Bureau of Labor Statistics Washington, D.C. 20212 

Technical Information: (202) 691-6553 USDL 09-0978 

 http://www.bls.gov/bdm/ 

 For release: 10:00 A.M. EDT 

Media Contact: (202) 691-5902 Wednesday, August 19, 2009 

BUSINESS EMPLOYMENT DYNAMICS: FOURTH QUARTER 2008 

From September 2008 to December 2008 the number of job gains from opening and expanding 

private sector establishments was 6.7 million, and the number of job losses from closing and 

contracting establishments was 8.5 million, according to data released today by the Bureau of Labor 

Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor. (See tables A, 1, and 3.) Over this period, gross job losses 

exceeded gross job gains in all but two industry sectors: utilities and education and health services. 

(See tables B and 3.) 

The Business Employment Dynamics (BED) data series include gross job gains and gross job 

losses at the establishment level by major industry sector and for the 50 states, the District of Columbia, 

Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands, as well as gross job gains and gross job losses at the firm level by 

employer size class. 

The change in the number of jobs over time is the net result of increases and decreases in 

employment that occur at all businesses in the economy. BED statistics track these changes in 

employment at private business units from the third month of one quarter to the third month of the next. 

Gross job gains are the sum of increases in employment from expansions at existing units and the 

addition of new jobs at opening units. Gross job losses are the result of contractions in employment at 

existing units and the loss of jobs at closing units. The difference between the number of gross jobs 

gained and the number of gross jobs lost is the net change in employment. (See the Technical Note for 

more information.) 

United States 

Department News of Labor
2

Table A. Three-month private sector gross job gains and losses, seasonally adjusted 

3 months ended 

Category Dec. 

2007 

Mar. 

2008 

June 

2008 

Sept. 

 2008 

Dec. 

2008 

Levels (in thousands) 

Gross job gains.................................... 7,676 7,130 7,258 6,822 6,712 

 At expanding establishments........... 6,220 5,731 5,858 5,504 5,367 

 At opening establishments............... 1,456 1,399 1,400 1,318 1,345 

Gross job losses................................... 7,366 7,400 7,751 7,754 8,467 

 At contracting establishments........... 6,010 6,047 6,277 6,383 6,977 

 At closing establishments................ 

Net employment change1

........................ 

1,356 

310 

1,353 

-270 

1,474 

-493 

1,371 

-932 

1,490 

-1,755 

 Rates (percent) 

Gross job gains................................ 6.8 6.2 6.4 6.1 6.0 

 At expanding establishments....... 5.5 5.0 5.2 4.9 4.8 

 At opening establishments............ 1.3 1.2 1.2 1.2 1.2 

Gross job losses............................... 6.5 6.5 6.8 6.9 7.6 

 At contracting establishments........ 5.3 5.3 5.5 5.7 6.3 

 At closing establishments............. 

Net employment change1

..................... 

1.2 

.3 

1.2 

-.3 

1.3 

-.4 

1.2 

-.8 

1.3 

-1.6 

 1 The net employment change is the difference between total gross job gains and total gross job losses. See the 

Technical Note for further information. 

Private Sector Establishment-Level Gross Job Gains and Gross Job Losses 

Opening and expanding private sector business establishments gained 6.7 million jobs in the 

fourth quarter of 2008, a decrease of 110,000 from the previous quarter. Over the quarter, expanding 

establishments added 5.4 million jobs while opening establishments added 1.3 million jobs. 

Gross job losses totaled 8.5 million, an increase of 713,000 from the previous quarter. During 

the quarter, contracting establishments lost 7.0 million jobs, while closing establishments lost 1.5 

million jobs. (See tables A, 1, and 3.) 

The difference between the number of gross jobs gained and the number of gross jobs lost 

yielded a net change of -1,755,000 jobs in the private sector for fourth quarter 2008. 

Gross job gains represented 6.0 percent of private sector employment, while gross job losses 

represented 7.6 percent of private sector employment. (See tables A and 2.) 

Major Industry Sector Gross Job Gains and Gross Job Losses 

From September 2008 to December 2008, gross job losses exceeded gross job gains in all but two 

industry sectors: utilities and education and health services. (See tables B and 3.) 

Goods-producing. Expanding and opening establishments in the goods-producing sectors 

accounted for 1,302,000 jobs gained, and contracting and closing establishments accounted for 

2,063,000 jobs lost. This net loss of 761,000 jobs was the tenth consecutive quarter of net loss for these 

sectors of the economy. 
3

Construction. In construction, gross job gains fell over the quarter to 639,000. This was the lowest 

level of gross job gains since the series began in third quarter of 1992. The construction sector 

experienced a net loss of 337,000 jobs, as gross job losses increased by 100,000 to 976,000. This was 

the seventh consecutive quarter of net job losses in this sector. 

Manufacturing. Gross job gains fell to 378,000 while gross job losses increased to 801,000. The 

net loss of 423,000 jobs was the tenth consecutive quarter of net job losses in the manufacturing sector. 

Service-providing. In the service-providing sectors, gross job gains decreased to 5,410,000 and 

gross job losses increased to 6,404,000, resulting in a net loss of 994,000 jobs. Job gains at expanding 

establishments decreased to 4,280,000 jobs, while job losses at contracting establishments increased to 

5,226,000 jobs. 

Retail Trade. In retail trade, gross job gains decreased to 835,000. Gross job losses increased to 

1,181,000 for a net loss of 346,000 jobs. This was the largest net loss in this industry since the series 

began in 1992, driven by the lowest total of gross job gains in the history of this series. 

Education and Health Services. Gross job gains increased to 841,000 jobs in the fourth quarter, 

while gross job losses decreased to 665,000. This industry sector is the only one which has 

experienced a net positive change in every quarter since this series began in 1992. 

Financial Activities. Gross job losses exceeded gross job gains in the financial sector for the 

seventh consecutive quarter. Although gross job gains increased to 388,000, gross job losses also 

increased to 497,000, resulting in a net loss of 109,000 jobs in the fourth quarter. 

Table B. Three-month private sector gross job gains and losses by industry, seasonally adjusted 

(In thousands) 

Gross job gains 

(3 months ended) 

Gross job losses 

(3 months ended) 

Dec. Mar. June Sept. Dec. Dec. Mar. June Sept. Dec. Industry 

2007 2008 2008 2008 2008 2007 2008 2008 2008 2008 

Total private1 ......................... 7,676 7,130 7,258 6,822 6,712 7,366 7,400 7,751 7,754 8,467 

 Goods-Producing.................... 1,573 1,493 1,494 1,397 1,302 1,701 1,758 1,778 1,767 2,063 

 Natural res. and mining........... 292 274 280 274 285 261 293 268 255 286 

 Construction ....................... 784 763 737 698 639 875 869 922 876 976 

 Manufacturing ..................... 497 456 477 425 378 565 596 588 636 801 

 Service-Providing1....................... 6,103 5,637 5,764 5,425 5,410 5,665 5,642 5,973 5,987 6,404 

 Wholesale trade................... 321 294 295 272 259 301 306 314 313 364 

 Retail trade ........................ 1,022 954 939 892 835 1,011 979 1,080 1,062 1,181 

