Total nonfarm employment for the Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH, metropolitan area increased by 126,800 over the year in January, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. (See chart 1 and table 1.) Regional Commissioner William J. Sibley noted that the local rate of job gain, 5.0 percent, compared to the 4.6-percent national increase. (All data in this release are not seasonally adjusted; accordingly, over-the-year analysis is used throughout.)

Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH, includes 10 metropolitan divisions--separately identifiable employment centers within the larger metropolitan area. Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA, which made up 68 percent of the metropolitan area’s total nonfarm employment, gained 95,600 jobs from January 2021 to January 2022. The Lawrence-Methuen Town-Salem, MA-NH, and Peabody-Salem-Beverly, MA, divisions added 3,500 and 3,600 jobs, respectively, over the year. These areas made up 3.0 and 3.3 percent of the area’s employment, respectively.

Industry employment

Professional and business services added 25,300 jobs over the year in the metropolitan area. The metropolitan area had a 5.1-percent gain which was the same rate recorded for the nation.

Education and health services, the largest supersector in the metropolitan area, gained 18,200 jobs over the year. The 3.2-percent rise in this supersector compared to a 2.3-percent gain nationally. The Boston- Cambridge-Newton, MA division gained 13,600 jobs, or 75 percent of the metropolitan area’s employment gain in this industry.

Significant job gain was also recorded in the other services supersector (+7,000).

Employment in the twelve largest metropolitan areas

Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH, was 1 of the nation’s 12 largest metropolitan statistical areas in January 2022. All 12 areas gained jobs over the year. New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA, had the largest increase (+504,300), followed by Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA (+464,100). Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ, had the smallest gain (+91,300) among the largest areas. (See table 2 and chart 3.)

Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA, had an 8.4-percent rate of job gain, followed by San Francisco-Hayward-Oakland, CA (+7.7 percent). The rates of job increase in the remaining 10 areas ranged from 6.5 percent in Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX, to 3.4 percent in Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV.

The Metropolitan Area Employment and Unemployment release for April 2022 is scheduled to be released on June 1, 2022, at 10:00 a.m. (ET).

Technical Note

Special technical note: This technical note describes the procedures regularly used on a monthly basis to develop estimates from the Current Employment Statistics (CES) program. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, some of the procedures described in this technical note have been modified. The modifications are briefly described in the box note of this news release. More information on the changes to the CES business birth- death model is available at www.bls.gov/web/empsit/cesbd.htm.

This release presents nonfarm payroll employment estimates from the Current Employment Statistics (CES) program. The CES survey is a Federal-State cooperative endeavor between State employment security agencies and the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Definitions. Employment data refer to persons on establishment payrolls who receive pay for any part of the pay period which includes the 12th of the month. Persons are counted at their place of work rather than at their place of residence; those appearing on more than one payroll are counted on each payroll. Industries are classified on the basis of their principal activity in accordance with the 2017 version of the North American Industry Classification System.

Method of estimation. CES State and Area employment data are produced using several estimation procedures. Where possible these data are produced using a "weighted link relative" estimation technique in which a ratio of current-month weighted employment to that of the previous-month weighted employment is computed from a sample of establishments reporting for both months. The estimates of employment for the current month are then obtained by multiplying these ratios by the previous month's employment estimates. The weighted link relative technique is utilized for data series where the sample size meets certain statistical criteria.

For some employment series, the sample of establishments is very small or highly variable. In these cases, a model-based approach is used in estimation. These models use the direct sample estimates (described above), combined with forecasts of historical (benchmarked) data to decrease volatility in estimation. Two different models (Fay-Herriot Model and Small Domain Model) are used depending on the industry level being estimated. For more detailed information about each model, refer to the BLS Handbook of Methods at www.bls.gov/opub/hom/pdf/ces-20110307.pdf.

Annual revisions. Employment estimates are adjusted annually to a complete count of jobs, called benchmarks, derived principally from tax reports which are submitted by employers who are covered under state unemployment insurance (UI) laws. The benchmark information is used to adjust the monthly estimates between the new benchmark and the preceding one and also to establish the level of employment for the new benchmark month. Thus, the benchmarking process establishes the level of employment, and the sample is used to measure the month-to-month changes in the level for the subsequent months.

