Workers in the Denver-Aurora-Lakewood Metropolitan Statistical Area had an average (mean) hourly wage of $26.88 in May 2016, about 13 percent above the nationwide average of $23.86, 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 higher than their respective national averages in 12 of the 22 major occupational groups, including management; computer and mathematical; and sales and related.

When compared to the nationwide distribution, local employment was more highly concentrated in 9 of the 22 occupational groups, including business and financial operations; computer and mathematical; and sales and related. Conversely, 11 groups had employment shares significantly below their national representation, including production; office and administrative support; and transportation and material moving. (See table A and box note at end of release.)

 

One occupational group—business and financial operations—was chosen to illustrate the diversity of data available for any of the 22 major occupational categories. Denver-Aurora-Lakewood had 112,600 jobs in business and financial operations occupations, accounting for 8.0 percent of local area employment, significantly higher than the 5.2-percent share nationally. The average hourly wage for this occupational group locally was $37.96, significantly above the national wage of $36.09.

Some of the larger detailed occupations within the business and financial operations group included accountants and auditors (22,910), market research analysts and marketing specialists (9,650), and human resources specialists (7,110). Among the higher paying jobs were personal financial advisors and financial analysts, with mean hourly wages of $59.84 and $52.17, respectively. At the lower end of the wage scale were meeting, convention, and event planners ($21.12) and wholesale and retail buyers, except farm products ($25.86). (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/2016/may/oes_19740.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 Denver-Aurora-Lakewood Metropolitan Statistical Area, above-average concentrations of employment were found in several of the occupations within the business and financial operations group. For instance, accountants and auditors were employed at 1.8 times the national rate in Denver, and market research analysts and marketing specialists, at 1.7 times the U.S. average. On the other hand, financial analysts had a location quotient of 1.0 in Denver, 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 Colorado Department of Labor & Employment.

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 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 2016 estimates are based on responses from six semiannual panels collected over a 3-year period: May 2016, November 2015, May 2015, November 2014, May 2014, and November 2013. The overall national response rate for the six panels, based on the 50 states and the District of Columbia, is 73 percent based on establishments and 69 percent based on weighted sampled employment. The unweighted employment of sampled establishments across all six semiannual panels represents approximately 58 percent of total national employment. The sample in the Denver-Aurora-Lakewood Metropolitan Statistical Area included 6,736 establishments with a response rate of 70 percent. For more information about OES concepts and methodology, go to www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes_tec.htm.

The May 2016 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 Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, Colo. Metropolitan Statistical Area includes Adams, Arapahoe, Broomfield, Clear Creek, Denver, Douglas, Elbert, Gilpin, Jefferson, and Park 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/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, Denver-Aurora-Lakewood Metropolitan Statistical Area, May 2016

Occupation (1)	Employment		Mean wages
	Level (2)	Location quotient (3)	Hourly	Annual (4)
Business and financial operations occupations	112,600	1.5	$37.96	$78,960
Agents and business managers of artists, performers, and athletes	60	0.4	(5)	(5)
Buyers and purchasing agents, farm products	60	0.5	29.36	61,080
Wholesale and retail buyers, except farm products	860	0.8	25.86	53,790
Purchasing agents, except wholesale, retail, and farm products	3,620	1.2	34.46	71,670
Claims adjusters, examiners, and investigators	2,570	0.9	33.94	70,600
Insurance appraisers, auto damage	70	0.4	33.33	69,340
Compliance officers	3,350	1.2	35.11	73,020
Cost estimators	2,730	1.3	35.81	74,480
Human resources specialists	7,110	1.3	32.71	68,040
Labor relations specialists	370	0.5	(5)	(5)
Logisticians	1,660	1.1	39.45	82,070
Management analysts	6,080	1.0	45.17	93,960
Meeting, convention, and event planners	1,890	2.0	21.12	43,920
Fundraisers	(5)	(5)	26.21	54,520
Compensation, benefits, and job analysis specialists	860	1.1	35.10	73,010
Training and development specialists	3,620	1.3	33.56	69,800
Market research analysts and marketing specialists	9,650	1.7	36.80	76,540
Business operations specialists, all other	26,500	2.7	39.18	81,500
Accountants and auditors	22,910	1.8	38.63	80,360
Appraisers and assessors of real estate	810	1.3	35.18	73,180
Budget analysts	680	1.2	38.82	80,750
Credit analysts	980	1.3	36.12	75,130
Financial analysts	2,740	1.0	52.17	108,510
Personal financial advisors	2,610	1.3	59.84	124,460
Insurance underwriters	1,220	1.3	37.91	78,860
Financial examiners	940	1.9	38.64	80,370
Credit counselors	(5)	(5)	36.61	76,150
Loan officers	3,830	1.2	34.80	72,390
Tax examiners and collectors, and revenue agents	560	1.0	30.34	63,100
Tax preparers	520	0.7	(5)	(5)
Financial specialists, all other	2,680	2.2	33.35	69,360
Footnotes: (1) For a complete listing of all detailed occupations in the Denver-Aurora-Lakewood Metropolitan Statistical Area see www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes_19740.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.