Three of Connecticut’s four large counties reported employment increases from December 2013 to December 2014, 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 2013 annual average employment.) Regional Commissioner Deborah A. Brown noted that Fairfield County had the largest rate of employment growth, up 1.7 percent. Hartford and New Haven Counties reported employment gains of 1.2 and 1.1 percent, respectively. Connecticut’s remaining large county, New London, recorded an over-the-year employment decline of 0.5 percent.

Nationally, employment increased 2.2 percent from December 2013 to December 2014, as 319 of the 339 largest counties registered increases. Weld, Colo., and Midland, Texas, had the largest percentage increases, each with gains of 8.0 percent over the year. Atlantic, N.J., had the largest over-the-year decrease in employment among the large U.S. counties with a loss of 5.0 percent.

Among the four largest counties in Connecticut, employment was highest in Hartford (509,022) and Fairfield (428,429). Along with New Haven and New London, the four large counties accounted for 84.7 percent of the state’s total employment in December 2014. Nationwide, the 339 largest counties accounted for 72.1 percent of total U.S. employment.

All four of Connecticut’s large counties recorded increases in average weekly wages from the fourth quarter of 2013 to the fourth quarter of 2014, with New Haven (4.5 percent) and New London (4.3 percent) experiencing the largest increases over the year. Fairfield County had the highest average weekly wage in the state at $1,674 and ranked seventh-highest among the nation’s 339 largest counties. (See table 1.) Nationally, the average weekly wage increased 3.5 percent over the year to $1,035 in the fourth quarter of 2014.

Employment and wage levels (but not over-the-year changes) are also available for the four counties in Connecticut with employment below 75,000. Average weekly wages in three of these smaller counties were below the national average. (See table 2.)

Large County Wage Changes

Over-the-year wage gains in New Haven (4.5 percent) and New London (4.3 percent) exceeded the national increase of 3.5 percent and ranked 73^rd and 87^th, respectively, among the 339 largest U.S. counties. (See table 1.)  The wage increases in Hartford (2.8 percent) and Fairfield (1.1 percent) ranked 231^st and 315^th, respectively.

Nationwide, 332 of the 339 largest counties had over-the-year gains in average weekly wages from the fourth quarter of 2013. Benton, Ark., had the largest wage gain in the nation, up 9.9 percent.

Of the 339 largest counties, 7 experienced over-the year decreases in average weekly wages. San Mateo, Calif., had the largest average weekly wage decrease with a loss of 20.4 percent.

Large County Average Weekly Wages

As noted, average weekly wages in Fairfield County placed seventh among the 339 largest U.S. counties in the fourth quarter of 2014. Hartford ($1,246, 33^rd) and New Haven ($1,087, 72^nd) also had average weekly wages above the U.S. average of $1,035, placing them in the top quarter of the nationwide ranking. The average weekly wage in the state’s remaining large county, New London ($1,013), was below the national average, but still ranked in the top half nationwide at 116^th.

Among the highest-paid large U.S. counties, San Mateo, Calif., held the top position with an average weekly wage of $2,166. New York, N.Y., was second with an average weekly wage of $2,138, followed by Santa Clara, Calif. ($2,114), and Suffolk, Mass. ($1,856).

Horry, S.C., reported the lowest average weekly wage nationwide ($610), followed by the Texas counties of Cameron ($621) and Hidalgo ($641). Wages in the lowest-ranked county, Horry, were less than one-third of the average weekly wage reported for the highest-ranked county, San Mateo, Calif.

Average Weekly Wages in Connecticut’s Smaller Counties

Three of the four counties in Connecticut with employment below 75,000—Litchfield, Tolland, and Windham—had average weekly wages lower than the national average of $1,035, with Windham reporting the lowest, $824. Middlesex County was the exception, with an average weekly wage of $1,067. (See table 2.)

When considering all eight counties in Connecticut, four had an average weekly wage above the national average of $1,035. New London was just below the national average with an average weekly wage of $1,013, while wages in the remaining counties were all below $1,000 per week. (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 the QCEW Web site at www.bls.gov/cew.

An annual bulletin, Employment and Wages Annual Averages Online, features comprehensive information by detailed industry on establishments, employment, and wages for the nation and all states. The 2013 edition of this publication, which was published in September 2014, contains selected data produced by Business Employment Dynamics (BED) on job gains and losses, as well as selected data from the first quarter 2014 version of the national news release. Tables and additional content from Employment and Wages Annual Averages 2013 are now available online at www.bls.gov/cew/publications/employment-and-wages-annual-averages/2013/home.htm. The 2014 edition of Employment and Wages Annual Averages Online will be available in September 2015.

Information in this release will be made available to sensory impaired individuals upon request. Voice phone: 202-691-5200; Federal Relay Services: 1-800-877-8339.

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 9.5 million employer reports cover 139.2 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.