Reliability of the estimates. The estimates presented in this release are based on sample surveys, administrative data, and modeling and, thus, are subject to sampling and other types of errors. Sampling error is a measure of sampling variability—that is, variation that occurs by chance because a sample rather than the entire population is surveyed. Survey data also are subject to nonsampling errors, such as those which can be introduced into the data collection and processing operations. Estimates not directly derived from sample surveys are subject to additional errors resulting from the specific estimation processes used. The sums of individual items may not always equal the totals shown in the same tables because of rounding.

Employment estimates. Changes in metropolitan area nonfarm payroll employment are cited in the analysis of this release only if they have been determined to be statistically significant at the 90-percent confidence level. Measures of sampling error for the total nonfarm employment series are available for metropolitan areas and metropolitan divisions at www.bls.gov/web/laus/790stderr.htm. Measures of sampling error for more detailed series at the area and division level are available upon request. Measures of sampling error for states at the supersector level and for the private service-providing, goods-producing, total private and total nonfarm levels are available on the BLS website at https://www.bls.gov/web/laus/790stderr.htm. Information on recent benchmark revisions is available online at www.bls.gov/web/laus/bmrk_article.htm.

Area definitions  The substate area data published in this news release reflect the delineations issued by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget on April 10, 2018. The 12metropolitanareasdiscussedinthisreleasearethemetropolitan areas withthelargest populationaccording totheU.S. Census Bureau.

Areas in the six New England states are defined as Metropolitan New England City and Town Areas (NECTAs), while areas in other states are county-based and identified as metropolitan areas and metropolitan divisions.  However, for comparative purposes, the Boston NECTA and its divisions have been referred to as a metropolitan area and metropolitan divisions. 

The Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH Metropolitan New England City and Town Area (NECTA) includes 10 NECTA divisions--subdivisions of the larger NECTA which function as distinct social, economic, and cultural areas within the larger region. The NECTA divisions that compose the Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH NECTA include: Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA; Brockton-Bridgewater-Easton, MA; Framingham, MA; Haverhill-Newburyport-Amesbury town, MA-NH; Lawrence-Methuen town-Salem, MA-NH; Lowell- Billerica-Chelmsford, MA-NH; Lynn-Saugus-Marblehead, MA; Nashua, NH-MA; Peabody-Salem-Beverly, MA; Taunton-Middleborough-Norton, MA; and select cities and towns within.

Additional information

Employment data from the CES program are available on the BLS website at www.bls.gov/sae/.

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. Employees on nonfarm payrolls by industry supersector, U.S. and Boston metropolitan area, not seasonally adjusted (numbers in thousands)

Area and Industry	Jan 2021	Nov 2022	Dec 2022	Jan 2022(p)	Change from Jan 2021 to Jan 2022
					Net change	Percent change
U.S.
Total nonfarm	140,974	150,210	150,352	147,510	6,536	4.6
Mining and logging	540	587	589	581	41	7.6
Construction	7,033	7,582	7,449	7,191	158	2.2
Manufacturing	12,108	12,530	12,579	12,485	377	3.1
Trade, transportation, and utilities	27,215	28,705	29,043	28,282	1,067	3.9
Information	2,717	2,914	2,925	2,884	167	6.1
Financial activities	8,679	8,865	8,893	8,804	125	1.4
Professional and business services	20,473	21,983	21,964	21,520	1,047	5.1
Educational and health services	23,209	24,155	24,090	23,751	542	2.3
Leisure and hospitality	12,099	14,755	14,804	14,459	2,360	19.5
Other services	5,241	5,583	5,586	5,521	280	5.3
Government	21,660	22,551	22,430	22,032	372	1.7
Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH
Total nonfarm	2,560.0	2,734.9	2,739.2	2,686.8	126.8	5.0
Mining, logging, and construction	113.4	128.5	126.1	120.1	6.7	5.9
Manufacturing	176.3	181.1	181.5	181.4	5.1	2.9
Trade, transportation, and utilities	398.4	406.2	415.1	402.9	4.5	1.1
Information	79.8	82.3	83.1	82.5	2.7	3.4
Financial activities	181.4	179.8	180.0	179.0	-2.4	-1.3
Professional and business services	496.7	529.4	528.4	522.0	25.3	5.1
Educational and health services	565.3	595.9	592.9	583.5	18.2	3.2
Leisure and hospitality	167.0	227.9	229.6	220.8	53.8	32.2
Other services	86.2	94.3	94.4	93.2	7.0	8.1
Government	295.5	309.5	308.1	301.4	5.9	2.0
Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA division
Total nonfarm	1,734.5	1,861.1	1,863.8	1,830.1	95.6	5.5
Mining, logging, and construction	68.1	76.9	75.5	72.4	4.3	6.3
Manufacturing	73.2	76.2	76.1	76.1	2.9	4.0
Trade, transportation, and utilities	231.5	236.9	242.5	235.7	4.2	1.8
Information	62.2	65.0	65.8	65.3	3.1	5.0
Financial activities	151.3	149.4	149.8	149.1	-2.2	-1.5
Professional and business services	384.5	408.9	408.6	405.5	21.0	5.5
Educational and health services	412.1	436.9	434.2	425.7	13.6	3.3
Leisure and hospitality	106.1	153.2	154.8	148.0	41.9	39.5
Other services	56.3	62.4	62.6	61.6	5.3	9.4
Government	189.2	195.3	193.9	190.7	1.5	0.8

