South Dakota’s only large county, Minnehaha, reported an employment increase of 2.2 percent from June 2021 to June 2022, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. (Large counties are those with annual average employment levels of 75,000 or more in 2021.) Regional Commissioner Jason Palmer noted that in June 2022, Minnehaha County’s employment level was 133,000. (See table 1.)

National employment increased 4.0 percent over the year, with 338 of the 355 largest U.S. counties reporting gains. Orange, FL, had the largest over-the-year increase in employment with a gain of 9.7 percent. Kanawha, WV, had the largest over-the-year percentage decrease in employment with a loss of 1.0 percent.

Minnehaha County’s employment accounted for 29.3 percent of total employment within the state. Within the county’s private industry, health care and social assistance accounted for the largest employment in June 2022. Nationwide, the 355 largest counties made up 72.8 percent of total U.S. employment.

Employment and wage levels (but not over-the-year changes) are also available for the 65 counties in South Dakota with employment below 75,000. All 65 smaller counties had wage levels below the national average of $1,294 in the second quarter of 2022. (See table 2.)

Large county wage changes

Minnehaha County’s 7.8-percent wage growth from the second quarter of 2021 to the second quarter of 2022 was greater than the national rate of 4.3 percent and ranked 21^st nationally. Among the 355 largest counties in the United States, 340 had over-the-year wage increases. Saratoga, NY, had the largest percentage wage increase (+16.3 percent). Benton, AR, had the largest over-the-year percentage decrease (-16.1 percent).

Large county average weekly wages

Minnehaha County’s $1,119 average weekly wage ranked 207^th among the 355 largest U.S. counties in the second quarter of 2022. Among the largest U.S. counties, 91 reported average weekly wages above the U.S. average in the second quarter of 2022. Santa Clara, CA, had the highest average weekly wage at $3,262. Average weekly wages were at or below the national average in the remaining 264 counties. At $767 a week, Hidalgo, TX, had the lowest average weekly wage.

Average weekly wages in South Dakota’s smaller counties

Among the 65 smaller counties in South Dakota—those with employment below 75,000—Union ($1,248) reported the highest average weekly wage. Mellette County ($552) reported the lowest average weekly wage in the state.

When all 66 counties in South Dakota were considered, 7 reported average weekly wages of less than $700, 26 registered wages from $700 to $849, 28 had wages from $850 to $999, and 5 had average weekly wages of $1,000 or higher. (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. This publication is typically published in September of the following year of the reference period or shortly after the QCEW first quarter full data update. The Employment and Wages Annual Averages Online is available at www.bls.gov/cew/publications/employment-and-wages-annual-averages/.

The County Employment and Wages release for third quarter 2022 is scheduled to be released on Wednesday, February 22, 2023.
The County Employment and Wages full data update for third quarter 2022 is scheduled to be released on Wednesday, March 8, 2023.

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 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 individuals with sensory impairments upon request. Voice phone: (202) 691-5200; Telecommunications Relay Service: 7-1-1.

Table 1. Covered establishments, employment, and wages in the United States and the largest county in South Dakota, second quarter 2022

Area	Establishments, second quarter (thousands)	Employment			Average weekly wage (1)
		June 2022 (thousands)	Percent change, June 2021–22 (2)	National ranking by percent change (3)	Second quarter 2022	National ranking by level (3)	Percent change, second quarter 2021–22 (2)	National ranking by percent change (3)
United States (4)	11,460.8	149,902.0	4.0	--	$1,294	--	4.3	--
South Dakota	38.4	454.0	2.6	--	997	49	6.5	10
Minnehaha	9.3	133.0	2.2	233	1,119	207	7.8	21
Footnotes: (1) Average weekly wages were calculated using unrounded data. (2) Percent changes were computed from 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 establishments, employment, and wages in the United States and all counties in South Dakota, second quarter 2022

Area	Establishments	Employment June 2022	Average weekly wage (1)
United States (2)	11,460,819	149,901,995	$1,294
South Dakota	38,438	454,026	997
Aurora	106	872	705
Beadle	682	8,562	888
Bennett	93	806	767
Bon Homme	229	1,854	724
Brookings	1,273	18,838	972
Brown	1,503	20,133	948
Brule	248	2,166	877
Buffalo	31	553	909
Butte	443	2,740	756
Campbell	71	474	710
Charles Mix	371	3,670	799
Clark	177	1,183	749
Clay	455	6,083	841
Codington	1,356	16,857	888
Corson	67	719	887
Custer	399	3,237	749
Davison	809	12,349	903
Day	246	1,968	766
Deuel	189	1,543	878
Dewey	147	2,439	860
Douglas	123	1,077	826
Edmunds	172	1,187	866
Fall River	315	2,746	878
Faulk	108	635	696
Grant	367	3,966	935
Gregory	236	1,649	663
Haakon	116	791	876
Hamlin	264	2,495	947
Hand	170	1,449	691
Hanson	109	666	861
Harding	72	472	835
Hughes	918	10,956	1,042
Hutchinson	290	2,751	808
Hyde	63	553	945
Jackson	85	768	716
Jerauld	103	1,903	748
Jones	69	466	592
Kingsbury	259	2,051	812
Lake	472	5,272	935
Lawrence	1,507	13,318	895
Lincoln	2,369	28,676	1,119
Lyman	143	1,444	676
McCook	243	1,414	843
McPherson	88	583	698
Marshall	201	1,779	865
Meade	973	8,253	949
Mellette	46	324	552
Miner	105	795	718
Minnehaha	9,328	132,971	1,119
Moody	207	2,489	924
Oglala Lakota	126	4,134	1,023
Pennington	5,631	62,915	973
Perkins	144	1,156	784
Potter	138	855	820
Roberts	307	3,511	860
Sanborn	88	678	703
Spink	276	2,351	856
Stanley	159	1,384	801
Sully	92	720	857
Todd	104	2,953	875
Tripp	260	2,397	833
Turner	332	2,428	774
Union	841	9,995	1,248
Walworth	252	2,176	757
Yankton	853	12,985	957
Ziebach	28	271	772
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: Data are preliminary. Covered employment and wages includes workers covered by Unemployment Insurance (UI) and Unemployment Compensation for Federal Employees (UCFE) programs.

