	40	2.7	38
Kentucky	1,873.7	0.5	901	41	2.5	39
Louisiana	1,914.7	0.5	932	34	3.0	30
Maine	592.1	0.9	891	43	3.6	16
Maryland	2,646.9	0.9	1,209	9	3.2	26
Massachusetts	3,509.9	1.1	1,510	3	5.6	2
Michigan	4,289.0	1.4	1,078	19	3.4	22
Minnesota	2,823.6	0.7	1,175	11	2.1	47
Mississippi	1,125.9	0.1	765	51	2.1	47
Missouri	2,777.6	0.5	960	31	3.1	28
Montana	455.5	1.0	819	49	2.4	40
Nebraska	966.0	0.4	898	42	3.6	16
Nevada	1,351.6	3.0	977	28	4.8	5
New Hampshire	648.2	0.8	1,122	15	4.9	3
New Jersey	3,997.6	1.3	1,373	5	3.0	30
New Mexico	813.3	1.0	862	47	2.9	34
New York	9,318.9	1.8	1,597	2	3.4	22
North Carolina	4,370.6	1.8	1,022	23	3.0	30
North Dakota	408.2	0.6	988	25	3.7	15
Ohio	5,328.5	0.9	1,005	24	2.9	34
Oklahoma	1,600.9	1.8	914	38	3.5	19
Oregon	1,894.3	2.0	1,026	21	4.3	7
Pennsylvania	5,787.2	1.4	1,115	16	3.4	22
Rhode Island	469.9	1.1	1,086	18	3.2	26
South Carolina	2,067.4	2.2	877	45	1.7	50
South Dakota	417.5	1.0	842	48	2.8	37
Tennessee	2,950.0	1.6	978	27	3.5	19
Texas	12,179.2	2.0	1,168	13	3.9	10
Utah	1,458.8	3.3	949	33	4.9	3
Vermont	307.1	0.4	917	37	3.1	28
Virginia	3,854.4	1.5	1,162	14	3.0	30
Washington	3,316.1	2.8	1,306	7	7.7	1
West Virginia	684.8	0.6	868	46	3.6	16
Wisconsin	2,831.7	1.0	968	30	3.8	14
Wyoming	263.7	0.3	914	38	3.9	10
Puerto Rico	856.7	-3.8	563	(3)	7.0	(3)
Virgin Islands	33.3	-15.5	969	(3)	24.4	(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: Data are preliminary. Covered employment and wages includes workers covered by Unemployment Insurance (UI) and Unemployment Compensation for Federal Employees (UCFE) programs.