 

Table 1. Covered employment and wages in the United States and the 4 largest counties in Connecticut, fourth quarter 2014

Area	Employment			Average Weekly Wage (1)
	December 2014 (thousands)	Percent change, December 2013-14 (2)	National ranking by percent change (3)	Average weekly wage	National ranking by level (3)	Percent change, fourth quarter 2013-14 (2)	National ranking by percent change (3)
United States (4)	139,204.8	2.2	--	$1,035	--	3.5	--
Connecticut	1,681.2	1.2	--	1,278	4	2.7	45
Fairfield, Conn.	428.4	1.7	183	1,674	7	1.1	315
Hartford, Conn.	509.0	1.2	227	1,246	33	2.8	231
New Haven, Conn.	365.5	1.1	236	1,087	72	4.5	73
New London, Conn.	121.2	-0.5	330	1,013	116	4.3	87
Footnotes: (1) Average weekly wages were calculated using unrounded data. (2) Percent changes were computed from quarterly 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 employment and wages in the United States and all counties in Connecticut, fourth quarter 2014

Area	Employment December 2014	Average Weekly Wage (1)
United States (2)	139,204,840	$1,035
Connecticut	1,681,173	1,278
Fairfield	428,429	1,674
Hartford	509,022	1,246
Litchfield	61,934	908
Middlesex	68,083	1,067
New Haven	365,516	1,087
New London	121,215	1,013
Tolland	41,515	903
Windham	40,241	824
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: Includes workers covered by Unemployment Insurance (UI) and Unemployment Compensation for Federal Employees (UCFE) programs. Data are preliminary.

Table 3. Covered employment and wages by state, fourth quarter 2014

Area	Employment		Average weekly wage (1)
	December 2014 (thousands)	Percent change, December 2013-14 (2)	Average weekly wage	National ranking by level	Percent change, fourth quarter 2013-14 (2)	National ranking by percent change
United States (2)	139,204.8	2.2	$1,035	--	3.5	--
Alabama	1,891.4	1.3	881	35	3.5	31
Alaska	317.6	0.8	1,063	13	4.0	20
Arizona	2,630.8	2.2	926	25	2.3	47
Arkansas	1,180.5	2.2	807	47	4.5	5
California	16,068.5	2.6	1,209	6	2.9	41
Colorado	2,478.0	3.9	1,066	12	4.1	17
Connecticut	1,681.2	1.2	1,278	4	2.7	45
Delaware	433.0	2.9	1,049	16	1.5	51
District of Columbia	736.9	0.9	1,696	1	3.7	28
Florida	8,009.6	3.5	911	28	3.1	40
Georgia	4,131.9	3.7	958	21	3.8	25
Hawaii	638.3	0.7	908	29	4.2	15
Idaho	650.7	2.5	782	50	4.0	20
Illinois	5,844.1	1.4	1,089	8	2.8	42
Indiana	2,946.5	1.7	846	41	3.9	22
Iowa	1,527.6	1.1	870	38	4.3	11
Kansas	1,377.2	1.3	855	39	2.6	46
Kentucky	1,852.2	1.8	836	43	4.1	17
Louisiana	1,954.0	2.1	923	26	3.8	25
Maine	592.7	0.9	826	44	5.1	4
Maryland	2,590.3	1.3	1,113	7	3.5	31
Massachusetts	3,415.6	2.2	1,315	3	4.5	5
Michigan	4,158.9	2.1	984	20	3.3	37
Minnesota	2,762.9	1.4	1,024	17	3.6	30
Mississippi	1,118.6	1.0	747	51	2.3	47
Missouri	2,709.8	1.5	891	32	3.4	34
Montana	442.2	0.5	794	48	4.5	5
Nebraska	958.1	1.4	837	42	5.2	3
Nevada	1,229.6	4.2	899	30	1.6	50
New Hampshire	638.0	1.4	1,081	10	6.3	2
New Jersey	3,933.6	1.3	1,211	5	2.0	49
New Mexico	808.4	1.3	850	40	4.4	10
New York	9,067.6	2.0	1,321	2	4.3	11
North Carolina	4,141.8	2.4	890	33	3.4	34
North Dakota	454.8	4.5	1,050	15	7.1	1
Ohio	5,264.3	1.6	922	27	3.9	22
Oklahoma	1,614.3	2.1	876	36	2.8	42
Oregon	1,755.4	3.2	928	23	3.8	25
Pennsylvania	5,716.5	1.2	1,013	18	3.7	28
Rhode Island	471.5	1.9	1,003	19	4.5	5
South Carolina	1,931.4	2.9	817	46	3.2	39
South Dakota	412.5	1.3	791	49	4.2	15
Tennessee	2,822.1	2.4	927	24	3.5	31
Texas	11,662.7	3.7	1,070	11	4.3	11
Utah	1,324.2	3.0	872	37	4.3	11
Vermont	311.0	0.7	882	34	4.1	17
Virginia	3,691.4	0.6	1,057	14	2.8	42
Washington	3,069.7	3.2	1,082	9	4.5	5
West Virginia	712.0	0.1	818	45	3.3	37
Wisconsin	2,789.3	1.3	894	31	3.4	34
Wyoming	283.6	1.5	952	22	3.9	22
Puerto Rico	944.2	-1.5	556	(3)	0.7	(3)
Virgin Islands	38.5	-0.3	746	(3)	-1.2	(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.