Business Employment Dynamics in Oklahoma – Fourth Quarter 2025

From September 2025 to December 2025, gross job gains from opening and expanding private-sector establishments in Oklahoma were 83,371, while gross job losses from closing and contracting private-sector establishments were 70,488, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Acting Regional Commissioner Jerome Watters noted that the difference between the number of gross job gains and the number of gross job losses yielded a net employment gain of 12,883 jobs in the private sector during the fourth quarter of 2025. (See table 1.) During the previous quarter, gross job losses exceeded gross job gains by 6,038. (See chart 1.)

Chart 1. Private-sector gross job gains and losses in Oklahoma, December 2020–December 2025, seasonally adjusted

View Chart Data

Chart 1. Private-sector gross job gains and losses in Oklahoma, December 2020–December 2025, seasonally adjusted
Period	Gross job gains	Gross job losses
Dec 2020	96,489	71,316
Mar 2021	77,411	72,962
Jun 2021	82,157	76,460
Sep 2021	89,262	82,198
Dec 2021	95,644	74,312
Mar 2022	82,441	77,240
Jun 2022	86,129	78,351
Sep 2022	96,327	73,129
Dec 2022	87,860	78,097
Mar 2023	83,869	72,050
Jun 2023	83,959	81,511
Sep 2023	84,630	80,276
Dec 2023	82,380	77,567
Mar 2024	78,298	72,172
Jun 2024	76,548	86,853
Sep 2024	81,705	75,580
Dec 2024	81,013	74,449
Mar 2025	74,761	72,113
Jun 2025	75,218	84,979
Sep 2025	80,382	86,420
Dec 2025	83,371	70,488

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 2025, gross job gains represented 6.2 percent of private-sector employment in Oklahoma; 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 Oklahoma, gross job gains at expanding establishments totaled 62,229 in the fourth quarter of 2025, an increase of 1,652 jobs compared to the previous quarter. Opening establishments accounted for 21,142 jobs gained in the fourth quarter of 2025, an increase of 1,337 jobs from the previous quarter.

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Chart 2. Private-sector gross job gains as a percent of employment, United States and Oklahoma, December 2020–December 2025, seasonally adjusted
Period	Oklahoma	United States
Dec 2020	7.8	7.4
Mar 2021	6.2	7.0
Jun 2021	6.6	6.8
Sep 2021	7.1	7.3
Dec 2021	7.6	7.7
Mar 2022	6.4	6.7
Jun 2022	6.7	6.5
Sep 2022	7.4	6.9
Dec 2022	6.6	6.3
Mar 2023	6.3	6.3
Jun 2023	6.3	6.2
Sep 2023	6.3	5.9
Dec 2023	6.1	6.0
Mar 2024	5.8	5.9
Jun 2024	5.7	5.8
Sep 2024	6.1	5.8
Dec 2024	6.0	5.9
Mar 2025	5.5	5.6
Jun 2025	5.5	5.7
Sep 2025	6.0	5.6
Dec 2025	6.2	5.9

Gross job losses

In the fourth quarter of 2025, gross job losses represented 5.1 percent of private-sector employment in Oklahoma; nationally, gross job losses accounted for 5.5 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 Oklahoma, contracting establishments lost 56,313 jobs in the fourth quarter of 2025, a decrease of 5,539 jobs from the prior quarter. Closing establishments lost 14,175 jobs, a decrease of 10,393 jobs from the previous quarter.

View Chart Data

Chart 3. Private-sector gross job losses as a percent of employment, United States and Oklahoma, December 2020–December 2025, seasonally adjusted
Period	United States	Oklahoma
Dec 2020	5.7	5.8
Mar 2021	5.5	5.9
Jun 2021	5.9	6.1
Sep 2021	6.0	6.6
Dec 2021	5.4	5.9
Mar 2022	5.5	6.0
Jun 2022	6.2	6.0
Sep 2022	5.9	5.6
Dec 2022	5.9	5.9
Mar 2023	5.5	5.4
Jun 2023	5.9	6.0
Sep 2023	5.9	6.0
Dec 2023	5.7	5.8
Mar 2024	5.5	5.3
Jun 2024	5.9	6.4
Sep 2024	5.8	5.5
Dec 2024	5.7	5.5
Mar 2025	5.4	5.3
Jun 2025	6.0	6.2
Sep 2025	5.7	6.4
Dec 2025	5.5	5.1

Industries

Gross job gains exceeded gross job losses in 10 of the 11 published industry sectors in Oklahoma in the fourth quarter of 2025. Leisure and hospitality had the largest over-the-quarter net job increase, with a gain of 3,738 jobs. This was the result of 15,562 gross job gains and 11,824 gross job losses. The transportation and warehousing industry had a net gain of 2,968 jobs. Retail trade showed a net loss of 1,425 jobs.

