From March 2020 to June 2020, gross job gains from opening and expanding private-sector establishments in Alabama were 74,974, while gross job losses from closing and contracting private-sector establishments were 197,333, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Regional Commissioner Janet S. Rankin noted that the difference between the number of gross job gains and the number of gross job losses yielded a net employment loss of 122,359 jobs in the private sector during the second quarter of 2020. During the previous quarter, gross job losses exceeded gross job gains by 8,087. (See chart 1.)

The change in the number of jobs over time is the net result of increases and decreases in employment that occur at all private businesses in the economy. Business Employment Dynamics (BED) statistics track these changes in employment at private-sector establishments from the third month of one quarter to the third month of the next. The difference between the number of gross job gains and the number of gross job losses is the net change in employment. (See Technical Note.)

Gross job gains

In the second quarter of 2020, gross job gains represented 4.8 percent of private-sector employment in Alabama; nationally, gross job gains also accounted for 4.8 percent of private-sector employment. (See chart 2.) Gross job gains are the sum of increases in employment due to expansions at existing establishments and the addition of new jobs at opening establishments. In Alabama, gross job gains at expanding establishments totaled 60,678 in the second quarter of 2020, a decrease of 11,671 jobs compared to the previous quarter. (See table 1.) Opening establishments accounted for 14,296 jobs gained in the second quarter of 2020, a decrease of 1,393 jobs from the previous quarter.

Gross job losses

In the second quarter of 2020, gross job losses represented 12.6 percent of private-sector employment in Alabama; nationally, gross job losses accounted for 17.0 percent of private-sector employment. (See chart 3.) Gross job losses are the result of contractions in employment at existing establishments and the loss of jobs at closing establishments. In Alabama, contracting establishments lost 173,529 jobs in the second quarter of 2020, an increase of 92,215 jobs from the prior quarter. Closing establishments lost 23,804 jobs, an increase of 8,993 jobs from the previous quarter.

Industries

Gross job losses exceeded gross job gains in all 10 industry sectors in Alabama in the second quarter of 2020. Leisure and hospitality had the largest over-the-quarter net job decrease, with a loss of 42,419 jobs. This was the result of 9,881 gross job gains and 52,300 gross job losses. The professional and business services industry had a net loss of 26,102 jobs. Job losses among the remaining eight sectors ranged from 18,011 in manufacturing to 1,841 in transportation and warehousing.

For more information

The BED data series include gross job gains and gross job losses by industry subsector, for the 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands, as well as gross job gains and gross job losses at the firm level by employer size class. BED data for the states have been included in table 2 of this release. Additional information is available online at www.bls.gov/bdm/.

The Business Employment Dynamics for Third Quarter 2020 are scheduled to be released on Wednesday, April 28, 2021 at 10:00 a.m. (ET).

Technical Note

The Business Employment Dynamics (BED) data are a product of a federal-state cooperative program known as Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW). The BED data are compiled by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) from existing QCEW records. Most employers in the U.S. are required to file quarterly reports on the employment and wages of workers covered by unemployment insurance (UI) laws, and to pay quarterly UI taxes. The QCEW is based largely on quarterly UI reports which are sent by businesses to the State Workforce Agencies (SWAs). These UI reports are supplemented by two additional BLS data collections to render administrative data into economic statistics. Together these data comprise the QCEW and form the basis of the Bureau’s establishment universe sampling frame.

In the BED program, the QCEW records are linked across quarters to provide a longitudinal history for each establishment. The linkage process allows the tracking of net employment changes at the establishment level, which in turn allows the estimation of jobs gained at opening and expanding units and jobs lost at closing and contracting units.

The change in the number of jobs over time is the net result of increases and decreases in employment that occur at all businesses in the economy. BED statistics track these changes in employment at private business establishments from the third month of one quarter to the third month of the next. Gross job gains are the sum of increases in employment from expansions at existing establishments and the addition of new jobs at opening establishments. Gross job losses are the result of contractions in employment at existing establishments and the loss of jobs at closing establishments. The difference between the number of gross jobs gained and the number of gross jobs lost is the net change in employment.

Gross job gains and gross job losses are expressed as rates by dividing their levels by the average of employment in the current and previous quarters. The rates are calculated for the components of gross job gains and gross job losses and then summed to form their respective totals. These rates can be added and subtracted just as their levels can. For instance, the difference between the gross job gains rate and the gross job losses rate is the net growth rate.

The formal definitions of employment changes are as follows:

Openings. These are either units with positive third month employment for the first time in the current quarter, with no links to the prior quarter, or with positive third month employment in the current quarter following zero employment in the previous quarter.

Expansions. These are units with positive employment in the third month in both the previous and current quarters, with a net increase in employment over this period.

Closings. These are either units with positive third month employment in the previous quarter, with no employment or zero employment reported in the current quarter.

Contractions. These are units with positive employment in the third month in both the previous and current quarters, with a net decrease in employment over this period.