 Transportation and warehousing. 254 208 225 208 238 229 250 253 250 283 

 Utilities ............................. 15 13 16 14 13 11 10 12 13 12 

 Information ........................ 145 154 162 135 137 155 153 161 168 191 

 Financial activities ................ 432 412 394 376 388 486 436 455 460 497 

 Professional and business 

 services....................... 1,440 1,239 1,345 1,231 1,234 1,337 1,358 1,433 1,411 1,619 

 Education and health services ... 814 785 788 799 841 666 667 715 706 665 

 Leisure and hospitality............... 1,247 1,158 1,183 1,114 1,111 1,148 1,154 1,218 1,259 1,235 

 Other services ...................... 296 290 300 280 265 287 289 293 307 322 

 

1 Includes unclassified sector, not shown separately. 
4

Number of Establishments Gaining and Losing Employment

 Another way to look at the dynamics of business activities is to monitor the number and 

proportion of business units that are growing and declining. In the fourth quarter of 2008, the number 

of establishments losing jobs exceeded the number of establishments gaining jobs. 

Of the 7.0 million active private-sector establishments, a total of 2,091,000 establishments lost 

jobs from September 2008 to December 2008. (See table C.) Of these establishments, 1,686,000 were 

contracting establishments and 405,000 were closing establishments. Of the establishments gaining 

jobs, 1,376,000 establishments were expanding and 368,000 establishments were opening, resulting in 

1,744,000 establishments gaining jobs. 

The number of closing establishments exceeded the number of opening establishments, 

resulting in a net loss of 37,000 private-sector establishments during the quarter. This was the seventh 

quarter that there has been a net decline in the number of establishments since 1992, and the fifth time a 

decline occurred in the past seven quarters. 

 

Table C. Number of private sector establishments by direction of employment change, seasonally adjusted 

 (In thousands) 

3 months ended 

Category Dec. 

2007 

Mar. 

2008 

June 

2008 

Sept. 

 2008 

Dec. 

2008 

Establishments gaining jobs............... 1,940 1,874 1,834 1,788 1,744 

 Expanding establishments........... 1,558 1,517 1,479 1,439 1,376 

 Opening establishments.............. 

Establishments losing jobs................. 

382 

1,935 

357 

1,976 

355 

2,024 

349 

1,987 

368 

2,091 

 Contracting establishments.......... 1,575 1,596 1,633 1,608 1,686 

 Closing establishments................ 

Net establishment change1................. 

360 

22 

380 

-23 

391 

-36 

379 

-30 

405 

-37 

1 The net establishment change is the difference between the number of opening establishments and the number of closing 

establishments. See the Technical Note for further information. 

Establishment Births and Deaths

From September 2008 to December 2008, a total of 189,000 new private sector nonfarm business 

establishments created 794,000 jobs. This was 2,000 more establishment births than in the prior quarter, but 

19,000 fewer jobs were gained from these births. The jobs created by these new establishments represent 11.8 

percent of total gross job gains. The historical time series of birth data shows the number of establishment 

births has remained around 200,000 every quarter, while employment from births dropped from a high of 1.3 

million in the first quarter 1998 to a low of 794,000 in the fourth quarter of 2008. (See Table 7.) 

Gross Job Gains and Losses by State

 In the fourth quarter of 2008, Louisiana and North Dakota experienced net employment growth, while 48 

states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands experienced net job losses. Alabama, 

Indiana, Michigan, Nevada, and South Carolina showed rates of gross job gains below the U.S. rate of 6.0 

percent and rates of gross job losses above the U.S. rate of 7.6 percent. (See tables 5 and 6.) 
5

Firm-level Gross Job Gains and Gross Job Losses by Size Class

From September 2008 to December 2008, the share of gross job gains accounted for by firms with 1 to 4 

employees rose from 16.1 to 16.8 percent. Firms with 1,000 or more employees experienced an increase in the 

share of gross job losses from 19.4 to 20.7 percent. (See tables D and 4.) 

Table D. Three-month private sector share1

 of gross job gains and gross job losses by firm size, seasonally adjusted 

(Percent)

Share of gross job gains 

3 months ended 

Share of gross job losses 

3 months ended 

Dec. Mar. June Sept. Dec. Dec. Mar. June Sept. Dec. Firm size 

2007 2008 2008 2008 2008 2007 2008 2008 2008 2008 

1 - 4 employees................. 15.6 16.2 15.4 16.1 16.8 16.1 16.7 16.0 15.3 14.5 

5 - 9 employees................ 11.5 12.4 11.9 12.1 11.7 12.3 12.4 11.9 11.4 10.8 

10 - 19 employees............. 11.7 12.6 12.2 12.2 11.8 12.4 12.4 12.0 11.6 11.2 

20 - 49 employees........... 13.8 14.8 14.5 14.3 13.6 14.5 14.3 14.0 13.9 13.6 

50 - 99 employees........... 8.8 9.1 9.1 9.1 8.6 9.0 8.8 8.7 8.7 8.9 

100 - 249 employees....... 9.3 9.5 9.7 9.5 9.2 9.1 8.9 9.0 9.4 9.6 

250 - 499 employees........ 5.6 5.6 5.7 5.8 5.5 5.4 5.3 5.5 5.6 5.9 

500 - 999 employees........ 4.5 4.4 4.7 4.7 4.6 4.5 4.2 4.7 4.8 5.0 

1,000 or more employees.... 19.2 15.2 16.8 16.3 18.2 16.7 16.9 18.2 19.4 20.7 

1 Share measures the percent of the category represented by each firm size class, and rates may not sum to 100.0 due to rounding.

More Information

Additional information on gross job gains and gross job losses are available online at 

http://www.bls.gov/bdm. This information includes data on the levels and rates of gross job gains and 

gross job losses by firm size, the not seasonally adjusted data and other seasonally adjusted time series 

not presented in this release, charts of gross job gains and gross job losses by industry and firm size, 

and frequently asked questions on firm-size data. Additional information about the Business 

Employment Dynamics data can be found in the Technical Note of this release or may be obtained by 

e-mailing BDMinfo@bls.gov. 
6

Upcoming Changes to the Business Employment Dynamics News Release 

Beginning with the next edition of the Business Employment Dynamics news release scheduled 

for publication on November 19, 2009, the Bureau of Labor Statistics will introduce changes in the 

presentation of the text section of the release. There will be no changes to the format and content of 

tables 1-7. 

 

Comparing Business Employment Dynamics Data with Current Employment Statistics and 

Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages Data 

The net change in employment from Business Employment Dynamics (BED) data series will not 

match the net change in employment from the monthly Current Employment Statistics (CES) survey. 

The CES estimates are based on monthly surveys from a sample of establishments, while gross job 

gains and gross job losses are based on a quarterly census of administrative records. In addition, the 

CES has a different coverage, excluding the agriculture sector but including establishments not covered 

by the unemployment insurance program. The net over-the-quarter changes derived by aggregating 

component series in the BED data may be different from the net employment change estimated from 

the CES seasonally adjusted total employment series. The intended use of the BED statistics is to show 

the dynamic labor market flows that underlie the net changes in aggregate employment levels; data 

users who want to track net changes in aggregate employment levels over time should refer to CES 

data. 

