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News Release Information

24-1548-ATL
Wednesday, July 31, 2024

Contacts Technical information: Media contact:
  • (404) 893-4220

Business Employment Dynamics in Kentucky — Fourth Quarter 2023

From September 2023 to December 2023, gross job gains from opening and expanding private-sector establishments in Kentucky were 95,879, while gross job losses from closing and contracting private-sector establishments were 87,018, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Regional Commissioner Victoria G. Lee noted that the difference between the number of gross job gains and the number of gross job losses yielded a net employment gain of 8,861 jobs in the private sector during the fourth quarter of 2023. During the previous quarter, gross job gains exceeded gross job losses by 3,317. (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 the Business Employment Dynamics Technical Note.)

Gross job gains

In the fourth quarter of 2023, gross job gains represented 5.7 percent of private-sector employment in Kentucky; nationally, gross job gains accounted for 5.9 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 Kentucky, gross job gains at expanding establishments totaled 79,517 in the fourth quarter of 2023, an increase of 2,357 jobs compared to the previous quarter. (See table 1.) Opening establishments accounted for 16,362 jobs gained in the fourth quarter of 2023, a decrease of 1,285 jobs from the previous quarter.


Gross job losses

In the fourth quarter of 2023, gross job losses represented 5.2 percent of private-sector employment in Kentucky; nationally, gross job gains accounted for 5.6 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 Kentucky, contracting establishments lost 70,408 jobs in the fourth quarter of 2023, a decrease of 5,991 jobs from the prior quarter. Closing establishments lost 16,610 jobs, an increase of 1,519 jobs from the previous quarter.

Industries

Gross job gains exceeded gross job losses in 7 of the 11 industry sectors in Kentucky in the fourth quarter of 2023. Education and health services had the largest over-the-quarter net job increase, with a gain of 4,200 jobs. This was the result of 14,917 gross job gains and 10,717 gross job losses. Professional and business services showed a net loss of 3,606 jobs, the largest loss of any sector in the state.

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 Business Employment Dynamics Home.

The Business Employment Dynamics for First Quarter 2024 are scheduled to be released on Wednesday, October 30, 2024, at 10:00 a.m. (ET).

Revisions to Business Employment Dynamics (BED) Data

The release of First Quarter 2024 Business Employment Dynamics data, scheduled for October 30, 2024, will incorporate annual revisions in accordance with standard procedures. The revisions will include the previous four quarters of not seasonally adjusted data and five years of seasonally adjusted data.


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.

More information on formal definitions of the data used in this release, along with coverage, concepts, and methodology, can be found in the Business Employment Dynamics Technical Note.

Information in this release will be made available to individuals with sensory impairments upon request. Voice phone: (202) 691-5200; Telecommunications Relay Service: 7-1-1.

Table 1. Private-sector gross job gains and losses by industry, Kentucky, seasonally adjusted
Category Gross job gains and losses
(3 months ended)
Gross job gains and losses
as a percent of employment
(3 months ended)
Dec.
2022
Mar.
2023
June
2023
Sept.
2023
Dec.
2023
Dec.
2022
Mar.
2023
June
2023
Sept.
2023
Dec.
2023

Total private (1)

Gross job gains

98,218 102,867 93,576 94,807 95,879 6.0 6.1 5.6 5.7 5.7

At expanding establishments

82,315 85,722 76,653 77,160 79,517 5.0 5.1 4.6 4.6 4.7

At opening establishments

15,903 17,145 16,923 17,647 16,362 1.0 1.0 1.0 1.1 1.0

Gross job losses

87,574 82,015 99,073 91,490 87,018 5.3 4.9 5.9 5.5 5.2

At contracting establishments

74,763 70,442 85,577 76,399 70,408 4.5 4.2 5.1 4.6 4.2

At closing establishments

12,811 11,573 13,496 15,091 16,610 0.8 0.7 0.8 0.9 1.0

Net employment change (2)

