Employment rose in 23 of the 24 largest counties in Texas from September 2020 to September 2021, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. (Large counties are those with annual average employment levels of 75,000 or more in 2020.) Regional Commissioner Michael Hirniak noted that Midland County and Travis County had the largest over-the-year increases in employment at 10.4 percent and 8.8 percent, respectively. (See chart 1 and table 1.)

National employment increased 4.4 percent over the year, with 332 of the 343 largest U.S. counties reporting gains. Honolulu, HI, had the largest over-the-year increase in employment with a gain of 13.3 percent. Jefferson, LA, had the largest over-the-year percentage decrease in employment with a loss of 3.2 percent.

Among the 24 largest counties in Texas, employment was highest in Harris County (2,272,500) in September 2021. Within Harris County’s private industry, health care and social assistance accounted for the largest employment. Together, the 24 largest Texas counties accounted for 79.0 percent of total employment within the state. Nationwide, the 343 largest counties made up 72.3 percent of total U.S. employment.

Employment and wage levels (but not over-the-year changes) are also available for the 230 counties in Texas with employment below 75,000. Wage levels in 216 of the 230 smaller counties were below the national average of $1,251 in the third quarter of 2021. (See table 2.)

Large county wage changes

Among the 24 large Texas counties, 23 reported average weekly wage gains from the third quarter of 2020 to the third quarter of 2021. (See chart 2.) Five counties had rates of wage gains that were equal to or above the national rate of 6.7 percent. Travis County had the largest gain (+10.0 percent), followed by Midland County (+8.0 percent), Smith County (+7.7 percent), Dallas County (+7.3 percent), and Bell County (+6.7 percent). Over-the-year wage gains among 18 of Texas’s other large counties ranged from 6.5 percent to 3.0 percent. Williamson County reported a wage decrease of 0.2 percent.

Among the 343 largest counties in the United States, 333 had over-the-year wage increases. San Mateo, CA, had the largest percentage wage increase (+27.2 percent). Union, NJ, had the largest over-the-year percentage decrease (-1.2 percent).

Large county average weekly wages

Weekly wages in 5 of the 24 largest counties in Texas were above the national average of $1,251 in the third quarter of 2021. Average weekly wages in these five counties ranked among the top 50 nationwide: Travis ($1,578, 22^nd), Midland ($1,466, 31^st), Collin ($1,454, 33^rd), Dallas ($1,448, 34^th), and Harris ($1,415, 40^th).

Among the largest U.S. counties, 85 reported average weekly wages above the U.S. average in the third quarter of 2021. San Mateo, CA, had the highest average weekly wage at $3,710. Average weekly wages were at or below the national average in the remaining 258 counties. At $756 a week, Cameron, TX, had the lowest average weekly wage.

Average weekly wages in Texas's smaller counties

Among the 230 smaller counties in Texas—those with employment below 75,000—Carson County ($1,740) and 13 other counties reported an average weekly wage above the national average. Menard County ($572) reported the lowest average weekly wage in the state.

When all 254 counties in Texas were considered, 21 reported average weekly wages of less than $749, 71 registered wages from $750 to $849, 64 had wages from $850 to $949, 48 had wages from $950 to $1,049, and 50 had average weekly wages of $1,050 or higher. (See chart 3.) The higher-paying counties were located in and around the four metropolitan areas of Amarillo, Austin, Dallas, and Houston, as well as in the Far West Texas region. The lower-paying counties, with weekly wages under $749, were concentrated mainly in the northwestern and central parts of the state.

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 fourth quarter 2021 is scheduled to be released on Wednesday, May 25, 2022.
The County Employment and Wages full data update for fourth quarter 2021 is scheduled to be released on Wednesday, June 8, 2022.