Table 2. Employees on nonfarm payrolls by industry supersector, United States and 12 largest metropolitan areas, not seasonally adjusted (numbers in thousands)

Area	Jan 2021	Nov 2021	Dec 2021	Jan 2022(p)	Jan 2021 to Jan 2022(p)
					Net change	Percent change
United States(1)
Total nonfarm	140,974	150,210	150,352	147,510	6,536	4.6
Mining and logging	540	587	589	581	41	7.6
Construction	7,033	7,582	7,449	7,191	158	2.2
Manufacturing	12,108	12,530	12,579	12,485	377	3.1
Trade, transportation, and utilities	27,215	28,705	29,043	28,282	1,067	3.9
Information	2,717	2,914	2,925	2,884	167	6.1
Financial activities	8,679	8,865	8,893	8,804	125	1.4
Professional and business services	20,473	21,983	21,964	21,520	1,047	5.1
Education and health services	23,209	24,155	24,090	23,751	542	2.3
Leisure and hospitality	12,099	14,755	14,804	14,459	2,360	19.5
Other services	5,241	5,583	5,586	5,521	280	5.3
Government	21,660	22,551	22,430	22,032	372	1.7
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA
Total nonfarm	2,729.7	2,899.4	2,916.8	2,894.6	164.9	6.0
Mining and logging	1.8	1.9	1.9	1.9	0.1	5.6
Construction	126.3	134.0	133.1	133.4	7.1	5.6
Manufacturing	163.5	172.8	175.0	172.3	8.8	5.4
Trade, transportation, and utilities	592.7	632.0	642.7	632.2	39.5	6.7
Information	101.8	112.8	112.7	114.7	12.9	12.7
Financial activities	179.8	188.8	190.0	191.6	11.8	6.6
Professional and business services	534.3	569.0	572.4	569.3	35.0	6.6
Education and health services	359.6	382.1	381.3	381.2	21.6	6.0
Leisure and hospitality	242.7	273.7	274.9	267.9	25.2	10.4
Other services	95.4	99.2	99.8	99.5	4.1	4.3
Government	331.8	333.1	333.0	330.6	-1.2	-0.4
Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH (NECTA)
Total nonfarm	2,560.0	2,734.9	2,739.2	2,686.8	126.8	5.0
Mining, logging, and construction	113.4	128.5	126.1	120.1	6.7	5.9
Manufacturing	176.3	181.1	181.5	181.4	5.1	2.9
Trade, transportation, and utilities	398.4	406.2	415.1	402.9	4.5	1.1
Information	79.8	82.3	83.1	82.5	2.7	3.4
Financial activities	181.4	179.8	180.0	179.0	-2.4	-1.3
Professional and business services	496.7	529.4	528.4	522.0	25.3	5.1
Education and health services	565.3	595.9	592.9	583.5	18.2	3.2
Leisure and hospitality	167.0	227.9	229.6	220.8	53.8	32.2
Other services	86.2	94.3	94.4	93.2	7.0	8.1
Government	295.5	309.5	308.1	301.4	5.9	2.0
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI
Total nonfarm	4,326.0	4,645.7	4,656.9	4,553.6	227.6	5.3
Mining and logging	1.4	1.9	1.7	1.7	0.3	21.4
Construction	152.1	182.5	174.2	157.7	5.6	3.7
Manufacturing	397.3	400.6	402.9	402.3	5.0	1.3
Trade, transportation, and utilities	927.6	963.3	981.3	951.5	23.9	2.6
Information	70.9	75.2	75.0	75.5	4.6	6.5
Financial activities	312.2	318.8	317.9	315.0	2.8	0.9
Professional and business services	784.8	837.3	843.6	826.1	41.3	5.3
Education and health services	702.5	725.1	719.7	712.4	9.9	1.4
Leisure and hospitality	304.8	425.0	424.3	408.9	104.1	34.2
Other services	175.2	184.1	185.7	184.4	9.2	5.3
Government	497.2	531.9	530.6	518.1	20.9	4.2
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX
Total nonfarm	3,709.1	3,992.4	3,999.9	3,949.4	240.3	6.5