BED data have a more limited scope than the Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages 

(QCEW) data. The data in this release, in contrast to the QCEW data, exclude government employees, 

private households (NAICS 814110), and establishments with zero employment. 

See the Technical Note for further information. 
7

Technical Note 

 The Business Employment Dynamics (BED) data 

are a product of a federal-state cooperative program 

known as Quarterly Census of Employment and 

Wages (QCEW), or the ES-202 program. The BED 

data are compiled by the U.S. Bureau of Labor 

Statistics (BLS) from existing quarterly state 

unemployment insurance (UI) records. Most 

employers in the U.S. are required to file quarterly 

reports on the employment and wages of workers 

covered by UI laws, and to pay quarterly UI taxes. 

The quarterly UI reports are sent by the State 

Employment Security Agencies (SESAs) to BLS and 

form the basis of the Bureau’s establishment universe 

sampling frame. These reports are also used to 

produce the quarterly QCEW data on total 

employment and wages and the longitudinal BED 

data on gross job gains and losses. Other important 

Bureau uses of the UI reports are in the Current 

Employment Statistics (CES) program. 

 In the BED program, the quarterly UI records are 

linked across quarters to provide a longitudinal 

history for each establishment. The linkage process 

allows the tracking of net employment changes at the 

establishment level, which in turn allows the 

estimation of jobs gained at opening and expanding 

units and jobs lost at closing and contracting units. 

Differences between QCEW, BED, and 

CES employment measures 

 The Bureau publishes three different 

establishment-based employment measures for any 

given quarter. Each of these measures — QCEW, 

BED, and CES — makes use of the quarterly UI 

employment reports in producing data; however, each 

measure has a somewhat different universe coverage, 

estimation procedure, and publication product. 

 Differences in coverage and estimation methods 

can result in somewhat different measures of overthe-quarter employment change. It is important to 

understand program differences and the intended uses 

of the program products. (See table below.) 

Additional information on each program can be 

obtained from the program web sites shown in the 

table below. 

Summary of Major Differences between QCEW, BED, and CES Employment Measures 

QCEW BED CES 

Source  Count of UI administrative records 

submitted by 9.2 million employers 

 Count of longitudinally-linked UI 

administrative records submitted by 

7.0 million private sector employers 

 Sample Survey: 400,000 

establishments 

Coverage  UI and UCFE coverage: all 

employers subject to State and 

federal UI Laws 

 UI Coverage, excluding: government, 

private households, and establishments 

with zero employment 

Non-farm wage and salary jobs: 

 UI Coverage, excluding: agriculture, 

private households, and selfemployed; including: railroads, 

religious organizations, and other 

non-UI-covered jobs 

Publication 

frequency 

 Quarterly 

— 7 Months after the end of each 

quarter 

 Quarterly 

— 8 Months after the end of each quarter 

 Monthly 

— First Friday of each month 

Use of UI file  Directly summarizes and publishes 

each new quarter of UI data 

 Links each new UI quarter to longitudinal 

database and directly summarizes gross 

job gains and losses 

 Uses UI file as a sampling frame 

and annually realigns (benchmarks) 

sample estimates to first quarter UI 

levels 

Principal products  Provides a quarterly and annual 

universe count of establishments, 

employment, and wages at the 

county, MSA, State, and national 

levels by detailed industry 

 Provides quarterly employer dynamics 

data on establishment openings, closings, 

expansions, and contractions at the 

national level by NAICS super-sectors 

and by size of firm, and at the state 

private-sector total level 

 Future expansions will include data with 

greater industry detail and data at the 

county and MSA level 

 Provides current monthly estimates 

of employment, hours, and earnings 

at the MSA, State, and national level 

by industry 

Principal uses  Major uses include: 

— Detailed locality data 

— Periodic universe counts for 

benchmarking sample survey 

estimates 

— Sample frame for BLS 

establishment surveys 

 Major uses include: 

— Business cycle analysis 

— Analysis of employer dynamics 

underlying economic expansions and 

contractions 

— Analysis of employment expansion 

and contraction by size of firm 

 Major uses include: 

— Principal national economic 

indicator 

— Official time series for 

employment change measures 

— Input into other major economic 

indicators 

Program Websites  www.bls.gov/cew/  www.bls.gov/bdm/  www.bls.gov/ces/ 

 
8

Coverage

 Employment and wage data for workers covered by 

state UI and Unemployment Compensation for 

Federal Employees (UCFE) laws are compiled from 

quarterly contribution reports submitted to the SESAs 

by employers. In addition to the quarterly 

contribution reports, employers who operate multiple 

establishments within a state complete a 

questionnaire, called the “Multiple Worksite Report,” 

which provides detailed information on the location of 

their establishments. These reports are based on 

place of employment rather than place of residence. 

UI and UCFE coverage is broad and basically 

comparable from state to state. 

 Major exclusions from UI coverage are selfemployed workers, religious organizations, most 

agricultural workers on small farms, all members of 

the Armed Forces, elected officials in most states, 

most employees of railroads, some domestic workers, 

most student workers at schools, and employees of 

certain small nonprofit organizations. 

Gross job gains and gross job losses in this 

release are derived from longitudinal histories of 7.0 

million private sector employer reports out of 

9.2 million total reports of employment and wages 

submitted by states to BLS in the fourth quarter of 

2008. Gross job gains and gross job losses data in 

this release do not report estimates for government 

employees or private households (NAICS 814110), 

and do not include establishments with zero 

employment in both previous and current quarters. 

Data from Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands also are 

excluded from the national data. As an illustration, the 

table below shows, in millions of establishments, the 

number of establishments excluded from the national 

gross job gains and gross job losses data in the fourth 

quarter 2008: 

Number of active establishments included in 

Business Employment Dynamics data at the 

national level 

 Millions 

Total establishments QCEW program.........9.2 

 Excluded: Public sector .........................0.3 

 Private households ...............0.6 

 Zero employment .................1.2 

 Establishments in Puerto Rico 

 and the Virgin Islands ..........0.1 

Total establishments included in Business 

Employment Dynamics data........................7.0 

Unit of analysis 

 Establishments are used in the tabulation of the 

BED statistics by industry and firms are used in the 

tabulation of the BED size class statistics. An 

establishment is defined as an economic unit that 

produces goods or services, usually at a single 

physical location, and engages in one or 

predominantly one activity. A firm is a legal business, 

either corporate or otherwise, and may consist of 

several establishments. Firm-level data are compiled 

based on an aggregation of establishments under 

common ownership by a corporate parent using 

employer tax identification numbers. The firm level 

aggregation which is consistent with the role of 

corporations as the economic decision makers are 

used for the measurement of the BED data elements 

by size class. 

 Because of the difference in the unit of analysis, 

total gross job gains and gross job losses by size class 

are lower than total gross job gains and gross job 

losses by industry, as some establishment gains and 

losses within a firm are offset during the aggregation 

process. However, the total net changes in 

employment are the same for not seasonally adjusted 

data and are similar for seasonally adjusted data. 

