Technical information:(202) 691-6567 USDL 08-1014
http://www.bls.gov/cew/
For release: 10:00 A.M. EDT
Media contact: 691-5902 Thursday, July 24, 2008
COUNTY EMPLOYMENT AND WAGES: FOURTH QUARTER 2007
In December 2007, Fort Bend County, Texas, had the largest over-
the-year percentage increase in employment among the largest counties
in the U.S., according to preliminary data released today by the
Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor. Fort Bend
County, which contains a portion of southwest Houston, experienced an
over-the-year employment gain of 7.4 percent, compared with national
job growth of 0.8 percent. Pulaski County, Ark., which includes
Little Rock, had the largest over-the-year gain in average weekly
wages in the fourth quarter of 2007, with an increase of 26.2 percent
due to gains in the information supersector. The U.S. average weekly
wage rose by 4.2 percent over the same time span.
Of the 328 largest counties in the United States, as measured by
2006 annual average employment, 126 had over-the-year percentage
growth in employment above the national average (0.8 percent) in
December 2007; 182 large counties experienced changes below the
national average. The percent change in average weekly wages was
higher than the national average (4.2 percent) in 128 of the largest
U.S. counties, but was below the national average in 186 counties.
Table A. Top 10 large counties ranked by December 2007 employment, December 2006-07 employment growth,
and December 2006-07 percent growth in employment
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Employment in large counties
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
December 2007 employment | Growth in employment, | Percent growth in employment,
(thousands) | December 2006-07 | December 2006-07
| (thousands) |
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| |
United States 137,027.3| United States 1,089.1| United States 0.8
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| |
Los Angeles, Calif. 4,293.4| Harris, Texas 73.2| Fort Bend, Texas 7.4
Cook, Ill. 2,556.2| New York, N.Y. 52.0| Monterey, Calif. 5.2
New York, N.Y. 2,419.9| King, Wash. 35.2| Williamson, Tenn. 4.5
Harris, Texas 2,061.4| Los Angeles, Calif. 32.9| Madison, Ala. 4.0
Maricopa, Ariz. 1,848.2| Dallas, Texas 31.3| San Francisco, Calif. 4.0
Orange, Calif. 1,517.7| San Francisco, Calif. 21.8| Wake, N.C. 3.9
Dallas, Texas 1,504.8| Bexar, Texas 18.8| Hidalgo, Texas 3.9
San Diego, Calif. 1,340.3| Tarrant, Texas 17.3| Harris, Texas 3.7
King, Wash. 1,194.1| Wake, N.C. 17.1| Tulare, Calif. 3.6
Miami-Dade, Fla. 1,032.1| Travis, Texas 16.4| Denton, Texas 3.6
| | Arlington, Va. 3.6
| |
| |
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The employment and 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 reports
submitted by every employer subject to unemployment insurance (UI)
laws. The 9.1 million employer reports cover 137.0 million full- and
part-time workers. The attached tables contain data for the nation
and for the 328 U.S. counties with annual average employment levels
of 75,000 or more in 2006. December 2007 employment and 2007 fourth-
quarter average weekly wages for all states are provided in table 4
of this release. Final data for all states, metropolitan statistical
areas, counties, and the nation through the fourth quarter of 2006
are available on the BLS Web site at http://www.bls.gov/cew/.
Preliminary data for first, second, and third quarter 2007 also are
available on the BLS Web site. Updated data for first, second, and
third quarter 2007 and preliminary data for fourth quarter 2007 will
be available later in July on the BLS Web site. 
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics