Three of the four large counties in Connecticut reported employment increases from December 2015 to December 2016, 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 2015 annual average employment.) Regional Commissioner Deborah A. Brown noted that New London County had the largest rate of employment growth, up 0.8 percent. New Haven and Hartford Counties reported employment gains of 0.4 percent and 0.3 percent, respectively. Connecticut’s remaining large county, Fairfield, recorded an over-the-year employment decrease of 0.9 percent.

Nationally, employment increased 1.2 percent from December 2015 to December 2016, as 280 of the 344 largest counties registered increases. Williamson, Tenn., had the largest percentage increase with a gain of 5.1 percent over the year. Lafayette, La., had the largest over-the year percentage decrease in employment among the largest counties in the U.S., with a loss of 5.1 percent.

Among the four largest counties in Connecticut, employment was highest in Hartford (512,300), followed by Fairfield (426,800). The four large counties accounted for 84.9 percent of the state’s total employment in December 2016. Nationwide, the 344 largest counties accounted for 72.8 percent of total U.S. employment

All four of Connecticut’s large counties recorded decreases in average weekly wages from the fourth quarter of 2015 to the fourth quarter of 2016, with the largest decreases in Fairfield (-3.8 percent) and New London (-3.3 percent). Fairfield County had the highest average weekly wage in the state at $1,676 and ranked eighth among the nation’s 344 largest counties.(See table 1.) Nationally, the average weekly wage declined 1.5 percent over the year to $1,067 in the fourth quarter of 2016. This was one of only eight declines for the nation in the history of the series, which dates back to 1978.

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 decreases in all four large counties in Connecticut exceeded the national decrease of 1.5 percent. Fairfield County’s 3.8-percent decline ranked 306^th among the 344 largest U.S. counties. (See table 1.) The wage decreases in New London (-3.3 percent), Hartford (-3.2 percent), and New Haven (-2.8 percent) ranked 286^th, 282^nd, and 266^th, respectively.

Nationwide, 290 of the 344 largest counties had over-the-year decreases in average weekly wages from the fourth quarter of 2015. McLean, Ill., had the largest wage decrease among the largest U.S. counties, down 9.2 percent.

Of the 344 largest counties, 48 experienced over-the year increases in average weekly wages. Clayton, Ga., had the largest percentage decrease in average weekly wages (11.3 percent).

Large County Average Weekly Wages

As noted, average weekly wages in Fairfield County placed eighth among the 344 largest U.S. counties in the fourth quarter of 2016. Hartford ($1,264, 37^th) and New Haven ($1,094, 78^th) also had average weekly wages above the U.S. average of $1,067, placing them in the top quarter of the nationwide ranking. The average weekly wage in the state’s remaining large county, New London ($1,023), was below the national average, but still ranked in the top half nationwide at 128^th.

Nationwide, 243 of the 344 large counties had an average weekly wage below the U.S. average in the fourth quarter 2016. Cameron, Texas ($640) reported the lowest wage nationwide, followed by Hidalgo, Texas ($648), and Horry, S.C. ($654).

Among the 100 large counties with an average weekly wage above the U.S. average, Santa Clara, Calif., held the top position at $2,365. New York, N.Y., was second with an average weekly wage of $2,212, followed by San Mateo, Calif. ($2,098), and San Francisco, Calif. ($2,068).

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 $1,067. Middlesex County had an average weekly wage of $1,088. (See table 2.)

When considering all eight counties in Connecticut, four had an average weekly wage above the national average of $1,067. New London had an average weekly wage of $1,023, 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 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. The 2015 edition of this publication, which was published in September 2016, contains selected data produced by Business Employment Dynamics (BED) on job gains and losses, as well as selected data from the first quarter 2015 version of the national news release. Tables and additional content from Employment and Wages Annual Averages Online 2015 are now available online at www.bls.gov/cew/publications/employment-and-wages-annual-averages/2015/home.htm. The 2016 edition of Employment and Wages Annual Averages Online will be available in September 2017. 

The County Employment and Wages release for first quarter 2017 is scheduled to be released on Wednesday, September 6, 2017.

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 9.9 million employer reports cover 143.7 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.

