Workers in the Sioux Falls Metropolitan Statistical Area had an average (mean) hourly wage of $21.12 in May 2017, about 13 percent below 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 17 of the 22 major occupational groups, including legal; computer and mathematical; and arts, design, entertainment, sports, and media. Four occupational groups had wages that were not significantly different from their respective national averages, including management; sales and related; and installation, maintenance, and repair.

When compared to the nationwide distribution, local employment was more highly concentrated in 6 of the 22 occupational groups, including healthcare practitioners and technical; sales and related; and construction and extraction. Conversely, nine groups had employment shares significantly below their national representation, including management; education, training, and library; and protective service. (See table A and box note at end of release.)

One occupational group—healthcare practitioners and technical—was chosen to illustrate the diversity of data available for any of the 22 major occupational categories. Sioux Falls had 14,140 jobs in healthcare practitioners and technical occupations, accounting for 9.3 percent of local area employment, significantly higher than the 6.0-percent share nationally. The average hourly wage for this occupational group locally was $35.56, significantly below the national wage of $38.83.

Some of the larger detailed occupations within the healthcare practitioners and technical group included registered nurses (6,050); pharmacists (660); and licensed practical and licensed vocational nurses (650). Among the higher paying jobs in this group were dentists, general with mean hourly wages of $121.93 and family and general practitioners at $103.36. At the lower end of the wage scale were emergency medical technicians and paramedics ($13.83) and opticians, dispensing ($15.02). (Detailed data for healthcare practitioners and technical occupations are presented in table 1; for a complete listing of detailed occupations available go to www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes_43620.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 Sioux Falls Metropolitan Statistical Area, above-average concentrations of employment were found in many of the occupations within the healthcare practitioners and technical group. For instance, surgeons were employed at 5.1 times the national rate in Sioux Falls, and surgical technologists, at 2.5 times the U.S. average. On the other hand, licensed practical and licensed vocational nurses had a location quotient of 0.9 in Sioux Falls, 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 South Dakota Department of Labor and Regulation.

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 Sioux Falls Metropolitan Statistical Area included 1,942 establishments with a response rate of 83 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 Sioux Falls, S.D. Metropolitan Statistical Area includes Lincoln, McCook, Minnehaha, and Turner 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, Sioux Falls Metropolitan Statistical Area, May 2017

Occupation (1)	Employment		Mean wages
	Level (2)	Location quotient (3)	Hourly	Annual (4)
Healthcare practitioners and technical occupations	14,140	1.6	$35.56	$73,960
Chiropractors	60	1.7	37.43	77,850
Dentists, general	70	0.6	121.93	253,610
Dietitians and nutritionists	90	1.3	25.86	53,790
Optometrists	50	1.3	47.90	99,630
Pharmacists	660	2.0	54.77	113,910
Family and general practitioners	160	1.2	103.36	215,000
Internists, general	120	2.8	(7)	(7)
Surgeons	210	5.1	(7)	(7)
Physicians and surgeons, all other	270	0.7	126.25	262,610
Physician assistants	220	1.9	48.52	100,930
Occupational therapists	220	1.7	31.85	66,250
Physical therapists	370	1.5	35.79	74,440
Respiratory therapists	200	1.5	24.68	51,330
Speech-language pathologists	150	1.0	29.21	60,760
Veterinarians	70	0.9	40.82	84,910
Registered nurses	6,050	2.0	27.77	57,750
Nurse anesthetists	160	3.5	96.24	200,170
Nurse practitioners	250	1.4	47.32	98,430
Clinical laboratory technologists and technicians	620	1.8	25.04	52,080
Dental hygienists	270	1.2	31.20	64,910
Cardiovascular technologists and technicians	150	2.5	24.99	51,980
Diagnostic medical sonographers	190	2.6	29.10	60,530
Nuclear medicine technologists	100	5.2	28.09	58,420
Radiologic technologists	350	1.6	24.65	51,260
Magnetic resonance imaging technologists	40	1.1	29.31	60,960
Emergency medical technicians and paramedics	190	0.7	13.83	28,760
Pharmacy technicians	600	1.4	15.71	32,670
Surgical technologists	280	2.5	19.84	41,260
Veterinary technologists and technicians	90	0.9	15.80	32,870
Licensed practical and licensed vocational nurses	650	0.9	17.99	37,410
Medical records and health information technicians	470	2.2	20.82	43,310
Opticians, dispensing	150	1.8	15.02	31,240
Health technologists and technicians, all other	130	1.0	27.58	57,370
Occupational health and safety specialists	80	1.0	30.85	64,170
Athletic trainers	70	2.7	(6)	44,020
Footnotes: (1) For a complete listing of all detailed occupations in Sioux Falls, SD, see www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes_43620.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. (6) Wages for some occupations that do not generally work year-round, full time, are reported either as hourly wages or annual salaries depending on how they are typically paid. (7) This wage is equal to or greater than $80.00 per hour or $166,400 per year.