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News Release Information

17-1084-DAL
Wednesday, August 02, 2017

Contacts Technical information: Media contact:
  • (972) 850-4800

Business Employment Dynamics in Oklahoma – Fourth Quarter 2016

From September 2016 to December 2016, gross job gains in Oklahoma totaled 79,388, while gross job losses numbered 76,784, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. As a result, gross job gains exceeded gross losses by 2,604. (See chart 1.) Assistant Commissioner for Regional Operations Stanley W. Suchman noted that in the previous quarter, gross job gains exceeded gross job losses by 3,794.

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. Business Employment Dynamics (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 job gains and the number of gross job losses is the net change in employment. (See the Technical Note for more information.)

The number of gross job gains in Oklahoma rose by more than 900 during the fourth quarter of 2016 after climbing by nearly 6,800 in the previous quarter. (See chart 1.) Gross job losses rose by more than 2,100 in the three months ended in December 2016, after dropping by nearly 9,700 in the previous quarter.

Gross job gains represented 6.3 percent of private sector employment in Oklahoma in the quarter ended December 2016; nationally gross job gains accounted for 6.2 percent of private sector employment. (See chart 2.) With few exceptions, the rate of gross job gains in Oklahoma has mirrored the national rate during the past five years. Oklahoma’s rate of gross job losses as a percent of private sector employment was 6.1 percent compared to the national rate of 5.8 percent in the fourth quarter of 2016. Oklahoma’s rate of gross job losses has exceeded the U.S. rate since March 2015.

During the fourth quarter of 2016, gross job gains exceeded gross job losses in 6 of the 11 industry sectors in Oklahoma. For example, within transportation and warehousing, opening and expanding establishments added more than 4,400 jobs, while closing and contracting establishments lost more than 2,150 jobs. The resulting net gain of 2,259 jobs in the transportation and warehousing sector was the largest of any sector in Oklahoma in the fourth quarter of 2016. In leisure and hospitality, about 14,850 jobs were created in opening and expanding establishments and about 12,850 were lost in closing and contracting establishments, resulting in a net gain of 2,006, the second largest among the state’s sectors. (See table 1.)

Five industry sectors in Oklahoma registered net job losses during the latest quarter. Construction saw a net loss of 1,477 jobs, as more than 8,350 jobs were lost at closing and contracting establishments, while only about 6,850 jobs were gained at opening and expanding establishments. Retail trade had a net loss of 1,465 jobs, as the gross job gains of more than 10,350 were offset by the gross job losses of nearly 11,850.

Additional statistics and other information

BED data for the states have been included in table 2 of this release. For more information on the Business Employment Dynamics data, visit the BED website at www.bls.gov/bdm/.

The Business Employment Dynamics release for First Quarter 2017 are scheduled to be released on Wednesday, November 8, 2017.


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), or the ES-202 program. The BED data are compiled from existing quarterly QCEW records. The QCEW reports are sent by the State Employment Security Agencies (SESAs) to BLS and form the basis of the Bureau’s QCEW program and establishment universe sampling frame. These reports are also used to produce the QCEW data on total employment and wages. Other important Bureau uses of the QCEW reports are in the Current Employment Statistics (CES) program. The CES program produces monthly estimates of employment, net changes, and earnings by detailed industry.

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 establishments and jobs lost at closing and contracting establishments.

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 establishments 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 establishments 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 establishments with positive third month employment in the previous quarter, with no employment or zero employment reported in the current quarter.

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

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. Private sector gross job gains and losses by industry, Oklahoma, seasonally adjusted
CategoryGross job gains and job losses
(3 months ended)
Gross job gains and job losses
as a percent of employment
(3 months ended)
Dec.
2015
Mar.
2016
June
2016
Sept.
2016
Dec.
2016
Dec.
2015
Mar.
2016
June
2016
Sept.
2016
Dec.
2016

Total private (1)

 

Gross job gains

79,85472,62771,68378,44879,3886.35.75.86.36.3

At expanding establishments

64,11758,27957,23161,95862,8825.14.64.65.05.0

At opening establishments

15,73714,34814,45216,49016,5061.21.11.21.31.3

Gross job losses

81,96080,61184,34074,65476,7846.56.46.86.06.1

At contracting establishments

65,81067,17868,62261,92561,2305.25.35.55.04.9

At closing establishments

16,15013,43315,71812,72915,5541.31.11.31.01.2

Net employment change (2)

-2,106-7,984-12,6573,7942,604-0.2-0.7-1.00.30.2

Construction

 

Gross job gains

7,5067,1017,0108,5206,8819.69.29.211.08.9

At expanding establishments

5,7705,6365,5586,9275,4157.47.37.38.97.0

At opening establishments

1,7361,4651,4521,5931,4662.21.91.92.11.9

Gross job losses

7,5957,8407,7046,3828,3589.710.110.08.310.8

At contracting establishments

6,1016,1455,8355,1526,8137.87.97.66.78.8

At closing establishments

1,4941,6951,8691,2301,5451.92.22.41.62.0

Net employment change (2)

