Workers in the Columbus Metropolitan Statistical Area had an average (mean) hourly wage of $24.05 in May 2017, not significantly different from the nationwide average of $24.34, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Assistant Commissioner for Regional Operations Charlene Peiffer noted that, after testing for statistical significance, wages in the local area were lower than their respective national averages in 12 of the 22 major occupational groups, including legal; life, physical, and social science; and architecture and engineering.

When compared to the nationwide distribution, local employment was more highly concentrated in 5 of the 22 occupational groups, including business and financial operations; office and administrative support; and computer and mathematical. Conversely, 10 groups had employment shares significantly below their national representation, including sales and related; construction and extraction; and personal care and service. (See table A and box note at end of release.)

One occupational group—business and financial operations—was chosen to illustrate the diversity of data available for any of the 22 major occupational categories. Columbus had 68,950 jobs in business and financial operations occupations, accounting for 6.6 percent of local area employment, significantly higher than the 5.2-percent share nationally. The average hourly wage for this occupational group locally was $34.04, significantly below the national wage of $36.70.

Some of the larger detailed occupations within the business and financial operations group included accountants and auditors (10,860), management analysts (6,050), and market research analysts and marketing specialists (5,310). Among the higher paying jobs in this group were personal financial advisors and management analysts, with mean hourly wages of $63.56 and $37.49, respectively. At the lower end of the wage scale were tax preparers ($16.65) and meeting, convention, and event planners ($21.71). (Detailed data for business and financial operations occupations are presented in table 1; for a complete listing of detailed occupations available go to www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes_18140.htm.)

Location quotients allow us to explore the occupational make-up of a metropolitan area by comparing the composition of jobs in an area relative to the national average. (See table 1.) For example, a location quotient of 2.0 indicates that an occupation accounts for twice the share of employment in the area than it does nationally. In the Columbus Metropolitan Statistical Area, above-average concentrations of employment were found in some of the occupations within the business and financial operations group. For instance, insurance underwriters were employed at 2.1 times the national rate in Columbus, and claims adjusters, examiners, and investigators, at 1.6 times the U.S. average. On the other hand, compliance officers had a location quotient of 1.1 in Columbus, indicating that this particular occupation’s local and national employment shares were similar.

These statistics are from the Occupational Employment Statistics (OES) survey, a federal-state cooperative program between BLS and State Workforce Agencies, in this case, the Ohio Department of Job & Family Services.

Technical Note

The Occupational Employment Statistics (OES) survey is a semiannual survey measuring occupational employment and wage rates for wage and salary workers in nonfarm establishments in the United States. The OES data available from BLS include cross-industry occupational employment and wage estimates for the nation; over 650 areas, including states and the District of Columbia, metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs), metropolitan divisions, nonmetropolitan areas, and territories; national industry-specific estimates at the NAICS sector, 3-, 4-, and selected 5- and 6-digit industry levels, and national estimates by ownership across all industries and for schools and hospitals. OES data are available at www.bls.gov/oes/tables.htm.

OES estimates are constructed from a sample of about 1.2 million establishments. Each year, two semiannual panels of approximately 200,000 sampled establishments are contacted, one panel in May and the other in November. Responses are obtained by mail, Internet or other electronic means, email, telephone, or personal visit. The May 2017 estimates are based on responses from six semiannual panels collected over a 3-year period: May 2017, November 2016, May 2016, November 2015, May 2015, and November 2014. The overall national response rate for the six panels, based on the 50 states and the District of Columbia, is 72 percent based on establishments and 68 percent based on weighted sampled employment. The unweighted sample employment of 82 million across all six semiannual panels represents approximately 58 percent of total national employment. The sample in the Columbus Metropolitan Statistical Area included 5,183 establishments with a response rate of 72 percent. For more information about OES concepts and methodology, go to www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes_tec.htm.

The May 2017 OES estimates are based on the 2010 Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) system and the 2017 North American Industry Classification System (NAICS). Information about the 2010 SOC is available on the BLS website at www.bls.gov/soc and information about the 2017 NAICS is available at www.bls.gov/bls/naics.htm.

Metropolitan area definitions

The substate area data published in this release reflect the standards and definitions established by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget.

The Columbus, Ohio Metropolitan Statistical Area includes Delaware, Fairfield, Franklin, Licking, Madison, Morrow, Pickaway, and Union Counties.

Additional information

OES data are available on our regional web page at www.bls.gov/regions/midwest. Answers to frequently asked questions about the OES data are available at www.bls.gov/oes/oes_ques.htm. Detailed technical information about the OES survey is available in our Survey Methods and Reliability Statement on the BLS website at www.bls.gov/oes/current/methods_statement.pdf.

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. Employment and wage data from the Occupational Employment Statistics survey, by occupation, Columbus Metropolitan Statistical Area, May 2017

Occupation (1)	Employment		Mean wages
	Level (2)	Location quotient (3)	Hourly	Annual (4)
Business and financial operations occupations	68,950	1.3	$34.04	$70,810
Agents and business managers of artists, performers, and athletes	50	0.4	(5)	(5)
Buyers and purchasing agents	4,050	1.4	33.78	70,260
Claims adjusters, examiners, and investigators	3,300	1.6	31.83	66,210
Insurance appraisers, auto damage	100	0.9	32.71	68,040
Compliance officers	2,300	1.1	34.32	71,380
Cost estimators	1,750	1.1	29.51	61,380
Human resources specialists	5,050	1.3	30.35	63,140
Labor relations specialists	1,080	1.9	25.34	52,720
Logisticians	1,240	1.1	35.55	73,940
Management analysts	6,050	1.3	37.49	77,970
Meeting, convention, and event planners	670	0.9	21.71	45,150
Fundraisers	830	1.6	27.95	58,140
Compensation, benefits, and job analysis specialists	500	0.9	34.63	72,030
Training and development specialists	2,620	1.3	27.44	57,070
Market research analysts and marketing specialists	5,310	1.2	33.74	70,180
Business operations specialists, all other	9,680	1.3	33.99	70,690
Accountants and auditors	10,860	1.2	35.88	74,630
Appraisers and assessors of real estate	590	1.4	31.06	64,600
Budget analysts	190	0.5	37.21	77,390
Credit analysts	980	1.8	36.96	76,880
Financial analysts	2,520	1.2	36.23	75,360
Personal financial advisors	1,110	0.8	63.56	132,200
Insurance underwriters	1,400	2.1	34.56	71,890
Financial examiners	1,060	2.8	33.62	69,940
Credit counselors	180	0.7	25.87	53,820
Loan officers	3,120	1.4	34.63	72,040
Tax examiners and collectors, and revenue agents	520	1.3	30.34	63,100
Tax preparers	450	0.9	16.65	34,640
Financial specialists, all other	1,420	1.6	36.23	75,360
Footnotes: (1) For a complete listing of all detailed occupations in Columbus, OH, see www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes_18140.htm. (2) Estimates for detailed occupations do not sum to the totals because the totals include occupations not shown separately. Estimates do not include self-employed workers. (3) The location quotient is the ratio of the area concentration of occupational employment to the national average concentration. A location quotient greater than one indicates the occupation has a higher share of employment than average, and a location quotient less than one indicates the occupation is less prevalent in the area than average. (4) Annual wages have been calculated by multiplying the hourly mean wage by a "year-round, full-time" hours figure of 2,080 hours; for those occupations where there is not an hourly mean wage published, the annual wage has been directly calculated from the reported survey data. (5) Estimate not released.