Employment rose in each of Georgia’s nine large counties from December 2012 to December 2013, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. (Large counties are defined as those with employment of 75,000 or more as measured by 2012 annual average employment.) Regional Commissioner Janet S. Rankin noted that employment increases ranged from 3.6 percent in Gwinnett County to 0.2 percent in Muscogee County. (See table 1.)

Nationally, employment increased 1.8 percent during the 12-month period, as 292 of the 334 largest U.S. counties gained jobs. Weld, Colo., posted the largest increase, with a gain of 6.0 percent over the year. St. Clair, Ill., experienced the largest over-the-year decrease in employment among the largest counties in the U.S. with a loss of 3.1 percent.

Among the largest counties in Georgia, employment was highest in Fulton (761,200) in December 2013. Two other counties—Cobb and Gwinnett—had employment levels exceeding 300,000. Together, Georgia’s nine large counties accounted for 55.4 percent of total employment within the state. Nationwide, the 334 largest counties accounted for 71.7 percent of total U.S. employment, which stood at 136.1 million in December 2013.

Average weekly wages increased in five of Georgia’s nine largest counties from the fourth quarter of 2012 to the fourth quarter of 2013. Clayton County recorded the largest wage increase (5.1 percent), followed by Chatham (1.3 percent). Muscogee, Bibb, and Cobb counties experienced wage increases below 1.0 percent over-the-year. Fulton had the highest average weekly wage in the state at $1,290, followed by the counties of Cobb ($1,043), De Kalb ($994) and Gwinnett ($958). The U.S. average weekly wage was unchanged over the year, remaining at $1,000 in the fourth quarter of 2013. (See table 1.)

Employment and wage levels (but not over-the-year changes) are also available for the 150 counties with employment levels below 75,000 in Georgia. Average weekly wages in these counties ranged from $984 to $384. (See table 2.)

Large county wage changes

As noted, average weekly wages increased in five of Georgia’s large counties from the fourth quarter of 2012 to the fourth quarter of 2013. Clayton County’s 5.1-percent wage increase ranked 5^th among the nation’s 334 large counties and Chatham County’s 1.3 percent ranked in the top 100 nationwide. Wage increases in Muscogee, Bibb, and Cobb counties ranged from 0.9 to 0.6 percent. (See table 1.) 

Nationwide, 185 large counties experienced over-the-year increases in average weekly wages. Santa Cruz, Calif., had the largest wage gain (6.5 percent). Ada, Idaho, had the second largest increase (6.4 percent), followed by Washington, Ore. (5.9 percent).

Among the 334 largest U.S. counties, 140 had over-the-year decreases in average weekly wages in the fourth quarter of 2013. Douglas, Colo., had the largest average weekly wage decline with a loss of 29.7 percent, followed by the counties of San Mateo, Calif. (-15.8 percent), and Virginia Beach City, Va. (-10.0 percent).

Large county average weekly wages

Average weekly wages in 5 of Georgia’s 9 largest counties placed in the top half of the national ranking among the 334 largest counties in the fourth quarter of 2013. The highest-paid counties—Fulton and Cobb—were both above the U.S. average of $1,000 and ranked in the top 75 nationwide. De Kalb ($994), Gwinnett ($958), and Clayton ($910) ranked 102^nd, 132^nd, and 164^th, respectively. Average weekly wages in the remaining four large counties placed in the bottom third of the national ranking. (See table 1.)

Nationally, San Mateo, Calif., recorded the highest average weekly wage at $2,724, followed by New York, N.Y. ($2,041), Santa Clara, Calif. ($1,972), San Francisco, Calif. ($1,753), and Suffolk, Mass. ($1,741).

There were 235 large counties with an average weekly wage below the U.S. average in the fourth quarter of 2013. Horry, S.C. ($587), reported the lowest wage, followed by the counties of Cameron, Texas ($598), Hidalgo, Texas ($620), Lake, Fla. ($668), and Webb, Texas ($670).

Average weekly wages in Georgia’s smaller counties

Among the 150 counties in Georgia with employment below 75,000, none registered an average weekly wage above the national average of $1,000. Burke County ($984) reported the highest weekly wage among the smaller counties, followed by the counties of Forsyth ($922), and Chattahoochee ($915). Echols County reported the lowest weekly in the state, averaging $384 in the fourth quarter of 2013. (See table 2.)

When all 159 counties in Georgia were considered, 7 reported average weekly wages under $500, 42 reported wages from $500 to $599, 67 reported wages from $600 to $699, 26 reported wages from $700 to $799, and 17 had wages at or above $800. (See chart 1.)

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 the QCEW Web site at 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 2012 edition of this publication, which was published in October 2013, contains selected data produced by Business Employment Dynamics (BED) on job gains and losses, as well as selected data from the first quarter 2012 version of the national news release. Tables and additional content from Employment and Wages Online Annual Averages 2012 are now available at www.bls.gov/cew/publications/employment-and-wages-annual-averages/2012/home.htm. The 2013 edition of Employment and Wages Annual Averages Online will be available in September 2014.