-89-739-6942,138-1,477-0.1-0.9-0.82.7-1.9

Manufacturing

 

Gross job gains

3,8283,7493,9924,2274,2742.92.93.13.33.3

At expanding establishments

3,3393,3763,3753,8163,8452.52.62.63.03.0

At opening establishments

4893736174114290.40.30.50.30.3

Gross job losses

6,4715,9556,7955,3294,4534.94.55.34.13.5

At contracting establishments

5,6905,3696,1864,6553,7454.34.14.83.62.9

At closing establishments

7815866096747080.60.40.50.50.6

Net employment change (2)

-2,643-2,206-2,803-1,102-179-2.0-1.6-2.2-0.8-0.2

Wholesale trade

 

Gross job gains

3,3262,9142,7693,3782,8155.64.94.85.84.8

At expanding establishments

2,6372,2382,0932,4812,2824.43.83.64.33.9

At opening establishments

6896766768975331.21.11.21.50.9

Gross job losses

3,7043,4043,2213,0883,1546.25.85.55.35.5

At contracting establishments

2,9752,6242,6172,4372,4155.04.54.54.24.2

At closing establishments

7297806046517391.21.31.01.11.3

Net employment change (2)

-378-490-452290-339-0.6-0.9-0.70.5-0.7

Retail trade

 

Gross job gains

11,17912,02110,58710,50210,3736.16.55.75.75.7

At expanding establishments

9,67910,6808,9268,8159,1135.35.84.84.85.0

At opening establishments

1,5001,3411,6611,6871,2600.80.70.90.90.7

Gross job losses

10,68910,65611,03411,55311,8385.85.86.06.26.5

At contracting establishments

9,5109,3869,74410,2269,8335.25.15.35.55.4

At closing establishments

1,1791,2701,2901,3272,0050.60.70.70.71.1

Net employment change (2)

4901,365-447-1,051-1,4650.30.7-0.3-0.5-0.8

Transportation and warehousing

 

Gross job gains

5,6432,0742,1453,0184,42311.04.14.36.08.5

At expanding establishments

5,0701,6721,7892,5944,1449.93.33.65.28.0

At opening establishments

5734023564242791.10.80.70.80.5

Gross job losses

2,8184,2852,2081,9542,1645.58.44.53.94.2

At contracting establishments

2,0383,7581,8181,6711,5874.07.43.73.33.1

At closing establishments

7805273902835771.51.00.80.61.1

Net employment change (2)

2,825-2,211-631,0642,2595.5-4.3-0.22.14.3

Information

 

Gross job gains

1,0939168997711,0615.24.34.23.65.1

At expanding establishments

8775707956189224.22.73.72.94.4

At opening establishments

2163461041531391.01.60.50.70.7

Gross job losses

9021,1001,0211,0609874.35.24.85.14.8

At contracting establishments

6479107118578293.14.33.34.14.0

At closing establishments

2551903102031581.20.91.51.00.8

Net employment change (2)

191-184-122-289740.9-0.9-0.6-1.50.3

Financial activities

 

Gross job gains

3,8243,2023,4403,9624,0975.04.24.55.25.4

At expanding establishments

2,9182,5822,6193,0193,0563.83.43.44.04.0

At opening establishments

9066208219431,0411.20.81.11.21.4

Gross job losses

3,7283,7464,0973,5483,7544.94.85.44.74.8

At contracting establishments

2,9133,0192,9792,7932,8013.83.93.93.73.6

At closing establishments

8157271,1187559531.10.91.51.01.2

Net employment change (2)

96-544-6574143430.1-0.6-0.90.50.6

Professional and business services

 

Gross job gains

14,93912,65613,87014,66413,6888.16.97.68.17.6

At expanding establishments

11,5689,70011,13911,57010,0896.35.36.16.45.6

At opening establishments

3,3712,9562,7313,0943,5991.81.61.51.72.0

Gross job losses

13,49614,58614,67613,92213,5457.48.08.17.77.5

At contracting establishments

10,43411,88111,76711,06810,6995.76.56.56.15.9

At closing establishments

3,0622,7052,9092,8542,8461.71.51.61.61.6

Net employment change (2)

1,443-1,930-8067421430.7-1.1-0.50.40.1

Education and health services

 

Gross job gains

9,30710,1368,82710,09310,0504.54.84.34.94.8

At expanding establishments

7,3807,9587,0548,0408,1043.63.83.43.93.9

At opening establishments

1,9272,1781,7732,0531,9460.91.00.91.00.9

Gross job losses

9,7879,18410,0888,5449,7004.74.44.94.14.7

At contracting establishments

7,2557,6378,1806,7037,3003.53.74.03.23.5

At closing establishments

2,5321,5471,9081,8412,4001.20.70.90.91.2

Net employment change (2)

-480952-1,2611,549350-0.20.4-0.60.80.1

Leisure and hospitality

 

