From September 2018 to December 2018, gross job gains from opening and expanding private-sector establishments in Kansas totaled 69,167, while gross job losses from closing and contracting private-sector establishments numbered 61,579, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Assistant Commissioner for Regional Operations Stanley W. Suchman noted that the difference between the number of gross job gains and the number of gross job losses yielded a net employment gain of 7,588. During the previous quarter, gross job gains exceeded gross job losses by 2,631.

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. Business Employment Dynamics (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. The difference between the number of gross job gains and the number of gross job losses is the net change in employment. (See the Technical Note for more information.)

The number of gross job gains in Kansas increased from 67,041 in the third quarter of 2018 to 69,167 in the fourth quarter of 2018, an increase of 2,126. The number of gross job losses declined from 64,410 in the third quarter of 2018 to 61,579 in the fourth quarter of 2018, down 2,831. (See chart 1.) 

Gross job gains represented 6.1 percent of private sector employment in Kansas in the fourth quarter of 2018, similarly national gross job gains accounted for 6.1 percent of private employment. (See chart 2.) Since June 2012, the rate of gross job gains in Kansas has been below or equal to the U.S. rate each quarter, with one exception. 

During the fourth quarter of 2018, gross job gains exceeded gross job losses in eight industry sectors in Kansas. For example, within transportation and warehousing, gross job gains exceeded gross jobs losses by 2,535. While almost 2,500 jobs were lost in closing and contracting establishments in the industry, more than 5,000 jobs were created by opening and expanding establishments in the fourth quarter of 2018. In manufacturing, approximately 5,600 jobs were created in opening and expanding establishments and more than 3,000 jobs were lost in closing and contracting establishments.

In contrast, gross job losses exceeded gross job gains in two industry sectors. Within retail trade, gross job losses exceeded gross job gains by 657.  In professional and business services, the 12,597 jobs lost in closing and contracting establishments offset the 12,001 jobs created by opening and expanding establishments, resulting in a net loss of 596 jobs. (See table 1.)

For More Information

BED data for the states have been included in table 2 of this release. For more information on the Business Employment Dynamics data, visit the BED website at www.bls.gov/bdm/.

The Business Employment Dynamics release for First Quarter 2019 is scheduled to be released on Wednesday, October 30, 2019.

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), or the ES-202 program. The BED data are compiled from existing quarterly QCEW records. The QCEW reports are sent by the State Employment Security Agencies (SESAs) to BLS and form the basis of the Bureau’s QCEW program and establishment universe sampling frame. These reports are also used to produce the QCEW data on total employment and wages. Other important Bureau uses of the QCEW reports are in the Current Employment Statistics (CES) program. The CES program produces monthly estimates of employment, net changes, and earnings by detailed industry.

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 establishments and jobs lost at closing and contracting establishments.

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 establishments 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 establishments 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 either establishments with positive third month employment in the previous quarter, with no employment or zero employment reported in the current quarter.

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

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. Private sector gross job gains and losses by industry, Kansas, seasonally adjusted