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 24 largest counties in Texas, third quarter 2021

Area	Establishments, third quarter (thousands)	Employment			Average weekly wage (1)
		September 2021 (thousands)	Percent change, September 2020–21 (2)	National ranking by percent change (3)	Third quarter 2021	National ranking by level (3)	Percent change, third quarter 2020–21 (2)	National ranking by percent change (3)
United States (4)	11,021.4	144,863.9	4.4	--	$1,251	--	6.7	--
Texas	770.0	12,613.1	5.6	--	1,227	14	6.7	18
Bell	6.2	122.2	3.6	154	1,013	264	6.7	97
Bexar	44.7	861.1	4.4	101	1,095	190	5.5	180
Brazoria	6.5	112.3	3.3	173	1,150	155	4.7	222
Brazos	5.0	109.1	4.8	77	920	325	6.5	106
Cameron	6.8	145.3	5.6	44	756	343	6.5	106
Collin	31.6	462.9	7.6	10	1,454	33	6.4	120
Dallas	84.4	1,747.4	5.8	37	1,448	34	7.3	63
Denton	18.7	277.1	6.5	23	1,084	200	5.0	208
El Paso	16.4	308.2	2.7	216	850	335	3.9	266
Fort Bend	16.8	202.9	6.4	24	1,020	257	3.0	303
Galveston	6.8	110.6	4.8	77	1,032	248	3.0	303
Harris	124.5	2,272.5	4.3	107	1,415	40	5.9	146
Hidalgo	13.3	269.1	4.9	71	761	342	5.8	156
Jefferson	5.9	111.0	-0.1	333	1,133	164	3.0	303
Lubbock	8.2	142.8	4.1	119	928	324	5.2	198
McLennan	5.7	118.4	3.5	161	984	288	5.8	156
Midland	6.3	98.9	10.4	4	1,466	31	8.0	45
Montgomery	13.8	197.7	5.8	37	1,167	139	3.8	274
Nueces	8.5	152.0	1.9	267	990	285	4.4	244
Smith	6.6	104.9	3.6	154	1,003	269	7.7	51
Tarrant	49.2	922.7	5.2	55	1,186	125	6.0	142
Travis	49.8	817.3	8.8	6	1,578	22	10.0	19
Webb	5.8	100.3	4.4	101	773	341	4.7	222
Williamson	14.3	193.5	6.9	17	1,240	91	-0.2	334
(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 Texas, third quarter 2021