The full Technical Note for the Business Employment Dynamics program, which includes information on coverage, concepts, and methodology, can be found in the current quarterly news release online at www.bls.gov/news.release/cewbd.htm.

Information in this release will be made available to individuals with sensory impairments upon request. Voice phone: (202) 691-5200; Federal Relay Service: (800) 877-8339.

Table 1. Private sector gross job gains and losses by industry, Alabama, seasonally adjusted

Category	Gross job gains and job losses (3 months ended)					Gross job gains and job losses as a percent of employment (3 months ended)
	June 2019	Sept. 2019	Dec. 2019	Mar. 2020	June 2020	June 2019	Sept. 2019	Dec. 2019	Mar. 2020	June 2020
Total private (1)
Gross job gains	94,193	94,423	101,210	88,038	74,974	5.9	5.8	6.2	5.5	4.8
At expanding establishments	78,704	79,416	83,009	72,349	60,678	4.9	4.9	5.1	4.5	3.9
At opening establishments	15,489	15,007	18,201	15,689	14,296	1.0	0.9	1.1	1.0	0.9
Gross job losses	96,296	94,743	89,724	96,125	197,333	5.9	5.9	5.5	5.9	12.6
At contracting establishments	81,266	79,012	73,380	81,314	173,529	5.0	4.9	4.5	5.0	11.1
At closing establishments	15,030	15,731	16,344	14,811	23,804	0.9	1.0	1.0	0.9	1.5
Net employment change (2)	-2,103	-320	11,486	-8,087	-122,359	0.0	-0.1	0.7	-0.4	-7.8
Construction
Gross job gains	8,362	8,735	8,461	7,472	7,233	8.9	9.3	8.9	7.9	7.7
At expanding establishments	7,056	7,456	7,291	5,984	5,849	7.5	7.9	7.7	6.3	6.2
At opening establishments	1,306	1,279	1,170	1,488	1,384	1.4	1.4	1.2	1.6	1.5
Gross job losses	8,421	7,717	7,567	8,092	9,502	9.0	8.2	8.0	8.5	10.2
At contracting establishments	7,279	6,705	6,424	6,754	8,043	7.8	7.1	6.8	7.1	8.6
At closing establishments	1,142	1,012	1,143	1,338	1,459	1.2	1.1	1.2	1.4	1.6
Net employment change (2)	-59	1,018	894	-620	-2,269	-0.1	1.1	0.9	-0.6	-2.5
Manufacturing
Gross job gains	7,607	8,186	8,871	9,116	5,094	2.8	3.1	3.3	3.3	2.0
At expanding establishments	7,220	7,429	8,258	8,450	4,422	2.7	2.8	3.1	3.1	1.7
At opening establishments	387	757	613	666	672	0.1	0.3	0.2	0.2	0.3
Gross job losses	8,696	8,826	6,805	7,457	23,105	3.2	3.3	2.5	2.8	8.7
At contracting establishments	7,853	8,252	6,246	6,717	22,197	2.9	3.1	2.3	2.5	8.4
At closing establishments	843	574	559	740	908	0.3	0.2	0.2	0.3	0.3
Net employment change (2)	-1,089	-640	2,066	1,659	-18,011	-0.4	-0.2	0.8	0.5	-6.7
Wholesale trade
Gross job gains	3,622	3,479	3,425	3,567	2,763	4.9	4.7	4.6	4.8	3.8
At expanding establishments	3,121	2,953	2,810	2,995	1,936	4.2	4.0	3.8	4.0	2.7
At opening establishments	501	526	615	572	827	0.7	0.7	0.8	0.8	1.1
Gross job losses	3,366	3,593	3,281	3,360	5,993	4.5	4.8	4.4	4.4	8.2
At contracting establishments	2,693	2,931	2,611	2,576	5,161	3.6	3.9	3.5	3.4	7.1
At closing establishments	673	662	670	784	832	0.9	0.9	0.9	1.0	1.1
Net employment change (2)	256	-114	144	207	-3,230	0.4	-0.1	0.2	0.4	-4.4
Retail trade
Gross job gains	12,801	13,694	13,380	13,687	17,639	5.5	6.0	5.8	5.9	7.7
At expanding establishments	10,932	11,467	11,358	12,218	16,017	4.7	5.0	4.9	5.3	7.0
At opening establishments	1,869	2,227	2,022	1,469	1,622	0.8	1.0	0.9	0.6	0.7
Gross job losses	14,757	13,611	13,730	13,015	24,461	6.3	5.9	5.9	5.7	10.7
At contracting establishments	12,627	11,934	11,630	11,451	22,335	5.4	5.2	5.0	5.0	9.8
At closing establishments	2,130	1,677	2,100	1,564	2,126	0.9	0.7	0.9	0.7	0.9
Net employment change (2)	-1,956	83	-350	672	-6,822	-0.8	0.1	-0.1	0.2	-3.0
Transportation and warehousing