10,644 20,852 -5,497 3,317 8,861 0.7 1.2 -0.3 0.2 0.5

Construction

Gross job gains

7,849 9,166 7,857 8,181 9,153 9.3 10.4 8.8 9.2 10.0

At expanding establishments

6,505 7,601 6,701 6,668 7,486 7.7 8.6 7.5 7.5 8.2

At opening establishments

1,344 1,565 1,156 1,513 1,667 1.6 1.8 1.3 1.7 1.8

Gross job losses

6,439 5,983 7,735 7,759 7,046 7.6 6.8 8.6 8.7 7.8

At contracting establishments

5,512 4,956 6,752 6,127 5,685 6.5 5.6 7.5 6.9 6.3

At closing establishments

927 1,027 983 1,632 1,361 1.1 1.2 1.1 1.8 1.5

Net employment change (2)

1,410 3,183 122 422 2,107 1.7 3.6 0.2 0.5 2.2

Manufacturing

Gross job gains

8,400 8,329 7,354 6,734 8,240 3.3 3.3 2.8 2.6 3.2

At expanding establishments

7,651 7,829 6,516 6,242 7,700 3.0 3.1 2.5 2.4 3.0

At opening establishments

749 500 838 492 540 0.3 0.2 0.3 0.2 0.2

Gross job losses

7,387 5,906 8,090 7,032 6,627 2.9 2.3 3.2 2.8 2.5

At contracting establishments

6,654 5,352 7,670 6,344 6,047 2.6 2.1 3.0 2.5 2.3

At closing establishments

733 554 420 688 580 0.3 0.2 0.2 0.3 0.2

Net employment change (2)

1,013 2,423 -736 -298 1,613 0.4 1.0 -0.4 -0.2 0.7

Wholesale trade

Gross job gains

3,468 4,437 3,636 4,036 3,360 4.3 5.6 4.5 5.0 4.2

At expanding establishments

3,039 3,946 3,080 3,509 3,033 3.8 5.0 3.8 4.3 3.8

At opening establishments

429 491 556 527 327 0.5 0.6 0.7 0.7 0.4

Gross job losses

3,390 2,779 3,716 3,233 3,615 4.3 3.5 4.6 4.0 4.5

At contracting establishments

2,822 2,230 3,122 2,632 2,949 3.6 2.8 3.9 3.3 3.7

At closing establishments

568 549 594 601 666 0.7 0.7 0.7 0.7 0.8

Net employment change (2)

78 1,658 -80 803 -255 0.0 2.1 -0.1 1.0 -0.3

Retail trade

Gross job gains

12,067 11,181 11,377 11,966 11,537 5.8 5.3 5.4 5.7 5.5

At expanding establishments

10,763 9,515 9,791 9,705 10,101 5.2 4.5 4.6 4.6 4.8

At opening establishments

1,304 1,666 1,586 2,261 1,436 0.6 0.8 0.8 1.1 0.7

Gross job losses

11,795 11,314 11,771 11,736 10,946 5.7 5.4 5.6 5.6 5.3

At contracting establishments

10,439 10,273 10,506 10,236 8,921 5.0 4.9 5.0 4.9 4.3

At closing establishments

1,356 1,041 1,265 1,500 2,025 0.7 0.5 0.6 0.7 1.0

Net employment change (2)

272 -133 -394 230 591 0.1 -0.1 -0.2 0.1 0.2

Transportation and warehousing

Gross job gains

8,384 5,196 4,121 5,417 7,223 6.4 3.9 3.2 4.2 5.6

At expanding establishments

7,780 4,625 3,720 4,935 6,824 5.9 3.5 2.9 3.8 5.3

At opening establishments

604 571 401 482 399 0.5 0.4 0.3 0.4 0.3

Gross job losses

4,816 7,197 7,593 5,148 5,020 3.7 5.4 5.8 4.0 3.9

At contracting establishments

4,347 6,882 7,016 4,750 4,371 3.3 5.2 5.4 3.7 3.4

At closing establishments

469 315 577 398 649 0.4 0.2 0.4 0.3 0.5

Net employment change (2)