Area	Establishments	Employment September 2021	Average weekly wage (1)
United States (2)	11,021,414	144,863,915	$1,251
Texas	770,012	12,613,071	1,227
Anderson	1,672	20,111	1,046
Andrews	532	6,983	1,328
Angelina	1,965	34,576	872
Aransas	652	5,854	831
Archer	253	1,686	812
Armstrong	73	416	784
Atascosa	927	12,413	992
Austin	1,392	11,588	1,047
Bailey	239	2,489	802
Bandera	489	3,447	770
Bastrop	1,702	19,730	878
Baylor	179	1,457	814
Bee	564	7,941	759
Bell	6,236	122,201	1,013
Bexar	44,686	861,100	1,095
Blanco	442	3,652	1,025
Borden	68	422	961
Bosque	393	3,867	866
Bowie	2,432	41,607	866
Brazoria	6,497	112,333	1,150
Brazos	5,044	109,071	920
Brewster	442	3,936	870
Briscoe	80	327	655
Brooks	157	2,554	869
Brown	916	14,920	811
Burleson	440	4,358	939
Burnet	1,514	15,284	961
Caldwell	832	8,949	820
Calhoun	680	12,868	1,407
Callahan	292	2,487	853
Cameron	6,794	145,280	756
Camp	281	3,911	851
Carson	177	5,525	1,740
Cass	588	7,715	784
Castro	295	2,604	808
Chambers	814	16,704	1,174
Cherokee	868	14,257	784
Childress	236	2,604	797
Clay	182	1,409	790
Cochran	124	643	894
Coke	96	662	963
Coleman	242	2,031	720
Collin	31,625	462,882	1,454
Collingsworth	124	792	784
Colorado	646	7,033	910
Comal	4,553	65,096	970
Comanche	395	4,252	779
Concho	91	909	925
Cooke	1,071	14,085	983
Coryell	1,106	15,616	883
Cottle	131	493	924
Crane	107	1,184	1,090
Crockett	209	1,283	839
Crosby	198	1,159	775
Culberson	107	1,227	1,328
Dallam	402	4,228	985
Dallas	84,427	1,747,369	1,448
Dawson	517	4,089	847
Deaf Smith	485	8,137	956
Delta	109	946	609
Denton	18,688	277,114	1,084
DeWitt	602	7,566	894
Dickens	65	476	733
Dimmit	326	5,184	1,121
Donley	132	895	729
Duval	206	4,171	1,279
Eastland	535	6,644	1,014
Ector	4,255	68,954	1,185
Edwards	84	639	753
Ellis	3,612	56,385	968
El Paso	16,445	308,170	850
Erath	1,229	16,619	789
Falls	294	2,977	812
Fannin	621	8,126	877
Fayette	860	8,728	890
Fisher	128	800	894
Floyd	252	1,530	747
Foard	61	385	712
Fort Bend	16,786	202,927	1,020
Franklin	279	3,740	836
Freestone	396	4,380	851
Frio	415	6,606	1,014
Gaines	661	6,290	1,034
Galveston	6,754	110,640	1,032
Garza	188	1,633	870
Gillespie	1,189	11,282	853
Glasscock	140	596	1,018
Goliad	175	1,334	841
Gonzales	568	7,424	940
Gray	581	7,168	981
Grayson	3,189	48,114	969
Gregg	4,364	71,966	955
Grimes	548	7,017	1,036
Guadalupe	2,488	43,612	965
Hale	880	11,290	815
Hall	130	810	630
Hamilton	266	2,689	821
Hansford	233	1,980	932
Hardeman	127	1,282	793
Hardin	968	12,785	902
Harris	124,468	2,272,503	1,415
Harrison	1,440	21,948	963
Hartley	171	2,770	887
Haskell	223	2,019	814
Hays	5,438	79,122	912
Hemphill	209	1,535	1,029
Henderson	1,623	18,458	792
Hidalgo	13,265	269,127	761
Hill	804	10,373	910
Hockley	620	8,783	1,110
Hood	1,602	16,230	865
Hopkins	910	13,133	895
Houston	955	7,300	1,052
Howard	940	12,489	1,036
Hudspeth	89	1,350	1,184
Hunt	1,707	28,193	958
Hutchinson	480	7,710	1,264
Irion	87	690	1,273
Jack	248	2,446	998
Jackson	436	5,635	934
Jasper	675	9,381	840
Jeff Davis	89	817	693
Jefferson	5,914	110,978	1,133
Jim Hogg	128	1,610	791
Jim Wells	830	14,264	819
