Employment in 10 of North Carolina’s 11 large counties increased from December 2017 to December 2018, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. (Large counties are defined as those with 2017 average annual employment levels of 75,000 or more.) Regional Commissioner Janet S. Rankin noted that employment increases ranged from 3.0 percent in Durham County to 0.6 percent in Guilford County. (See table 1.)

Nationally, employment advanced 1.5 percent from December 2017 to December 2018 as 296 of the 349 largest U.S. counties had increases. Midland, TX, had the largest over-the-year increase in employment with a gain of 10.0 percent. Bay, FL, had the largest over-the-year decrease in employment with a loss of 5.6 percent.

Among the 11 largest counties in North Carolina, employment was highest in Mecklenburg County (706,600) in December 2018, while Pitt County had the smallest employment level (78,700). Together, North Carolina’s large counties accounted for 57.7 percent of total employment within the state. Nationwide, the 349 largest counties made up 73.2 percent of total U.S. employment, which stood at 148.1 million in December 2018.

Each of North Carolina’s 11 large counties had over-the-year increases in average weekly wages in the fourth quarter of 2018, with the largest increase in Wake County (11.9 percent). Durham County had the highest weekly wage among the state’s largest counties at $1,357, followed by Mecklenburg ($1,271), and Wake ($1,252). Nationally, the average weekly wage increased 3.2 percent over the year to $1,144. (See table 1.)

Employment and wage levels (but not over-the-year changes) are also available for the 89 counties in North Carolina with 2017 average annual employment levels below 75,000. Average weekly wages in these counties ranged from $1,186 to $631. (See table 2.)

Large county wage changes

In the fourth quarter of 2018, 8 of the 11 large North Carolina counties had over-the-year average weekly wage gains that were at or above the 3.2-percent national average. Four of these counties placed in the top 50 of the national ranking: Wake (11.9 percent, 4^th), Cumberland (6.8 percent, 15^th), Durham (5.4 percent, 37^th), and Buncombe (5.2 percent, 47^th). (See table 1.)

Nationally, 332 of the 349 largest counties had over-the-year increases in average weekly wages. Tippecanoe, IN, had the largest over-the-year wage gain at 15.1 percent, followed by Williamson, TN (13.1 percent) and Olmsted, MN (13.0 percent).

Of the 349 largest U.S. counties, 15 had over-the-year wage decreases. Washington, PA, had the largest percentage decrease in average weekly wages (-6.6 percent), followed by Elkhart IN (-5.0 percent).

  Large county average weekly wages

Among North Carolina’s large counties, Durham ($1,357, 37^th), Mecklenburg ($1,271, 52^nd), and Wake ($1,252, 57^th), had average weekly wages above the U.S average of $1,144 and ranked in the top 75 nationwide. Average weekly wages in the state’s eight remaining large counties placed in the bottom half of the national ranking.

Nationwide, average weekly wages were above the U.S. average ($1,144) in 94 of the 349 largest counties in the fourth quarter of 2018. Santa Clara, CA, recorded the highest average weekly wage at $2,670, followed by San Francisco, CA ($2,452); San Mateo, CA ($2,410); and New York, NY ($2,400).

Among the largest U.S. counties, 255 had weekly wages below the national average in the fourth quarter of 2018. Hidalgo, TX ($680) had the lowest wage, followed by the counties of Cameron, TX, and Horry, SC ($685 each).

Average weekly wages in North Carolina’s smaller counties

With the exception of Orange County ($1,186), counties in North Carolina with 2017 average annual employment levels below 75,000 had average weekly wages lower than the national average of $1,144. Among these smaller counties, Martin had the lowest average weekly wage in state, averaging $631 in the fourth quarter of 2018. (See table 2.)

When all 100 counties in North Carolina were considered, 18 had average weekly wages below $699, 52 had wages from $700 to $799, 20 had wages from $800 to $899, 5 had wages from $900 to $999, and 5 had wages above $1,000 in the fourth quarter of 2018. (See chart 1.)

Additional statistics and other information

QCEW 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 2017 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 2018 version of the national news release. Tables and additional content from Employment and Wages Annual Averages 2017 are now available online at www.bls.gov/cew/publications/employment-and-wages-annual-averages/2017/home.htm. The 2018 edition of Employment and Wages Annual Averages Online will be available in September 2019.

The County Employment and Wages release for first quarter 2019 is scheduled to be released on Wednesday, August 21, 2019. The County Employment and Wages full data update for first quarter 2019 is scheduled to be released on Wednesday, September 4, 2019.