Mining, logging, and construction	212.5	220.1	224.9	222.6	10.1	4.8
Manufacturing	280.8	287.9	288.1	284.4	3.6	1.3
Trade, transportation, and utilities	819.3	888.7	894.4	870.3	51.0	6.2
Information	79.8	84.6	85.6	86.1	6.3	7.9
Financial activities	330.0	350.5	351.0	352.9	22.9	6.9
Professional and business services	648.4	725.3	721.0	713.7	65.3	10.1
Education and health services	450.9	471.3	470.8	465.4	14.5	3.2
Leisure and hospitality	328.8	383.7	382.7	378.8	50.0	15.2
Other services	113.0	126.6	127.9	125.1	12.1	10.7
Government	445.6	453.7	453.5	450.1	4.5	1.0
Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX
Total nonfarm	2,971.6	3,160.7	3,177.0	3,125.3	153.7	5.2
Mining and logging	61.1	62.1	63.6	63.7	2.6	4.3
Construction	199.9	214.6	216.3	210.2	10.3	5.2
Manufacturing	210.6	215.8	218.0	217.1	6.5	3.1
Trade, transportation, and utilities	619.4	660.6	668.4	649.3	29.9	4.8
Information	28.0	31.0	31.2	31.5	3.5	12.5
Financial activities	165.0	169.0	171.1	169.7	4.7	2.8
Professional and business services	486.5	515.1	515.7	508.3	21.8	4.5
Education and health services	399.9	426.6	424.4	422.5	22.6	5.7
Leisure and hospitality	281.3	315.1	318.9	312.9	31.6	11.2
Other services	103.0	113.8	112.2	110.5	7.5	7.3
Government	416.9	437.0	437.2	429.6	12.7	3.0
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA
Total nonfarm	5,543.1	6,074.6	6,111.4	6,007.2	464.1	8.4
Mining and logging	2.0	2.0	2.0	2.0	0.0	0.0
Construction	245.0	251.3	254.2	248.0	3.0	1.2
Manufacturing	450.9	461.7	463.1	461.5	10.6	2.4
Trade, transportation, and utilities	1,052.2	1,103.0	1,116.3	1,091.4	39.2	3.7
Information	207.8	252.4	252.4	246.8	39.0	18.8
Financial activities	325.2	323.7	326.8	323.6	-1.6	-0.5
Professional and business services	915.6	981.6	984.8	959.6	44.0	4.8
Education and health services	1,046.9	1,101.3	1,104.0	1,098.1	51.2	4.9
Leisure and hospitality	440.4	675.0	681.6	663.1	222.7	50.6
Other services	152.0	191.7	195.6	192.2	40.2	26.4
Government	705.1	730.9	730.6	720.9	15.8	2.2
Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL
Total nonfarm	2,575.1	2,749.2	2,762.1	2,728.6	153.5	6.0
Mining and logging	0.8	0.8	0.9	0.9	0.1	12.5
Construction	136.8	141.5	140.9	138.5	1.7	1.2
Manufacturing	87.6	91.5	91.8	90.1	2.5	2.9
Trade, transportation, and utilities	593.6	631.6	638.6	626.0	32.4	5.5
Information	47.1	52.9	52.7	52.1	5.0	10.6
Financial activities	190.2	201.3	200.1	201.4	11.2	5.9
Professional and business services	447.8	482.7	488.4	483.3	35.5	7.9
Education and health services	398.6	417.0	415.6	407.9	9.3	2.3
Leisure and hospitality	262.7	308.5	313.0	312.6	49.9	19.0
Other services	106.8	113.5	112.9	111.9	5.1	4.8
Government	303.1	307.9	307.2	303.9	0.8	0.3
New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA
Total nonfarm	8,884.7	9,590.4	9,639.0	9,389.0	504.3	5.7
Mining, logging, and construction	369.0	395.0	390.2	364.8	-4.2	-1.1
Manufacturing	327.3	337.6	339.3	333.5	6.2	1.9
Trade, transportation, and utilities	1,572.6	1,667.3	1,695.5	1,637.7	65.1	4.1
Information	289.6	318.8	319.8	316.8	27.2	9.4
Financial activities	759.4	771.6	775.9	768.5	9.1	1.2