Concepts and methodology

The Business Employment Dynamics data 

measure the net change in employment at the 

establishment or firm level. These changes come 

about in one of four ways. A net increase in 

employment can come from either opening units or 

expanding units. A net decrease in employment can 

come from either closing units or contracting units. 

Gross job gains include the sum of all jobs added at 

either opening or expanding units. Gross job losses

include the sum of all jobs lost in either closing or 

contracting units. The net change in employment is 

the difference between gross job gains and gross job 

losses. 

The formal definitions of employment changes 

are as follows: 

Openings. These are either units with positive 

third month employment for the first time in the 

current quarter, with no links to the prior quarter, or 

with positive third month employment in the current 

quarter following zero employment in the previous 

quarter. 

Expansions. These are units with positive 

employment in the third month in both the previous 

and current quarters, with a net increase in 

employment over this period. 

Closings. These are either units with positive 

third month employment in the previous quarter, with 

no employment or zero employment reported in the 

current quarter. 
9

Contractions. These are units with positive 

employment in the third month in both the previous 

and current quarters, with a net decrease in 

employment over this period. 

Births. These are units with positive third month 

employment for the first time in the current quarter 

with no links to the prior quarter, or units with 

positive third month employment in the current 

quarter and zero employment in the third month of the 

previous four quarters. Births are a subset of openings 

not including re-openings of seasonal businesses. 

Deaths. These are units with no employment or 

zero employment reported in the third month of four 

consecutive quarters following the last quarter with 

positive employment. Deaths are a subset of closings 

not including temporary shutdowns of seasonal 

businesses. A unit that closes during the quarter may 

be a death, but we wait three quarters to determine 

whether it is a permanent closing or a temporary 

shutdown. Therefore, there is always a lag of three 

quarters for the publication of death statistics. 

All employment changes are measured from the 

third month of the previous quarter to the third month 

of the current quarter. Not all establishments and 

firms change their employment levels. Units with no 

change in employment count towards estimates of 

total employment, but not for levels of gross job gains 

and gross job losses. 

Gross job gains and gross job losses are 

expressed as rates by dividing their levels by the 

average of employment in the current and previous 

quarters. This provides a symmetric growth rate. The 

rates are calculated for the components of gross job 

gains and gross job losses and then summed to form 

their respective totals. These rates can be added and 

subtracted just as their levels can. For instance, the 

difference between the gross job gains rate and the 

gross job losses rate is the net growth rate. 

Establishment Births and Deaths 

 For the purpose of BED statistics, births are 

defined as establishments that appear in the 

longitudinal database for the first time with positive 

employment in the third month of a quarter, or 

showed four consecutive quarters of zero employment 

in the third month followed by a quarter in which it 

shows positive employment in the third month. 

Similarly, deaths are defined as establishments that 

either drop out of the longitudinal database or an 

establishment that had positive employment in the 

third month of a given quarter followed by four 

consecutive quarters of showing zero employment in 

the third month. Although the data for establishment 

births and deaths are tabulated independently from the 

data for openings and closings, the concepts are not 

mutually exclusive. An establishment that is defined 

as a birth in a given quarter is necessarily an opening 

as well, and an establishment defined as a death in a 

quarter must also be a closing. Since openings 

include seasonal, and other, re-openings and closings 

include temporary shutdowns, the not seasonally 

adjusted values for births and deaths must be less than 

those for openings and closings. However, because 

some BED series do not have many re-openings or 

temporary shutdowns, as well as the fact that births 

and deaths are independently seasonally adjusted 

from openings and closings, there may be instances in 

which the seasonally adjusted value of the former is 

greater than the latter. 

Linkage methodology 

Prior to the measurement of gross job gains and 

gross job losses, QCEW records are linked across two 

quarters. The linkage process matches establishments' 

unique SESA identification numbers (SESA-ID). 

Between 95 to 97 percent of establishments identified 

as continuous from quarter to quarter are matched by 

SESA-ID. The rest are linked in one of three ways. 

The first method uses predecessor and successor 

information, identified by the States, which relates 

records with different SESA-IDs across quarters. 

Predecessor and successor relations can come about 

for a variety of reasons, including a change in 

ownership, a firm restructuring, or a UI account 

restructuring. If a match cannot be attained in this 

manner, a probability-based match is used. This 

match attempts to identify two establishments with 

different SESA-IDs as continuous. The match is 

based upon comparisons such as the same name, 

address, and phone number. Third, an analyst 

examines unmatched records individually and makes 

a possible match. 

 In order to ensure the highest possible quality of 

data, SESAs verify with employers and update, if 

necessary, the industry, location, and ownership 

classification of all establishments on a 3-year cycle. 

Changes in establishment classification codes 

resulting from the verification process are introduced 

with the data reported for the first quarter of the year. 

Changes resulting from improved employer reporting 

also are introduced in the first quarter. 

 

Sizing methodology 

 The method of dynamic sizing is used in 

calculations for the BED size class data series. 

Dynamic sizing allocates each firm’s employment 

gain or loss during a quarter to each respective size 

class in which the change occurred. For example, if a 

firm grew from 2 employees in quarter 1 to 38 

employees in quarter 2, then, of the 36-employee 

increase, 2 would be allocated to the first size class, 5 

to the size class 5 to 9, 10 to size class 10 to 19, and 

19 to size class 20 to 49. 

 Dynamic sizing provides symmetrical firm size 

estimates and eliminates any systematic effects which 

may be caused by the transitory and reverting changes 

in firms’ sizes over time. Additionally, it allocates 
10

each job gain or loss to the actual size class where it 

occurred. 

Annual Data 

 The annual gross job gains and gross job losses 

measure the net change in employment at the 

establishment level from the third month of a quarter 

in the previous year to the third month of the same 

quarter in the current year. The BLS publishes annual 

BED data based on March-to-March changes once a 

year with the release of the first quarter BED data. 

The annual data based on over-the-year changes for 

other quarters of the year are available upon request. 

The definitions and methodology in measuring annual 

gross job gains and gross job losses are similar to the 

quarterly measures. The linkage method considers all 

predecessor and successor relations that may come 

about due to changes in ownership and corporate 

restructuring over the entire year. At the 

establishment level, some of the quarterly job gains 

and job losses are offset during the estimation over 

the year. Therefore, the sum of four quarters of gross 

job gains and gross job losses are not equal to annual 

gross job gains and gross job losses. The net change 

in employment over the year, however, is equal to the 

sum of four quarterly net changes on a not seasonally 

adjusted basis. 

Seasonal adjustment 

 Over the course of a year, the levels of 

employment and the associated job flows undergo 

sharp fluctuations due to such seasonal events as 

changes in the weather, reduced or expanded 

production, harvests, major holidays, and the opening 

and closing of schools. The effect of such seasonal 

variation can be very large. 