3,568 -2,001 -3,472 269 2,203 2.7 -1.5 -2.6 0.2 1.7

Information

Gross job gains

1,546 1,039 1,183 1,211 880 6.9 4.6 5.4 5.6 3.8

At expanding establishments

1,118 674 848 975 664 5.0 3.0 3.9 4.5 2.9

At opening establishments

428 365 335 236 216 1.9 1.6 1.5 1.1 0.9

Gross job losses

1,145 1,177 1,126 1,303 1,256 5.2 5.3 5.2 6.0 5.5

At contracting establishments

877 955 839 951 946 4.0 4.3 3.9 4.4 4.1

At closing establishments

268 222 287 352 310 1.2 1.0 1.3 1.6 1.4

Net employment change (2)

401 -138 57 -92 -376 1.7 -0.7 0.2 -0.4 -1.7

Financial activities

Gross job gains

4,134 4,724 4,519 4,423 3,729 4.4 5.0 4.8 4.6 3.9

At expanding establishments

2,952 3,470 3,483 3,660 2,881 3.1 3.7 3.7 3.8 3.0

At opening establishments

1,182 1,254 1,036 763 848 1.3 1.3 1.1 0.8 0.9

Gross job losses

4,255 3,604 4,443 4,634 4,292 4.5 3.8 4.6 4.9 4.5

At contracting establishments

3,487 2,741 3,273 3,625 3,048 3.7 2.9 3.4 3.8 3.2

At closing establishments

768 863 1,170 1,009 1,244 0.8 0.9 1.2 1.1 1.3

Net employment change (2)

-121 1,120 76 -211 -563 -0.1 1.2 0.2 -0.3 -0.6

Professional and business services

Gross job gains

15,812 18,514 18,490 16,717 14,308 6.9 8.2 8.0 7.2 6.3

At expanding establishments

12,511 14,924 14,748 13,157 10,913 5.5 6.6 6.4 5.7 4.8

At opening establishments

3,301 3,590 3,742 3,560 3,395 1.4 1.6 1.6 1.5 1.5

Gross job losses

18,970 16,344 18,029 18,613 17,914 8.3 7.2 7.8 8.1 7.9

At contracting establishments

16,083 13,827 15,219 15,358 14,536 7.0 6.1 6.6 6.7 6.4

At closing establishments

2,887 2,517 2,810 3,255 3,378 1.3 1.1 1.2 1.4 1.5

Net employment change (2)

-3,158 2,170 461 -1,896 -3,606 -1.4 1.0 0.2 -0.9 -1.6

Education and health services

Gross job gains

13,741 15,150 14,418 14,209 14,917 4.8 5.2 5.0 4.9 5.0

At expanding establishments

11,453 12,792 11,613 11,300 12,107 4.0 4.4 4.0 3.9 4.1

At opening establishments

2,288 2,358 2,805 2,909 2,810 0.8 0.8 1.0 1.0 0.9

Gross job losses

10,530 9,570 13,430 11,196 10,717 3.7 3.3 4.6 3.8 3.6

At contracting establishments

8,580 7,622 10,688 8,943 7,949 3.0 2.6 3.7 3.0 2.7

At closing establishments

1,950 1,948 2,742 2,253 2,768 0.7 0.7 0.9 0.8 0.9

Net employment change (2)

3,211 5,580 988 3,013 4,200 1.1 1.9 0.4 1.1 1.4

Leisure and hospitality

Gross job gains

17,250 19,691 15,338 16,590 17,617 8.6 9.7 7.5 8.3 8.6

At expanding establishments

14,380 16,246 12,211 12,640 13,913 7.2 8.0 6.0 6.3 6.8

At opening establishments

2,870 3,445 3,127 3,950 3,704 1.4 1.7 1.5 2.0 1.8

Gross job losses

14,543 13,793 18,356 16,144 14,780 7.3 6.7 9.0 8.0 7.2

At contracting establishments

12,568 12,091 16,488 13,671 12,287 6.3 5.9 8.1 6.8 6.0

At closing establishments

1,975 1,702 1,868 2,473 2,493 1.0 0.8 0.9 1.2 1.2

Net employment change (2)