Professional and business services	1,459.4	1,589.1	1,602.1	1,551.5	92.1	6.3
Education and health services	1,948.9	2,046.4	2,044.7	2,002.3	53.4	2.7
Leisure and hospitality	545.8	781.1	787.3	748.3	202.5	37.1
Other services	352.1	382.0	381.7	381.8	29.7	8.4
Government	1,260.6	1,301.5	1,302.5	1,283.8	23.2	1.8
Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD
Total nonfarm	2,760.5	2,935.4	2,947.1	2,885.5	125.0	4.5
Mining, logging, and construction	112.1	122.6	120.0	117.3	5.2	4.6
Manufacturing	171.8	175.0	176.8	174.7	2.9	1.7
Trade, transportation, and utilities	522.1	544.2	555.2	537.1	15.0	2.9
Information	47.4	50.3	50.2	49.5	2.1	4.4
Financial activities	215.3	217.9	219.3	217.0	1.7	0.8
Professional and business services	451.9	481.2	480.5	475.5	23.6	5.2
Education and health services	627.9	654.4	655.4	645.2	17.3	2.8
Leisure and hospitality	182.3	240.7	240.6	227.2	44.9	24.6
Other services	106.6	115.2	116.1	115.4	8.8	8.3
Government	323.1	333.9	333.0	326.6	3.5	1.1
Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ
Total nonfarm	2,159.0	2,278.3	2,286.6	2,250.3	91.3	4.2
Mining and logging	2.6	2.9	2.9	2.9	0.3	11.5
Construction	134.8	139.4	139.9	138.5	3.7	2.7
Manufacturing	134.6	139.8	139.1	140.1	5.5	4.1
Trade, transportation, and utilities	432.7	463.3	468.6	457.8	25.1	5.8
Information	38.2	41.7	41.6	40.1	1.9	5.0
Financial activities	213.9	217.5	217.2	214.8	0.9	0.4
Professional and business services	362.1	381.1	385.8	372.8	10.7	3.0
Education and health services	338.8	351.0	351.9	346.8	8.0	2.4
Leisure and hospitality	195.2	224.5	224.7	225.9	30.7	15.7
Other services	64.8	70.4	70.9	70.2	5.4	8.3
Government	241.3	246.7	244.0	240.4	-0.9	-0.4
San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA
Total nonfarm	2,211.7	2,403.4	2,416.7	2,382.8	171.1	7.7
Mining and logging	0.4	0.4	0.4	0.4	0.0	0.0
Construction	118.4	120.6	118.8	116.8	-1.6	-1.4
Manufacturing	142.9	148.4	149.4	149.4	6.5	4.5
Trade, transportation, and utilities	344.4	359.5	366.8	358.6	14.2	4.1
Information	135.0	144.0	145.0	143.9	8.9	6.6
Financial activities	137.8	140.5	141.5	140.4	2.6	1.9
Professional and business services	474.9	506.6	508.8	508.3	33.4	7.0
Education and health services	353.2	371.8	372.7	366.2	13.0	3.7
Leisure and hospitality	140.4	217.9	219.6	211.3	70.9	50.5
Other services	61.9	78.6	79.3	77.8	15.9	25.7
Government	302.4	315.1	314.4	309.7	7.3	2.4
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV
Total nonfarm	3,118.4	3,293.1	3,295.2	3,224.5	106.1	3.4
Mining, logging, and construction	157.2	163.0	161.6	156.9	-0.3	-0.2
Manufacturing	54.3	55.6	56.5	54.9	0.6	1.1
Trade, transportation, and utilities	393.4	411.4	418.5	401.9	8.5	2.2
Information	74.3	77.4	77.8	77.5	3.2	4.3
Financial activities	155.1	154.2	154.0	150.9	-4.2	-2.7
Professional and business services	766.2	795.7	791.8	779.4	13.2	1.7
Education and health services	421.2	430.5	432.5	421.7	0.5	0.1
Leisure and hospitality	212.4	286.8	288.1	279.5	67.1	31.6
Other services	190.6	194.0	195.3	194.1	3.5	1.8
Government	693.7	724.5	719.1	707.7	14.0	2.0
Footnotes (1) U.S. data are preliminary for two months after they are first published. (p) Preliminary