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News Release Information

23-2310-CHI
Tuesday, November 07, 2023

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

Business Employment Dynamics in Wisconsin — First Quarter 2023

From December 2022 to March 2023, gross job gains from opening and expanding private-sector establishments in Wisconsin were 150,237, while gross job losses from closing and contracting private-sector establishments were 121,931, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Regional Commissioner Jason Palmer noted that the difference between the number of gross job gains and the number of gross job losses yielded a net employment gain of 28,306 jobs in the private sector during the first quarter of 2023. During the previous quarter, gross job gains exceeded gross job losses by 14,264. (See chart 1.)


The change in the number of jobs over time is the net result of increases and decreases in employment that occur at all private businesses in the economy. Business Employment Dynamics (BED) statistics track these changes in employment at private-sector establishments from the third month of one quarter to the third month of the next. The difference between the number of gross job gains and the number of gross job losses is the net change in employment. (See Technical Note.)

Gross job gains

In the first quarter of 2023, gross job gains represented 6.0 percent of private-sector employment in Wisconsin; nationally, gross job gains accounted for 6.2 percent of private-sector employment. (See chart 2.) Gross job gains are the sum of increases in employment due to expansions at existing establishments and the addition of new jobs at opening establishments. In Wisconsin, gross job gains at expanding establishments totaled 130,547 in the first quarter of 2023, an increase of 6,645 jobs compared to the previous quarter. (See table 1.) Opening establishments accounted for 19,690 jobs gained in the first quarter of 2023, a decrease of 8,941 jobs from the previous quarter.


Gross job losses

In the first quarter of 2023, gross job losses represented 4.9 percent of private-sector employment in Wisconsin; nationally, gross job losses accounted for 5.4 percent of private-sector employment. (See chart 3.) Gross job losses are the result of contractions in employment at existing establishments and the loss of jobs at closing establishments. In Wisconsin, contracting establishments lost 102,737 jobs in the first quarter of 2023, a decrease of 10,708 jobs from the prior quarter. Closing establishments lost 19,194 jobs, a decrease of 5,630 jobs from the previous quarter.


Industries

Gross job gains exceeded gross job losses in 7 of the 10 published industry sectors in Wisconsin in the first quarter of 2023. Retail trade had the largest over-the-quarter net job increase, with a gain of 7,397 jobs. This was the result of 19,203 gross job gains and 11,806 gross job losses. Transportation and warehousing showed a net loss of 2,676 jobs, the largest loss of any sector in the state.

For more information

The BED data series include gross job gains and gross job losses by industry subsector, for the 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands, as well as gross job gains and gross job losses at the firm level by employer size class. BED data for the states have been included in table 2 of this release. Additional information is available online at www.bls.gov/bdm/.

The Business Employment Dynamics for Second Quarter 2023 are scheduled to be released on Tuesday, January 30, 2024.

Revisions to Business Employment Dynamics (BED) Data

Data in this release contain annual revisions in accordance with standard procedures. These revisions include the previous four quarters of not seasonally adjusted data and five years of seasonally adjusted data.


Technical Note

The Business Employment Dynamics (BED) data are a product of a federal-state cooperative program known as Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW). The BED data are compiled by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) from existing QCEW records. Most employers in the U.S. are required to file quarterly reports on the employment and wages of workers covered by unemployment insurance (UI) laws, and to pay quarterly UI taxes. The QCEW is based largely on quarterly UI reports which are sent by businesses to the State Workforce Agencies (SWAs). These UI reports are supplemented by two additional BLS data collections to render administrative data into economic statistics. Together these data comprise the QCEW and form the basis of the Bureau’s establishment universe sampling frame.

In the BED program, the QCEW records are linked across quarters to provide a longitudinal history for each establishment. The linkage process allows the tracking of net employment changes at the establishment level, which in turn allows the estimation of jobs gained at opening and expanding units and jobs lost at closing and contracting units.

The change in the number of jobs over time is the net result of increases and decreases in employment that occur at all businesses in the economy. BED statistics track these changes in employment at private business establishments from the third month of one quarter to the third month of the next. Gross job gains are the sum of increases in employment from expansions at existing establishments and the addition of new jobs at opening establishments. Gross job losses are the result of contractions in employment at existing establishments and the loss of jobs at closing establishments. The difference between the number of gross jobs gained and the number of gross jobs lost is the net change in employment.