2,707 5,898 -3,018 446 2,837 1.3 3.0 -1.5 0.3 1.4

Other services (3)

Gross job gains

3,508 3,820 3,669 3,793 3,295 8.0 8.7 8.1 8.4 7.1

At expanding establishments

2,796 2,985 2,979 3,160 2,585 6.4 6.8 6.6 7.0 5.6

At opening establishments

712 835 690 633 710 1.6 1.9 1.5 1.4 1.5

Gross job losses

3,124 2,888 3,202 3,211 3,287 7.2 6.5 7.2 7.1 7.2

At contracting establishments

2,448 2,271 2,680 2,614 2,480 5.6 5.1 6.0 5.8 5.4

At closing establishments

676 617 522 597 807 1.6 1.4 1.2 1.3 1.8

Net employment change (2)

384 932 467 582 8 0.8 2.2 0.9 1.3 -0.1

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.


Table 2. Private-sector gross job gains and losses as a percent of total employment by state, seasonally adjusted
Category Gross job gains as a percent of employment
(3 months ended)
Gross job losses as a percent of employment
(3 months ended)
Dec.
2022
Mar.
2023
June
2023
Sept.
2023
Dec.
2023
Dec.
2022
Mar.
2023
June
2023
Sept.
2023
Dec.
2023

United States(1)

