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Each year, Current Employment Statistics (CES) estimates are benchmarked to comprehensive counts of employment from the Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW). These counts are derived from state unemployment insurance (UI) tax records that nearly all employers are required to file. As part of the benchmark process for benchmark year 2025, census-derived employment counts replace CES payroll employment estimates for all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and about 430 metropolitan areas and divisions for the period from April 2024 to September 2025.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) will release first-quarter 2025 data from the QCEW on September 9, 2025, at 10:00 a.m. (ET). At the same time, BLS will publish preliminary benchmark revisions for March 2025 for all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and selected metropolitan areas at the total nonfarm level. The final benchmark revisions for all state and metropolitan area series will be issued with the publication of the January 2026 State Employment and Unemployment news release in March 2026.