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.

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 9.3 million employer reports cover 136.1 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.

Table 1. Covered employment and wages in the United States and the 9 largest counties in Georgia, fourth quarter 2013

Area	Employment			Average Weekly Wage (1)
	December 2013 (thousands)	Percent change, December 2012-13 (2)	National ranking by percent change (3)	Average weekly wage	National ranking by level (3)	Percent change, fourth quarter 2012-13 (2)	National ranking by percent change (3)
United States (4)	136,129.4	1.8	--	$1,000	--	0.0	--
Georgia	3,986.9	2.5	--	924	21	-0.1	32
Bibb, Ga.	81.8	1.2	188	765	307	0.8	120
Chatham, Ga.	137.1	2.3	107	839	243	1.3	83
Clayton, Ga.	112.3	1.5	163	910	164	5.1	5
Cobb, Ga.	320.0	3.3	51	1,043	75	0.6	134
De Kalb, Ga.	282.9	3.3	51	994	102	-1.6	289
Fulton, Ga.	761.2	2.8	76	1,290	20	-2.3	309
Gwinnett, Ga.	318.9	3.6	39	958	132	-0.9	250
Muscogee, Ga.	94.9	0.2	279	788	287	0.9	114
Richmond, Ga.	100.7	0.5	249	823	259	-0.8	245
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: Covered employment and wages includes workers covered by Unemployment Insurance (UI) and Unemployment Compensation for Federal Employees (UCFE) programs. Data are preliminary.

Table 2. Covered employment and wages in the United States and all counties in Georgia, fourth quarter 2013

Area	Employment December 2013	Average weekly wage (1)	Area	Employment December 2013	Average weekly wage (1)
United States (2)	136,129,407	$1,000
Georgia	3,986,935	924	Jeff Davis	4,240	$639
Appling	6,466	762	Jefferson	4,467	619
Atkinson	1,629	622	Jenkins	1,346	545
Bacon	3,374	624	Johnson	1,564	608
Baker	447	616	Jones	4,164	625
Baldwin	15,819	622	Lamar	3,456	614
Banks	3,577	564	Lanier	1,355	559
Barrow	17,225	672	Laurens	17,293	688
Bartow	31,779	798	Lee	5,570	606
Ben Hill	5,521	592	Liberty	18,042	764
Berrien	3,472	586	Lincoln	1,280	560
Bibb	81,823	765	Long	925	514
Bleckley	2,596	525	Lowndes	47,134	642
Brantley	2,117	531	Lumpkin	6,633	626
Brooks	2,757	635	McDuffie	6,572	633
Bryan	6,618	605	McIntosh	1,739	534
Bulloch	23,231	623	Macon	2,831	692
Burke	6,639	984	Madison	3,074	575
Butts	5,727	652	Marion	1,561	522
Calhoun	1,106	553	Meriwether	4,101	612
Camden	14,868	782	Miller	1,626	590
Candler	2,722	566	Mitchell	7,414	563
Carroll	37,921	801	Monroe	6,821	688
Catoosa	13,830	648	Montgomery	1,543	542
Charlton	2,065	675	Morgan	6,092	620
Chatham	137,111	839	Murray	9,249	649
Chattahoochee	2,275	915	Muscogee	94,909	788
Chattooga	5,985	580	Newton	20,730	747
Cherokee	48,831	736	Oconee	9,115	732
Clarke	66,637	766	Oglethorpe	1,718	487
Clay	557	557	Paulding	20,477	631
Clayton	112,349	910	Peach	8,325	759
Clinch	2,247	589	Pickens	7,037	686
Cobb	319,961	1,043	Pierce	3,712	631
Coffee	15,215	611	Pike	2,599	600
Colquitt	14,537	589	Polk	11,156	654
Columbia	30,369	709	Pulaski	2,776	646
Cook	3,941	549	Putnam	5,595	613
Coweta	34,028	719	Quitman	391	516
Crawford	1,213	627	Rabun	4,326	580
Crisp	7,964	599	Randolph	1,891	596
Dade	3,141	612	Richmond	100,666	823
Dawson	8,179	493	Rockdale	30,646	877
Decatur	8,167	592	Schley	917	694
De Kalb	282,943	994	Screven	3,402	620
Dodge	5,194	535	Seminole	2,084	643
Dooly	2,677	621	Spalding	20,211	653
Dougherty	47,002	735	Stephens	9,329	668
Douglas	38,917	681	Stewart	1,126	669
Early	4,266	859	Sumter	10,431	584
Echols	622	384	Talbot	795	548
Effingham	9,245	747	Taliaferro	159	479
Elbert	5,856	611	Tattnall	5,677	622
Emanuel	6,515	568	Taylor	1,546	634
Evans	4,317	651	Telfair	3,744	487
Fannin	5,140	554	Terrell	2,479	610
Fayette	39,127	782	Thomas	20,562	761
Floyd	37,447	760	Tift	18,506	657
Forsyth	65,522	922	Toombs	11,818	646
Franklin	6,629	644	Towns	3,040	519
Fulton	761,210	1,290	Treutlen	1,034	489
Gilmer	7,135	543	Troup	37,012	820
Glascock	420	460	Turner	1,991	593
Glynn	35,039	751	Twiggs	1,148	637
Gordon	20,100	722	Union	6,131	605
Grady	5,762	602	Upson	7,035	634
Greene	5,327	657	Walker	12,477	630
Gwinnett	318,934	958	Walton	19,299	700
Habersham	14,103	612	Ware	14,204	645
Hall	75,533	836	Warren	1,357	684
Hancock	1,663	597	Washington	6,563	673
Haralson	6,332	728	Wayne	7,971	717
Harris	4,502	534	Webster	567	654
Hart	5,948	678	Wheeler	1,312	606
Heard	2,271	803	White	6,800	581
Henry	51,234	674	Whitfield	53,254	782
Houston	56,706	798	Wilcox	1,139	517
Irwin	1,964	536	Wilkes	2,861	583
Jackson	19,876	726	Wilkinson	3,004	886
Jasper	2,047	528	Worth	3,398	629
(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.
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, fourth quarter 2013

