An official website of the United States government
16-1646-KAN
Thursday, August 04, 2016
Workers in the Topeka Metropolitan Statistical Area had an average (mean) hourly wage of $20.24 in May 2015, about 13 percent below the nationwide average of $23.23, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Assistant Commissioner for Regional Operations Stanley W. Suchman noted that, after testing for statistical significance, wages in the local area were significantly lower wages than their respective national averages in 18 of the 22 major occupational groups, including legal; computer and mathematical; and management.
When compared to the nationwide distribution, local employment was more highly concentrated in 7 of the 22 occupational groups, including healthcare support; office and administrative support; and business and financial operations. Conversely, nine groups had employment shares significantly below their national representation, including sales and related; food preparation and serving related; and production. (See table A and box note at end of release.)
Major occupational group | Percent of total employment | Mean hourly wage | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
United States | Topeka | United States | Topeka | Percent difference (1) | |
Total, all occupations | 100.0% | 100.0% | $23.23 | $20.24* | -13 |
Management | 5.0 | 5.1 | 55.30 | 45.26* | -18 |
Business and Financial Operations | 5.1 | 5.9* | 35.48 | 27.91* | -21 |
Computer and Mathematical | 2.9 | 2.6* | 41.43 | 31.11* | -25 |
Architecture and Engineering | 1.8 | 1.3* | 39.89 | 30.23* | -24 |
Life, Physical, and Social Science | 0.8 | 0.7* | 34.24 | 28.09* | -18 |
Community and Social Service | 1.4 | 1.7* | 22.19 | 19.68* | -11 |
Legal | 0.8 | 1.1* | 49.74 | 32.53* | -35 |
Education, Training, and Library | 6.2 | 6.5 | 25.48 | 21.20* | -17 |
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media | 1.3 | 0.9* | 27.39 | 21.13* | -23 |
Healthcare Practitioners and Technical | 5.8 | 6.7 | 37.40 | 32.49* | -13 |
Healthcare Support | 2.9 | 4.3* | 14.19 | 13.74 | -3 |
Protective Service | 2.4 | 2.9* | 21.45 | 17.71* | -17 |
Food Preparation and Serving Related | 9.1 | 8.0* | 10.98 | 9.68* | -12 |
Building and Grounds Cleaning and Maintenance | 3.2 | 3.6 | 13.02 | 12.02* | -8 |
Personal Care and Service | 3.1 | 3.3 | 12.33 | 11.33* | -8 |
Sales and Related | 10.5 | 8.3* | 18.90 | 15.09* | -20 |
Office and Administrative Support | 15.8 | 16.8* | 17.47 | 16.04* | -8 |
Farming, Fishing, and Forestry | 0.3 | 0.2* | 12.67 | 15.27* | 21 |
Construction and Extraction | 4.0 | 4.5* | 22.88 | 20.47* | -11 |
Installation, Maintenance, and Repair | 3.9 | 3.9 | 22.11 | 21.78 | -1 |
Production | 6.6 | 5.5* | 17.41 | 18.67 | 7 |
Transportation and Material Moving | 6.9 | 6.1* | 16.90 | 16.10* | -5 |
Footnotes: |
One occupational group—business and financial operations—was chosen to illustrate the diversity of data available for any of the 22 major occupational categories. Topeka had 6,390 jobs in business and financial operations, accounting for 5.9 percent of local area employment, significantly higher than the 5.1-percent share nationally. The average hourly wage for this occupational group locally was $27.91, significantly below the national wage of $35.48.
Some of the larger detailed occupations within the business and financial operations group included accountants and auditors (1,220), human resources specialists (430), and management analysts (420). Among the higher paying jobs were financial analysts and logisticians, with mean hourly wages of $34.53 and $31.68, respectively. At the lower end of the wage scale were tax examiners and collectors, and revenue agents ($17.49) and meeting, convention, and event planners ($21.10). (Detailed occupational data for business and financial operations are presented in table 1; for a complete listing of detailed occupations available go to www.bls.gov/oes/2015/may/oes_45820.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 Topeka Metropolitan Statistical Area, above-average concentrations of employment were found in some of the occupations within the business and financial operations group. For instance, tax examiners and collectors, and revenue agents were employed at 5.5 times the national rate in Topeka, and logisticians, at 1.9 times the U.S. average. On the other hand, human resources specialists had a location quotient of 1.1 in Topeka, 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 Kansas Department of Labor.
With the issuance of data for May 2015, the OES program has incorporated redefined metropolitan area definitions as designated by the Office of Management and Budget. OES data are available for 394 metropolitan areas, 38 metropolitan divisions, and 167 OES-defined nonmetropolitan areas. A listing of the areas and their definitions can be found at www.bls.gov/oes/current/msa_def.htm.
A value that is statistically different from another does not necessarily mean that the difference has economic or practical significance. Statistical significance is concerned with the ability to make confident statements about a universe based on a sample. It is entirely possible that a large difference between two values is not significantly different statistically, while a small difference is, since both the size and heterogeneity of the sample affect the relative error of the data being tested.
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 Topeka Metropolitan Statistical Area included 1,433 establishments with a response rate of 70 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 Topeka, Kans. Metropolitan Statistical Area includes Jackson, Jefferson, Osage, Shawnee, and Wabaunsee Counties.
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.
Occupation (1) | Employment | Mean wages | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
Level (2) | Location quotient (3) | Hourly | Annual (4) | |
Business and Financial Operations Occupations | 6,390 | 1.2 | $27.91 | $58,060 |
Wholesale and Retail Buyers, Except Farm Products | 160 | 1.8 | 29.18 | 60,690 |
Purchasing Agents, Except Wholesale, Retail, and Farm Products | 170 | 0.7 | 28.34 | 58,940 |
Claims Adjusters, Examiners, and Investigators | (5) | (5) | 32.04 | 66,650 |
Compliance Officers | 290 | 1.5 | 26.46 | 55,040 |
Cost Estimators | 170 | 1.0 | 28.21 | 58,670 |
Human Resources Specialists | 430 | 1.1 | 27.07 | 56,300 |
Labor Relations Specialists | 90 | 1.5 | 21.14 | 43,970 |
Logisticians | 200 | 1.9 | 31.68 | 65,900 |
Management Analysts | 420 | 0.9 | 28.20 | 58,660 |
Meeting, Convention, and Event Planners | 40 | 0.6 | 21.10 | 43,890 |
Fundraisers | 70 | 1.4 | 28.26 | 58,790 |
Compensation, Benefits, and Job Analysis Specialists | 30 | 0.5 | 28.06 | 58,370 |
Training and Development Specialists | 230 | 1.1 | 24.65 | 51,280 |
Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists | 350 | 0.9 | 29.34 | 61,030 |
Business Operations Specialists, All Other | 910 | 1.2 | 25.72 | 53,500 |
Accountants and Auditors | 1,220 | 1.3 | 28.56 | 59,410 |
Appraisers and Assessors of Real Estate | 110 | 2.4 | 23.20 | 48,250 |
Financial Analysts | 100 | 0.5 | 34.53 | 71,820 |
Personal Financial Advisors | 80 | 0.5 | 55.09 | 114,600 |
Insurance Underwriters | 100 | 1.4 | 28.80 | 59,910 |
Loan Officers | 350 | 1.5 | 28.99 | 60,300 |
Tax Examiners and Collectors, and Revenue Agents | 260 | 5.5 | 17.49 | 36,380 |
Financial Specialists, All Other | 70 | 0.7 | 29.57 | 61,510 |
Footnotes: |
Last Modified Date: Thursday, August 04, 2016