Gross job gains and gross job losses are expressed as rates by dividing their levels by the average of employment in the current and previous quarters. The rates are calculated for the components of gross job gains and gross job losses and then summed to form their respective totals. These rates can be added and subtracted just as their levels can. For instance, the difference between the gross job gains rate and the gross job losses rate is the net growth rate.

The formal definitions of employment changes are as follows:

Openings. These are either units with positive third month employment for the first time in the current quarter, with no links to the prior quarter, or with positive third month employment in the current quarter following zero employment in the previous quarter.

Expansions. These are units with positive employment in the third month in both the previous and current quarters, with a net increase in employment over this period.

Closings. These are units with positive third month employment in the previous quarter and either not reported, or reported with zero employment, in the current quarter.

Contractions. These are units with positive employment in the third month in both the previous and current quarters, with a net decrease in employment over this period.

The full Technical Note for the Business Employment Dynamics program, which includes information on coverage, concepts, and methodology, can be found in the current quarterly news release online at www.bls.gov/news.release/cewbd.htm.

Information in this release will be made available to individuals with sensory impairments upon request. Voice phone: (202) 691-5200; Telecommunications Relay Service: 7-1-1.

Table 1. Private sector gross job gains and losses by industry, Wisconsin, seasonally adjusted
Category Gross job gains and losses
(3 months ended)
Gross job gains and losses
as a percent of employment
(3 months ended)
Mar.
2022
June
2022
Sept.
2022
Dec.
2022
Mar.
2023
Mar.
2022
June
2022
Sept.
2022
Dec.
2022
Mar.
2023

Total private (1)

Gross job gains

161,961 148,035 150,455 152,533 150,237 6.6 6.0 6.0 6.0 6.0

At expanding establishments

137,828 121,527 123,218 123,902 130,547 5.6 4.9 4.9 4.9 5.2

At opening establishments

24,133 26,508 27,237 28,631 19,690 1.0 1.1 1.1 1.1 0.8

Gross job losses

118,138 150,902 144,718 138,269 121,931 4.8 6.0 5.8 5.5 4.9

At contracting establishments

99,419 127,239 119,053 113,445 102,737 4.0 5.1 4.8 4.5 4.1

At closing establishments

18,719 23,663 25,665 24,824 19,194 0.8 0.9 1.0 1.0 0.8

Net employment change (2)

43,823 -2,867 5,737 14,264 28,306 1.8 0.0 0.2 0.5 1.1

Construction

Gross job gains

11,579 11,081 10,724 11,148 12,556 8.7 8.4 8.3 8.6 9.2

At expanding establishments

10,212 9,610 9,573 9,245 11,745 7.7 7.3 7.4 7.1 8.6

At opening establishments

1,367 1,471 1,151 1,903 811 1.0 1.1 0.9 1.5 0.6

Gross job losses

9,815 11,010 10,710 10,810 8,951 7.4 8.3 8.3 8.3 6.6

At contracting establishments

8,090 8,877 8,602 9,120 7,598 6.1 6.7 6.7 7.0 5.6

At closing establishments

1,725 2,133 2,108 1,690 1,353 1.3 1.6 1.6 1.3 1.0

Net employment change (2)

1,764 71 14 338 3,605 1.3 0.1 0.0 0.3 2.6

Manufacturing

Gross job gains

15,383 13,220 15,040 16,803 13,727 3.3 2.8 3.1 3.5 2.9

At expanding establishments

15,036 12,859 14,341 15,681 13,349 3.2 2.7 3.0 3.3 2.8

At opening establishments

347 361 699 1,122 378 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.2 0.1

Gross job losses

11,913 14,723 15,371 13,923 14,243 2.5 3.1 3.3 2.9 2.9

At contracting establishments

11,070 14,099 13,600 12,771 13,546 2.3 3.0 2.9 2.7 2.8

At closing establishments

843 624 1,771 1,152 697 0.2 0.1 0.4 0.2 0.1

Net employment change (2)

3,470 -1,503 -331 2,880 -516 0.8 -0.3 -0.2 0.6 0.0

Wholesale trade

Gross job gains

5,746 5,476 6,430 5,677 5,345 4.6 4.3 5.1 4.4 4.2

At expanding establishments

5,396 4,932 5,727 4,891 5,065 4.3 3.9 4.5 3.8 4.0

At opening establishments

350 544 703 786 280 0.3 0.4 0.6 0.6 0.2

Gross job losses

4,612 5,693 5,023 4,658 4,360 3.7 4.6 3.9 3.6 3.4

At contracting establishments

3,843 4,729 3,852 3,709 3,554 3.1 3.8 3.0 2.9 2.8

At closing establishments

769 964 1,171 949 806 0.6 0.8 0.9 0.7 0.6

Net employment change (2)