 Because these seasonal events follow a more or 

less regular pattern each year, their influence can be 

eliminated by adjusting these statistics from quarter to 

quarter. These adjustments make nonseasonal 

developments, such as declines in economic activity, 

easier to recognize. For example, the large number of 

youths taking summer jobs is likely to obscure other 

changes that have taken place in June relative to 

March, making it difficult to determine if the level of 

economic activity has risen or declined. However, 

because the effect of students finishing school in 

previous years is known, the statistics for the current 

year can be adjusted to allow for a comparable 

change. The adjusted figures provide a more useful 

tool with which to analyze changes in economic 

activity. 

 The employment data series for opening, 

expanding, closing, and contracting units are 

independently seasonally adjusted; net changes are 

calculated based on the difference between gross job 

gains and gross job losses. Similarly, for industry 

data, the establishment counts data series for opening, 

expanding, closing, and contracting establishments 

are independently adjusted, and the net changes are 

calculated based on the difference between the 

number of opening and closing establishments. 

Additionally establishment and employment levels are 

independently seasonally adjusted to calculate the 

seasonally adjusted rates. Concurrent seasonal 

adjustment is run using X-12 ARIMA. Seasonally 

adjusted data series for total private are the sum of 

seasonally adjusted data of all sectors including the 

unclassified sector, which is not separately published. 

The net over-the-quarter change derived by 

summing the BED component series will differ from 

the net employment change estimated from the 

seasonally adjusted total private employment series 

from the CES program. The intended use of BED 

statistics is to show the dynamic labor market changes 

that underlie the net employment change statistic. As 

such, data users interested particularly in the net 

employment change and not in the gross job flows 

underlying this change should refer to CES data for 

over-the-quarter net employment changes.

 

Reliability of the data 

 Since the data series on Business Employment 

Dynamics are based on administrative rather than 

sample data, there are no issues related to sampling 

error. Nonsampling error, however, still exists. 

Nonsampling errors can occur for many reasons, such 

as the employer submitting corrected employment 

data after the end of the quarter or typographical 

errors made by businesses when providing 

information. Such errors, however, are likely to be 

distributed randomly throughout the dataset. 

 Changes in administrative data sometimes create 

complications for the linkage process. This can result 

in overstating openings and closings while 

understating expansions and contractions. The BLS 

continues to refine methods for improving the linkage 

process to alleviate the effects of these complications. 

 The BED data series are subject to periodic minor 

changes based on corrections in QCEW records, 

updates on predecessors and successors information, 

and seasonal adjustment revisions. 

Additional statistics and other information 

 Several other programs within BLS produce 

closely related information. The QCEW program, also 

known as the ES-202 program, provides both quarterly 

and annual estimates of employment by state, county, 

and detailed industry. News releases on quarterly 

county employment and wages and an annual bulletin: 

Employment and Wages Annual Averages, 2003 are 

available upon request from the Division of 

Administrative Statistics and Labor Turnover, Bureau 

of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, 
11

Washington, DC 20212; telephone 202-691-6567; 

(http://www.bls.gov/cew/); 

(e-mail: QCEWInfo@bls.gov). 

 The CES program produces monthly estimates of 

employment, its net change, and earnings by detailed 

industry. These estimates are part of the Employment 

Situation report put out monthly by BLS. 

 The Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey 

(JOLTS) program provides monthly measures of job 

openings, as well as employee hires and separations. 

 Information in this release will be made available 

to sensory impaired individuals upon request. 

Voice phone: 202-691-5200; TDD message referral 

number: 1-800-877-8339. 
Table 1. Private sector gross job gains and losses, seasonally adjusted

(In thousands)