6.3 6.2 6.2 5.8 5.9 5.9 5.4 5.9 5.9 5.6

Alabama

6.6 6.4 5.9 5.9 6.2 6.1 5.5 5.7 6.0 5.8

Alaska

10.9 10.4 11.0 8.5 10.1 9.2 8.0 8.9 10.5 9.9

Arizona

6.6 5.9 7.0 6.7 6.6 6.0 5.4 6.5 5.9 6.9

Arkansas

6.2 5.8 5.8 5.6 6.1 5.2 5.0 6.0 5.7 5.3

California

6.6 6.1 6.7 6.2 6.3 6.6 6.4 6.4 6.5 6.5

Colorado

7.6 7.2 7.3 5.5 8.4 6.9 6.5 6.6 6.2 7.5

Connecticut

5.9 6.1 6.4 5.8 5.6 5.9 5.3 5.7 6.2 5.7

Delaware

7.0 6.7 6.0 6.0 6.2 7.5 5.2 5.7 6.5 5.9

District of Columbia

5.6 5.9 5.4 5.5 5.2 5.5 4.8 5.3 5.4 5.6

Florida

6.2 6.3 6.8 6.5 5.9 6.0 5.6 5.8 5.8 5.8

Georgia

6.7 6.2 6.4 6.1 6.1 5.9 5.8 6.5 6.1 5.7

Hawaii

6.0 5.5 5.7 5.3 6.1 4.9 5.0 5.2 6.9 5.0

Idaho

8.4 7.9 7.9 7.3 8.5 6.9 7.5 7.5 8.2 5.8

Illinois

5.4 5.8 5.4 4.8 4.9 5.1 4.8 5.3 5.5 5.1

Indiana

5.7 5.5 5.5 5.8 5.6 5.2 5.0 6.1 5.8 5.3

Iowa

6.4 6.0 6.0 5.5 6.0 6.2 5.4 5.9 5.8 5.7

Kansas

6.3 6.1 6.1 5.7 5.8 5.6 5.4 6.0 6.0 5.4

Kentucky

6.0 6.1 5.6 5.7 5.7 5.3 4.9 5.9 5.5 5.2

Louisiana

6.1 6.3 6.1 6.2 6.2 6.2 5.6 6.4 6.0 6.1

Maine

7.4 7.7 7.6 6.8 7.3 6.8 6.2 7.6 7.8 7.0

Maryland

6.6 6.8 6.7 6.4 6.3 6.9 5.6 6.3 6.5 5.9

Massachusetts

5.5 5.8 5.9 5.4 5.3 5.8 4.7 5.7 6.1 5.6

Michigan

5.9 5.7 5.9 5.2 5.5 5.2 4.9 5.3 5.9 5.6

Minnesota

5.9 5.7 6.0 3.1 6.8 5.8 4.9 5.6 4.2 7.0

Mississippi

6.8 6.1 6.3 6.2 6.1 6.2 5.7 6.6 6.2 5.7

Missouri

6.1 6.5 5.9 5.6 6.0 5.8 5.1 5.9 5.8 5.6

Montana

9.2 8.7 7.8 7.7 8.8 7.8 7.1 8.4 8.5 7.2

Nebraska

6.0 6.3 6.0 6.0 5.9 5.7 5.1 5.6 5.9 5.6

Nevada

6.4 6.2 6.6 6.5 6.6 6.1 5.7 6.0 5.5 5.1

New Hampshire

6.7 7.0 6.7 5.9 6.2 6.0 5.9 6.3 6.7 5.9

New Jersey

6.8 6.1 6.8 5.9 5.9 5.9 5.7 5.9 5.9 5.8

New Mexico

6.7 6.8 6.4 6.1 6.9 6.2 5.9 6.2 6.7 5.8

New York

5.9 6.5 6.3 5.8 5.8 6.0 5.1 5.7 6.1 5.7

North Carolina

6.6 6.4 6.1 5.6 6.1 5.7 5.3 5.7 6.2 4.7

North Dakota

6.4 7.6 6.9 6.6 6.7 6.7 5.6 6.7 6.6 6.3

Ohio

5.9 5.8 5.6 5.2 5.3 5.7 4.9 5.7 5.7 5.2

Oklahoma

6.6 6.3 6.2 6.2 6.1 5.9 5.3 6.0 6.0 5.7

Oregon

6.5 7.3 6.4 6.1 6.1 6.2 6.1 6.9 6.9 6.3

Pennsylvania

5.5 5.5 5.2 5.2 5.2 5.2 4.6 5.5 5.2 4.9

Rhode Island

6.9 7.5 6.7 6.5 6.8 6.4 5.9 7.0 6.8 6.4

South Carolina

6.9 6.8 6.4 6.8 6.2 6.2 5.8 6.8 5.7 5.4

South Dakota

6.5 7.2 6.8 6.3 6.6 6.5 5.9 6.2 6.3 5.9

Tennessee

5.8 5.9 5.9 2.7 4.9 5.6 5.0 5.5 4.2 4.6

Texas

6.2 5.9 5.8 5.7 5.7 5.3 5.0 5.4 5.5 5.2

Utah

6.9 7.0 6.8 6.8 6.4 6.6 6.2 6.2 6.5 6.2

Vermont

7.8 8.2 7.4 6.3 7.2 7.0 6.0 7.5 8.0 6.6

Virginia

6.2 6.2 6.0 5.8 5.9 5.8 5.2 5.8 6.0 5.6

Washington

5.9 6.4 6.0 5.4 6.0 5.3 5.5 5.6 6.0 5.2

West Virginia

6.6 7.1 6.1 6.5 6.1 6.4 5.3 6.1 6.5 6.5

Wisconsin

6.0 6.0 5.6 5.2 5.4 5.5 4.9 5.9 5.9 5.1

Wyoming

9.2 8.9 8.4 8.2 8.8 7.9 7.8 8.7 8.2 8.3

Puerto Rico

6.6 5.1 5.8 5.7 4.9 6.1 5.7 4.9 5.4 4.8

Virgin Islands

5.9 7.5 7.4 8.2 5.7 4.7 6.5 6.8 7.1 5.8

Footnotes
(1) Totals for the United States do not include data for Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands. The sum of the states will not necessarily add to the U.S. total because of the independent seasonal adjustment of each state.

 

Last Modified Date: Wednesday, July 31, 2024