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 the Business Employment Dynamics homepage and the Business Employment Dynamics Summary.

The Business Employment Dynamics for First Quarter 2026 are scheduled to be released on Wednesday, October 28, 2026, at 9:00 a.m. (CT).

Revisions to Business Employment Dynamics (BED) Data

The release of First Quarter 2026 Business Employment Dynamics data, scheduled for October 28, 2026, 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.

If you are deaf, hard of hearing, or have a speech disability, please dial 7-1-1 to access telecommunications relay services.

Table 1. Private-sector gross job gains and losses by industry, Oklahoma, seasonally adjusted
Category	Gross job gains and losses (3 months ended)					Gross job gains and losses as a percent of employment (3 months ended)
Category	Dec. 2024	Mar. 2025	June 2025	Sept. 2025	Dec. 2025	Dec. 2024	Mar. 2025	June 2025	Sept. 2025	Dec. 2025
Total private (1)
Gross job gains	81,013	74,761	75,218	80,382	83,371	6.0	5.5	5.5	6.0	6.2
At expanding establishments	62,648	58,460	60,280	60,577	62,229	4.6	4.3	4.4	4.5	4.6
At opening establishments	18,365	16,301	14,938	19,805	21,142	1.4	1.2	1.1	1.5	1.6
Gross job losses	74,449	72,113	84,979	86,420	70,488	5.5	5.3	6.2	6.4	5.1
At contracting establishments	57,962	57,183	64,181	61,852	56,313	4.3	4.2	4.7	4.6	4.1
At closing establishments	16,487	14,930	20,798	24,568	14,175	1.2	1.1	1.5	1.8	1.0
Net employment change (2)	6,564	2,648	-9,761	-6,038	12,883	0.5	0.2	-0.7	-0.4	1.1
Construction
Gross job gains	7,361	7,584	7,494	7,265	7,912	8.5	8.5	8.4	8.1	8.7
At expanding establishments	5,913	6,243	5,917	5,109	5,839	6.8	7.0	6.6	5.7	6.4
At opening establishments	1,448	1,341	1,577	2,156	2,073	1.7	1.5	1.8	2.4	2.3
Gross job losses	5,735	5,999	6,438	7,996	5,608	6.6	6.8	7.2	9.0	6.2
At contracting establishments	4,395	4,499	4,915	5,256	4,638	5.1	5.1	5.5	5.9	5.1
At closing establishments	1,340	1,500	1,523	2,740	970	1.5	1.7	1.7	3.1	1.1
Net employment change (2)	1,626	1,585	1,056	-731	2,304	1.9	1.7	1.2	-0.9	2.5
Manufacturing
Gross job gains	4,367	4,358	3,703	5,830	4,513	3.1	3.1	2.7	4.2	3.2
At expanding establishments	3,994	3,896	3,312	3,784	3,745	2.8	2.8	2.4	2.7	2.7
At opening establishments	373	462	391	2,046	768	0.3	0.3	0.3	1.5	0.5
Gross job losses	4,233	4,019	6,022	5,337	3,972	3.0	2.8	4.2	3.8	2.9
At contracting establishments	3,476	3,566	3,727	3,961	3,619	2.5	2.5	2.6	2.8	2.6
At closing establishments	757	453	2,295	1,376	353	0.5	0.3	1.6	1.0	0.3
Net employment change (2)	134	339	-2,319	493	541	0.1	0.3	-1.5	0.4	0.3
Wholesale trade
Gross job gains	2,936	2,993	2,823	2,569	3,025	4.9	5.0	4.7	4.3	5.1
