Workers in the Jackson Metropolitan Statistical Area had an average (mean) hourly wage of $19.70 in May 2015, about 15 percent below the nationwide average of $23.23, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Regional Commissioner Janet S. Rankin noted that, after testing for statistical significance, eighteen groups had significantly lower wages than their respective national averages, including management; computer and mathematical; and construction and extraction. 

When compared to the nationwide distribution, local employment was more highly concentrated in 6 of the 22 occupational groups, including healthcare practitioners and technical; healthcare support; and management. Conversely, nine groups had employment shares significantly below their national representation, including computer and mathematical; business and financial operations; and construction and extraction. (See table A and box note at end of release.)

One occupational group—healthcare practitioners and technical—was chosen to illustrate the diversity of data available for any of the 22 major occupational categories. Jackson had 20,380 jobs in healthcare practitioners and technical, accounting for 7.8 percent of local area employment, significantly higher than the 5.8-percent share nationally. The average hourly wage for this occupational group locally was $32.37, significantly below the national wage of $37.40.

Some of the larger detailed occupations within the healthcare practitioners and technical group included registered nurses (7,990), licensed practical and licensed vocational nurses (2,070), and pharmacy technicians (700). Among the higher paying jobs were surgeons and family and general practitioners, with mean hourly wages of $116.63 and $103.78, respectively. At the lower end of the wage scale were pharmacy technicians ($13.70) and emergency medical technicians and paramedics ($15.10). (Detailed occupational data for healthcare practitioners and technical are presented in table 1; for a complete listing of detailed occupations available go to www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes_27140.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 Jackson Metropolitan Statistical Area, above-average concentrations of employment were found in many of the occupations within the healthcare practitioners and technical group. For instance, nurse practitioners were employed at 2.5 times the national rate in Jackson, and respiratory therapists, at 2.0 times the U.S. average. On the other hand, pharmacy technicians had a location quotient of 1.0 in Jackson, indicating that this particular occupation’s local and national employment shares were similar.

These statistics are from the Occupational Employment Statistics (OES) survey, a federal-state cooperative program between BLS and State Workforce Agencies, in this case, the Mississippi Department of Employment Security.

Technical Note

The Occupational Employment Statistics (OES) survey is a semiannual mail survey measuring occupational employment and wage rates for wage and salary workers in nonfarm establishments in the United States. The OES program produces employment and wage estimates for over 800 occupations for all industries combined in the nation; the 50 states and the District of Columbia; 432 metropolitan areas and divisions; 167 nonmetropolitan areas; and Guam, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. National estimates are also available by industry for NAICS sectors, 3-, 4-, and selected 5- and 6-digit industries, and by ownership across all industries and for schools and hospitals. OES data are available at www.bls.gov/oes/tables.htm.

OES estimates are constructed from a sample of about 1.2 million establishments. Forms are mailed to approximately 200,000 sampled establishments in May and November each year. May 2015 estimates are based on responses from six semiannual panels collected over a 3-year period: May 2015, November 2014, May 2014, November 2013, May 2013, and November 2012. The overall national response rate for the six panels is 73.5 percent based on establishments and 69.6 percent based on weighted sampled employment. The unweighted employment of sampled establishments across all six semiannual panels represents approximately 57.9 percent of total national employment. (Response rates are slightly lower for these estimates due to the federal shutdown in October 2013.) The sample in the Jackson Metropolitan Statistical Area included 2,339 establishments with a response rate of 64 percent. For more information about OES concepts and methodology, go to www.bls.gov/news.release/ocwage.tn.htm.

The May 2015 OES estimates are based on the 2010 Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) system and the 2012 North American Industry Classification System (NAICS). Information about the 2010 SOC is available on the BLS website at www.bls.gov/soc and information about the 2012 NAICS is available at www.bls.gov/bls/naics.htm.

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 Jackson, Miss. Metropolitan Statistical Area  includes Copiah, Hinds, Madison, Rankin, Simpson, and Yazoo Counties.

