Hawaii’s two large counties had employment increases from March 2016 to March 2017, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. (Large counties are those with 2016 annual average employment levels of 75,000 or more.) Assistant Commissioner for Regional Operations Richard Holden noted that the rates of employment growth in Maui + Kalawao County and Honolulu County, at 1.1 and 0.7 percent, respectively, were slower than the national increase of 1.6 percent. (See table 1.)

Nationally, employment advanced in 299 of the 346 largest U.S. counties from March 2016 to March 2017. York, S.C., had the largest percentage increase with a gain of 6.8 percent over the year. Kanawha, W.Va., had the largest over-the-year percentage decrease in employment among the largest U.S. counties, with a loss of 2.7 percent.

In March 2017, Honolulu County had an employment level of 474,500; Maui + Kalawao County’s employment level was 76,800. Together, Hawaii’s two large counties accounted for 84.3 percent of total employment within the state. Nationwide, the 346 largest counties made up 72.8 percent of total U.S. employment, which stood at 142.3 million in March 2017

Employment and wage levels (but not over-the-year changes) are also available for Hawaii and Kauai, the two counties in Hawaii with employment below 75,000. Both of these smaller counties had average weekly wages below the national average. (See table 2 and chart 1.)

Large county wage changes

Average weekly wages rose in both of Hawaii’s large counties from the first quarter of 2016 to the first quarter of 2017. At 7.2 percent, Honolulu County’s wage gain ranked 109^th among the nation’s 346 large counties. Maui + Kalawao County’s 6.7-percent increase ranked 148^th. (See table 1.)

Nationally, 345 of the 346 largest counties had over-the-year increases in average weekly wages. McLean, Ill., had the largest wage gain, up 27.8 percent from the first quarter of 2016. Peoria, Ill., had the only percentage decrease in average weekly wages (-1.1 percent).

Large county average weekly wages

While average weekly wages in Hawaii’s two large counties were below the U.S. average of $1,111, the average weekly wage in Honolulu County ($999, 159^th) placed in the top half of the national ranking. Average weekly wages in Maui + Kalawao ($846, 285^th) placed in the bottom half of the national ranking.

Nationwide, 94 large counties registered average weekly wages equal to or above the U.S. average of $1,111 in the first quarter of 2017. New York, N.Y., recorded the highest average weekly wage at $2,954, followed by Santa Clara, Calif., at $2,450. Rounding out the top five were San Mateo, Calif. ($2,385); San Francisco, Calif. ($2,264); and Somerset, N.J. ($2,026).

Among the largest U.S. counties, 252 had average weekly wages below the national average in the first quarter of 2017. Cameron, Texas ($614), had the lowest wage, followed by the counties of Horry, S.C. ($628); Hidalgo, Texas ($642); Webb, Texas ($675); and Lake, Fla. ($681).

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 2016 edition of this publication contains selected data produced by Business Employment Dynamics (BED) on job gains and losses, as well as selected data from the first quarter 2017 version of the national news release. Tables and additional content from the 2016 edition of Employment and Wages Annual Averages are now available online at www.bls.gov/cew/publications/employment-and-wages-annual-averages/2016/home.htm. The 2017 edition of Employment and Wages Annual Averages Online will be available in September 2018.

The County Employment and Wages release for second quarter 2017 is scheduled to be released on Tuesday, December 5, 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 142.3 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: (800) 877-8339.

Table 1. Covered employment and wages in the United States and the 2 largest counties in Hawaii, first quarter 2017

Area	Employment			Average weekly wage (1)
	March 2017 (thousands)	Percent change, March 2016-17 (2)	National ranking by percent change (3)	Average weekly wage	National ranking by level (3)	Percent change, first quarter 2016-17 (2)	National ranking by percent change (3)
United States (4)	142,309.2	1.6	--	$1,111	--	6.6	--
Hawaii	653.6	0.9	--	954	25	6.8	22
Honolulu, Hawaii	474.5	0.7	248	999	159	7.2	109
Maui + Kalawao, Hawaii	76.8	1.1	209	846	285	6.7	148
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.