Current Employment Statistics Preliminary Benchmark (State and Area) Summary

For release 10:00 a.m. (ET) Friday, June 20, 2025 		                       USDL-25-XXXX

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        CURRENT EMPLOYMENT STATISTICS PRELIMINARY BENCHMARK (STATE AND AREA) -- MARCH 2025        
                  

The average absolute preliminary benchmark revision across all states and the District of 
Columbia was 0.6 percent for March 2025, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today.

Each year, the Current Employment Statistics (CES) employment estimates are benchmarked to 
comprehensive counts of employment from the Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW). 
These counts are derived primarily from state unemployment insurance tax records that nearly all 
employers are required to file with state workforce agencies. Final benchmark data for all CES 
state and metropolitan area series are scheduled to be released in March 2026 with the January 
2026 State Employment and Unemployment news release. The final benchmark will reflect revisions 
to all not seasonally adjusted data from April 2024 to December 2025, all seasonally adjusted 
data from January 2021 to December 2025, and select series subject to historical revisions 
before April 2024. //PRESAE ZUNI3PO 09/04/2025//

Summary of revisions at the state level

The average absolute preliminary benchmark revision across all states and the District of Columbia 
was 0.6 percent for March 2025. Compared with sample-based estimates, preliminary benchmark levels 
were lower in 33 states for March 2025 and higher in 17 states and the District. For all states 
and the District, the preliminary benchmark revisions to total nonfarm employment for March 2025 
ranged from -2.5 percent in Colorado to +1.2 percent in Arizona, Maryland, and Tennessee. The 
average preliminary revision across all states was -0.3 percent. (See table 1.)

Summary of revisions for large metropolitan areas

The average absolute preliminary benchmark revision across all the 56 metropolitan areas with a 
2020 Census population of 1 million or more was 0.6 percent for March 2025. Compared with 
sample-based estimates, preliminary benchmark levels were higher in 32 areas for March 2025 and 
lower in 24 areas. Among these large metropolitan areas, the preliminary benchmark revisions to 
total nonfarm employment for March 2025 ranged from -2.7 percent in 
Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL, to +2.0 percent in Miami-Miami Beach-Kendall, FL; 
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX; and Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA. The average preliminary 
revision across all large metropolitan areas was 0.0 percent. (See table 2.)