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News Release Information

15-2496-KAN
Thursday, December 31, 2015

Contacts Technical information: Media contact:
  • (816) 285-7000

County Employment and Wages in Kansas – Second Quarter 2015

Employment rose in the four largest counties in Kansas from June 2014 to June 2015, 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 2014 annual average employment.) Regional Commissioner Stanley W. Suchman noted that Johnson and Wyandotte Counties experienced the fastest rates of job growth, up 2.3 and 2.2 percent, respectively, over the year. Employment gains in both counties exceeded the national job growth rate of 2.0 percent.

Nationally, employment increased in 319 of the 342 largest U.S. counties from June 2014 to June 2015. Utah County, Utah, posted the largest percentage increase with a gain of 7.5 percent over the year. Ector, Texas, had the largest over-the-year percentage decrease in employment among the largest counties in the U.S. with a loss of 4.2 percent.

Among the four largest counties in Kansas, employment was highest in Johnson County (338,400) and lowest in Wyandotte (90,200). Together, the four largest counties accounted for 56.1 percent of total employment within the state. Nationwide, the 342 large counties made up 72.1 percent of total U.S. employment.

Average weekly wages increased in the four large counties in Kansas from the second quarter of 2014 to the second quarter of 2015. Johnson County recorded over-the-year wage growth of 4.6 percent, exceeding the 3.0-percent increase for the nation. Johnson also had the highest average weekly wage ($1,021) among Kansas’s large counties and was above the national average of $968. (See table 1.)

Employment and wage levels (but not over-the-year changes) are also available for the 101 counties in Kansas with employment below 75,000. Of these smaller counties, only Coffey ($1,172) had an average weekly wage above the national average. (See table 2.)

Large county wage changes

As mentioned, Johnson County had the largest wage gain at 4.6 percent, placing it 27th in the national ranking. (See table 1.) Wyandotte’s 2.5-percent wage gain ranked 160th. Sedgwick and Shawnee registered wage growth of 1.9 and 1.1 percent, respectively, and placed 235th and 295th.

Among the 342 largest U.S. counties, 323 had over-the-year increases in average weekly wages in the second quarter of 2015. Ventura, Calif., ranked first in average weekly wage growth with a gain of 15.2 percent. Sixteen of the 342 largest counties experienced over-the-year decreases in average weekly wages. Olmsted, Minn., had the largest percentage decline in average weekly wages with a loss of 5.2 percent.

Large county average weekly wages

Johnson County’s average weekly wage of $1,021 ranked 74th among the 342 largest U.S. counties in the second quarter of 2015. Wyandotte recorded an average weekly wage of $896 and placed 168th in the national ranking. The state’s remaining large counties, Sedgwick ($851, 205th) and Shawnee ($794, 273rd), had average weekly wages that placed them in the bottom half of the ranking.

Nationally, weekly wages were higher than the U.S. average of $968 in 102 of the 342 largest counties. Santa Clara, Calif., held the top position with an average weekly wage of $2,109. San Mateo, Calif., was second at $1,863, followed by New York, N.Y. ($1,842); and San Francisco, Calif. ($1,730). Among the 240 large counties with an average weekly wage below the U.S. average in the second quarter of 2015, Horry, S.C. ($568) reported the lowest wage.

Average weekly wages in Kansas’s smaller counties

Of the 101 counties in Kansas with employment below 75,000, only one county—Coffey ($1,172)—had an average weekly wage above the national average of $968. Woodson County reported the lowest weekly wage in the state with an average of $459 in the second quarter of 2015. (See table 2.)

When all 105 counties in Kansas were considered, all but 2 had wages below the national average. Thirty-one reported average weekly wages under $600, 35 reported wages from $600 to $649, 25 had wages from $650 to $699, 4 had wages from $700 to $749, and 10 had wages at or above $750. (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 2014 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 2015 version of the national news release. Tables and additional content from Employment and Wages Annual Averages 2014 are now available online at www.bls.gov/cew/publications/employment-and-wages-annual-averages/2014/home.htm. The 2015 edition of Employment and Wages Annual Averages Online will be available in September 2016.

Information in this release will be made available to sensory impaired individuals upon request. Voice phone: (202) 691-5200; Federal Relay Service: 1 (800) 877-8339.

The County Employment and Wages release for third quarter 2015 is scheduled to be released on Wednesday, March 9, 2016.


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 9.6 million employer reports cover 140.6 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.

Table 1. Covered employment and wages in the United States and the 4 largest counties in Kansas, second quarter 2015
AreaEmploymentAverage Weekly Wage (1)
June 2015 (thousands)Percent change, June 2014-15 (2)National ranking by percent change (3)Average weekly wageNational ranking by level (3)Percent change, second quarter 2014-15 (2)National ranking by percent change (3)

United States (4)

140,594.92.0--$968--3.0--

Kansas

1,382.10.7--819372.818

Johnson, Kan.

338.42.31381,021744.627

Sedgwick, Kan.

248.81.42208512051.9235

Shawnee, Kan.

97.40.62917942731.1295

Wyandotte, Kan.