Johnson	3,746	51,844	996
Jones	342	3,027	837
Karnes	417	6,044	1,143
Kaufman	2,365	34,164	947
Kendall	1,769	17,730	1,070
Kenedy	32	433	1,176
Kent	38	277	828
Kerr	1,556	17,944	932
Kimble	176	1,277	710
King	26	387	1,311
Kinney	80	884	980
Kleberg	632	11,280	845
Knox	154	1,074	842
Lamar	1,307	22,037	907
Lamb	431	4,029	868
Lampasas	472	4,749	761
La Salle	204	3,114	1,150
Lavaca	500	5,502	821
Lee	449	6,624	979
Leon	434	4,756	1,173
Liberty	1,275	18,463	937
Limestone	406	7,891	983
Lipscomb	99	1,223	905
Live Oak	307	3,422	1,015
Llano	593	4,991	813
Loving	21	226	1,271
Lubbock	8,189	142,797	928
Lynn	208	1,507	1,057
McCulloch	280	2,350	811
McLennan	5,730	118,404	984
McMullen	78	540	1,067
Madison	303	4,387	848
Marion	162	2,030	739
Martin	235	2,006	1,102
Mason	179	1,076	696
Matagorda	853	10,364	1,094
Maverick	899	17,418	726
Medina	904	10,231	845
Menard	81	412	572
Midland	6,267	98,893	1,466
Milam	484	5,619	817
Mills	146	1,263	758
Mitchell	189	1,956	895
Montague	517	4,762	807
Montgomery	13,802	197,664	1,167
Moore	546	11,657	1,013
Morris	246	3,190	964
Motley	63	295	600
Nacogdoches	1,425	22,026	828
Navarro	1,016	16,686	847
Newton	144	1,317	781
Nolan	414	6,336	953
Nueces	8,465	152,015	990
Ochiltree	414	4,071	918
Oldham	102	909	887
Orange	1,441	21,928	1,089
Palo Pinto	726	7,678	861
Panola	550	7,941	968
Parker	3,324	35,875	953
Parmer	325	6,019	1,041
Pecos	454	5,350	970
Polk	923	11,661	889
Potter	4,032	75,706	988
Presidio	197	2,016	886
Rains	255	2,212	716
Randall	2,647	33,993	901
Reagan	159	1,715	1,358
Real	113	790	582
Red River	265	2,859	792
Reeves	483	6,763	1,222
Refugio	219	2,238	814
Roberts	51	238	941
Robertson	366	4,901	1,015
Rockwall	2,995	34,640	950
Runnels	287	2,879	770
Rusk	860	12,805	904
Sabine	228	2,598	794
San Augustine	157	1,747	854
San Jacinto	274	2,175	787
San Patricio	1,220	20,846	1,090
San Saba	211	1,491	745
Schleicher	94	689	890
Scurry	467	5,623	1,095
Shackelford	163	1,244	1,062
Shelby	623	8,873	890
Sherman	137	1,142	910
Smith	6,633	104,910	1,003
Somervell	239	3,557	1,166
Starr	617	14,240	712
Stephens	311	3,335	765
Sterling	96	501	827
Stonewall	76	497	847
Sutton	181	1,331	1,280
Swisher	198	1,840	727
Tarrant	49,229	922,655	1,186
Taylor	3,829	64,077	910
Terrell	48	309	791
Terry	400	3,215	843
Throckmorton	76	953	1,291
Titus	936	16,911	861
Tom Green	3,037	46,496	923
Travis	49,807	817,338	1,578
Trinity	221	2,242	702
Tyler	340	4,212	776
Upshur	578	7,562	809
Upton	127	1,708	1,496
Uvalde	719	9,408	778
Val Verde	944	18,494	785
Van Zandt	1,092	11,635	763
Victoria	2,465	36,365	940
Walker	1,128	24,385	863
Waller	999	21,234	949
Ward	399	4,965	1,221
Washington	1,005	14,913	861
Webb	5,818	100,320	773
Wharton	1,164	15,555	874
Wheeler	217	1,739	789
Wichita	3,400	52,826	869
Wilbarger	355	5,675	814
Willacy	319	4,059	810
Williamson	14,259	193,524	1,240
Wilson	846	8,683	839
Winkler	235	3,073	1,357
Wise	1,542	20,286	997
Wood	945	10,288	806
Yoakum	295	2,996	1,118
Young	623	6,691	920
Zapata	177	2,824	923
Zavala	173	2,260	915
(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, third quarter 2021