Gross job gains

14,13612,82012,59613,41814,8378.77.87.78.28.9

At expanding establishments

10,88410,0839,5449,31810,3246.76.15.85.76.2

At opening establishments

3,2522,7373,0524,1004,5132.01.71.92.52.7

Gross job losses

13,07812,23914,57812,92112,8318.07.48.97.97.8

At contracting establishments

10,27910,11411,53211,24410,7576.36.17.06.96.5

At closing establishments

2,7992,1253,0461,6772,0741.71.31.91.01.3

Net employment change (2)

1,058581-1,9824972,0060.70.4-1.20.31.1

Other services (3)

 

Gross job gains

2,3512,5752,5632,5552,4586.97.57.67.67.2

At expanding establishments

1,9051,8551,8472,0301,9725.65.45.56.05.8

At opening establishments

4467207165254861.32.12.11.61.4

Gross job losses

2,8482,5782,9262,4332,7648.37.58.67.28.2

At contracting establishments

2,1872,0162,3401,9701,9636.45.96.95.85.8

At closing establishments

6615625864638011.91.61.71.42.4

Net employment change (2)

-497-3-363122-306-1.40.0-1.00.4-1.0

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
StateGross job gains as a percent of employment
(3 months ended)
Gross job losses as a percent of employment
(3 months ended)
Dec.
2015
Mar.
2016
June
2016
Sept.
2016
Dec.
2016
Dec.
2015
Mar.
2016
June
2016
Sept.
2016
Dec.
2016

United States(1)

6.65.86.26.46.25.85.76.05.85.8

Alabama

6.25.85.86.25.85.35.45.85.75.7

Alaska

9.69.410.39.09.610.59.711.911.110.0

Arizona

6.96.06.17.16.05.45.76.15.25.5

Arkansas

6.35.45.46.25.75.35.35.85.45.2

California

7.66.56.86.96.76.76.36.76.16.3

Colorado

7.06.66.97.16.66.46.16.56.26.6

Connecticut

5.55.25.45.25.14.95.05.35.35.1

Delaware

7.36.56.76.36.26.26.46.66.56.2

District of Columbia

6.25.25.86.25.54.65.66.15.75.6

Florida

7.26.16.47.46.75.85.85.95.76.1

Georgia

6.96.17.06.76.55.75.66.65.95.8

Hawaii

5.84.95.45.85.24.44.96.05.05.1

Idaho

7.98.27.17.97.66.96.37.17.16.6

Illinois

6.45.35.95.76.15.65.45.95.75.7

Indiana

6.25.55.25.85.44.95.35.25.15.2

Iowa

6.06.05.66.05.75.75.36.15.85.9

Kansas

6.25.85.66.25.95.65.96.35.65.7

Kentucky

6.75.76.26.76.05.45.85.86.25.6

Louisiana

6.56.05.96.65.96.46.66.96.56.6

Maine

8.68.07.76.77.27.16.96.77.47.1

Maryland

6.86.26.36.56.65.96.06.36.06.3

Massachusetts

5.95.26.05.75.55.25.05.25.55.4

Michigan

6.15.45.95.65.65.34.95.35.65.4

Minnesota

6.15.45.96.15.85.75.25.65.65.8

Mississippi

7.15.75.76.36.35.46.16.55.65.7

Missouri

6.35.75.75.77.75.35.35.45.48.0

Montana

8.57.87.97.67.87.37.28.67.87.5

Nebraska

6.15.85.76.45.75.55.56.05.96.2

Nevada

6.86.36.56.76.75.35.75.65.55.6

New Hampshire

6.76.06.56.46.35.65.85.96.35.9

New Jersey

6.75.96.56.36.35.95.95.85.85.8

New Mexico

7.06.26.56.86.66.96.36.76.26.5

New York

6.46.16.26.36.05.75.75.85.95.9

North Carolina

6.76.06.36.16.35.55.65.85.85.6

North Dakota

6.76.66.88.16.78.18.99.07.17.8

Ohio

6.05.45.65.65.55.15.15.65.65.3

Oklahoma

6.35.75.86.36.36.56.46.86.06.1

Oregon

7.07.06.76.96.66.25.86.56.46.2

Pennsylvania

5.75.45.35.75.45.15.25.45.15.1

Rhode Island

6.65.86.25.65.75.75.96.26.05.8

South Carolina

7.16.16.36.36.65.35.85.85.75.4

South Dakota

6.76.26.46.46.05.96.16.26.26.1

Tennessee

6.35.25.75.95.74.85.15.35.25.0

Texas

6.14.76.36.25.95.55.55.45.45.4

Utah

7.27.36.77.46.76.05.96.46.56.3

Vermont

7.26.67.47.27.06.56.97.27.47.0

Virginia

6.45.96.46.06.25.65.96.06.15.9

Washington

6.87.17.26.77.26.25.65.86.46.7

West Virginia

6.65.95.86.66.46.36.96.96.66.2

Wisconsin

6.05.65.75.55.45.25.25.75.55.3

Wyoming

9.07.97.78.38.89.39.410.48.98.7

Puerto Rico

6.35.75.65.85.95.76.05.65.75.3

Virgin Islands

7.35.76.36.25.95.35.45.86.56.1

Footnotes:
(1) Totals for the United States do not include data for Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands.
 

 

Last Modified Date: Wednesday, August 02, 2017