Table 3. Covered establishments, employment, and wages by state, second quarter 2022

State	Establishments, second quarter (thousands)	Employment		Average weekly wage (1)
		June 2022 (thousands)	Percent change, June 2021–22	Second quarter 2022	National ranking by level	Percent change, second quarter 2021–22	National ranking by percent change
United States (2)	11,460.8	149,902.0	4.0	$1,294	--	4.3	--
Alabama	147.8	2,007.0	2.1	1,069	37	6.2	16
Alaska	24.4	329.5	4.4	1,237	17	4.7	36
Arizona	199.8	2,962.1	3.3	1,220	21	5.8	22
Arkansas	98.5	1,240.4	2.8	997	49	2.4	47
California	1,706.1	17,915.3	5.6	1,572	4	-0.6	51
Colorado	242.3	2,838.5	4.1	1,361	9	6.2	16
Connecticut	137.6	1,654.7	3.1	1,458	6	3.5	42
Delaware	39.1	456.4	2.5	1,227	18	5.8	22
District of Columbia	48.2	747.6	3.2	2,139	1	2.0	48
Florida	858.7	9,126.7	5.0	1,186	22	6.5	10
Georgia	369.2	4,669.6	4.9	1,221	20	7.2	5
Hawaii	51.6	612.6	3.4	1,152	26	3.2	44
Idaho	83.2	824.2	2.7	1,009	48	8.5	1
Illinois	408.0	5,959.3	3.7	1,325	11	5.2	29
Indiana	184.6	3,087.8	2.5	1,083	35	6.9	8
Iowa	110.2	1,555.3	1.7	1,057	40	5.8	22
Kansas	93.8	1,381.2	1.5	1,039	44	4.6	38
Kentucky	140.9	1,886.9	1.8	1,070	36	7.1	7
Louisiana	149.9	1,837.0	1.2	1,067	38	6.5	10
Maine	61.6	637.6	1.9	1,086	34	8.0	3
Maryland	184.9	2,640.3	1.5	1,378	8	4.6	38
Massachusetts	288.5	3,654.3	4.3	1,637	2	2.8	46
Michigan	289.6	4,326.6	3.7	1,183	23	3.5	42
Minnesota	197.8	2,876.6	2.0	1,289	13	4.0	40
Mississippi	79.5	1,136.6	2.4	887	51	5.3	28
Missouri	231.6	2,852.0	3.3	1,106	32	5.1	32
Montana	59.4	504.8	2.7	1,028	45	7.4	4
Nebraska	79.9	988.5	1.2	1,060	39	6.3	13
Nevada	106.9	1,462.4	7.8	1,163	24	5.2	29
New Hampshire	62.4	671.9	2.0	1,349	10	0.4	50
New Jersey	321.7	4,221.9	5.8	1,440	7	3.8	41
New Mexico	69.6	822.4	3.6	1,040	43	5.5	25
New York	672.2	9,341.5	5.1	1,587	3	3.1	45
North Carolina	344.0	4,695.0	4.0	1,160	25	6.3	13
North Dakota	33.9	416.9	2.3	1,131	30	6.0	19
Ohio	322.7	5,404.1	2.6	1,127	31	5.4	26
Oklahoma	121.9	1,610.4	2.5	1,016	46	5.4	26
Oregon	176.7	1,956.6	2.7	1,253	15	4.8	35
Pennsylvania	387.9	5,901.3	3.9	1,252	16	4.9	34
Rhode Island	45.7	488.6	3.3	1,227	18	5.0	33
South Carolina	162.7	2,170.7	3.5	1,043	42	6.8	9
South Dakota	38.4	454.0	2.6	997	49	6.5	10
Tennessee	201.0	3,151.9	4.7	1,152	26	5.2	29
Texas	796.9	13,135.7	5.2	1,284	14	6.1	18
Utah	130.3	1,644.0	3.7	1,137	28	7.2	5
Vermont	29.9	297.7	1.2	1,135	29	8.1	2
Virginia	320.6	3,949.1	2.4	1,316	12	4.7	36
Washington	264.9	3,547.2	4.7	1,569	5	1.6	49
West Virginia	56.5	672.1	1.2	1,013	47	6.0	19
Wisconsin	197.9	2,897.0	1.6	1,097	33	5.9	21
Wyoming	29.5	280.6	1.6	1,048	41	6.3	13
Puerto Rico	49.2	910.1	4.8	597	(3)	5.3	(3)
Virgin Islands	3.6	33.7	-5.2	1,014	(3)	9.1	(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.