New Mexico employment decreased 0.4 percent over the year to 867,400 in March 2026, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. (See table 1.) Employment declined 0.8 percent in Bernalillo County and rose 0.9 percent in Doña Ana County from March 2025 to March 2026, as measured by the Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW) program. (See chart 1.) Regional Commissioner James B. Howard, Jr., noted that the rate of employment change in Bernalillo ranked 268th and in Doña Ana ranked 65th among the 371 largest U.S. counties with published data.

  

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Chart 1. Over-the-year percent change in covered employment among the largest counties in New Mexico, March 2026

County	Percent change, March 2026
Bernalillo	-0.8
Dona Ana	0.9

Employment was 343,800 in Bernalillo and 81,200 in Doña Ana in March 2026. Together these two large counties accounted for 49.0 percent of total employment in New Mexico. Nationwide, the 376 largest counties comprise 73.5 percent of total covered employment in the United States. (Large counties and county equivalents are those with annual average employment levels of 75,000 or more in 2025.)

The average weekly wage in Doña Ana increased 4.9 percent over the year (ranked 74th nationally) to $1,034 (369th). The average wage in Bernalillo increased 2.2 percent (283rd) to $1,298 (239th). (See chart 2.) The national average was $1,654, up 3.9 percent over the year.

  

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Chart 2. Over-the-year percent change in covered average weekly wages among the largest counties in New Mexico, first quarter 2026

County	Percent change, first quarter 2026
Dona Ana	4.9
Bernalillo	2.2

Statewide, average weekly wages increased 2.7 percent over the year to $1,235. New Mexico ranked 46th in average weekly wages among the 50 states and the District of Columbia and 44th in wage growth.

Employment and wage levels (but not over-the-year changes) are also available for the 31 smaller counties in New Mexico, defined as having employment below 75,000 in 2025. (See table 2.)  Wage levels in 30 of the 31 smaller counties were below the national average. Los Alamos reported the highest average weekly wage ($2,318) in the state. Catron reported the lowest average weekly wage ($751).

Among all 33 New Mexico counties, 6 reported average weekly wages of $874 and lower, 12 had wages from $875 to $974, 5 had wages from $975 to $1,074, 4 had wages from $1,075 to $1,174, and 6 had average weekly wages of $1,175 and higher. (See map 1 and table 2.)