Additional information

OES data are available on our regional web page at www.bls.gov/regions/southeast. Answers to frequently asked questions about the OES data are available at www.bls.gov/oes/oes_ques.htm. Detailed technical information about the OES survey is available in our Survey Methods and Reliability Statement on the BLS website at www.bls.gov/oes/current/methods_statement.pdf.

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. Employment and wage data from the Occupational Employment Statistics survey, by occupation, Jackson Metropolitan Statistical Area, May 2015

Occupation (1)	Employment		Mean wages
	Level (2)	Location quotient (3)	Hourly	Annual (4)
Healthcare Practitioners and Technical Occupations	20,380	1.3	$32.37	$67,330
Dentists, General	270	1.4	89.25	185,650
Dietitians and Nutritionists	160	1.4	23.77	49,440
Optometrists	40	0.6	40.44	84,120
Pharmacists	690	1.2	58.43	121,540
Family and General Practitioners	270	1.1	103.78	215,860
Internists, General	(5)	(5)	(6)	(6)
Pediatricians, General	(5)	(5)	120.12	249,850
Surgeons	80	1.0	116.63	242,600
Physicians and Surgeons, All Other	840	1.4	(5)	(5)
Physician Assistants	60	0.3	20.54	42,720
Occupational Therapists	320	1.5	37.32	77,630
Physical Therapists	470	1.2	42.94	89,320
Radiation Therapists	40	1.4	40.55	84,350
Recreational Therapists	110	3.4	17.19	35,750
Respiratory Therapists	450	2.0	25.13	52,260
Speech-Language Pathologists	310	1.3	33.27	69,190
Veterinarians	100	0.8	38.33	79,720
Registered Nurses	7,990	1.5	30.36	63,140
Nurse Practitioners	630	2.5	45.92	95,520
Medical and Clinical Laboratory Technologists	570	1.9	28.14	58,520
Medical and Clinical Laboratory Technicians	380	1.3	17.58	36,560
Dental Hygienists	260	0.7	27.49	57,180
Cardiovascular Technologists and Technicians	130	1.3	18.12	37,700
Diagnostic Medical Sonographers	130	1.1	30.55	63,540
Nuclear Medicine Technologists	60	1.7	33.50	69,680
Radiologic Technologists	520	1.4	22.99	47,830
Magnetic Resonance Imaging Technologists	140	2.2	26.89	55,930
Emergency Medical Technicians and Paramedics	(5)	(5)	15.10	31,410
Dietetic Technicians	90	1.6	10.78	22,410
Pharmacy Technicians	700	1.0	13.70	28,500
Psychiatric Technicians	50	0.5	14.68	30,540
Surgical Technologists	380	2.0	19.12	39,770
Veterinary Technologists and Technicians	130	0.7	15.27	31,760
Ophthalmic Medical Technicians	150	2.0	16.19	33,670
Licensed Practical and Licensed Vocational Nurses	2,070	1.6	18.43	38,330
Medical Records and Health Information Technicians	590	1.6	16.54	34,400
Opticians, Dispensing	60	0.4	13.93	28,970
Orthotists and Prosthetists	60	4.6	40.56	84,360
Health Technologists and Technicians, All Other	120	0.6	19.13	39,800
Occupational Health and Safety Specialists	110	0.8	34.98	72,770
Athletic Trainers	100	2.2	(7)	45,330
Healthcare Practitioners and Technical Workers, All Other	50	0.7	24.21	50,350
Footnotes: (1) For a complete listing of all detailed occupations in Jackson, MS, see www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes_27140.htm. (2) Estimates for detailed occupations do not sum to the totals because the totals include occupations 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. (5) Estimate not released. (6) This wage is equal to or greater than $90.00 per hour or $187,200 per year. (7) Wages for some occupations that do not generally work year-round, full time, are reported either as hourly wages or annual salaries depending on how they are typically paid.