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

Table 1. Covered employment and wages in the United States and the 4 largest counties in Connecticut, fourth quarter 2016

Area	Employment			Average weekly wage (1)
	December 2016 (thousands)	Percent change, December 2015-16 (2)	National ranking by percent change (3)	Average weekly wage	National ranking by level (3)	Percent change, fourth quarter 2015-16 (2)	National ranking by percent change (3)
United States (4)	143,749.90	1.2	--	$1,067	--	-1.5	--
Connecticut	1,685.50	0.0	--	1,289	4	-3.4	46
Fairfield, Conn.	426.8	-0.9	322	1,676	8	-3.8	306
Hartford, Conn.	512.3	0.3	257	1,264	37	-3.2	282
New Haven, Conn.	368.5	0.4	250	1,094	78	-2.8	266
New London, Conn.	123.3	0.8	211	1,023	128	-3.3	286
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, 4th quarter 2016

Area	Employment December 2016	Average Weekly Wage(1)
United States(2)	143,749,910	$1,067
Connecticut	1,685,461	1,289
Fairfield	426,765	1,676
Hartford	512,310	1,264
Litchfield	61,119	921
Middlesex	68,967	1,088
New Haven	368,536	1,094
New London	123,261	1,023
Tolland	40,767	946
Windham	39,111	850
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 2016

State	Employment		Average weekly wage (1)
	December 2016 (thousands)	Percent change, December 2015-16	Average weekly wage	National ranking by level	Percent change, fourth quarter 2015-16	National ranking by percent change
United States (2)	143,749.9	1.2	1067	--	-1.5	--
Alabama	1,932.6	0.7	901	35	-1.3	21
Alaska	310.0	-1.9	1038	17	-5.2	51
Arizona	2,760.1	2.1	945	25	-2.2	34
Arkansas	1,205.4	0.4	827	47	-1.4	22
California	16,923.3	1.9	1271	5	-0.3	4
Colorado	2,588.6	2.0	1086	12	-1.5	24
Connecticut	1,685.5	0.0	1289	4	-3.4	46
Delaware	441.2	-0.1	1055	15	-2.9	44
District of Columbia	760.9	0.5	1763	1	0.6	2
Florida	8,538.9	2.7	942	27	-1.8	28
Georgia	4,349.3	2.4	993	20	-0.9	14
Hawaii	658.3	0.7	954	24	-0.3	4
Idaho	691.6	3.2	800	50	-0.4	8
Illinois	5,947.6	0.4	1122	9	-2	31
Indiana	3,021.7	0.9	883	38	-0.9	14
Iowa	1,542.0	0.1	911	33	-1	16
Kansas	1,384.5	0.1	877	39	-2.2	34
Kentucky	1,894.2	0.6	874	41	-1.4	22
Louisiana	1,907.4	-1.6	914	32	-2.9	44
Maine	602.6	0.8	855	43	-2.1	33
Maryland	2,666.7	1.0	1169	7	-0.4	8
Massachusetts	3,530.4	1.3	1352	2	-2.4	39
Michigan	4,283.0	1.5	1026	19	-1.6	25
Minnesota	2,839.7	1.2	1062	14	-1.1	18
Mississippi	1,134.0	0.0	756	51	-1.8	28
Missouri	2,783.2	0.9	918	31	-1.7	27
Montana	456.5	0.7	822	48	0.5	3
Nebraska	972.4	0.0	876	40	-0.5	10
Nevada	1,307.8	2.7	924	29	-1.2	20
New Hampshire	656.9	1.3	1092	10	-4.1	48
New Jersey	4,042.1	1.4	1239	6	-1.9	30
New Mexico	811.4	0.0	844	45	-2.5	41
New York	9,332.5	1.2	1342	3	-2.3	36
North Carolina	4,326.3	1.8	932	28	-0.7	13
North Dakota	414.4	-3.2	978	21	-4.2	49
Ohio	5,365.6	0.7	943	26	-2.3	36
Oklahoma	1,587.7	-1.2	864	42	-3.5	47
Oregon	1,860.7	2.4	970	22	-1	16
Pennsylvania	5,799.8	0.7	1039	16	-2.3	36
Rhode Island	478.3	0.0	1027	18	-1.6	25
South Carolina	2,024.3	1.8	855	43	-0.6	12
South Dakota	419.9	0.5	828	46	-0.5	10
Tennessee	2,947.5	1.8	970	22	-1.1	18
Texas	11,974.7	1.2	1072	13	-2.5	41
Utah	1,415.1	2.9	910	34	-0.3	4
Vermont	312.6	0.1	897	36	-2.4	39
Virginia	3,831.6	0.6	1091	11	-0.3	4
Washington	3,227.9	2.8	1150	8	1.7	1
West Virginia	693.1	-1.6	809	49	-2.5	41
Wisconsin	2,842.4	0.5	924	29	-2	31
Wyoming	265.8	-3.9	894	37	-4.7	50
Puerto Rico	928.2	-0.3	555	(3)	-1.9	(3)
Virgin Islands	38.5	0.2	769	(3)	-1.8	(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.