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 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 11 largest counties in North Carolina, fourth quarter 2018

Area	Employment			Average weekly wage (1)
	December 2018 (thousands)	Percent change, December 2017-18 (2)	National ranking by percent change (3)	Average weekly wage	National ranking by level (3)	Percent change, fourth quarter 2017-18 (2)	National ranking by percent change (3)
United States (4)	148,061.8	1.5	--	$1,144	--	3.2	--
North Carolina	4,458.9	1.6	--	1,013	26	5.1	6
Buncombe, NC	134.3	1.9	86	896	301	5.2	47
Cabarrus, NC	80.4	2.7	36	813	333	3.2	155
Catawba, NC	89.5	1.3	149	862	319	2.3	236
Cumberland, NC	121.2	-0.1	303	879	308	6.8	15
Durham, NC	207.9	3.0	28	1,357	37	5.4	37
Forsyth, NC	188.8	0.9	185	1,010	191	0.4	325
Guilford, NC	284.5	0.6	227	961	235	1.7	279
Mecklenburg, NC	706.6	2.1	69	1,271	52	3.5	128
New Hanover, NC	115.6	2.2	60	912	284	4.1	84
Pitt, NC	78.7	2.2	60	900	298	4.5	69
Wake, NC	566.6	1.6	126	1,252	57	11.9	4
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, fourth quarter 2018

State	Employment		Average weekly wage (1)
	December 2018 (thousands)	Percent change, December 2017-18	Average weekly wage	National ranking by level	Percent change, fourth quarter 2017-18	National ranking by percent change
United States (2)	148,061.8	1.5	$1,144	--	3.2	--
Alabama	1,986.6	1.6	957	36	3.1	33
Alaska	308.3	0.4	1,103	16	4.9	7
Arizona	2,921.1	3.0	1,017	24	4.1	11
Arkansas	1,227.0	0.8	869	50	2.4	43
California	17,556.7	1.7	1,392	4	3.3	26
Colorado	2,713.7	2.2	1,180	10	4.1	11
Connecticut	1,697.9	0.5	1,334	5	1.3	49
Delaware	451.2	1.1	1,107	15	2.4	43
District of Columbia	775.1	0.6	1,943	1	7.3	2
Florida	8,902.7	2.1	1,006	27	3.1	33
Georgia	4,499.8	1.8	1,053	21	2.4	43
Hawaii	669.3	0.6	1,016	25	3.3	26
Idaho	734.4	3.2	890	47	3.6	20
Illinois	6,026.0	0.3	1,189	9	3.3	26
Indiana	3,086.2	0.9	941	38	2.8	37
Iowa	1,558.4	0.5	966	35	3.0	35
Kansas	1,402.2	0.8	927	41	3.7	18
Kentucky	1,914.0	0.3	924	42	3.2	30
Louisiana	1,934.1	0.7	968	34	3.8	15
Maine	618.4	1.3	906	44	2.5	41
Maryland	2,702.5	0.8	1,228	8	1.7	48
Massachusetts	3,620.3	1.0	1,457	2	3.3	26
Michigan	4,366.5	1.0	1,077	19	1.3	49
Minnesota	2,902.3	0.9	1,140	14	3.6	20
Mississippi	1,144.3	0.2	793	51	2.5	41
Missouri	2,821.3	0.5	980	31	3.6	20
Montana	468.8	1.6	888	48	5.2	5
Nebraska	983.0	0.2	930	40	3.2	30
Nevada	1,397.4	3.3	1,006	27	5.3	4
New Hampshire	666.0	0.7	1,158	12	2.3	46
New Jersey	4,125.6	0.8	1,298	6	2.7	38
New Mexico	830.2	1.5	905	45	4.6	9
New York	9,613.2	1.5	1,445	3	1.0	51
North Carolina	4,458.9	1.6	1,013	26	5.1	6
North Dakota	422.3	1.5	1,057	20	4.7	8
Ohio	5,442.9	0.5	1,006	27	3.4	24
Oklahoma	1,632.3	1.5	932	39	4.1	11
Oregon	1,935.8	1.7	1,052	22	3.7	18
Pennsylvania	5,932.5	1.0	1,103	16	2.6	39
Rhode Island	487.2	0.8	1,085	18	2.6	39
South Carolina	2,119.6	2.8	893	46	1.9	47
South Dakota	428.4	1.2	885	49	3.4	24
Tennessee	3,039.8	1.8	1,030	23	3.0	35
Texas	12,531.7	2.5	1,148	13	3.5	23
Utah	1,511.5	3.2	972	33	3.8	15
Vermont	314.2	-0.4	954	37	3.2	30
Virginia	3,927.2	1.1	1,164	11	3.8	15
Washington	3,384.2	2.4	1,292	7	6.3	3
West Virginia	704.2	1.5	917	43	8.3	1
Wisconsin	2,892.3	0.6	989	30	4.0	14
Wyoming	272.1	1.8	978	32	4.4	10
Puerto Rico	896.4	0.8	576	(3)	0.9	(3)
Virgin Islands	34.5	0.5	925	(3)	2.3	(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.