Category	Gross job gains and job losses (3 months ended)					Gross job gains and job losses as a percent of employment (3 months ended)
	Dec. 2017	Mar. 2018	Jun. 2018	Sep. 2018	Dec. 2018	Dec. 2017	Mar. 2018	Jun. 2018	Sep. 2018	Dec. 2018
Total private (1)
Gross job gains	67,371	59,291	64,974	67,041	69,167	5.9	5.2	5.7	5.9	6.1
At expanding establishments	54,898	49,349	53,250	55,150	55,862	4.8	4.3	4.7	4.9	4.9
At opening establishments	12,473	9,942	11,724	11,891	13,305	1.1	0.9	1.0	1.0	1.2
Gross job losses	59,074	62,541	63,272	64,410	61,579	5.2	5.5	5.6	5.7	5.4
At contracting establishments	48,724	51,772	52,000	53,224	48,723	4.3	4.6	4.6	4.7	4.3
At closing establishments	10,350	10,769	11,272	11,186	12,856	0.9	0.9	1.0	1.0	1.1
Net employment change (2)	8,297	-3,250	1,702	2,631	7,588	0.7	-0.3	0.1	0.2	0.7
Construction
Gross job gains	6,080	5,675	5,440	6,578	6,067	10.1	9.2	8.9	10.8	9.8
At expanding establishments	4,733	4,429	4,397	5,188	5,008	7.9	7.2	7.2	8.5	8.1
At opening establishments	1,347	1,246	1,043	1,390	1,059	2.2	2.0	1.7	2.3	1.7
Gross job losses	4,574	5,479	5,487	5,656	5,541	7.6	8.9	9.0	9.3	9.0
At contracting establishments	3,597	4,488	4,333	4,606	4,017	6.0	7.3	7.1	7.6	6.5
At closing establishments	977	991	1,154	1,050	1,524	1.6	1.6	1.9	1.7	2.5
Net employment change (2)	1,506	196	-47	922	526	2.5	0.3	-0.1	1.5	0.8
Manufacturing
Gross job gains	4,942	4,150	4,895	4,625	5,615	3.0	2.6	3.0	2.8	3.3
At expanding establishments	4,616	3,736	4,643	4,293	5,201	2.8	2.3	2.8	2.6	3.1
At opening establishments	326	414	252	332	414	0.2	0.3	0.2	0.2	0.2
Gross job losses	3,947	3,981	3,149	4,038	3,318	2.4	2.5	1.9	2.4	2.0
At contracting establishments	3,394	3,710	2,807	3,667	2,932	2.1	2.3	1.7	2.2	1.8
At closing establishments	553	271	342	371	386	0.3	0.2	0.2	0.2	0.2
Net employment change (2)	995	169	1,746	587	2,297	0.6	0.1	1.1	0.4	1.3
Wholesale trade
Gross job gains	2,948	2,645	2,855	2,949	2,935	5.0	4.5	4.8	5.0	5.0
At expanding establishments	2,370	2,279	2,298	2,342	2,289	4.0	3.9	3.9	4.0	3.9
At opening establishments	578	366	557	607	646	1.0	0.6	0.9	1.0	1.1
Gross job losses	2,832	2,718	2,867	2,921	2,675	4.7	4.6	4.9	5.0	4.5
At contracting establishments	2,299	2,053	2,223	2,337	1,973	3.8	3.5	3.8	4.0	3.3
At closing establishments	533	665	644	584	702	0.9	1.1	1.1	1.0	1.2
Net employment change (2)	116	-73	-12	28	260	0.3	-0.1	-0.1	0.0	0.5
Retail trade
Gross job gains	7,830	7,450	7,929	8,081	7,490	5.4	5.0	5.4	5.6	5.2
At expanding establishments	6,961	6,652	6,781	7,122	6,534	4.8	4.5	4.6	4.9	4.5
At opening establishments	869	798	1,148	959	956	0.6	0.5	0.8	0.7	0.7
Gross job losses	8,023	7,724	8,664	9,160	8,147	5.5	5.3	5.9	6.3	5.7
At contracting establishments	7,070	6,826	7,436	7,872	6,914	4.8	4.7	5.1	5.4	4.8
At closing establishments	953	898	1,228	1,288	1,233	0.7	0.6	0.8	0.9	0.9
Net employment change (2)	-193	-274	-735	-1,079	-657	-0.1	-0.3	-0.5	-0.7	-0.5
Transportation and warehousing
Gross job gains	4,290	2,765	3,221	4,674	5,033	8.0	5.1	6.3	8.9	9.2
At expanding establishments	3,877	2,478	2,776	4,306	4,651	7.2	4.6	5.4	8.2	8.5
