Average weekly wages in 16 of the 18 large counties in New York increased from the second quarter of 2016 to the second quarter of 2017, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported today. (Large counties are those with 2016 annual average employment levels of 75,000 or more.) Chief Regional Economist Martin Kohli noted that Monroe County had the largest growth in average weekly wages, 3.9 percent, followed by Bronx County, 3.7 percent. (See chart 1 and table 1.)

Six of New York’s large counties reported average weekly wages above the $1,020 national average in the second quarter of 2017. Average weekly wages in New York and Westchester Counties exceeded $1,300.

All 18 large counties in New York had employment gains from June 2016 to June 2017. Kings County had the largest gain, up 3.7 percent, while Albany County had the smallest gain, at 0.1 percent. Nationally, employment grew 1.7 percent from June 2016 to June 2017 as 318 of the 346 largest U.S. counties added jobs. (See chart 2.)

Employment and wage levels (but not over-the-year changes) are also available for the 44 counties in New York with employment levels below 75,000. Average wages in all but three of these smaller counties were below the national average in the second quarter of 2017. (See table 2.)

Large county wage changes

Two of New York’s large counties had average weekly wage growth above the national average of 3.2 percent from the second quarter of 2016 to the second quarter of 2017. (See table 1.) Monroe County ranked 92^nd and Bronx County ranked 114^th among the 346 large counties in the nation with over-the-year wage increases of 3.9 and 3.7 percent, respectively. Three other New York counties had annual wage gains of at least 3.0 percent and placed in the top half of the national ranking: Kings, Oneida, and Dutchess.

Nationally, 325 of the 346 largest counties had over-the-year increases in average weekly wages. New Hanover, N.C., had the largest percentage wage increase among the largest U.S. counties (11.9 percent). San Mateo, Calif., and Midland, Texas, tied for the second largest increase, each at 11.4 percent.

Nineteen large U.S. counties registered wage declines over the year. McLean, Ill., had the largest percentage decrease in average weekly wages (-20.4 percent), followed by Union, N.J. (-3.7 percent).

Large county average weekly wages

New York County had the highest average weekly wage in the state at $1,907 and ranked fourth among the 346 largest U.S. counties. Westchester County ($1,327) ranked 19^th. Four additional counties (Nassau, Suffolk, Albany, and Dutchess) had average weekly wages that placed them in the top 100 nationwide. Broome ($817) and Oneida ($810) reported the lowest average weekly wages among the state’s large counties and ranked 297^th and 302^nd, respectively.

Nationally, average weekly wages were higher than average in 97 of the largest 346 counties. Santa Clara, Calif., held the top position among the highest-paid large counties with an average weekly wage of $2,392. San Mateo, Calif., was second at $2,093, followed by San Francisco, Calif., at $1,941, and New York, N.Y., at $1,907.

Among the 249 counties with an average weekly wage below the U.S. average in the second quarter of 2017, Cameron County, Texas ($615) reported the lowest wage, followed by Horry County, S.C. ($622), and Hidalgo County, Texas ($632). Wages in these lowest-ranked counties were less than one-third of the average weekly wage reported for the highest-ranked county, Santa Clara, Calif.

Large county employment

Employment rose in all 18 of the largest counties in New York State from June 2016 to June 2017. Four counties—Kings, Queens, Rockland, and Saratoga—had employment growth above the national rate of 1.7 percent.

Nationally, employment grew in 318 of the 346 largest counties nationwide. Midland, Texas, had the largest over-the-year employment growth (7.3 percent). Lucas, Ohio, had the largest over-the-year decrease (-14.2 percent).

In New York, employment was highest in New York County (2,469,100) followed by Kings (714,000), Suffolk (682,800), Queens (666,300), and Nassau (643,600). Altogether, New York’s large counties accounted for 85.5 percent of total state employment. Nationwide, the 346 largest counties made up 72.7 percent of total U.S. employment.

Average weekly wages in New York’s smaller counties

Forty-one of New York’s 44 counties with employment below 75,000 had average weekly wages below the national average of $1,020. Tompkins ($1,109), Schenectady ($1,063), and Steuben ($1,042) were the exceptions. (See table 2.) Yates and Hamilton Counties reported the lowest average weekly wages at $653 and $657, respectively.

When all 62 counties in New York were considered, all but 10 had wages below $1,000. Twenty-three counties reported average weekly wages less than $800, 16 had wages from $800 to $899, and 13 had wages from $900 to $999. Eight of the 10 counties with an average weekly wage at or above $1,000 were in the eastern part of the state. The counties with the lowest average weekly wage, under $800, were primarily located in the northern and western parts of the state. (See chart 3.)

Additional statistics and other information

Quarterly 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 Online Annual Averages 2016 are now available online at 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.

The County Employment and Wages release for third quarter 2017 is scheduled to be released on Thursday, March 8, 2018, at 10:00 a.m. (ET).