1,134 -217 1,407 1,019 985 0.9 -0.3 1.2 0.8 0.8

Retail trade

Gross job gains

20,740 16,870 15,199 14,773 19,203 7.1 5.6 5.2 5.0 6.5

At expanding establishments

19,800 15,250 14,050 13,198 18,127 6.8 5.1 4.8 4.5 6.1

At opening establishments

940 1,620 1,149 1,575 1,076 0.3 0.5 0.4 0.5 0.4

Gross job losses

11,569 17,848 18,531 15,760 11,806 3.9 6.0 6.4 5.5 4.0

At contracting establishments

10,290 16,132 16,617 14,404 10,522 3.5 5.4 5.7 5.0 3.6

At closing establishments

1,279 1,716 1,914 1,356 1,284 0.4 0.6 0.7 0.5 0.4

Net employment change (2)

9,171 -978 -3,332 -987 7,397 3.2 -0.4 -1.2 -0.5 2.5

Transportation and warehousing

Gross job gains

7,847 5,360 6,071 8,024 5,403 6.6 4.6 5.3 7.0 4.7

At expanding establishments

7,329 4,850 5,519 6,806 4,985 6.2 4.2 4.8 5.9 4.3

At opening establishments

518 510 552 1,218 418 0.4 0.4 0.5 1.1 0.4

Gross job losses

6,616 9,291 6,820 5,561 8,079 5.6 7.9 6.0 4.8 7.0

At contracting establishments

5,988 8,084 5,686 4,759 7,301 5.1 6.9 5.0 4.1 6.3

At closing establishments

628 1,207 1,134 802 778 0.5 1.0 1.0 0.7 0.7

Net employment change (2)

1,231 -3,931 -749 2,463 -2,676 1.0 -3.3 -0.7 2.2 -2.3

Financial activities

Gross job gains

6,319 6,571 6,369 6,021 5,707 4.1 4.2 4.1 3.9 3.7

At expanding establishments

5,658 5,596 5,408 4,971 5,055 3.7 3.6 3.5 3.2 3.3

At opening establishments

661 975 961 1,050 652 0.4 0.6 0.6 0.7 0.4

Gross job losses

6,243 6,866 6,735 7,451 6,116 4.1 4.5 4.4 4.9 4.0

At contracting establishments

5,008 5,557 5,172 5,790 5,016 3.3 3.6 3.4 3.8 3.3

At closing establishments

1,235 1,309 1,563 1,661 1,100 0.8 0.9 1.0 1.1 0.7

Net employment change (2)

76 -295 -366 -1,430 -409 0.0 -0.3 -0.3 -1.0 -0.3

Professional and business services

Gross job gains

27,663 21,418 19,357 20,182 19,935 8.5 6.5 5.9 6.2 6.1

At expanding establishments

23,318 18,672 16,754 17,405 17,913 7.2 5.7 5.1 5.3 5.5

At opening establishments

4,345 2,746 2,603 2,777 2,022 1.3 0.8 0.8 0.9 0.6

Gross job losses

17,615 25,789 22,470 21,506 17,129 5.4 7.8 6.9 6.6 5.2

At contracting establishments

13,992 22,358 18,248 17,261 13,859 4.3 6.8 5.6 5.3 4.2

At closing establishments

3,623 3,431 4,222 4,245 3,270 1.1 1.0 1.3 1.3 1.0

Net employment change (2)

10,048 -4,371 -3,113 -1,324 2,806 3.1 -1.3 -1.0 -0.4 0.9

Education and health services

Gross job gains

17,840 18,899 19,186 17,364 19,535 4.2 4.4 4.4 4.0 4.5

At expanding establishments

15,056 14,534 16,009 14,051 17,012 3.5 3.4 3.7 3.2 3.9

At opening establishments

2,784 4,365 3,177 3,313 2,523 0.7 1.0 0.7 0.8 0.6

Gross job losses

16,557 17,407 16,634 18,791 15,195 3.9 4.1 3.8 4.3 3.5

At contracting establishments

13,696 13,589 12,635 14,058 12,138 3.2 3.2 2.9 3.2 2.8

At closing establishments

2,861 3,818 3,999 4,733 3,057 0.7 0.9 0.9 1.1 0.7

Net employment change (2)

