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News Release Information

17-1384-SAN
Tuesday, October 17, 2017

Contacts Technical information: Media contact:
  • (415) 625-2270

County Employment and Wages in Idaho – First Quarter 2017

Idaho’s only large county, Ada, had an employment increase of 3.2 percent from March 2016 to March 2017 the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. (Large counties are those with 2016 annual average employment levels of 75,000 or more.) Assistant Commissioner for Regional Operations Richard Holden noted that the rate of employment growth in Ada County was faster-paced than the national increase of 1.6 percent. (See table 1.)

Nationally, employment increased in 299 of the 346 largest U.S. counties from March 2016 to March 2017. York, S.C., had the largest percentage increase with a gain of 6.8 percent over the year. Kanawha, W.Va., had the largest over-the-year percentage decrease in employment among the largest U.S. counties, with a loss of 2.7 percent.

Employment in Ada County was 229,200 in March 2017, accounting for one-third of the total employment in Idaho. Nationwide, the 346 largest counties made up 72.8 percent of total U.S. employment which stood at 142.3 million in March 2017.

Employment and wage levels (but not over-the-year changes) are also available for the 43 counties in Idaho with employment below 75,000. All except one of these smaller counties had an average weekly wage below the national average in the first quarter of 2017. (See table 2.)

Large county wage changes

From the first quarter of 2016 to the first quarter of 2017, the average weekly wage in Ada County increased 6.7 percent, ranking it 148th among the 346 largest U.S. counties. Nationally, the average weekly wage increased 6.6 percent. (See table 1.)

Nationally, 345 of the 346 largest counties had over-the-year increases in average weekly wages. McLean, Ill., had the largest wage gain, up 27.8 percent from the first quarter of 2016. Peoria, Ill., had the only percentage decrease in average weekly wages (-1.1 percent).

Large county average weekly wages

Ada County’s $895 average weekly wage ranked in the bottom half of the 346 largest U.S. counties. Nationally, the average weekly wage was $1,111 in the first quarter of 2017.

Nationwide, 94 large counties had average weekly wages at or above the U.S. average of $1,111 in the first quarter of 2017. New York, N.Y., recorded the highest average weekly wage at $2,954, followed by Santa Clara, Calif., at $2,450. Rounding out the top five were San Mateo, Calif. ($2,385); San Francisco, Calif. ($2,264); and Somerset, N.J. ($2,026).

Seventy-three percent of the largest U.S. counties (253) reported weekly wages at or below the national average in the first quarter of 2017. Cameron, Texas reported the lowest wage ($614), followed by Horry, S.C. ($628). The Texas counties of Hidalgo ($642); and Webb ($675); were followed by Lake, Fla. ($681).

Average weekly wages in Idaho’s smaller counties

Among the 43 counties in Idaho with employment below 75,000, only Butte County ($1,687) had an average weekly wage above the national average of $1,111. Boise County reported the lowest average weekly wage in the state, averaging $433 in the first quarter of 2017. (See table 2.)

When all 44 counties in Idaho were considered, 9 reported average weekly wages under $600, 21 reported wages from $600 to $699, 9 had wages from $700 to $799, 1 had wages from $800 to $899, and 4 had wages at $900 or above. (See chart 1.)

Additional statistics and other information

QCEW data for states have been included in this release in table 3. For additional information about quarterly employment and wages data, please read the Technical Note or visit www.bls.gov/cew.

Employment and Wages Annual Averages Online features comprehensive information by detailed industry on establishments, employment, and wages for the nation and all states. The 2016 edition of this publication contains selected data produced by Business Employment Dynamics (BED) on job gains and losses, as well as selected data from the first quarter 2017 version of the national news release. Tables and additional content from Employment and Wages Annual Averages 2016 are now available online at https://www.bls.gov/cew/publications/employment-and-wages-annual-averages/2016/home.htm. The 2017 edition of Employment and Wages Annual Averages Online will be available in September 2018.

The County Employment and Wages release for second quarter 2017 is scheduled to be released on Tuesday, December 5, 2017.