At expanding establishments	2,164	2,160	2,148	1,912	2,091	3.6	3.6	3.6	3.2	3.5
At opening establishments	772	833	675	657	934	1.3	1.4	1.1	1.1	1.6
Gross job losses	2,980	2,778	2,978	3,073	2,627	5.0	4.6	4.9	5.1	4.3
At contracting establishments	2,220	2,090	2,195	2,035	1,950	3.7	3.5	3.6	3.4	3.2
At closing establishments	760	688	783	1,038	677	1.3	1.1	1.3	1.7	1.1
Net employment change (2)	-44	215	-155	-504	398	-0.1	0.4	-0.2	-0.8	0.8
Retail trade
Gross job gains	9,164	10,673	9,453	9,757	9,214	5.0	5.8	5.1	5.3	5.1
At expanding establishments	7,218	9,215	8,165	8,135	7,259	3.9	5.0	4.4	4.4	4.0
At opening establishments	1,946	1,458	1,288	1,622	1,955	1.1	0.8	0.7	0.9	1.1
Gross job losses	11,348	8,204	10,528	10,684	10,639	6.1	4.4	5.7	5.8	5.8
At contracting establishments	9,865	6,540	8,875	8,444	9,324	5.3	3.5	4.8	4.6	5.1
At closing establishments	1,483	1,664	1,653	2,240	1,315	0.8	0.9	0.9	1.2	0.7
Net employment change (2)	-2,184	2,469	-1,075	-927	-1,425	-1.1	1.4	-0.6	-0.5	-0.7
Transportation and warehousing
Gross job gains	4,497	1,882	2,406	3,618	5,572	7.2	3.0	4.0	6.1	9.0
At expanding establishments	4,065	1,440	2,071	2,975	4,958	6.5	2.3	3.4	5.0	8.0
At opening establishments	432	442	335	643	614	0.7	0.7	0.6	1.1	1.0
Gross job losses	2,638	3,989	3,802	3,221	2,604	4.3	6.5	6.3	5.3	4.2
At contracting establishments	1,906	3,690	3,267	2,472	1,978	3.1	6.0	5.4	4.1	3.2
At closing establishments	732	299	535	749	626	1.2	0.5	0.9	1.2	1.0
Net employment change (2)	1,859	-2,107	-1,396	397	2,968	2.9	-3.5	-2.3	0.8	4.8
Information
Gross job gains	1,039	1,140	909	976	1,243	6.0	6.5	5.3	5.8	7.4
At expanding establishments	660	805	708	570	836	3.8	4.6	4.1	3.4	5.0
At opening establishments	379	335	201	406	407	2.2	1.9	1.2	2.4	2.4
Gross job losses	1,122	892	1,596	1,135	1,142	6.5	5.1	9.2	6.7	6.8
At contracting establishments	877	630	969	763	770	5.1	3.6	5.6	4.5	4.6
At closing establishments	245	262	627	372	372	1.4	1.5	3.6	2.2	2.2
Net employment change (2)	-83	248	-687	-159	101	-0.5	1.4	-3.9	-0.9	0.6
Financial activities
Gross job gains	3,807	3,792	4,012	4,148	3,950	4.7	4.6	4.9	5.1	4.8
At expanding establishments	2,526	2,912	2,842	3,169	2,713	3.1	3.5	3.5	3.9	3.3
At opening establishments	1,281	880	1,170	979	1,237	1.6	1.1	1.4	1.2	1.5
Gross job losses	3,637	3,754	4,358	4,829	3,673	4.4	4.6	5.4	5.9	4.6
At contracting establishments	2,731	2,687	3,161	2,839	2,737	3.3	3.3	3.9	3.5	3.4
At closing establishments	906	1,067	1,197	1,990	936	1.1	1.3	1.5	2.4	1.2
Net employment change (2)	170	38	-346	-681	277	0.3	0.0	-0.5	-0.8	0.2
Professional and business services
Gross job gains	15,191	12,349	14,663	14,997	15,500	7.3	6.0	7.1	7.3	7.5
