US: County Employment and Wages Third Quatrer

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Press release from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics:

County Employment and Wages Third Quatrer

(April 1, 2010) From September 2008 to September 2009, employment declined in 329 of the 334 largest U.S. counties according to preliminary data, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Elkhart County, Ind., located about 100 miles east of Chicago, posted the largest percentage decline, with a loss of 14.5 percent over the year, compared with a national job decrease of 5.3 percent. Two-thirds of the employment decline in Elkhart occurred in manufacturing, which lost 10,868 jobs over the year (-21.6 percent). Yakima County, Wash., experienced the largest over-the-year percentage increase in employment among the largest counties in the U.S., with a gain of 1.7 percent.

The U.S. average weekly wage fell over the year by 0.1 percent in the third quarter of 2009. This is the first time there has been an over-the-year average weekly wage decline for three consecutive quarters, and this decline is one of only five declines dating back to 1978, when these quarterly data were first comparable. (See Technical Note.) Employment and wage losses in the relatively high paid financial activities and manufacturing supersectors contributed significantly to the over-the-year decline in the U.S. average weekly wages for third quarter 2009. Average weekly wages fell 2.3 percent in financial activities and 0.2 percent in manufacturing. Among the large counties in the U.S., Rutherford, Tenn., had the largest over-the-year decrease in average weekly wages in the third quarter of 2009, with a loss of 13.2 percent. Within Rutherford, manufacturing had the largest over-the-year decline in average weekly wages with a loss of 27.9 percent. Bell, Texas, experienced the largest growth in average weekly wages with a gain of 6.6 percent.

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