At opening establishments	413	287	445	368	382	0.8	0.5	0.9	0.7	0.7
Gross job losses	2,415	4,428	2,938	3,818	2,498	4.5	8.3	5.7	7.3	4.6
At contracting establishments	2,145	4,124	2,675	3,559	1,894	4.0	7.7	5.2	6.8	3.5
At closing establishments	270	304	263	259	604	0.5	0.6	0.5	0.5	1.1
Net employment change (2)	1,875	-1,663	283	856	2,535	3.5	-3.2	0.6	1.6	4.6
Financial activities
Gross job gains	3,452	3,090	3,780	3,438	3,771	4.6	4.2	5.2	4.7	5.1
At expanding establishments	2,615	2,420	2,857	2,648	2,723	3.5	3.3	3.9	3.6	3.7
At opening establishments	837	670	923	790	1,048	1.1	0.9	1.3	1.1	1.4
Gross job losses	3,263	3,073	3,561	3,945	3,445	4.4	4.1	4.8	5.4	4.7
At contracting establishments	2,573	2,322	2,587	2,797	2,523	3.5	3.1	3.5	3.8	3.4
At closing establishments	690	751	974	1,148	922	0.9	1.0	1.3	1.6	1.3
Net employment change (2)	189	17	219	-507	326	0.2	0.1	0.4	-0.7	0.4
Professional and business services
Gross job gains	13,086	10,539	12,756	13,189	12,001	7.4	6.0	7.1	7.3	6.7
At expanding establishments	9,917	8,662	10,273	10,522	8,926	5.6	4.9	5.7	5.8	5.0
At opening establishments	3,169	1,877	2,483	2,667	3,075	1.8	1.1	1.4	1.5	1.7
Gross job losses	12,541	12,528	12,017	11,886	12,597	7.0	7.1	6.7	6.6	7.0
At contracting establishments	10,044	10,245	9,488	9,207	10,363	5.6	5.8	5.3	5.1	5.8
At closing establishments	2,497	2,283	2,529	2,679	2,234	1.4	1.3	1.4	1.5	1.2
Net employment change (2)	545	-1,989	739	1,303	-596	0.4	-1.1	0.4	0.7	-0.3
Education and health services
Gross job gains	8,775	7,776	8,827	7,736	9,971	4.6	4.0	4.6	3.9	5.1
At expanding establishments	7,253	6,760	7,113	6,328	8,136	3.8	3.5	3.7	3.2	4.2
At opening establishments	1,522	1,016	1,714	1,408	1,835	0.8	0.5	0.9	0.7	0.9
Gross job losses	6,942	7,861	7,688	7,352	8,155	3.6	4.1	3.9	3.7	4.2
At contracting establishments	5,789	5,951	6,247	6,112	5,876	3.0	3.1	3.2	3.1	3.0
At closing establishments	1,153	1,910	1,441	1,240	2,279	0.6	1.0	0.7	0.6	1.2
Net employment change (2)	1,833	-85	1,139	384	1,816	1.0	-0.1	0.7	0.2	0.9
Leisure and hospitality
Gross job gains	10,751	10,566	10,389	10,559	11,437	8.4	8.2	8.0	8.2	8.9
At expanding establishments	8,364	8,148	8,203	8,252	8,627	6.5	6.3	6.3	6.4	6.7
At opening establishments	2,387	2,418	2,186	2,307	2,810	1.9	1.9	1.7	1.8	2.2
Gross job losses	9,995	10,120	11,342	10,812	10,275	7.8	7.8	8.8	8.5	7.9
At contracting establishments	8,097	8,310	9,701	9,203	8,457	6.3	6.4	7.5	7.2	6.5
At closing establishments	1,898	1,810	1,641	1,609	1,818	1.5	1.4	1.3	1.3	1.4
Net employment change (2)	756	446	-953	-253	1,162	0.6	0.4	-0.8	-0.3	1.0
Other services (3)
Gross job gains	2,962	2,299	2,414	2,608	2,481	9.0	7.1	7.4	8.1	7.6
At expanding establishments	2,362	1,822	1,948	2,104	1,983	7.2	5.6	6.0	6.5	6.1
At opening establishments	600	477	466	504	498	1.8	1.5	1.4	1.6	1.5
Gross job losses	2,154	2,390	2,841	2,402	2,384	6.6	7.4	8.8	7.4	7.3
At contracting establishments	1,728	1,915	2,331	1,941	1,697	5.3	5.9	7.2	6.0	5.2
At closing establishments	426	475	510	461	687	1.3	1.5	1.6	1.4	2.1
Net employment change (2)	808	-91	-427	206	97	2.4	-0.3	-1.4	0.7	0.3