90.22.21478961682.5160

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 Kansas, 2nd quarter 2015
AreaEmployment June 2015Average Weekly Wage (1)

United States (2)

140,594,927$968

Kansas

1,382,069819

Allen

5,820606

Anderson

2,044566

Atchison

6,027655

Barber

1,806595

Barton

12,858673

Bourbon

6,442613

Brown

5,100629

Butler

19,044671

Chase

759504

Chautauqua

818522

Cherokee

5,927678

Cheyenne

949575

Clark

793626

Clay

3,207579

Cloud

3,637538

Coffey

4,4441,172

Comanche

752482

Cowley

14,053662

Crawford

16,980606

Decatur

1,015503

Dickinson

6,647562

Doniphan

2,309641

Douglas

47,751681

Edwards

1,053639

Elk

708505

Ellis

15,541673

Ellsworth

2,474604

Finney

18,703684

Ford

17,903666

Franklin

9,468657

Geary

13,699731

Gove

1,249567

Graham

958610

Grant

3,488769

Gray

3,400672

Greeley

712571

Greenwood

1,711549

Hamilton

1,329649

Harper

2,398667

Harvey

14,009690

Haskell

1,926708

Hodgeman

519572

Jackson

4,272615

Jefferson

3,803688

Jewell

767534

Johnson

338,3971,021

Kearny

1,405617

Kingman

2,457621

Kiowa

1,237681

Labette

9,071636

Lane

699642

Leavenworth

20,789825

Lincoln

997538

Linn

2,198806

Logan

1,364593

Lyon

14,649605

Mcpherson

15,628860

Marion

3,579563

Marshall

4,714641

Meade

1,729697

Miami

8,259646

Mitchell

3,310621

Montgomery

15,895627

Morris

1,539561

Morton

1,016649

Nemaha

5,559656

Neosho

6,333642

Ness

1,292681

Norton

2,538640

Osage

3,097493

Osborne

1,435540

Ottawa

1,413541

Pawnee

3,118629

Phillips

2,645624

Pottawatomie

9,550722

Pratt

4,785665

Rawlins

923613

Reno

27,553637

Republic

2,021515

Rice

4,054651

Riley

29,529705

Rooks

1,982654

Rush

1,153591

Russell

2,819643

Saline

30,132679

Scott

2,272671

Sedgwick

248,839851

Seward

11,468672

Shawnee

97,380794

Sheridan

989662

Sherman

2,643565

Smith

1,322589

Stafford

1,374538

Stanton

817608

Stevens

2,241824

Sumner

7,316621

Thomas

4,168627

Trego

1,342637

Wabaunsee

1,350540

Wallace

563619

Washington

2,136479

Wichita

809647

Wilson

3,542619

Woodson

675459

Wyandotte

90,240896

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, second quarter 2015
StateEmploymentAverage weekly wage (1)
June 2015 (thousands)Percent change, June 2014-15Average weekly wageNational ranking by levelPercent change, second quarter 2014-15National ranking by percent change

United States (2)

140,594.92.0$968--3.0--

Alabama

1,899.31.3819371.641

Alaska

346.60.41,02882.430

Arizona

2,549.92.5904211.839

Arkansas

1,184.61.7762472.135

California

16,338.92.81,13155.51

Colorado

2,517.13.2989133.013

Connecticut

1,693.10.91,17742.038

Delaware

439.12.2991121.542

District of Columbia

745.11.81,59911.839

Florida

7,907.73.6861282.623

Georgia

4,167.83.4903222.430

Hawaii

635.91.6876243.86

Idaho

678.52.9713502.333

Illinois

5,925.51.51,015102.623

Indiana

2,966.01.7811403.47

Iowa

1,561.20.9802432.818

Kansas

1,382.10.7819372.818

Kentucky

1,850.51.7822353.013

Louisiana

1,930.60.5850300.847

Maine

615.80.8768462.916

Maryland

2,631.31.41,04672.623

Massachusetts

3,488.32.11,21124.72

Michigan

4,225.01.5916202.135

Minnesota

2,826.31.5977153.28

Mississippi

1,114.71.1709510.648

Missouri

2,746.61.7842322.818

Montana

461.51.8754482.721

Nebraska

968.71.2787444.13

Nevada

1,248.13.2855292.623

New Hampshire

647.71.5967161.346

New Jersey

4,000.21.51,12662.623

New Mexico

808.40.8805411.444

New York

9,136.91.91,18033.19

North Carolina

4,185.62.6850303.94

North Dakota

445.0-1.8939180.350

Ohio

5,308.11.4865262.430

Oklahoma

1,591.50.6818390.549

Oregon

1,810.43.4899233.013

Pennsylvania

5,763.90.8958172.721

Rhode Island

480.01.5925192.916

South Carolina

1,963.52.5782452.135

South Dakota

428.61.3740493.94

Tennessee

2,832.12.8863273.19

Texas

11,689.42.4988141.542

Utah

1,345.93.9821363.19

Vermont

309.30.6831342.234

Virginia

3,767.21.71,000112.529

Washington

3,197.63.31,02693.19

West Virginia

706.5-0.8803421.444

Wisconsin

2,839.81.0836332.623

Wyoming

291.5-1.586925-0.151

Puerto Rico

884.6-1.4513(3)2.0(3)

Virgin Islands

37.90.1748(3)2.2(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, December 31, 2015