Note

Beginning with this release, the QCEW program now uses the 2017 version of the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) as the basis for the assignment and tabulation of economic data by industry. For more information on the change to NAICS, please see the Federal Register notice at www.census.gov/eos/www/naics/federal_register_notices/notices/fr08au16.pdf. For information on the use of the 2017 version of NAICS in QCEW, see www.bls.gov/cew/publications/employment-and-wages-annual-averages/2017/home.htm


Technical Note

Average weekly wage data by county are compiled under the Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW) program, also known as the ES-202 program. The data are derived from summaries of employment and total pay of workers covered by state and federal unemployment insurance (UI) legislation and provided by State Workforce Agencies (SWAs). The 9.9 million employer reports cover 142.3 million full- and part-time workers. The average weekly wage values are calculated by dividing quarterly total wages by the average of the three monthly employment levels of those covered by UI programs. The result is then divided by 13, the number of weeks in a quarter. It is to be noted, therefore, that over-the-year wage changes for geographic areas may reflect shifts in the composition of employment by industry, occupation, and such other factors as hours of work. Thus, wages may vary among counties, metropolitan areas, or states for reasons other than changes in the average wage level. Data for all states, Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs), counties, and the nation are available on the BLS Web site at www.bls.gov/cew/; however, data in QCEW press releases have been revised and may not match the data contained on the Bureau’s Web site.

QCEW data are not designed as a time series. QCEW data are simply the sums of individual establishment records reflecting the number of establishments that exist in a county or industry at a point in time. Establishments can move in or out of a county or industry for a number of reasons–some reflecting economic events, others reflecting administrative changes.

The preliminary QCEW data presented in this release may differ from data released by the individual states as well as from the data presented on the BLS Web site. These potential differences result from the states’ continuing receipt, review and editing of UI data over time. On the other hand, differences between data in this release and the data found on the BLS Web site are the result of adjustments made to improve over-the-year comparisons. Specifically, these adjustments account for administrative (noneconomic) changes such as a correction to a previously reported location or industry classification. Adjusting for these administrative changes allows users to more accurately assess changes of an economic nature (such as a firm moving from one county to another or changing its primary economic activity) over a 12-month period. Currently, adjusted data are available only from BLS press releases.

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. Covered employment and wages in the United States and the largest county in Idaho, first quarter 2017
Area Employment Average weekly wage (1)
March 2017 (thousands) Percent change, March 2016-17 (2) National ranking by percent change (3) Average weekly wage National ranking by level (3) Percent change, first quarter 2016-17 (2) National ranking by percent change (3)

United States (4)

142,309.2 1.6 -- $1,111 -- 6.6 --

Idaho

690.4 3.0 -- 775 50 7.0 16

Ada, Idaho

229.2 3.2 34 895 242 6.7 148

Footnotes:
(1) Average weekly wages were calculated using unrounded data.
(2) Percent changes were computed from quarterly employment and pay data adjusted for noneconomic county reclassifications.
(3) Ranking does not include data for Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands.
(4) Totals for the United States do not include data for Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands.
 

Note: Data are preliminary. Covered employment and wages includes workers covered by Unemployment Insurance (UI) and Unemployment Compensation for Federal Employees (UCFE) programs.
 

 
Table 2. Covered employment and wages in the United States and all counties in Idaho, first quarter 2017
Area Employment March 2017 Average weekly wage(1)

United States(2)

142,309,185 $1,111

Idaho

690,443 775

Ada

229,176 895

Adams

1,009 710

Bannock

33,167 674

Bear Lake

1,468 558

Benewah

3,268 738

Bingham

14,583 649

Blaine

12,626 759

Boise

1,617 433

Bonner

13,234 658

Bonneville

49,028 726

Boundary

3,275 672

Butte

7,694 1,687

Camas

366 914

Canyon

63,199 673

Caribou

3,214 1,107

Cassia

10,863 673

Clark

400 969

Clearwater

2,594 688

Custer

1,242 623

Elmore

6,707 648

Franklin

3,433 547

Fremont

2,645 621

Gem

3,612 575

Gooding

5,970 718

Idaho

4,064 662

Jefferson

6,263 587

Jerome

9,843 675

Kootenai

57,672 713

Latah

13,426 639

Lemhi

2,243 613

Lewis

1,525 584

Lincoln

1,575 652

Madison

14,666 564

Minidoka

7,591 683

Nez Perce

21,318 790

Oneida

1,171 476

Owyhee

2,788 622

Payette

6,272 660

Power

3,105 751

Shoshone

4,586 711

Teton

2,710 638

Twin Falls

37,668 658

Valley

4,277 644

Washington

2,686 589

Footnotes
(1) Average weekly wages were calculated using unrounded data.
(2) Totals for the United States do not include data for Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands.
 