Expanding Opening Contracting Closing

establishments establishments establishments establishments

1992 September ................... 599 7,329 5,688 1,641 6,730 5,308 1,422

December ..................... 123 6,986 5,452 1,534 6,863 5,484 1,379

1993 March .......................... 288 7,117 5,404 1,713 6,829 5,364 1,465

June .......................... 734 7,275 5,782 1,493 6,541 5,155 1,386

September ................... 965 7,539 5,926 1,613 6,574 5,265 1,309

December ..................... 603 7,375 5,822 1,553 6,772 5,411 1,361

1994 March .......................... 559 7,381 5,800 1,581 6,822 5,401 1,421

June .......................... 905 7,709 6,041 1,668 6,804 5,315 1,489

September ................... 1,288 8,002 6,277 1,725 6,714 5,426 1,288

December ..................... 460 7,535 5,978 1,557 7,075 5,642 1,433

1995 March .......................... 758 7,787 6,124 1,663 7,029 5,652 1,377

June .......................... 358 7,666 6,006 1,660 7,308 5,840 1,468

September ................... 845 7,983 6,341 1,642 7,138 5,645 1,493

December ..................... 378 7,830 6,140 1,690 7,452 5,929 1,523

1996 March .......................... 457 7,933 6,179 1,754 7,476 5,967 1,509

June .......................... 631 8,051 6,282 1,769 7,420 5,903 1,517

September ................... 704 8,177 6,373 1,804 7,473 5,942 1,531

December ..................... 816 8,206 6,396 1,810 7,390 5,875 1,515

1997 March .......................... 784 8,214 6,407 1,807 7,430 5,886 1,544

June .......................... 584 8,055 6,330 1,725 7,471 5,931 1,540

September ................... 901 8,515 6,718 1,797 7,614 5,927 1,687

December ..................... 708 8,617 6,697 1,920 7,909 6,024 1,885

1998 March .......................... 711 8,648 6,599 2,049 7,937 6,077 1,860

June .......................... 610 8,629 6,552 2,077 8,019 6,224 1,795

September ................... 742 8,508 6,607 1,901 7,766 6,093 1,673

December ..................... 768 8,475 6,737 1,738 7,707 6,025 1,682

1999 March .......................... 353 8,585 6,626 1,959 8,232 6,395 1,837

June .......................... 644 8,539 6,661 1,878 7,895 6,210 1,685

September ................... 588 8,571 6,734 1,837 7,983 6,250 1,733

December ..................... 1,005 8,749 6,956 1,793 7,744 6,076 1,668

2000 March .......................... 789 8,792 6,924 1,868 8,003 6,341 1,662

June .......................... 492 8,499 6,814 1,685 8,007 6,387 1,620

September ................... 296 8,506 6,728 1,778 8,210 6,483 1,727

December ..................... 295 8,400 6,702 1,698 8,105 6,433 1,672

2001 March .......................... -156 8,436 6,694 1,742 8,592 6,717 1,875

June .......................... -792 8,009 6,319 1,690 8,801 7,050 1,751

September ................... -1,184 7,608 5,917 1,691 8,792 6,991 1,801

December ..................... -960 7,591 5,932 1,659 8,551 6,858 1,693

2002 March .......................... -39 8,049 6,259 1,790 8,088 6,424 1,664

June .......................... -38 7,890 6,164 1,726 7,928 6,290 1,638

September ................... -171 7,608 6,015 1,593 7,779 6,248 1,531

December ..................... -198 7,522 5,960 1,562 7,720 6,171 1,549

2003 March .......................... -412 7,439 5,917 1,522 7,851 6,311 1,540

June .......................... -104 7,401 5,928 1,473 7,505 6,040 1,465

September ................... 204 7,383 5,918 1,465 7,179 5,818 1,361

December ..................... 309 7,549 6,016 1,533 7,240 5,802 1,438

2004 March .......................... 450 7,683 6,189 1,494 7,233 5,799 1,434

June .......................... 631 7,760 6,234 1,526 7,129 5,648 1,481

September ................... 215 7,630 6,057 1,573 7,415 5,877 1,538

December ..................... 781 7,872 6,256 1,616 7,091 5,660 1,431

2005 March .......................... 363 7,595 6,123 1,472 7,232 5,806 1,426

June .......................... 585 7,783 6,231 1,552 7,198 5,785 1,413

September ................... 680 7,962 6,387 1,575 7,282 5,834 1,448

December ..................... 516 7,833 6,263 1,570 7,317 5,945 1,372

2006 March .......................... 787 7,697 6,278 1,419 6,910 5,635 1,275

June .......................... 410 7,795 6,274 1,521 7,385 6,009 1,376

September ................... 36 7,488 6,052 1,436 7,452 6,099 1,353

December ..................... 492 7,801 6,262 1,539 7,309 5,953 1,356

2007 March .......................... 470 7,627 6,228 1,399 7,157 5,872 1,285

June .......................... 192 7,665 6,250 1,415 7,473 6,066 1,407

September ................... -241 7,323 5,849 1,474 7,564 6,209 1,355

December ..................... 310 7,676 6,220 1,456 7,366 6,010 1,356

2008 March .......................... -270 7,130 5,731 1,399 7,400 6,047 1,353

June .......................... -493 7,258 5,858 1,400 7,751 6,277 1,474

September.......................... -932 6,822 5,504 1,318 7,754 6,383 1,371

December ..................... -1,755 6,712 5,367 1,345 8,467 6,977 1,490

1 Net change is the difference between total gross job gains and total gross job losses.

Gross job losses

Year 3 months ended Net change 1

Gross job gains

Total Total
Table 2. Private sector gross job gains and losses as a percent of employment, 1

 seasonally adjusted

(Percent)

Expanding Opening Contracting Closing

establishments establishments establishments establishments

1992 September ................... .7 8.2 6.4 1.8 7.5 5.9 1.6

December ..................... .2 7.8 6.1 1.7 7.6 6.1 1.5

1993 March .......................... .3 7.9 6.0 1.9 7.6 6.0 1.6

June .......................... .8 8.0 6.4 1.6 7.2 5.7 1.5

September ................... 1.1 8.3 6.5 1.8 7.2 5.8 1.4

December ..................... .6 8.0 6.3 1.7 7.4 5.9 1.5

1994 March .......................... .7 8.0 6.3 1.7 7.3 5.8 1.5

June .......................... 1.0 8.3 6.5 1.8 7.3 5.7 1.6

September ................... 1.3 8.4 6.6 1.8 7.1 5.7 1.4

December ..................... .5 7.9 6.3 1.6 7.4 5.9 1.5

1995 March .......................... .8 8.1 6.4 1.7 7.3 5.9 1.4

June .......................... .3 7.9 6.2 1.7 7.6 6.1 1.5

September ................... .9 8.2 6.5 1.7 7.3 5.8 1.5

December ..................... .3 8.0 6.3 1.7 7.7 6.1 1.6

1996 March .......................... .5 8.1 6.3 1.8 7.6 6.1 1.5

June .......................... .7 8.2 6.4 1.8 7.5 6.0 1.5

September ................... .7 8.2 6.4 1.8 7.5 6.0 1.5

December ..................... .8 8.2 6.4 1.8 7.4 5.9 1.5

1997 March .......................... .9 8.2 6.4 1.8 7.3 5.8 1.5

June .......................... .6 7.9 6.2 1.7 7.3 5.8 1.5

September ................... 1.0 8.4 6.6 1.8 7.4 5.8 1.6

December ..................... .8 8.4 6.5 1.9 7.6 5.8 1.8

1998 March .......................... .7 8.4 6.4 2.0 7.7 5.9 1.8

June .......................... .6 8.3 6.3 2.0 7.7 6.0 1.7

September ................... .7 8.1 6.3 1.8 7.4 5.8 1.6

December ..................... .7 8.0 6.4 1.6 7.3 5.7 1.6

1999 March .......................... .3 8.0 6.2 1.8 7.7 6.0 1.7

June .......................... .6 8.0 6.2 1.8 7.4 5.8 1.6

September ................... .6 8.0 6.3 1.7 7.4 5.8 1.6

December ..................... 1.0 8.1 6.4 1.7 7.1 5.6 1.5

2000 March .......................... .7 8.0 6.3 1.7 7.3 5.8 1.5

June .......................... .4 7.7 6.2 1.5 7.3 5.8 1.5

September ................... .2 7.7 6.1 1.6 7.5 5.9 1.6

December ..................... .3 7.6 6.1 1.5 7.3 5.8 1.5

2001 March .......................... -.1 7.7 6.1 1.6 7.8 6.1 1.7

June .......................... -.8 7.2 5.7 1.5 8.0 6.4 1.6

September ................... -1.2 6.9 5.4 1.5 8.1 6.4 1.7

December ..................... -.9 7.0 5.5 1.5 7.9 6.3 1.6

2002 March .......................... .0 7.5 5.8 1.7 7.5 6.0 1.5

June .......................... .0 7.3 5.7 1.6 7.3 5.8 1.5

September ................... -.1 7.1 5.6 1.5 7.2 5.8 1.4

December ..................... .0 7.1 5.6 1.5 7.1 5.7 1.4

2003 March .......................... -.4 6.9 5.5 1.4 7.3 5.9 1.4

June .......................... -.1 7.0 5.6 1.4 7.1 5.7 1.4

September ................... .2 6.9 5.5 1.4 6.7 5.4 1.3

December ..................... .3 7.0 5.6 1.4 6.7 5.4 1.3

2004 March .......................... .5 7.2 5.8 1.4 6.7 5.4 1.3

June .......................... .6 7.2 5.8 1.4 6.6 5.2 1.4

September ................... .3 7.1 5.6 1.5 6.8 5.4 1.4

December ..................... .7 7.2 5.7 1.5 6.5 5.2 1.3

2005 March .......................... .3 6.9 5.6 1.3 6.6 5.3 1.3

June .......................... .5 7.1 5.7 1.4 6.6 5.3 1.3

September ................... .6 7.2 5.8 1.4 6.6 5.3 1.3

December ..................... .4 7.0 5.6 1.4 6.6 5.4 1.2

2006 March .......................... .8 6.9 5.6 1.3 6.1 5.0 1.1

June .......................... .5 7.0 5.6 1.4 6.5 5.3 1.2

September ................... .1 6.7 5.4 1.3 6.6 5.4 1.2

December ..................... .4 6.9 5.5 1.4 6.5 5.3 1.2

2007 March .......................... .4 6.7 5.5 1.2 6.3 5.2 1.1

June .......................... .2 6.7 5.5 1.2 6.5 5.3 1.2

September ................... -.3 6.4 5.1 1.3 6.7 5.5 1.2

December ..................... .3 6.8 5.5 1.3 6.5 5.3 1.2

2008 March .......................... -.3 6.2 5.0 1.2 6.5 5.3 1.2

June .......................... -.4 6.4 5.2 1.2 6.8 5.5 1.3

September.......................... -.8 6.1 4.9 1.2 6.9 5.7 1.2

December ..................... -1.6 6.0 4.8 1.2 7.6 6.3 1.3

1 The rates measure gross job gains and gross job losses as a percentage of the average of the previous and current quarter employment levels. 

