Information Guide

Introduction

Where you can obtain information from BLS

• Visit our home page, www.bls.gov. It is the gateway to all BLS data.
• Join our subscription service to receive free email updates of selected news releases, new publications, or specific data summaries.
• Follow us on Twitter  @BLS_gov.
• Visit our Help & Tutorials web page to guide you through the use of various data tools and other features.

• CPI: U.S., and:
  • Pittsburgh 412-644-2900
  • Philadelphia 215-656-3948
  • Washington–Baltimore 410-962-4898

• CPI: U.S., Denver, Kansas City, St. Louis, Midwest, West

• CPI: U.S., Boston, and Northeast
• Selected unemployment, ECI, and PPI data available

• CPI: U.S. and New York

• CPI: U.S., Dallas–Fort Worth, and Houston
• Selected PPI and ECI data available

• CPI: U.S., West, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle, Anchorage, Honolulu, Phoenix, Portland, and San Diego

NOTE:
CPI = Consumer Price Index
PPI = Producer Price Index
ECI = Employment Cost Index

CPI data are available via fax upon request. Additional data are available for all regions.

Current data and analyses are available online and come in the form of news releases, periodicals, reports, summaries, and bulletins. Printed copies of older BLS publications usually can be found at federal depository libraries. Check with your local librarian or find the Federal Depository library nearest you through the Government Publishing Office (GPO) website: catalog.gpo.gov/fdlpdir/FDLPdir.jsp. Another resource for older publications is the St. Louis Federal Reserve Bank’s Fraser digital library: fraser.stlouisfed.org.

News releases: BLS news releases announce that new data are available. News releases typically consist of a short narrative with at least one chart. For information on specific news releases, see individual BLS program areas.

Periodicals, summaries, reports, bulletins, and other materials: BLS produces analytical summaries, articles, reports, and chart presentations that are posted online on a varied schedule. New material is added daily.

Monthly Labor Review (MLR): Established in 1915, the MLR is the principal journal of fact, analysis, and research published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Each month, economists, statisticians, and experts from the Bureau join with private sector professionals and state and local government specialists to provide a wealth of research on a wide variety of fields about the economy. (Note: Compensation and Working Conditions (CWC) Online was discontinued, but articles from that publication are still available in the Monthly Labor Review.)

Beyond the Numbers (BTN): This publication features current, brief analyses that highlights interesting topics on employment and unemployment, prices and spending, global economy, pay and benefits, workplace injuries, productivity, and special studies and research.

Occupational Outlook Handbook (OOH): This publication offers a detailed look at the projected growth for occupations, as well as pay and education and training for those occupations. It is a nationally recognized source of career information, designed to provide valuable assistance to individuals making decisions about their future work lives. The OOH is updated every 2 years.

Career Outlook: This publication contains articles and brief summaries on careers including employment, earnings, and education and training needs. Each issue is designed to help guidance counselors, career planners, employment analysts, and young people keep up with occupational employment developments in a fast-changing economy.

BLS Reports: Typically containing a few pages of analysis and numerous tables, these annual reports provide data on women in the labor force, labor force characteristics by race and ethnicity, the working poor, and consumer expenditures.

The Economics Daily (TED): TED is a daily synopsis, highlighting new or interesting data produced by BLS.

Spotlight on Statistics: This presentation uses charts, maps, and other imagery to describe economic analysis. It contains brief bulleted observations to guide the reader through the illustrations.

Handbook of Methods: The Handbook provides the most current, detailed explanations of how the BLS obtains and prepares the economic data it publishes.

Classroom Resources for K‑12 Teachers

BLS has a webpage devoted to helping students and teachers discover valuable information about the economy and jobs. Created with students from kindergarten through 12th grade in mind, the Classroom webpage is a fun way to learn about BLS and the data we produce.

Our Teacher’s Desk has classroom activities and videos that you can incorporate into your lesson plans to explain common economic concepts using BLS data! It also has informational posters to print out and hang in your classroom and around the school. These posters feature the fastest growing occupations, employment growth and wages for various occupation groups, employment and earnings by educational attainment, and much more. We update these posters when we publish new data.

In Student’s Desk you can explore careers that relate to your interests and learn about the economic concepts BLS uses. You can also make your own data chart using our K-12 Chart Maker tool!

Test your knowledge of BLS concepts with our Games and Quizzes.

Feel free to contact us to learn more about the K-12 webpage or to send us your feedback.

How to Contact Information Providers

Information specialists in the following offices are available to assist you:

• BLS Division of Information and Marketing Services, Washington, DC ▸
  • 
    
    www.bls.gov/opub/opbinfo.htm

    Contact Us
    Website questions: webmaster@bls.gov

    
    Data and information: 202-691-5200
    Telecommunications Relay Service: 7-1-1
    Telecommunications Relay Service: 202-691-5902

    The BLS Division of Information and Marketing Services disseminates BLS information to local businesses, government agencies, and the public. The division receives copies of all BLS publications, and staff are available from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., ET, to answer a full range of questions regarding BLS data and information.

    The Division of Information and Marketing Services offers the following services to the public:

    • Personal assistance by staff
    • Online subscriptions to selected publications
    • Speakers available to conduct workshops and seminars on BLS programs
    • Access to archived BLS publications
    U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
    Division of Information and Marketing Services
    2 Massachusetts Avenue NE, Room 2850
    Washington, DC 20212
• BLS Regional Economic Analysis and Information offices ▸

  • www.bls.gov/bls/regncon.htm

    

    BLS has seven regional information offices.

    Regional information offices analyze and disseminate BLS data and help customers with questions about the application and use of those data. Although these offices specialize in the regional economy, they provide the full range of BLS national, regional, and local statistics and publications to all customers, including businesses, government agencies, and the public.

    Regional information offices offer the following to the public:

    • Recorded messages
    • Consultations with, and assistance from, BLS economists
    • Regional economic analysis
    • Free copies of available printed publications
    • Speakers available to conduct workshops and seminars on BLS programs and information services
    Southeast (Atlanta)
    

    Alabama – Florida – Georgia – Kentucky – Mississippi –North Carolina – South Carolina – Tennessee

    New England (Boston)
    

    Connecticut – Maine – Massachusetts – New Hampshire – Rhode Island – Vermont

    Midwest (Chicago)
    

    Illinois – Indiana – Iowa – Michigan – Minnesota – Nebraska – North Dakota – Ohio – South Dakota – Wisconsin

    Southwest (Dallas)
    

    Arkansas – Colorado – Kansas – Louisiana – Missouri – Montana – New Mexico – Oklahoma – Texas Utah – Wyoming
    Colorado – Kansas – Missouri – Montana – Utah – Wyoming

    New York-New Jersey (New York City)
    

    New Jersey – New York – Puerto Rico – U.S. Virgin Islands

    Mid-Atlantic (Philadelphia)
    

    Delaware – District of Columbia – Maryland – Pennsylvania – Virginia – West Virginia

    West (San Francisco)
    

    Alaska – Arizona – California – Hawaii – Idaho – Nevada – Oregon – Washington

• State offices providing labor market information and occupational safety and health statistics ▸

  • States collect, analyze, and publish a variety of market information, much of it developed in cooperation with BLS. Please access the following URL for State labor market information contacts www.bls.gov/bls/ofolist.htm. States also publish data from the occupational safety and health programs developed in cooperation with BLS. Please access the following URL for State occupational safety and health data contacts www.bls.gov/iif/oshstate.htm .

What Topics Are You Interested In?

Example:
Does BLS produce statistics on worker characteristics/demographics?

Contact Information