1,283 1,492 2,552 -1,427 4,340 0.3 0.3 0.6 -0.3 1.0

Leisure and hospitality

Gross job gains

29,634 28,520 27,952 31,471 28,773 11.2 10.7 10.5 11.7 10.4

At expanding establishments

26,113 24,191 23,527 26,431 26,200 9.9 9.1 8.8 9.8 9.5

At opening establishments

3,521 4,329 4,425 5,040 2,573 1.3 1.6 1.7 1.9 0.9

Gross job losses

23,115 29,055 29,216 26,269 23,661 8.7 10.9 11.0 9.7 8.6

At contracting establishments

19,567 23,914 24,782 21,834 20,081 7.4 9.0 9.3 8.1 7.3

At closing establishments

3,548 5,141 4,434 4,435 3,580 1.3 1.9 1.7 1.6 1.3

Net employment change (2)

6,519 -535 -1,264 5,202 5,112 2.5 -0.2 -0.5 2.0 1.8

Other services (3)

Gross job gains

5,209 5,171 5,678 5,061 5,213 7.1 7.0 7.6 6.8 7.0

At expanding establishments

4,653 4,512 5,060 4,379 4,673 6.3 6.1 6.8 5.9 6.3

At opening establishments

556 659 618 682 540 0.8 0.9 0.8 0.9 0.7

Gross job losses

4,546 5,187 5,442 5,234 4,563 6.2 7.0 7.3 7.0 6.1

At contracting establishments

3,653 4,072 4,395 4,388 3,629 5.0 5.5 5.9 5.9 4.9

At closing establishments

893 1,115 1,047 846 934 1.2 1.5 1.4 1.1 1.2

Net employment change (2)

663 -16 236 -173 650 0.9 0.0 0.3 -0.2 0.9

Footnotes:
(1) Includes unclassified sector not shown separately.
(2) The net employment change is the difference between total gross job gains and total gross job losses. See the Technical Note for further information.
(3) Except public administration.

Table 2. Private-sector gross job gains and losses as a percent of total employment by state, seasonally adjusted
Category Gross job gains as a percent of employment
(3 months ended)
Gross job losses as a percent of employment
(3 months ended)
Mar.
2022
June
2022
Sept.
2022
Dec.
2022
Mar.
2023
Mar.
2022
June
2022
Sept.
2022
Dec.
2022
Mar.
2023

United States(1)