2 Net change is the difference between total gross job gains and total gross job losses.

Year 3 months ended Net change 2

Gross job gains Gross job losses

Total Total
Table 3. Private sector gross job gains and losses by industry, seasonally adjusted

Dec. Mar. June Sept. Dec. Dec. Mar. June Sept. Dec.

2007 2008 2008 2008 2008 2007 2008 2008 2008 2008

Total private 1

Gross job gains ........................... 7,676 7,130 7,258 6,822 6,712 6.8 6.2 6.4 6.1 6.0

At expanding establishments ......... 6,220 5,731 5,858 5,504 5,367 5.5 5.0 5.2 4.9 4.8

At opening establishments ............ 1,456 1,399 1,400 1,318 1,345 1.3 1.2 1.2 1.2 1.2

Gross job losses ........................... 7,366 7,400 7,751 7,754 8,467 6.5 6.5 6.8 6.9 7.6

At contracting establishments ......... 6,010 6,047 6,277 6,383 6,977 5.3 5.3 5.5 5.7 6.3

At closing establishments ............ 1,356 1,353 1,474 1,371 1,490 1.2 1.2 1.3 1.2 1.3

Net employment change .............. 310 -270 -493 -932 -1755 .3 -.3 -.4 -.8 -1.6

Goods-producing

Gross job gains ........................... 1,573 1,493 1,494 1,397 1,302 6.8 6.5 6.6 6.2 6.0

At expanding establishments ......... 1,337 1,258 1,268 1,185 1,087 5.8 5.5 5.6 5.3 5.0

At opening establishments ............ 236 235 226 212 215 1.0 1.0 1.0 .9 1.0

Gross job losses ........................... 1,701 1,758 1,778 1,767 2,063 7.4 7.6 7.8 7.9 9.4

At contracting establishments ......... 1,424 1,481 1,486 1,493 1,751 6.2 6.4 6.5 6.7 8.0

At closing establishments ............ 277 277 292 274 312 1.2 1.2 1.3 1.2 1.4

Net employment change .............. -128 -265 -284 -370 -761 -.6 -1.1 -1.2 -1.7 -3.4

Natural resources and mining

Gross job gains ........................... 292 274 280 274 285 15.8 14.5 14.9 14.6 15.0

At expanding establishments ......... 250 234 242 239 247 13.5 12.4 12.9 12.7 13.0

At opening establishments ............ 42 40 38 35 38 2.3 2.1 2.0 1.9 2.0

Gross job losses ........................... 261 293 268 255 286 14.1 15.5 14.3 13.6 15.0

At contracting establishments ......... 224 251 228 221 251 12.1 13.3 12.2 11.8 13.2

At closing establishments ............ 37 42 40 34 35 2.0 2.2 2.1 1.8 1.8

Net employment change .............. 31 -19 12 19 -1 1.7 -1.0 .6 1.0 .0

Construction

Gross job gains ........................... 784 763 737 698 639 10.5 10.2 10.1 9.8 9.4

At expanding establishments ......... 634 614 593 560 505 8.5 8.2 8.1 7.9 7.4

At opening establishments ............ 150 149 144 138 134 2.0 2.0 2.0 1.9 2.0

Gross job losses ........................... 875 869 922 876 976 11.7 11.7 12.6 12.4 14.2

At contracting establishments ......... 702 698 738 700 774 9.4 9.4 10.1 9.9 11.3

At closing establishments ............ 173 171 184 176 202 2.3 2.3 2.5 2.5 2.9

Net employment change .............. -91 -106 -185 -178 -337 -1.2 -1.5 -2.5 -2.6 -4.8

Manufacturing

Gross job gains ........................... 497 456 477 425 378 3.6 3.3 3.5 3.2 2.9

At expanding establishments ......... 453 410 433 386 335 3.3 3.0 3.2 2.9 2.6

At opening establishments ............ 44 46 44 39 43 .3 .3 .3 .3 .3

Gross job losses ........................... 565 596 588 636 801 4.1 4.4 4.3 4.8 6.1

At contracting establishments ......... 498 532 520 572 726 3.6 3.9 3.8 4.3 5.5

At closing establishments ............ 67 64 68 64 75 .5 .5 .5 .5 .6

Net employment change .............. -68 -140 -111 -211 -423 -.5 -1.1 -.8 -1.6 -3.2

Service-providing 1

Gross job gains ........................... 6,103 5,637 5,764 5,425 5,410 6.7 6.2 6.3 6.0 6.1

At expanding establishments ......... 4,883 4,473 4,590 4,319 4,280 5.4 4.9 5.0 4.8 4.8

At opening establishments ............ 1,220 1,164 1,174 1,106 1,130 1.3 1.3 1.3 1.2 1.3

Gross job losses ........................... 5,665 5,642 5,973 5,987 6,404 6.3 6.2 6.6 6.6 7.1

At contracting establishments ......... 4,586 4,566 4,791 4,890 5,226 5.1 5.0 5.3 5.4 5.8

At closing establishments ............ 1,079 1,076 1,182 1,097 1,178 1.2 1.2 1.3 1.2 1.3

Net employment change .............. 438 -5 -209 -562 -994 .4 .0 -.3 -.6 -1.0

Wholesale trade

Gross job gains ........................... 321 294 295 272 259 5.4 4.9 4.9 4.5 4.4

At expanding establishments ......... 263 238 239 223 206 4.4 4.0 4.0 3.7 3.5

At opening establishments ............ 58 56 56 49 53 1.0 .9 .9 .8 .9

Gross job losses ........................... 301 306 314 313 364 5.0 5.1 5.3 5.2 6.2

At contracting establishments ......... 232 239 243 247 290 3.9 4.0 4.1 4.1 4.9

At closing establishments ............ 69 67 71 66 74 1.1 1.1 1.2 1.1 1.3

Net employment change .............. 20 -12 -19 -41 -105 .4 -.2 -.4 -.7 -1.8

See footnote at end of table.

Category

Gross job gains and losses (in thousands) Gross job gains and losses as a percent of employment

(3 months ended) (3 months ended)
Table 3. Private sector gross job gains and losses by industry, seasonally adjusted —Continued

Dec. Mar. June Sept. Dec. Dec. Mar. June Sept. Dec.

