Average weekly wages in New York County, commonly known as the borough of Manhattan, increased 6.3 percent from the first quarter of 2016 to the first quarter of 2017, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Chief Regional Economist Martin Kohli noted that average weekly wages grew the most in the financial activities and the trade, transportation, and utilities sectors. Manhattan’s average weekly wage of $2,954 ranked the highest among the nation’s 346 large counties, those with 75,000 or more jobs. Nationally, wages increased 6.6 percent over the year. (See chart 1.)

The fastest rate of employment growth among the City’s boroughs was in Brooklyn (Kings County), up 3.2 percent. (See table 1.) Nationally, employment grew 1.6 percent from March 2016 to March 2017. (See chart 2.)

Over-the-year wage changes

All five boroughs of New York City had over-the-year increases in average weekly wages but none exceeded the national average for wage growth. Manhattan (New York County), at 6.3 percent, had the largest increase in the City, and ranked 183^rd among the nation’s 346 large counties. Wage gains in Brooklyn, Bronx, Queens, and Staten Island (Richmond County) ranked among the bottom quarter of the nation’s large counties.

In Manhattan, all 10 supersectors had over-the-year gains in average weekly wages. Financial activities had the largest increase, 10.7 percent, and accounted for most of the borough’s average weekly wage growth. Trade, transportation, and utilities increased 7.3 percent, followed by manufacturing with a 6.1-percent increase. No supersector had over-the-year gains in average weekly wages below 1.0 percent.

Nationally, all supersectors had over-the-year wage gains. The largest increase in average weekly wages occurred in information (10.0 percent), followed by financial activities (7.9 percent). The supersector with the smallest gain in average weekly wages from the previous year was government (5.0 percent).

Among the 346 largest U.S. counties, 345 had over-the-year increases in average weekly wages. McLean, Ill., had the largest wage gain (27.8 percent). Peoria, Ill., was the only large county to have a decline in average weekly wages (-1.1 percent).

Average weekly wages

Manhattan’s average weekly wage of $2,954 during the year ending in the first quarter of 2017 was over two and a half times the national average of $1,111. Queens had a weekly wage of $1,010, the second highest among the four other New York City boroughs. Brooklyn had the lowest weekly wage ($864). (See chart 3.)

In Manhattan, the financial activities supersector had the highest first-quarter average weekly wage, $9,424. (See table 2.) Information had the second-highest average wage ($3,390), followed by natural resources and mining ($2,715) and professional and business services ($2,625). Manhattan’s leisure and hospitality supersector had the lowest average weekly wage, $877. Wages in every supersector were higher in Manhattan than their respective national averages.

Among the 346 largest counties in the nation, 94 large counties had average weekly wages at or above the U.S. average. Manhattan had the highest average weekly wage at $2,954, followed by Santa Clara, Calif., ($2,450) San Mateo, Calif., ($2,385); San Francisco, Calif., $2,264; and Somerset, N.J., $2,026. Four of the 10 counties with the highest wages in the nation were located in New York, N.Y.; Somerset, N.J.; Fairfield, Conn.; and Morris, N.J.

Employment

From March 2016 to March 2017, two New York City counties gained jobs at rates above the national average of 1.6 percent. Brooklyn’s employment growth of 3.2 percent ranked 34^th among the nation’s 346 largest counties and Queens’ 2.7-percent gain ranked 73^rd. The other three boroughs had rates below the national average. Staten Island had a 1.4-percent annual gain in employment while Manhattan had a gain of 1.3 percent. Employment in the Bronx grew 0.2 percent.

In Manhattan, 6 of 10 supersectors with 1,000 or more employees gained jobs over-the-year. Information had the largest employment growth (2.9 percent), followed by professional and business services (1.9 percent) and leisure and hospitality (1.8 percent). Manufacturing had the largest employment decline (-5.9 percent) followed by trade, transportation and utilities (-0.9 percent).

Nationally, employment increased in 299 of the 346 largest U.S. counties from March 2016 to March 2017. York, S.C., had the largest increase, with a gain of 6.8 percent over the year. Conversely, employment declined in 39 of the large counties. Kanawha, W.Va., had the largest over-the-year percentage decrease in employment (-2.7 percent).

Additional statistics and other information

QCEW data for states have been included in this release in table 3. For additional information about quarterly employment and wages data, please read the Technical Note or visit www.bls.gov/cew.

Employment and Wages Annual Averages Online features comprehensive information by detailed industry on establishments, employment, and wages for the nation and all states. The 2016 edition of this publication contains selected data produced by Business Employment Dynamics (BED) on job gains and losses, as well as selected data from the first quarter 2017 version of the national news release. Tables and additional content from Employment and Wages Annual Averages 2016 are now available online at https://www.bls.gov/cew/publications/employment-and-wages-annual-averages/2016/home.htm. The 2017 edition of Employment and Wages Annual Averages Online will be available in September 2018.