6.7 6.6 6.9 6.3 6.2 5.5 6.2 5.9 5.9 5.4

Alabama

6.4 6.6 6.9 6.6 6.4 5.9 6.2 5.9 6.1 5.5

Alaska

10.2 10.2 8.5 10.9 10.4 9.5 9.0 10.4 9.2 8.0

Arizona

6.7 6.5 7.1 6.6 5.9 5.7 6.3 5.5 6.0 5.4

Arkansas

6.3 6.1 6.5 6.2 5.8 5.6 5.5 5.2 5.2 5.0

California

7.3 6.8 6.8 6.6 6.1 5.7 6.7 6.2 6.6 6.4

Colorado

7.5 7.3 7.0 7.6 7.2 6.3 6.6 7.1 6.9 6.5

Connecticut

6.3 6.4 6.3 5.9 6.1 5.3 6.3 6.2 5.9 5.3

Delaware

7.3 6.5 8.6 7.0 6.7 5.5 6.9 6.2 7.5 5.2

District of Columbia

6.1 6.1 7.2 5.6 5.9 5.1 6.3 5.0 5.5 4.8

Florida

6.5 7.5 7.8 6.2 6.3 5.7 6.3 5.6 6.0 5.6

Georgia

7.7 6.8 7.1 6.7 6.2 5.8 6.2 5.9 5.9 5.8

Hawaii

6.3 6.0 6.4 6.0 5.5 5.1 5.5 4.9 4.9 5.0

Idaho

8.6 7.1 7.8 8.4 7.9 6.2 8.4 7.5 6.9 7.5

Illinois

6.3 5.9 5.8 5.4 5.8 5.2 5.5 5.3 5.1 4.8

Indiana

5.9 5.7 6.4 5.7 5.5 4.9 5.9 5.5 5.2 5.0

Iowa

6.5 5.9 5.9 6.4 6.0 5.4 6.2 5.9 6.2 5.4

Kansas

6.4 6.5 7.4 6.3 6.1 5.5 7.1 5.5 5.6 5.4

Kentucky

6.7 6.3 6.6 6.0 6.1 5.7 6.5 5.4 5.3 4.9

Louisiana

6.7 6.7 6.9 6.1 6.3 6.3 6.4 5.7 6.2 5.6

Maine

8.5 7.2 7.6 7.4 7.7 6.3 8.0 7.3 6.8 6.2

Maryland

6.7 6.5 7.4 6.6 6.8 6.9 6.9 6.0 6.9 5.6

Massachusetts

6.8 6.1 6.2 5.5 5.8 5.1 5.5 6.1 5.8 4.7

Michigan

6.3 6.0 5.7 5.9 5.7 4.9 5.9 5.8 5.2 4.9

Minnesota

6.2 6.4 6.5 5.9 5.7 5.4 6.4 5.9 5.8 4.9

Mississippi

6.3 6.6 7.2 6.8 6.1 6.2 6.7 6.3 6.2 5.7

Missouri

6.5 6.2 6.8 6.1 6.5 5.4 5.9 6.3 5.8 5.1

Montana

9.3 8.2 8.7 9.2 8.7 7.6 9.1 7.8 7.8 7.1

Nebraska

6.8 6.4 7.1 6.0 6.3 5.9 6.5 6.1 5.7 5.1

Nevada

6.8 6.9 7.4 6.4 6.2 5.5 5.7 5.8 6.1 5.7

New Hampshire

7.7 6.7 6.9 6.7 7.0 5.6 6.7 6.7 6.0 5.9

New Jersey

7.1 6.6 6.8 6.8 6.1 5.7 6.2 6.4 5.9 5.7

New Mexico

7.6 6.7 8.0 6.7 6.8 6.2 7.1 5.9 6.2 5.9

New York

6.8 7.1 6.6 5.9 6.5 5.4 6.1 5.9 6.0 5.1

North Carolina

6.6 6.4 6.7 6.6 6.4 5.4 6.1 5.8 5.7 5.3

North Dakota

7.5 6.9 7.6 6.4 7.6 6.4 6.5 6.3 6.7 5.6

Ohio

6.4 5.9 5.8 5.9 5.8 4.9 5.9 5.5 5.7 4.9

Oklahoma

6.4 6.7 7.4 6.6 6.3 6.0 6.1 5.6 5.9 5.3

Oregon

7.6 6.0 6.7 6.5 7.3 5.6 7.0 6.0 6.2 6.1

Pennsylvania

6.3 5.5 6.1 5.5 5.5 4.8 5.6 5.1 5.2 4.6

Rhode Island

7.9 7.1 6.7 6.9 7.5 6.0 6.7 7.3 6.4 5.9

South Carolina

7.1 6.6 7.3 6.9 6.8 6.1 6.2 5.6 6.2 5.8

South Dakota

7.7 6.6 7.3 6.5 7.2 6.1 6.5 6.4 6.5 5.9

Tennessee

6.6 6.2 7.0 5.8 5.9 4.8 6.2 5.5 5.6 5.0

Texas

6.3 6.6 7.2 6.2 5.9 5.3 5.8 5.3 5.3 5.0

Utah

7.9 7.0 7.5 6.9 7.0 5.9 6.6 6.8 6.6 6.2

Vermont

8.8 7.5 7.2 7.8 8.2 6.4 7.6 7.8 7.0 6.0

Virginia

6.6 6.5 7.5 6.2 6.2 5.8 6.7 6.1 5.8 5.2

Washington

7.3 7.0 7.2 5.9 6.4 5.4 7.2 6.3 5.3 5.5

West Virginia

7.4 6.7 8.1 6.6 7.1 6.1 8.0 6.9 6.4 5.3

Wisconsin

6.6 6.0 6.0 6.0 6.0 4.8 6.0 5.8 5.5 4.9

Wyoming

9.2 8.4 9.2 9.2 8.9 8.3 9.2 8.4 7.9 7.8

Puerto Rico

7.4 6.7 6.2 6.6 5.1 5.0 6.1 5.3 6.1 5.7

Virgin Islands

7.4 8.0 8.5 5.9 7.5 8.8 9.2 5.5 4.7 6.5

Footnotes
(1) Totals for the United States do not include data for Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands. The sum of the states will not necessarily add to the U.S. total because of the independent seasonal adjustment of each state.

 

Last Modified Date: Tuesday, November 07, 2023