At expanding establishments	11,179	9,422	11,317	10,982	10,897	5.4	4.6	5.5	5.3	5.3
At opening establishments	4,012	2,927	3,346	4,015	4,603	1.9	1.4	1.6	2.0	2.2
Gross job losses	14,007	13,115	15,716	17,233	14,107	6.8	6.3	7.6	8.4	6.9
At contracting establishments	10,334	9,935	11,935	12,406	10,718	5.0	4.8	5.8	6.0	5.2
At closing establishments	3,673	3,180	3,781	4,827	3,389	1.8	1.5	1.8	2.4	1.7
Net employment change (2)	1,184	-766	-1,053	-2,236	1,393	0.5	-0.3	-0.5	-1.1	0.6
Education and health services
Gross job gains	11,744	10,582	11,235	11,693	11,216	4.8	4.3	4.5	4.7	4.5
At expanding establishments	9,191	8,714	9,633	9,258	8,133	3.8	3.5	3.9	3.7	3.3
At opening establishments	2,553	1,868	1,602	2,435	3,083	1.0	0.8	0.6	1.0	1.2
Gross job losses	10,066	9,642	10,744	12,101	9,143	4.1	3.9	4.4	4.9	3.7
At contracting establishments	7,766	7,865	8,091	8,613	7,136	3.2	3.2	3.3	3.5	2.9
At closing establishments	2,300	1,777	2,653	3,488	2,007	0.9	0.7	1.1	1.4	0.8
Net employment change (2)	1,678	940	491	-408	2,073	0.7	0.4	0.1	-0.2	0.8
Leisure and hospitality
Gross job gains	15,339	14,459	13,690	14,236	15,562	8.2	7.7	7.4	7.8	8.4
At expanding establishments	11,596	9,713	10,489	10,828	12,044	6.2	5.2	5.7	5.9	6.5
At opening establishments	3,743	4,746	3,201	3,408	3,518	2.0	2.5	1.7	1.9	1.9
Gross job losses	13,210	14,930	16,990	14,964	11,824	7.1	8.0	9.2	8.3	6.4
At contracting establishments	10,304	12,123	12,814	11,204	9,468	5.5	6.5	6.9	6.2	5.1
At closing establishments	2,906	2,807	4,176	3,760	2,356	1.6	1.5	2.3	2.1	1.3
Net employment change (2)	2,129	-471	-3,300	-728	3,738	1.1	-0.3	-1.8	-0.5	2.0
Other services (3)
Gross job gains	3,056	2,748	2,647	2,746	3,151	7.9	7.1	6.9	7.1	8.1
At expanding establishments	2,203	2,064	1,925	1,811	1,914	5.7	5.3	5.0	4.7	4.9
At opening establishments	853	684	722	935	1,237	2.2	1.8	1.9	2.4	3.2
Gross job losses	2,593	2,630	2,870	3,047	2,316	6.7	6.8	7.4	7.9	5.9
At contracting establishments	1,963	1,906	2,019	1,967	1,839	5.1	4.9	5.2	5.1	4.7
At closing establishments	630	724	851	1,080	477	1.6	1.9	2.2	2.8	1.2
Net employment change (2)	463	118	-223	-301	835	1.2	0.3	-0.5	-0.8	2.2
(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. (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)
Category	Dec. 2024	Mar. 2025	June 2025	Sept. 2025	Dec. 2025	Dec. 2024	Mar. 2025	June 2025	Sept. 2025	Dec. 2025
United States(1)	5.9	5.6	5.7	5.6	5.9	5.7	5.4	6.0	5.7	5.5
Alabama	5.8	5.3	5.5	5.4	6.1	5.3	5.6	5.6	5.5	5.4
Alaska	10.3	10.0	9.9	7.5	11.8	9.5	8.1	10.3	10.0	9.3
Arizona	6.1	5.8	5.3	5.8	5.7	5.9	5.3	6.3	5.5	5.4
Arkansas	5.8	5.1	5.1	5.3	6.0	4.8	5.1	5.5	5.3	5.0