Gross job gains	3,220	4,028	5,327	2,810	3,735	5.3	6.5	8.5	4.4	6.0
At expanding establishments	2,711	3,633	4,907	2,408	3,163	4.5	5.9	7.8	3.8	5.1
At opening establishments	509	395	420	402	572	0.8	0.6	0.7	0.6	0.9
Gross job losses	3,407	3,158	3,034	4,746	5,576	5.7	5.2	4.9	7.5	9.0
At contracting establishments	3,008	2,557	2,499	4,313	4,946	5.0	4.2	4.0	6.8	8.0
At closing establishments	399	601	535	433	630	0.7	1.0	0.9	0.7	1.0
Net employment change (2)	-187	870	2,293	-1,936	-1,841	-0.4	1.3	3.6	-3.1	-3.0
Financial activities
Gross job gains	4,663	5,071	5,513	4,594	3,950	4.9	5.3	5.7	4.8	4.2
At expanding establishments	3,714	4,086	4,361	3,609	3,018	3.9	4.3	4.5	3.8	3.2
At opening establishments	949	985	1,152	985	932	1.0	1.0	1.2	1.0	1.0
Gross job losses	4,001	4,233	5,651	4,616	5,830	4.3	4.5	5.9	4.8	6.2
At contracting establishments	3,178	3,219	4,481	3,675	4,917	3.4	3.4	4.7	3.8	5.2
At closing establishments	823	1,014	1,170	941	913	0.9	1.1	1.2	1.0	1.0
Net employment change (2)	662	838	-138	-22	-1,880	0.6	0.8	-0.2	0.0	-2.0
Professional and business services
Gross job gains	18,851	16,349	20,072	17,254	12,827	7.5	6.5	8.0	6.9	5.3
At expanding establishments	15,357	13,844	16,456	14,098	9,880	6.1	5.5	6.6	5.6	4.1
At opening establishments	3,494	2,505	3,616	3,156	2,947	1.4	1.0	1.4	1.3	1.2
Gross job losses	18,554	18,899	16,086	17,617	38,929	7.4	7.6	6.4	7.0	16.1
At contracting establishments	15,150	15,494	12,833	14,591	34,532	6.0	6.2	5.1	5.8	14.3
At closing establishments	3,404	3,405	3,253	3,026	4,397	1.4	1.4	1.3	1.2	1.8
Net employment change (2)	297	-2,550	3,986	-363	-26,102	0.1	-1.1	1.6	-0.1	-10.8
Education and health services
Gross job gains	11,662	10,949	11,003	9,918	7,141	5.0	4.6	4.6	4.2	3.0
At expanding establishments	9,618	9,462	8,900	7,876	5,648	4.1	4.0	3.7	3.3	2.4
At opening establishments	2,044	1,487	2,103	2,042	1,493	0.9	0.6	0.9	0.9	0.6
Gross job losses	9,442	9,465	11,078	11,890	21,476	3.9	3.9	4.6	5.0	9.3
At contracting establishments	7,909	7,690	8,990	10,242	18,532	3.3	3.2	3.7	4.3	8.0
At closing establishments	1,533	1,775	2,088	1,648	2,944	0.6	0.7	0.9	0.7	1.3
Net employment change (2)	2,220	1,484	-75	-1,972	-14,335	1.1	0.7	0.0	-0.8	-6.3
Leisure and hospitality
Gross job gains	16,951	17,958	18,594	14,475	9,881	8.1	8.6	9.0	7.0	5.3
At expanding establishments	13,797	14,368	13,438	10,574	7,060	6.6	6.9	6.5	5.1	3.8
At opening establishments	3,154	3,590	5,156	3,901	2,821	1.5	1.7	2.5	1.9	1.5
Gross job losses	18,440	18,463	16,411	18,511	52,300	8.9	8.9	7.8	8.9	28.1
At contracting establishments	15,769	14,855	12,569	15,373	44,506	7.6	7.2	6.0	7.4	23.9
At closing establishments	2,671	3,608	3,842	3,138	7,794	1.3	1.7	1.8	1.5	4.2
Net employment change (2)	-1,489	-505	2,183	-4,036	-42,419	-0.8	-0.3	1.2	-1.9	-22.8
Other services (3)
Gross job gains	3,267	3,146	3,377	2,873	2,349	7.5	7.2	7.8	6.6	5.7
At expanding establishments	2,573	2,451	2,688	2,240	1,676	5.9	5.6	6.2	5.1	4.1
At opening establishments	694	695	689	633	673	1.6	1.6	1.6	1.5	1.6
Gross job losses	2,978	3,146	3,017	3,375	5,905	6.9	7.2	6.9	7.7	14.3
At contracting establishments	2,465	2,484	2,457	2,658	4,748	5.7	5.7	5.6	6.1	11.5
At closing establishments	513	662	560	717	1,157	1.2	1.5	1.3	1.6	2.8
Net employment change (2)	289	0	360	-502	-3,556	0.6	0.0	0.9	-1.1	-8.6
Footnotes: (1) Includes unclassified sector not shown separately. (2) The net employment change is the difference between total gross job gains and total gross job losses. See the Technical Note for further information. (3) Except public administration.