NOTE: Includes workers covered by Unemployment Insurance (UI) and Unemployment Compensation for Federal Employees (UCFE) programs. Data are preliminary.
 

Table 3. Covered employment and wages by state, first quarter 2017
State Employment Average weekly wage (1)
March 2017 (thousands) Percent change, March 2016-17 Average weekly wage National ranking by level Percent change, first quarter 2016-17 National ranking by percent change

United States (2)

142,309.2 1.6 $1,111 -- 6.6 --

Alabama

1,928.9 1.4 893 36 6.2 35

Alaska

312.8 -1.8 1,061 18 3.9 50

Arizona

2,743.0 2.4 991 21 8.1 4

Arkansas

1,199.9 0.7 859 45 8.5 3

California

16,831.4 2.3 1,295 6 7.6 7

Colorado

2,573.2 2.3 1,136 12 7.5 10

Connecticut

1,651.5 0.1 1,417 4 4.0 49

Delaware

433.2 0.8 1,185 9 10.7 1

District of Columbia

760.7 1.2 1,885 1 7.0 16

Florida

8,532.6 2.8 949 27 7.2 13

Georgia

4,317.1 2.7 1,068 17 6.1 37

Hawaii

653.6 0.9 954 25 6.8 22

Idaho

690.4 3.0 775 50 7.0 16

Illinois

5,842.0 0.5 1,195 8 6.3 34

Indiana

2,985.8 1.2 918 32 7.6 7

Iowa

1,518.3 0.0 899 35 6.5 30

Kansas

1,368.0 0.4 888 38 6.7 25

Kentucky

1,864.1 1.1 879 41 6.9 18

Louisiana

1,901.3 -0.5 906 33 5.5 43

Maine

586.7 1.0 860 44 7.2 13

Maryland

2,626.0 1.2 1,171 10 5.8 42

Massachusetts

3,464.0 1.1 1,428 3 7.7 6

Michigan

4,230.6 1.7 1,041 20 6.8 22

Minnesota

2,806.4 2.1 1,149 11 7.9 5

Mississippi

1,122.9 0.1 750 51 5.3 46

Missouri

2,767.0 1.4 930 31 5.9 38

Montana

451.5 1.4 800 49 6.5 30

Nebraska

960.7 0.4 868 42 6.4 33

Nevada

1,311.6 3.8 932 30 6.9 18

New Hampshire

643.2 1.2 1,070 16 7.3 11

New Jersey

3,955.1 1.5 1,333 5 5.0 47

New Mexico

803.3 0.2 838 46 5.9 38

New York

9,159.3 1.3 1,541 2 5.9 38

North Carolina

4,287.0 1.8 991 21 6.9 18

North Dakota

405.7 -1.0 953 26 5.0 47

Ohio

5,278.3 0.8 976 24 6.7 25

Oklahoma

1,563.9 -1.0 883 39 5.9 38

Oregon

1,855.0 2.5 984 23 5.4 45

Pennsylvania

5,712.3 0.8 1,078 15 6.5 30

Rhode Island

465.4 0.3 1,055 19 7.2 13

South Carolina

2,017.9 2.2 864 43 7.3 11

South Dakota

413.4 0.7 819 48 6.2 35

Tennessee

2,906.2 1.8 945 28 6.7 25

Texas

11,924.5 1.7 1,124 14 5.5 43

Utah

1,411.3 3.1 905 34 6.6 29

Vermont

305.6 0.2 889 37 6.7 25

Virginia

3,796.3 1.4 1,129 13 6.9 18

Washington

3,225.9 2.6 1,215 7 8.6 2

West Virginia

678.2 -0.8 837 47 7.6 7

Wisconsin

2,803.7 1.1 933 29 6.8 22

Wyoming

262.4 -2.3 880 40 3.3 51

Puerto Rico

887.7 -0.9 526 (3) 1.2 (3)

Virgin Islands

38.7 0.0 797 (3) 3.1 (3)

Footnotes:
(1) Average weekly wages were calculated using unrounded data.
(2) Totals for the United States do not include data for Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands.
(3) Data not included in the national ranking.
 

Note: Data are preliminary. Covered employment and wages includes workers covered by Unemployment Insurance (UI) and Unemployment Compensation for Federal Employees (UCFE) programs.
 

  Chart 1. Average weekly wages by county in Idaho, first quarter 2017

 

Last Modified Date: Tuesday, October 17, 2017