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)
	Dec. 2017	Mar. 2018	Jun. 2018	Sep. 2018	Dec. 2018	Dec. 2017	Mar. 2018	Jun. 2018	Sep. 2018	Dec. 2018
United States(1)	6.4	6.0	6.1	6.0	6.1	5.6	5.4	5.8	6.0	5.6
Alabama	6.0	6.0	5.8	5.9	6.3	5.4	5.3	5.7	5.9	5.3
Alaska	9.7	9.8	10.9	8.9	10.9	10.2	8.8	10.7	10.6	9.7
Arizona	6.3	6.0	6.0	6.6	6.2	5.3	5.3	5.9	5.0	5.1
Arkansas	6.1	5.4	5.0	6.0	5.8	5.1	5.0	5.6	5.5	4.9
California	6.9	6.4	6.7	6.5	6.7	6.0	5.9	6.3	6.2	5.9
Colorado	6.8	6.8	6.8	6.6	6.8	6.1	6.0	6.1	6.8	6.0
Connecticut	5.3	5.1	5.8	5.2	5.3	5.2	5.2	5.0	5.6	4.9
Delaware	7.0	7.1	6.5	5.6	6.6	6.4	5.9	6.0	6.6	5.7
District of Columbia	5.8	6.0	5.6	5.3	5.6	5.0	4.7	5.5	5.5	5.1
Florida	8.2	6.1	6.5	6.7	6.3	5.3	5.5	6.1	5.7	5.9
Georgia	6.9	6.5	6.2	6.7	6.3	5.6	5.6	6.4	6.2	5.7
Hawaii	5.1	5.0	5.2	5.1	5.7	4.7	4.8	5.5	5.5	5.1
Idaho	7.4	7.9	7.3	6.8	7.4	6.6	5.9	6.7	6.9	6.3
Illinois	6.0	5.7	5.6	5.6	5.6	5.3	5.1	5.5	5.7	5.6
Indiana	5.7	5.6	5.4	5.2	5.6	5.0	5.1	5.5	5.4	4.9
Iowa	5.9	5.5	5.7	5.3	5.8	5.3	5.3	5.4	5.7	5.3
Kansas	5.9	5.2	5.7	5.9	6.1	5.2	5.5	5.6	5.7	5.4
Kentucky	6.1	6.2	5.9	5.7	6.1	5.6	5.9	5.6	6.0	5.5
Louisiana	6.2	6.5	6.1	6.2	6.2	6.0	5.8	6.5	6.2	5.7
Maine	7.2	7.2	8.1	6.0	7.3	6.6	7.0	7.1	7.5	6.3
Maryland	6.2	6.3	6.0	6.3	6.8	6.3	5.7	5.8	6.6	6.4
Massachusetts	5.7	5.4	6.1	5.5	5.8	5.4	5.2	5.4	6.2	5.3
Michigan	5.7	5.7	5.6	5.0	5.7	5.4	4.6	5.1	6.2	5.2
Minnesota	5.8	5.3	5.8	5.4	5.7	5.5	5.0	5.3	5.7	5.4
Mississippi	6.3	5.5	5.7	5.8	6.4	5.4	5.8	6.0	5.7	5.2
Missouri	5.7	5.4	5.7	5.9	5.8	5.5	5.2	5.7	6.0	5.4
Montana	8.5	7.8	8.0	7.2	9.0	7.4	7.1	7.8	7.9	7.2
Nebraska	6.2	5.6	5.9	5.8	5.9	5.5	5.5	5.8	6.0	5.8
Nevada	6.6	6.5	6.1	6.7	6.6	5.2	5.4	5.8	5.6	5.3
New Hampshire	6.7	6.1	6.7	5.6	6.7	5.9	5.9	6.3	6.8	5.7
New Jersey	6.4	5.6	6.5	6.0	6.3	5.8	5.8	5.7	6.3	5.6
New Mexico	6.5	6.3	6.5	6.4	6.7	6.1	5.5	6.2	6.4	6.0
New York	6.2	6.2	6.3	6.1	6.2	5.8	5.6	5.8	6.4	5.7
North Carolina	6.3	6.2	6.1	5.6	6.7	5.5	5.2	5.5	6.5	5.3
North Dakota	6.8	7.0	6.7	6.6	6.8	6.8	6.3	6.2	6.6	6.2
Ohio	5.7	5.5	5.6	5.3	5.6	5.2	5.0	5.4	5.7	5.2
Oklahoma	6.4	6.1	6.3	6.6	6.4	5.8	5.5	6.5	6.1	6.0
Oregon	6.8	7.8	6.2	6.2	6.7	6.0	5.6	6.2	6.3	5.9
Pennsylvania	5.5	5.2	5.3	5.4	5.3	5.0	4.9	5.1	5.2	4.7
Rhode Island	6.6	6.3	6.3	6.2	6.4	6.0	6.1	6.1	6.4	5.7
South Carolina	7.0	5.9	7.5	5.8	7.4	5.3	4.7	6.5	6.5	5.4
South Dakota	6.4	6.4	6.1	5.9	6.3	5.7	5.9	6.1	5.8	5.8
Tennessee	5.9	5.0	5.5	5.8	5.8	4.9	4.8	5.1	5.2	4.9
Texas	6.4	5.8	5.9	5.9	6.1	5.3	5.1	5.2	5.4	5.1
Utah	7.0	7.4	6.9	7.3	6.9	5.9	6.0	6.3	6.5	6.1
Vermont	7.4	6.4	7.2	6.9	7.4	6.5	7.0	7.3	7.4	6.8
Virginia	6.3	5.8	6.1	5.6	6.2	5.5	5.2	5.8	6.3	5.5
Washington	6.9	7.2	7.3	6.1	6.5	6.0	5.7	6.3	6.3	5.6
West Virginia	6.3	6.8	6.8	7.0	6.3	6.1	5.8	6.4	6.4	6.5
Wisconsin	5.6	5.6	5.4	5.1	5.4	5.0	4.7	5.5	5.9	4.9
Wyoming	8.7	8.4	8.2	8.2	10.0	8.4	8.0	8.3	8.3	7.8
Puerto Rico	7.1	8.4	8.0	7.2	6.0	11.8	6.8	6.2	5.8	6.7
Virgin Islands	9.2	12.0	12.5	10.9	8.3	28.2	16.8	8.6	6.3	7.8
Footnotes (1) Totals for the United States do not include data for Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands.