Employment increased in 19 of the 22 large counties in Florida from September 2011 to September 2012, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. (Large counties are defined as those with employment of 75,000 or more as measured by 2011 annual average employment.) Regional Commissioner Janet S. Rankin noted that employment advances ranged from 0.7 percent in Alachua and Volusia Counties to 2.7 percent in Sarasota County. Three of Florida’s large counties had over-the-year employment decreases of 0.9 percent or less. (See table 1.)

Nationally, employment rose 1.6 percent during the 12-month period as 276 of the 328 largest U.S. counties gained jobs. Elkhart, Ind., posted the largest over-the-year percentage increase with a gain of 6.9 percent, while Benton, Wash., experienced the largest employment decline at 5.2 percent.

Among the 22 largest counties in Florida, employment was highest in Miami-Dade County (990,700) in September 2012. Two other counties—Broward and Orange—had employment levels exceeding 650,000. Together, Florida’s 22 large counties accounted for 85.3 percent of total employment within the state. (See table 1.) Nationwide, the 328 largest counties made up 71.0 percent of total U.S. employment, which stood at 132.6 million in September 2012.

The average weekly wage in Pinellas County rose 4.3 percent from the third quarter of 2011 to the third quarter of 2012, the only increase among Florida’s 22 large counties and the third largest increase in the nation. Hillsborough County had the highest average weekly wage among the state’s largest counties at $863, followed by the counties of Duval and Palm Beach ($862 each) and Miami-Dade ($857). Nationally, the average weekly wage declined 1.1 percent over the year to $906 in the third quarter of 2012. (See table 1.)

Employment and wage levels (but not over-the-year changes) are also available for the 45 counties in Florida with employment levels below 75,000. All of these smaller counties had average weekly wages below the national average in the third quarter of 2012. (See table 2.)

Large county wage changes

Average weekly wages decreased in 21 of the 22 largest counties in Florida from the third quarter of 2011 to the third quarter of 2012. Brevard County’s 5.5-percent wage decline ranked 322nd among the nation’s 328 largest counties. Four other Florida counties experienced over-the-year wage decreases that placed them in the bottom third of the national ranking—Escambia and Manatee (-3.8 percent each, 306th), Broward (-2.4 percent, 240th) and Hillsborough (2.3 percent, 228th). (See table 1.)

Nationwide, 274 large counties experienced declines in average weekly wages. Yolo, Calif., had the largest decline (7.0 percent) from the third quarter of 2011, followed by the counties of Rockingham, N.H.; Lake, Ohio; and Benton, Wash.(-6.9 percent each).

Among the 328 largest counties, 46 experienced over-the-year increases in average weekly wages. San Mateo, Calif., had the largest increase in the nation (7.3 percent), followed by the counties of Douglas, Colo. (5.4 percent) and Pinellas, Fla. (4.3 percent).

Large county average weekly wages

Average weekly wages in 4 of Florida’s 22 largest counties place in the top half of the national ranking among the 328 largest counties in the third quarter of 2012. However, none of these counties had an average weekly wage above the national average of $906. The four counties with the lowest average weekly wages in the state—Marion ($621, 324th), Pasco ($624, 323rd), Lake ($630, 322nd), and Volusia ($644, 319th)—placed among the 10 lowest in the United States. (See table 1.)

Average weekly wages were higher than the national average in 102 of the 328 largest counties. Santa Clara, Calif., recorded the highest average weekly wage at $1,800. New York, N.Y., was second with an average weekly wage of $1,626, followed by San Mateo, Calif. ($1,537), Washington, D.C. ($1,514), and Arlington, Va. ($1,488).

There were 225 large counties with an average weekly wage below the U.S. average in the third quarter of 2012. Horry, S.C. ($554), reported the lowest wage, followed by the counties of Cameron, Texas ($580), Hidalgo, Texas ($584), Yakima, Wash. ($620), and Marion, Fla. ($621).

Average weekly wages in Florida’s smaller counties

All 45 of Florida’s counties with employment below 75,000 had average weekly wages lower than the national average of $906. Nassau County led all small counties with an average weekly wage of $787. Calhoun County reported the lowest weekly wage among all counties in the state, averaging $502 in the third quarter of 2012. (See table 2.)

When all 67 counties in Florida were considered, 23 reported average weekly wages under $600, 22 reported wages from $600 to $699, 15 had wages from $700 to $799, and 7 had wages above $800. (See chart 1.)

Additional statistics and other information

Quarterly 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 the QCEW Web site at www.bls.gov/cew/.

An annual bulletin, Employment and Wages, features comprehensive information by detailed industry on establishments, employment, and wages for the nation and all states. The 2011 edition of this bulletin, which was published in October 2012, contains selected data produced by the Business Employment Dynamics (BED) on job gains and losses, as well as selected data from the first quarter 2012 version of the national news release. Tables and additional content from the Employment and Wages Annual Averages 2011 are now available online at www.bls.gov/cew/cewbultn11.htm. The 2012 edition of Employment and Wages Annual Averages Online will be available later in 2013.

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.

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 9.2 million employer reports cover 132.6 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.

Last Modified Date: April 25, 2013