Total nonfarm employment for the Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, Ga. Metropolitan Statistical Area stood at 2,813,000 in October 2018, up 60,800, or 2.2 percent, over the year, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. During the same period, the national rate of job growth was 1.7 percent. Regional Commissioner Janet S. Rankin noted that the Atlanta area has had over-the-year employment gains each month since July 2010. (See chart 1 and table 1; the Technical Note at the end of this release contains metropolitan area definitions. All data in this release are not seasonally adjusted; accordingly, over-the-year analysis is used throughout.)

Industry employment

In the Atlanta metropolitan area, the professional and business services industry had the largest employment gain from October 2017 to October 2018, up 15,900, or 3.2 percent. Local job gains in the industry were concentrated in the employment services (+6,200) and computer systems design and related services (+2,500) industry groups. Nationwide, employment in the professional and business services industry rose 2.6 percent over the year. (See chart 2.)

Atlanta’s trade, transportation, and utilities supersector added 13,900 jobs, a 2.3-percent increase over the 12-month period. Local job gains in the industry were primarily in the transportation and warehousing sector (+6,700). The local wholesale and retail trade sectors also added jobs over-the-year, up 3,700 and 3,600, respectively. Employment nationwide in trade, transportation, and utilities increased 1.1 percent from October a year ago.

In the Atlanta area, the education and health services supersector added 13,300 jobs, an increase of 3.8 percent for the year ended October 2018. Local employment gains were primarily in the ambulatory health care services (+6,400) and hospitals (+6,200) subsectors. Nationally, employment in education and health services was up 2.1 percent over the year.

Two more supersectors gained at least 10,000 jobs over the year in the local area—leisure and hospitality (+10,600) and construction (+10,300).

Since October 2017, three industry supersectors in the Atlanta area lost over 1,000 jobs: other services (-2,700), information (-1,600), and financial activities (-1,100). Over the year, U.S. employment was up in other services (+1.3 percent) and financial activities (1.4 percent); while down in information (-0.3 percent).

Employment in the 12 largest metropolitan areas

Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell was 1 of the nation’s 12 largest metropolitan statistical areas in October 2018. All 12 areas had over-the-year job growth during the period, with the rates of job growth in 8 areas matching or exceeding the national increase of 1.7 percent. Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land (+3.9 percent), Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale (+3.7 percent), and Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington (+3.0 percent) had the fastest rates of job growth. Chicago-Naperville-Elgin (+0.9 percent), New York-Newark-Jersey City (+1.1 percent), and Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim (+1.2 percent) had the slowest rates of job growth. (See chart 3 and table 2.) 

Houston added the largest number of jobs over the year, 117,800, followed by Dallas (+109,000) and New York (+108,500). Chicago had the smallest employment gain over the year, 41,300, followed by San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward (+41,700) and Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington (+43,600). Annual job gains in the remaining six metropolitan areas ranged from 76,700 in Phoenix to 53,100 in Boston-Cambridge-Nashua.

Over the year, professional and business services added the most jobs in six areas: Atlanta, Boston, Dallas, Houston, San Francisco, and Washington-Arlington-Alexandria. Construction gained the most jobs in three areas: Chicago, Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, and Phoenix.

The other services sector recorded the largest employment loss in three areas: Atlanta, Chicago, and San Francisco. Information lost the most jobs in three other areas: Houston, New York, and Philadelphia. Dallas and Washington were the only metropolitan areas to record gains in all supersectors.

Metropolitan area employment data for November 2018 are scheduled to be released on Friday, December 21, 2018.

Technical Note

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.

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 survey and administrative data 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 are also 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 special estimation processes used. The sums of individual items may not always equal the totals shown in the same tables because of rounding.

Employment estimates. Measures of sampling error for the total private employment series are available for metropolitan areas and metropolitan divisions at www.bls.gov/sae/additional-resources/reliability-of-state-and-area-estimates.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 down to the supersector level are available on the BLS website at www.bls.gov/sae/additional-resources/reliability-of-state-and-area-estimates.htm. Measures of nonsampling error are not available for the areas contained in this release. Information on recent benchmark revisions is available online at www.bls.gov/web/laus/benchmark.pdf.

Area definitions. The substate area data published in this release reflect the delineations issued by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget on July 15, 2015. A detailed list of the geographic definitions is available at www.bls.gov/lau/lausmsa.htm.

The Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, Ga. Metropolitan Statistical Area includes the counties of Barrow, Bartow, Butts, Carroll, Cherokee, Clayton, Cobb, Coweta, Dawson, DeKalb, Douglas, Fayette, Forsyth, Fulton, Gwinnett, Haralson, Heard, Henry, Jasper, Lamar, Meriwether, Morgan, Newton, Paulding, Pickens, Pike, Rockdale, Spalding, and Walton in Georgia.

Additional information

More complete information on the technical procedures used to develop these estimates and additional data appear in Employment and Earnings, which is available online at www.bls.gov/opub/ee/home.htm. Industry employment data for states and metropolitan areas from the Current Employment Statistics program are also available in the above mentioned news releases and from the Internet at www.bls.gov/sae/.

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.