County employment and wage data for the second quarter 2017 are scheduled to be released on Tuesday, December 5, 2017.

Technical Note

Average weekly wage data by county are compiled under the Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW) program, also known as the ES-202 program. The data are derived from summaries of employment and total pay of workers covered by state and federal unemployment insurance (UI) legislation and provided by State Workforce Agencies (SWAs). The 9.9 million employer reports cover 142.3 million full- and part-time workers. The average weekly wage values are calculated by dividing quarterly total wages by the average of the three monthly employment levels of those covered by UI programs. The result is then divided by 13, the number of weeks in a quarter. It is to be noted, therefore, that over-the-year wage changes for geographic areas may reflect shifts in the composition of employment by industry, occupation, and such other factors as hours of work. Thus, wages may vary among counties, metropolitan areas, or states for reasons other than changes in the average wage level. Data for all states, Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs), counties, and the nation are available on the BLS Web site at www.bls.gov/cew/; however, data in QCEW press releases have been revised and may not match the data contained on the Bureau’s Web site.

QCEW data are not designed as a time series. QCEW data are simply the sums of individual establishment records reflecting the number of establishments that exist in a county or industry at a point in time. Establishments can move in or out of a county or industry for a number of reasons–some reflecting economic events, others reflecting administrative changes.

The preliminary QCEW data presented in this release may differ from data released by the individual states as well as from the data presented on the BLS Web site. These potential differences result from the states’ continuing receipt, review and editing of UI data over time. On the other hand, differences between data in this release and the data found on the BLS Web site are the result of adjustments made to improve over-the-year comparisons. Specifically, these adjustments account for administrative (noneconomic) changes such as a correction to a previously reported location or industry classification. Adjusting for these administrative changes allows users to more accurately assess changes of an economic nature (such as a firm moving from one county to another or changing its primary economic activity) over a 12-month period. Currently, adjusted data are available only from BLS press releases.

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. Covered employment and wages in the United States, New York State, and five counties of New York City, first quarter 2017

Area	Employment			Average weekly wage (1)
	March 2017 (thousands)	Percent change, March 2016-17 (2)	National ranking by percent change (3)	First quarter 2017	National ranking by level (3)	Percent change, first quarter 2016-17 (2)	National ranking by percent change (3)
United States (4)	142,309.2	1.6	--	$1,111	--	6.6	--
New York	9,159.3	1.3	--	1,541	2	5.9	38
Bronx, N.Y.	298.7	0.2	287	971	173	5.0	267
Kings, N.Y.	700.2	3.2	34	864	272	5.1	260
New York, N.Y.	2,436.8	1.3	190	2,954	1	6.3	183
Queens, N.Y.	654.6	2.7	73	1,010	151	4.7	284
Richmond, N.Y.	114.7	1.4	181	903	232	4.3	302
Footnotes: (1) Average weekly wages were calculated using unrounded data. (2) Percent changes were computed from quarterly employment and pay data adjusted for noneconomic county reclassifications. (3) Ranking does not include data for Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands. (4) Totals for the United States do not include data for Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands.
Note: Data are preliminary. Covered employment and wages includes workers covered by Unemployment Insurance (UI) and Unemployment Compensation for Federal Employees (UCFE) programs.

Table 2. Covered employment and wages in the United States and New York County, first quarter 2017

Area	Employment		Average weekly wage(1)
	March 2017 (thousands)	Percent change March 2016-17(2)	First quarter 2017	Percent change, first quarter 2016-17(2)
United States(3)	142,309.2	1.6	$1,111	6.6
Private industry	120,451.2	1.7	1,121	7.0
Natural resources and mining	1,746.4	-0.1	1,218	5.3
Construction	6,595.2	3.3	1,130	7.5
Manufacturing	12,303.9	0.0	1,353	7.2
Trade, transportation, and utilities	26,775.5	0.8	916	7.1
Information	2,797.2	0.5	2,210	10.0
Financial activities	7,993.6	1.6	2,279	7.9
Professional and business services	19,981.9	1.8	1,470	6.6
Education and health services	22,041.4	2.4	919	6.5
Leisure and hospitality	15,454.4	2.1	432	6.1
Other services	4,383.4	1.2	710	6.9
Government	21,858.0	0.7	1,056	5.0
New York, N.Y.	2,436.8	1.3	2,954	6.3
Private industry	2,170.4	1.4	3,155	6.4
Natural resources and mining	0.2	-6.3	2,715	-0.6
Construction	40.0	-0.8	1,918	5.8
Manufacturing	25.2	-5.9	1,699	6.1
Trade, transportation, and utilities	249.6	-0.9	1,502	7.3
Information	158.8	2.9	3,390	6.0
Financial activities	368.0	-0.8	9,424	10.7
Professional and business services	564.2	1.9	2,625	1.3
Education and health services	351.3	1.6	1,282	5.2
Leisure and hospitality	294.3	1.8	877	5.9
Other services	102.5	0.9	1,276	5.8
Government	266.4	0.5	1,306	2.9
Footnotes: (1) Average weekly wages were calculated using unrounded data. (2) Percent changes were computed from quarterly employment and pay data adjusted for noneconomic county reclassifications. (3) Totals for the United States do not include data for Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands.
Note: Covered employment and wages includes workers covered by Unemployment Insurance (UI) and Unemployment Compensation for Federal Employees (UCFE) programs. Data are preliminary.

