Workers in the Columbia Metropolitan Statistical Area had an average (mean) hourly wage of $20.93 in May 2015, about 10 percent below the nationwide average of $23.23, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Regional Commissioner Stanley W. Suchman noted that, after testing for statistical significance, wages in the local area were significantly lower than their respective national averages in 16 of the 22 major occupational groups, including management; computer and mathematical; and legal.

When compared to the nationwide distribution, local employment was more highly concentrated in 5 of the 22 occupational groups, including healthcare practitioners and technical; food preparation and serving related; and education, training, and library. Conversely, eight groups had employment shares significantly below their national representation, including production; transportation and material moving; 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. Columbia had 7,920 jobs in healthcare practitioners and technical, accounting for 8.8 percent of local area employment, significantly higher than the 5.8-percent share nationally. The average hourly wage for this occupational group locally was $37.00, compared to the national wage of $37.40.

Some of the larger detailed occupations within the healthcare practitioners and technical group included registered nurses (3,190), licensed practical and licensed vocational nurses (540), and family and general practitioners (510). Among the higher paying jobs were family and general practitioners with mean hourly wages of $107.03. Occupations at the lower end of the wage scale included pharmacy technicians ($14.49). (Detailed occupational data for healthcare practitioners and technical are presented in table 1; for a complete listing of detailed occupations available go to www.bls.gov/oes/2015/may/oes_17860.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 Columbia Metropolitan Statistical Area, above-average concentrations of employment were found in many of the occupations within the healthcare practitioners and technical group. For instance, family and general practitioners were employed at 6.2 times the national rate in Columbia, and respiratory therapists, at 1.7 times the U.S. average. On the other hand, physical therapists had a location quotient of 1.0 in Columbia, 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 Missouri Department of Economic Development.

Technical Note

The Occupational Employment Statistics (OES) survey is a semiannual mail survey measuring occupational employment and wage rates for wage and salary workers in nonfarm establishments in the United States. The OES program produces employment and wage estimates for over 800 occupations for all industries combined in the nation; the 50 states and the District of Columbia; 432 metropolitan areas and divisions; 167 nonmetropolitan areas; and Guam, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. National estimates are also available by industry for NAICS sectors, 3-, 4-, and selected 5- and 6-digit industries, and 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. Forms are mailed to approximately 200,000 sampled establishments in May and November each year. May 2015 estimates are based on responses from six semiannual panels collected over a 3-year period: May 2015, November 2014, May 2014, November 2013, May 2013, and November 2012. The overall national response rate for the six panels is 73.5 percent based on establishments and 69.6 percent based on weighted sampled employment. The unweighted employment of sampled establishments across all six semiannual panels represents approximately 57.9 percent of total national employment. (Response rates are slightly lower for these estimates due to the federal shutdown in October 2013.) The sample in the Columbia Metropolitan Statistical Area included 1,141 establishments with a response rate of 59 percent. For more information about OES concepts and methodology, go to www.bls.gov/news.release/ocwage.tn.htm.

The May 2015 OES estimates are based on the 2010 Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) system and the 2012 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 2012 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 Columbia, Mo. Metropolitan Statistical Area  includes Boone County.

Additional information

OES data are available on our regional web page at www.bls.gov/regions/mountain-plains. 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/2015/may/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, Columbia Metropolitan Statistical Area, May 2014

Occupation (1)	Employment		Mean wages
	Level (2)	Location quotient (3)	Hourly	Annual (4)
Healthcare Practitioners and Technical Occupations	8,060	1.5	$35.61	$74,080
Dentists, General	(5)	(5)	70.98	147,630
Dietitians and Nutritionists	60	1.4	24.87	51,730
Pharmacists	230	1.2	58.82	122,350
Family and General Practitioners	500	6.0	103.75	215,810
Physicians and Surgeons, All Other	360	1.7	89.12	185,370
Physician Assistants	80	1.4	35.52	73,890
Occupational Therapists	80	1.1	30.79	64,050
Physical Therapists	130	1.0	32.87	68,360
Speech-Language Pathologists	110	1.3	35.25	73,320
Veterinarians	50	1.2	39.52	82,190
Registered Nurses	3,170	1.8	27.18	56,530
Nurse Anesthetists	100	4.1	70.02	145,640
Nurse Practitioners	120	1.5	44.12	91,770
Dental Hygienists	150	1.1	37.28	77,540
Cardiovascular Technologists and Technicians	50	1.5	21.06	43,800
Radiologic Technologists	150	1.1	24.13	50,190
Pharmacy Technicians	270	1.1	14.52	30,200
Veterinary Technologists and Technicians	120	1.8	14.79	30,750
Licensed Practical and Licensed Vocational Nurses	600	1.3	18.14	37,720
Medical Records and Health Information Technicians	300	2.4	19.35	40,250
Opticians, Dispensing	40	0.8	12.17	25,300
Healthcare Practitioners and Technical Workers, All Other	60	2.3	19.30	40,140
Footnotes: (1) For a complete listing for all detailed occupations in the Columbia, MO Metropolitan Statistical Area, see www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes_17860.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.