State	Establishments, third quarter (thousands)	Employment		Average weekly wage (1)
		September 2021 (thousands)	Percent change, September 2020–21	Third quarter 2021	National ranking by level	Percent change, third quarter 2020–21	National ranking by percent change
United States (2)	11,021.4	144,863.9	4.4	$1,251	--	6.7	--
Alabama	139.8	1,955.3	2.6	1,030	36	5.3	37
Alaska	24.0	316.9	4.6	1,205	16	3.4	50
Arizona	184.5	2,926.3	4.6	1,167	19	7.0	13
Arkansas	97.4	1,212.9	2.9	963	47	7.8	6
California	1,679.6	17,208.7	6.6	1,576	4	7.7	8
Colorado	231.8	2,723.4	4.8	1,322	9	7.0	13
Connecticut	132.0	1,605.1	2.9	1,401	6	5.7	31
Delaware	35.9	439.7	2.1	1,198	18	4.4	45
District of Columbia	45.4	736.1	3.1	2,042	1	4.1	46
Florida	808.4	8,910.9	7.0	1,120	25	8.7	3
Georgia	343.9	4,491.4	4.9	1,158	20	6.8	17
Hawaii	49.2	592.8	16.6	1,150	22	3.3	51
Idaho	79.2	804.0	5.3	953	50	7.8	6
Illinois	398.4	5,751.2	3.3	1,274	11	6.3	22
Indiana	178.9	3,020.6	2.6	1,032	34	7.4	10
Iowa	106.8	1,509.6	2.2	1,015	39	4.9	43
Kansas	92.1	1,349.3	1.7	997	40	4.7	44
Kentucky	134.3	1,869.0	3.4	989	43	5.8	28
Louisiana	144.2	1,772.7	1.7	1,021	37	5.4	36
Maine	58.5	619.9	3.6	1,031	35	6.7	18
Maryland	178.1	2,604.6	3.9	1,314	10	3.5	49
Massachusetts	281.4	3,501.0	5.5	1,593	2	7.0	13
Michigan	271.3	4,181.4	3.6	1,154	21	5.3	37
Minnesota	186.9	2,780.5	2.7	1,249	13	6.1	24
Mississippi	77.3	1,122.2	2.6	859	51	6.3	22
Missouri	223.9	2,760.3	2.9	1,055	31	6.0	26
Montana	57.0	487.5	4.4	963	47	6.5	21
Nebraska	75.6	964.6	1.4	1,017	38	5.5	35
Nevada	96.0	1,389.5	10.8	1,135	23	8.3	5
New Hampshire	60.0	654.6	3.3	1,349	8	15.0	1
New Jersey	304.1	3,977.2	5.1	1,384	7	4.1	46
New Mexico	64.8	806.2	4.2	997	40	5.6	32
New York	671.2	8,922.4	4.4	1,534	5	6.1	24
North Carolina	318.4	4,516.4	4.5	1,112	26	7.1	11
North Dakota	33.0	407.2	2.2	1,076	30	5.1	40
Ohio	315.7	5,248.0	2.2	1,098	28	5.6	32
Oklahoma	116.4	1,576.6	1.8	966	45	5.6	32
Oregon	171.2	1,909.5	3.7	1,220	15	9.6	2
Pennsylvania	375.4	5,685.4	3.2	1,205	16	5.8	28
Rhode Island	43.2	474.1	4.8	1,131	24	3.6	48
South Carolina	152.9	2,086.0	2.8	988	44	6.9	16
South Dakota	37.0	435.6	3.1	965	46	5.1	40
Tennessee	187.7	3,044.1	4.2	1,111	27	8.7	3
Texas	770.0	12,613.1	5.6	1,227	14	6.7	18
Utah	123.1	1,594.7	5.0	1,087	29	7.1	11
Vermont	28.1	293.5	2.7	1,055	31	5.8	28
Virginia	299.2	3,845.3	2.9	1,264	12	5.3	37
Washington	266.6	3,415.2	4.4	1,578	3	6.6	20
West Virginia	53.6	664.2	2.7	960	49	5.0	42
Wisconsin	189.5	2,815.9	2.3	1,049	33	7.5	9
Wyoming	28.7	271.1	2.5	995	42	6.0	26
Puerto Rico	47.9	887.9	6.5	568	(3)	4.0	(3)
Virgin Islands	3.6	34.5	1.9	956	(3)	-5.4	(3)
(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.