Table 3. Covered employment and wages by state, first quarter 2017

State	Employment		Average weekly wage (1)
	March 2017 (thousands)	Percent change, March 2016-17	Average weekly wage	National ranking by level	Percent change, first quarter 2016-17	National ranking by percent change
United States (2)	142,309.2	1.6	$1,111	--	6.6	--
Alabama	1,928.9	1.4	893	36	6.2	35
Alaska	312.8	-1.8	1,061	18	3.9	50
Arizona	2,743.0	2.4	991	21	8.1	4
Arkansas	1,199.9	0.7	859	45	8.5	3
California	16,831.4	2.3	1,295	6	7.6	7
Colorado	2,573.2	2.3	1,136	12	7.5	10
Connecticut	1,651.5	0.1	1,417	4	4.0	49
Delaware	433.2	0.8	1,185	9	10.7	1
District of Columbia	760.7	1.2	1,885	1	7.0	16
Florida	8,532.6	2.8	949	27	7.2	13
Georgia	4,317.1	2.7	1,068	17	6.1	37
Hawaii	653.6	0.9	954	25	6.8	22
Idaho	690.4	3.0	775	50	7.0	16
Illinois	5,842.0	0.5	1,195	8	6.3	34
Indiana	2,985.8	1.2	918	32	7.6	7
Iowa	1,518.3	0.0	899	35	6.5	30
Kansas	1,368.0	0.4	888	38	6.7	25
Kentucky	1,864.1	1.1	879	41	6.9	18
Louisiana	1,901.3	-0.5	906	33	5.5	43
Maine	586.7	1.0	860	44	7.2	13
Maryland	2,626.0	1.2	1,171	10	5.8	42
Massachusetts	3,464.0	1.1	1,428	3	7.7	6
Michigan	4,230.6	1.7	1,041	20	6.8	22
Minnesota	2,806.4	2.1	1,149	11	7.9	5
Mississippi	1,122.9	0.1	750	51	5.3	46
Missouri	2,767.0	1.4	930	31	5.9	38
Montana	451.5	1.4	800	49	6.5	30
Nebraska	960.7	0.4	868	42	6.4	33
Nevada	1,311.6	3.8	932	30	6.9	18
New Hampshire	643.2	1.2	1,070	16	7.3	11
New Jersey	3,955.1	1.5	1,333	5	5.0	47
New Mexico	803.3	0.2	838	46	5.9	38
New York	9,159.3	1.3	1,541	2	5.9	38
North Carolina	4,287.0	1.8	991	21	6.9	18
North Dakota	405.7	-1.0	953	26	5.0	47
Ohio	5,278.3	0.8	976	24	6.7	25
Oklahoma	1,563.9	-1.0	883	39	5.9	38
Oregon	1,855.0	2.5	984	23	5.4	45
Pennsylvania	5,712.3	0.8	1,078	15	6.5	30
Rhode Island	465.4	0.3	1,055	19	7.2	13
South Carolina	2,017.9	2.2	864	43	7.3	11
South Dakota	413.4	0.7	819	48	6.2	35
Tennessee	2,906.2	1.8	945	28	6.7	25
Texas	11,924.5	1.7	1,124	14	5.5	43
Utah	1,411.3	3.1	905	34	6.6	29
Vermont	305.6	0.2	889	37	6.7	25
Virginia	3,796.3	1.4	1,129	13	6.9	18
Washington	3,225.9	2.6	1,215	7	8.6	2
West Virginia	678.2	-0.8	837	47	7.6	7
Wisconsin	2,803.7	1.1	933	29	6.8	22
Wyoming	262.4	-2.3	880	40	3.3	51
Puerto Rico	887.7	-0.9	526	(3)	1.2	(3)
Virgin Islands	38.7	0.0	797	(3)	3.1	(3)
Footnotes: (1) Average weekly wages were calculated using unrounded data. (2) Totals for the United States do not include data for Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands. (3) Data not included in the national ranking.
Note: Data are preliminary. Covered employment and wages includes workers covered by Unemployment Insurance (UI) and Unemployment Compensation for Federal Employees (UCFE) programs.