Workers in the Cape Girardeau, MO-IL Metropolitan Statistical Area had an average (mean) hourly wage of $21.50 in May 2021, 23 percent below the nationwide average of $28.01, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Regional Commissioner Michael Hirniak noted that, after testing for statistical significance, wages in the local area were lower than their respective national averages in 20 of the 22 major occupational groups, including computer and mathematical; arts, design, entertainment, sports, and media; and management. Transportation and material moving was the only major occupational group with wages in the local area higher than its respective national average.

When compared to the nationwide distribution, Cape Girardeau area employment was more highly concentrated in 10 of the 22 occupational groups, including healthcare practitioners and technical, food preparation and serving related, and healthcare support. Ten groups had employment shares significantly below their national representation, including business and financial operations, computer and mathematical, and management. (See table A.)

One occupational group—healthcare practitioners and technical—was chosen to illustrate the diversity of data available for any of the 22 major occupational categories. Cape Girardeau had 4,040 jobs in healthcare practitioners and technical, accounting for 9.4 percent of local area employment, significantly higher than the 6.2-percent share nationally. The average hourly wage for this occupational group locally was $36.62, significantly below the national wage of $43.80.

Some of the larger detailed occupations within the healthcare practitioners and technical group included registered nurses (1,510), licensed practical and licensed vocational nurses (310), and pharmacy technicians (220). Among the higher-paying jobs in this group were pharmacist and nurse practitioners, with mean hourly wages of $62.24 and $50.78, respectively. At the lower end of the wage scale were pharmacy technicians ($15.66), and licensed practical and licensed vocational nurses ($20.15). (Detailed data for the healthcare practitioners and technical occupations are presented in table 1; for a complete listing of detailed occupations available go to www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes_16020.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 Cape Girardeau area, above-average concentrations of employment were found in many of the occupations within the healthcare practitioners and technical group. For instance, respiratory therapists were employed at 2.4 times the national rate in Cape Girardeau, and nurse practitioners, at 2.3 times the U.S. average. Dental hygienists had a location quotient of 1.0 in Cape Girardeau, indicating that this particular occupation’s local and national employment shares were similar.

These statistics are from the Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey, a federal-state cooperative program between BLS and State Workforce Agencies, in this case, the Missouri Department of Economic Development, and the Illinois Department of Economic Security.

Technical Note

The Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey is a semiannual survey measuring occupational employment and wage rates for wage and salary workers in nonfarm establishments in the United States. The OEWS data available from BLS include cross-industry occupational employment and wage estimates for the nation; over 580 areas, including states and the District of Columbia, metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs), nonmetropolitan areas, and territories; national industry-specific estimates at the NAICS sector, 3-digit, most 4-digit, and selected 5- and 6-digit industry levels, and national estimates by ownership across all industries and for schools and hospitals. OEWS data are available at www.bls.gov/oes/tables.htm.

The OEWS survey is a cooperative effort between BLS and the State Workforce Agencies (SWAs). BLS funds the survey and provides the procedures and technical support, while the State Workforce Agencies collect most of the data. OEWS estimates are constructed from a sample of about 1.1 million establishments. Each year, two semiannual panels of approximately 179,000 to 187,000 sampled establishments are contacted, one panel in May and the other in November. Responses are obtained by Internet or other electronic means, mail, email, telephone, or personal visit. The May 2021 estimates are based on responses from six semiannual panels collected over a 3-year period: May 2021, November 2020, May 2020, November 2019, May 2019, and November 2018. The unweighted sampled employment of 82 million across all six semiannual panels represents approximately 62 percent of total national employment. The overall national response rate for the six panels, based on the 50 states and the District of Columbia, is 67.2 percent based on establishments and 64.5 percent based on weighted sampled employment. The sample in the Cape Girardeau, MO-IL Metropolitan Statistical Area included 851 establishments with a response rate of 53 percent. For more information about OEWS concepts and methodology, go to www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes_tec.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.

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 Cape Girardeau, MO-IL Metropolitan Statistical Area includes Alexander County, IL; Bollinger County, MO; and Cape Girardeau County, MO.

For more information

Answers to frequently asked questions about the OEWS data are available at www.bls.gov/oes/oes_ques.htm. Detailed information about the OEWS program is available at www.bls.gov/oes/oes_doc.htm.

Information in this release will be made available to individuals with sensory impairments upon request. Voice phone: (202) 691-5200; Telecommunications Relay Service: 7-1-1.

Table 1. Employment and wage data for healthcare practitioners and technical occupations, Cape Girardeau metropolitan area, May 2021

Occupation (1)	Employment		Mean wages
	Level (2)	Location quotient (3)	Hourly	Annual (4)
Healthcare practitioners and technical occupations	4,040	1.5	$36.62	$76,170
Dentists, general	40	1.2	77.77	161,770
Dietitians and nutritionists	40	1.9	26.96	56,070
Pharmacists	120	1.2	62.24	129,460
Occupational therapists	50	1.3	35.41	73,660
Physical therapists	120	1.7	38.55	80,180
Respiratory therapists	100	2.4	26.62	55,380
Speech-language pathologists	50	1.1	34.68	72,130
Veterinarians	30	1.4	40.42	84,070
Registered nurses	1,510	1.6	29.93	62,250
Nurse anesthetists	40	2.6	98.09	204,030
Nurse practitioners	170	2.3	50.78	105,620
Family medicine physicians	40	1.3	118.12	245,700
Dental hygienists	60	1.0	33.26	69,170
Clinical laboratory technologists and technicians	140	1.5	22.37	46,530
Radiologic technologists and technicians	90	1.4	26.30	54,700
Emergency medical technicians	40	0.9	14.08	29,280
Paramedics	40	1.4	17.45	36,300
Pharmacy technicians	220	1.7	15.66	32,570
Surgical technologists	50	1.6	22.04	45,850
Licensed practical and licensed vocational nurses	310	1.6	20.15	41,900
Medical records specialists	100	1.8	19.89	41,380
Opticians, dispensing	50	2.0	17.33	36,050
Health information technologists and medical registrars	40	3.5	19.70	40,970
(1) For a complete listing of all detailed occupations in the Cape Girardeau, MO-IL Metropolitan Statistical Area, see www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes_16020.htm. (2) Estimates for detailed occupations may not sum to the totals due to rounding, and because the totals may include occupations that are 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.