State	Employment		Average weekly wage (1)
	December 2013 (thousands)	Percent change, December 2012-13	Average weekly wage	National ranking by level	Percent change, fourth quarter 2012-13	National ranking by percent change
United States (2)	136,129.4	1.8	$1,000	--	0.0	--
Alabama	1,866.5	1.0	851	34	-0.5	39
Alaska	315.1	0.0	1,022	14	1.6	7
Arizona	2,571.0	2.4	906	23	-0.5	39
Arkansas	1,154.3	-0.5	771	47	0.4	22
California	15,650.3	2.8	1,175	6	-0.9	43
Colorado	2,383.9	3.1	1,023	13	-0.9	43
Connecticut	1,661.2	0.3	1,238	4	-1.3	49
Delaware	419.6	1.8	1,035	9	-0.6	41
District of Columbia	727.3	0.6	1,638	1	-3.9	51
Florida	7,739.5	2.7	883	29	0.2	27
Georgia	3,986.9	2.5	924	21	-0.1	32
Hawaii	632.9	1.7	871	30	0.3	25
Idaho	634.5	2.6	754	50	3.0	2
Illinois	5,758.9	1.0	1,060	8	0.2	27
Indiana	2,896.9	1.6	814	40	-0.2	35
Iowa	1,510.9	1.4	834	38	1.6	7
Kansas	1,359.5	1.6	832	39	-0.4	38
Kentucky	1,818.0	1.2	804	42	0.2	27
Louisiana	1,911.6	0.9	889	26	0.5	20
Maine	586.8	0.8	786	46	1.7	5
Maryland	2,555.1	0.4	1,076	7	-0.9	43
Massachusetts	3,332.9	1.5	1,258	3	0.8	17
Michigan	4,072.4	2.0	952	20	-0.2	35
Minnesota	2,720.6	1.7	988	16	0.3	25
Mississippi	1,108.1	1.1	729	51	1.3	11
Missouri	2,670.4	1.1	861	32	-0.2	35
Montana	440.0	1.3	760	48	0.4	22
Nebraska	944.3	1.4	796	43	-0.1	32
Nevada	1,180.5	3.0	884	28	0.7	18
New Hampshire	629.3	1.4	1,017	15	-0.8	42
New Jersey	3,887.5	1.2	1,186	5	1.1	14
New Mexico	796.2	-0.1	814	40	1.4	10
New York	8,888.6	1.7	1,266	2	-1.1	48
North Carolina	4,045.5	1.9	860	33	0.7	18
North Dakota	435.0	3.3	980	17	3.8	1
Ohio	5,175.4	1.4	887	27	0.0	30
Oklahoma	1,581.3	0.6	851	34	-0.1	32
Oregon	1,699.6	2.5	894	25	2.6	3
Pennsylvania	5,650.3	0.4	976	18	0.4	22
Rhode Island	462.7	1.4	960	19	1.5	9
South Carolina	1,875.8	2.3	793	44	1.0	15
South Dakota	407.1	1.3	759	49	1.3	11
Tennessee	2,758.3	1.8	895	24	-0.9	43
Texas	11,246.3	2.6	1,027	12	0.0	30
Utah	1,284.7	3.1	836	37	-0.9	43
Vermont	308.5	0.6	848	36	2.3	4
Virginia	3,670.0	0.1	1,028	11	-1.3	49
Washington	2,976.0	2.5	1,034	10	1.7	5
West Virginia	710.1	-0.6	792	45	0.5	20
Wisconsin	2,751.8	1.0	865	31	1.2	13
Wyoming	279.2	0.6	917	22	1.0	15
Puerto Rico	958.3	-2.3	551	(3)	0.2	(3)
Virgin Islands	38.5	-3.6	754	(3)	2.4	(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: Covered employment and wages includes workers covered by Unemployment Insurance (UI) and Unemployment Compensation for Federal Employees (UCFE) programs. Data are preliminary.