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 145.2 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 and the 18 largest counties in New York, second quarter 2017

Area	Employment			Average weekly wage (1)
	June 2017 (thousands)	Percent change, June 2016-17 (2)	National ranking by percent change (3)	Second quarter 2017	National ranking by level (3)	Percent change, second quarter 2016-17 (2)	National ranking by percent change (3)
United States (4)	145,186.4	1.7	--	$1,020	--	3.2	--
New York	9,417.4	1.6	--	1,237	3	2.2	43
Albany, N.Y.	235.0	0.1	316	1,084	68	0.6	310
Bronx, N.Y.	303.2	0.9	247	978	132	3.7	114
Broome, N.Y.	87.6	0.4	294	817	297	2.1	231
Dutchess, N.Y.	113.5	0.4	294	1,023	95	3.0	168
Erie, N.Y.	474.9	0.6	274	904	196	2.7	189
Kings, N.Y.	714.0	3.7	15	850	263	3.2	148
Monroe, N.Y.	390.9	0.6	274	968	147	3.9	92
Nassau, N.Y.	643.6	1.7	157	1,150	49	-1.5	339
New York, N.Y.	2,469.1	1.7	157	1,907	4	2.4	215
Oneida, N.Y.	106.9	0.8	252	810	302	3.1	156
Onondaga, N.Y.	247.7	0.4	294	936	169	1.8	247
Orange, N.Y.	145.5	1.4	194	905	194	2.7	189
Queens, N.Y.	666.3	2.9	55	965	150	2.4	215
Richmond, N.Y.	116.7	1.7	157	911	188	2.4	215
Rockland, N.Y.	126.5	2.4	89	989	124	-0.7	336
Saratoga, N.Y.	89.2	2.4	89	949	160	1.3	282
Suffolk, N.Y.	682.8	1.0	235	1,086	67	0.4	315
Westchester, N.Y.	437.6	1.3	200	1,327	19	2.6	196
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 3. Covered employment and wages by state, second quarter 2017

State	Employment		Average weekly wage (1)
	June 2017 (thousands)	Percent change, June 2016-17	Second quarter 2017	National ranking by level	Percent change, second quarter 2016-17	National ranking by percent change
United States (2)	145,186.4	1.7	$1,020	--	3.2	--
Alabama	1,946.4	1.2	858	38	2.8	31
Alaska	338.4	-0.7	1,005	16	-0.5	51
Arizona	2,699.6	2.9	943	23	2.5	35
Arkansas	1,206.0	0.7	810	47	3.2	22
California	17,150.9	2.2	1,210	5	4.7	3
Colorado	2,638.8	2.5	1,042	11	4.2	5
Connecticut	1,701.2	0.6	1,216	4	0.4	50
Delaware	446.6	0.6	1,012	15	2.2	43
District of Columbia	766.5	1.0	1,675	1	3.3	19
Florida	8,390.6	2.8	905	27	2.5	35
Georgia	4,357.8	2.1	956	21	2.9	27
Hawaii	653.0	1.0	935	24	3.5	13
Idaho	723.5	3.4	765	50	3.4	16
Illinois	6,006.6	0.9	1,062	9	2.4	39
Indiana	3,041.0	1.5	859	37	3.7	9
Iowa	1,571.4	0.4	853	39	3.3	19
Kansas	1,377.8	-0.1	849	40	2.4	39
Kentucky	1,889.4	0.8	862	35	2.9	27
Louisiana	1,907.7	0.0	869	34	2.0	46
Maine	629.1	0.9	814	46	2.5	35
Maryland	2,694.8	1.4	1,103	8	3.1	23
Massachusetts	3,604.5	1.6	1,278	2	3.6	11
Michigan	4,365.3	1.6	969	19	2.9	27
Minnesota	2,902.1	2.0	1,037	12	3.9	6
Mississippi	1,128.9	0.7	732	51	0.8	49
Missouri	2,818.7	1.2	889	30	3.0	25
Montana	473.6	1.3	797	48	3.9	6
Nebraska	984.0	0.4	833	43	3.5	13
Nevada	1,333.5	3.4	900	29	2.9	27
New Hampshire	665.4	1.6	1,015	14	1.2	48
New Jersey	4,123.5	1.8	1,173	6	2.3	41
New Mexico	815.4	0.7	823	45	1.5	47
New York	9,417.4	1.6	1,237	3	2.2	43
North Carolina	4,361.4	1.8	902	28	4.3	4
North Dakota	422.7	-0.2	953	22	5.0	2
Ohio	5,422.8	1.2	912	25	3.3	19
Oklahoma	1,583.8	0.8	845	41	2.5	35
Oregon	1,912.6	2.2	967	20	3.8	8
Pennsylvania	5,859.4	1.3	1,000	17	3.0	25
Rhode Island	487.3	1.0	980	18	2.6	33
South Carolina	2,053.9	2.0	834	42	3.6	11
South Dakota	435.5	0.6	785	49	3.4	16
Tennessee	2,948.1	1.8	906	26	3.5	13
Texas	12,059.6	2.1	1,027	13	2.7	32
Utah	1,440.3	3.4	862	35	2.6	33
Vermont	314.2	1.0	870	33	2.1	45
Virginia	3,886.6	1.5	1,047	10	3.7	9
Washington	3,352.5	2.2	1,141	7	5.6	1
West Virginia	690.9	-0.3	828	44	3.4	16
Wisconsin	2,905.3	1.1	876	31	2.3	41
Wyoming	280.2	-0.7	875	32	3.1	23
Puerto Rico	873.6	-1.0	515	(3)	1.2	(3)
Virgin Islands	38.6	0.4	762	(3)	2.6	(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.