California	6.7	6.0	6.6	6.2	6.8	6.4	6.2	6.7	6.0	6.1
Colorado	6.2	6.2	6.4	6.5	6.2	6.5	6.8	7.1	6.5	6.4
Connecticut	5.5	5.6	5.8	5.3	5.5	5.5	5.3	5.8	5.9	5.5
Delaware	6.1	5.9	5.9	5.3	5.5	6.3	5.3	6.1	6.1	5.5
District of Columbia	5.0	4.8	5.7	4.6	5.2	5.5	5.8	5.9	5.9	5.0
Florida	6.0	5.8	5.7	5.9	5.9	6.2	5.5	5.8	6.0	5.7
Georgia	6.0	5.5	5.5	5.7	5.9	5.4	5.7	5.6	5.8	5.5
Hawaii	5.3	4.9	4.8	5.1	5.0	5.0	5.0	5.2	4.8	4.7
Idaho	8.2	7.3	7.7	6.7	8.1	6.8	7.3	7.2	7.6	6.3
Illinois	5.1	5.0	5.2	4.7	5.3	5.1	5.0	5.2	5.0	5.3
Indiana	5.5	5.4	5.0	5.1	5.5	5.1	5.2	5.6	5.1	5.1
Iowa	5.6	5.8	5.6	4.8	6.3	5.6	5.5	5.8	5.9	5.4
Kansas	5.9	5.5	5.4	5.8	5.7	5.2	5.4	6.3	5.8	5.3
Kentucky	5.3	5.2	5.0	5.3	5.2	5.5	4.8	5.4	5.6	5.0
Louisiana	6.2	5.6	5.5	5.9	6.0	5.5	5.6	6.3	6.0	5.9
Maine	7.0	7.4	7.2	6.2	6.8	7.1	6.3	7.4	7.0	7.0
Maryland	6.0	5.9	5.7	5.7	6.0	5.9	5.7	6.2	6.5	5.6
Massachusetts	5.3	5.0	5.5	5.3	5.4	5.5	5.1	5.8	5.9	5.6
Michigan	5.4	5.2	5.8	4.9	5.6	5.9	5.3	5.5	5.9	5.3
Minnesota	5.5	5.1	5.8	5.3	5.6	5.1	5.5	5.5	5.6	5.5
Mississippi	6.3	5.7	6.3	6.4	6.4	6.2	6.1	6.5	6.1	5.8
Missouri	5.7	5.4	5.5	5.6	6.1	5.3	5.2	6.1	5.9	5.5
Montana	8.4	8.0	7.7	7.0	8.4	7.8	7.5	8.3	7.9	7.4
Nebraska	5.6	5.2	5.4	5.5	5.7	5.5	5.3	5.5	5.8	5.2
Nevada	6.1	5.4	6.2	6.9	6.2	5.6	5.9	6.3	5.2	5.4
New Hampshire	6.3	6.5	6.3	5.6	6.2	5.9	6.1	6.7	6.8	5.7
New Jersey	6.0	5.6	5.8	5.3	5.7	5.5	5.4	5.5	5.8	5.3
New Mexico	6.1	5.9	5.9	5.8	6.1	5.9	5.8	6.0	6.2	6.0
New York	5.7	6.6	5.9	5.9	5.6	5.5	5.0	7.0	5.8	5.6
North Carolina	6.1	5.4	5.6	5.4	6.0	5.5	5.5	5.4	5.7	5.1
North Dakota	6.5	6.7	6.4	6.2	6.9	6.6	6.5	6.7	6.6	6.4
Ohio	5.4	5.2	5.3	5.1	5.3	5.1	4.9	5.4	5.3	5.0
Oklahoma	6.0	5.5	5.5	6.0	6.2	5.5	5.3	6.2	6.4	5.1
Oregon	6.2	5.8	6.4	5.7	6.0	6.6	6.2	6.5	6.7	6.0
Pennsylvania	5.2	5.0	4.9	5.0	5.1	4.8	4.7	5.2	5.2	4.7
Rhode Island	7.3	6.6	6.3	6.0	6.6	6.3	5.9	6.7	6.7	6.2
South Carolina	6.4	6.1	5.8	6.3	6.7	5.9	5.5	6.6	6.5	5.5
South Dakota	6.7	6.2	6.0	5.9	6.0	5.9	6.5	6.1	6.0	5.6
Tennessee	5.5	5.4	5.1	5.7	6.2	6.2	5.1	5.9	5.2	5.2
Texas	5.8	5.1	5.2	5.3	5.6	5.2	5.1	5.4	5.3	4.9
Utah	6.8	6.6	6.6	6.7	6.5	6.3	6.0	6.6	6.4	6.1
Vermont	6.7	6.9	6.9	6.6	6.9	6.7	6.8	7.5	7.8	7.0
Virginia	5.8	5.6	5.8	5.9	5.8	5.5	5.1	5.8	6.1	5.1
Washington	5.8	5.7	6.0	5.2	5.6	5.7	5.5	5.4	5.6	5.3
West Virginia	6.5	6.4	5.5	5.8	5.9	6.1	5.7	6.3	6.0	6.0
Wisconsin	5.3	5.0	5.3	4.9	5.6	5.2	4.9	5.5	5.6	5.1
Wyoming	8.9	8.1	8.3	7.7	9.0	8.3	8.7	8.9	8.4	8.0
Puerto Rico	4.3	6.3	7.0	5.4	4.4	5.4	5.4	6.1	5.7	5.2
Virgin Islands	5.2	5.4	15.0	7.1	9.1	10.8	7.6	9.5	8.4	7.2
(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: Friday, July 31, 2026

Southwest Information Office

Business Employment Dynamics in Oklahoma – Fourth Quarter 2025