2007 2008 2008 2008 2008 2007 2008 2008 2008 2008

Retail trade

Gross job gains ........................... 1,022 954 939 892 835 6.6 6.2 6.0 5.8 5.6

At expanding establishments ......... 870 804 785 736 704 5.6 5.2 5.0 4.8 4.7

At opening establishments ............ 152 150 154 156 131 1.0 1.0 1.0 1.0 .9

Gross job losses ........................... 1,011 979 1,080 1,062 1,181 6.5 6.3 6.9 6.9 7.8

At contracting establishments ......... 871 846 935 923 1,025 5.6 5.4 6.0 6.0 6.8

At closing establishments ............ 140 133 145 139 156 .9 .9 .9 .9 1.0

Net employment change .............. 11 -25 -141 -170 -346 .1 -.1 -.9 -1.1 -2.2

Transportation and warehousing

Gross job gains ........................... 254 208 225 208 238 5.8 4.8 5.2 4.8 5.6

At expanding establishments ......... 219 177 193 178 206 5.0 4.1 4.5 4.1 4.8

At opening establishments ............ 35 31 32 30 32 .8 .7 .7 .7 .8

Gross job losses ........................... 229 250 253 250 283 5.3 5.8 5.9 5.9 6.6

At contracting establishments ......... 189 216 210 209 240 4.4 5.0 4.9 4.9 5.6

At closing establishments ............ 40 34 43 41 43 .9 .8 1.0 1.0 1.0

Net employment change .............. 25 -42 -28 -42 -45 .5 -1.0 -.7 -1.1 -1.0

Utilities

Gross job gains ........................... 15 13 16 14 13 2.8 2.4 2.9 2.5 2.3

At expanding establishments ......... 13 11 14 13 12 2.4 2.0 2.5 2.3 2.1

At opening establishments ............ 2 2 2 1 1 .4 .4 .4 .2 .2

Gross job losses ........................... 11 10 12 13 12 2.0 1.8 2.2 2.3 2.2

At contracting establishments ......... 10 9 10 12 11 1.8 1.6 1.8 2.1 2.0

At closing establishments ............ 1 1 2 1 1 .2 .2 .4 .2 .2

Net employment change .............. 4 3 4 1 1 .8 .6 .7 .2 .1

 Information

Gross job gains ........................... 145 154 162 135 137 4.7 5.1 5.4 4.5 4.6

At expanding establishments ......... 117 129 139 111 109 3.8 4.3 4.6 3.7 3.7

At opening establishments ............ 28 25 23 24 28 .9 .8 .8 .8 .9

Gross job losses ........................... 155 153 161 168 191 5.1 5.1 5.4 5.6 6.4

At contracting establishments ......... 126 123 126 142 155 4.1 4.1 4.2 4.7 5.2

At closing establishments ............ 29 30 35 26 36 1.0 1.0 1.2 .9 1.2

Net employment change .............. -10 1 1 -33 -54 -.4 .0 .0 -1.1 -1.8

Financial activities

Gross job gains ........................... 432 412 394 376 388 5.3 5.1 4.9 4.7 4.9

At expanding establishments ......... 332 324 310 293 293 4.1 4.0 3.9 3.7 3.7

At opening establishments ............ 100 88 84 83 95 1.2 1.1 1.0 1.0 1.2

Gross job losses ........................... 486 436 455 460 497 6.0 5.4 5.7 5.7 6.3

At contracting establishments ......... 368 323 345 353 377 4.5 4.0 4.3 4.4 4.8

At closing establishments ............ 118 113 110 107 120 1.5 1.4 1.4 1.3 1.5

Net employment change .............. -54 -24 -61 -84 -109 -.7 -.3 -.8 -1.0 -1.4

Professional and business services

Gross job gains ........................... 1,440 1,239 1,345 1,231 1,234 8.0 6.8 7.5 6.9 7.1

At expanding establishments ......... 1,158 998 1,073 994 977 6.4 5.5 6.0 5.6 5.6

At opening establishments ............ 282 241 272 237 257 1.6 1.3 1.5 1.3 1.5

Gross job losses ........................... 1,337 1,358 1,433 1,411 1,619 7.5 7.6 8.1 7.9 9.2

At contracting establishments ......... 1,072 1,094 1,100 1,138 1,317 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.4 7.5

At closing establishments ............ 265 264 333 273 302 1.5 1.5 1.9 1.5 1.7

Net employment change .............. 103 -119 -88 -180 -385 .5 -.8 -.6 -1.0 -2.1

Education and health services

Gross job gains ........................... 814 785 788 799 841 4.6 4.4 4.4 4.5 4.6

At expanding establishments ......... 695 661 673 681 716 3.9 3.7 3.8 3.8 3.9

At opening establishments ............ 119 124 115 118 125 .7 .7 .6 .7 .7

Gross job losses ........................... 666 667 715 706 665 3.7 3.8 4.0 4.0 3.7

At contracting establishments ......... 552 551 587 588 547 3.1 3.1 3.3 3.3 3.0

At closing establishments ............ 114 116 128 118 118 .6 .7 .7 .7 .7

Net employment change .............. 148 118 73 93 176 .9 .6 .4 .5 .9

See footnote at end of table.

Category

Gross job gains and losses (in thousands) Gross job gains and losses as a percent of employment

(3 months ended) (3 months ended)
Table 3. Private sector gross job gains and losses by industry, seasonally adjusted —Continued

Dec. Mar. June Sept. Dec. Dec. Mar. June Sept. Dec.

2007 2008 2008 2008 2008 2007 2008 2008 2008 2008

 Leisure and hospitality

Gross job gains ........................... 1,247 1,158 1,183 1,114 1,111 9.3 8.6 8.7 8.3 8.4

At expanding establishments ......... 961 879 908 854 835 7.2 6.5 6.7 6.4 6.3

At opening establishments ............ 286 279 275 260 276 2.1 2.1 2.0 1.9 2.1

Gross job losses ........................... 1,148 1,154 1,218 1,259 1,235 8.5 8.6 9.1 9.4 9.3

At contracting establishments ......... 931 930 993 1,023 1,000 6.9 6.9 7.4 7.6 7.5

At closing establishments ............ 217 224 225 236 235 1.6 1.7 1.7 1.8 1.8

Net employment change .............. 99 4 -35 -145 -124 .8 .0 -.4 -1.1 -.9

 Other services

Gross job gains ........................... 296 290 300 280 265 7.6 7.5 7.7 7.1 6.8

At expanding establishments ......... 238 233 238 221 209 6.1 6.0 6.1 5.6 5.4

At opening establishments ............ 58 57 62 59 56 1.5 1.5 1.6 1.5 1.4

Gross job losses ........................... 287 289 293 307 322 7.3 7.4 7.5 7.8 8.3

At contracting establishments ......... 224 224 228 243 254 5.7 5.7 5.8 6.2 6.5

At closing establishments ............ 63 65 65 64 68 1.6 1.7 1.7 1.6 1.8

Net employment change .............. 9 1 7 -27 -57 .3 .1 .2 -.7 -1.5

1 Includes unclassified sector, not shown separately.

Category

Gross job gains and losses (in thousands) Gross job gains and losses as a percent of employment

(3 months ended) (3 months ended)
Table 4. Private sector percentage share 1 of gross job gains and losses, seasonally adjusted 

(Percent)

Dec. Mar. June Sept. Dec.

2007 2008 2008 2008 2008

Firm size 1 - 4 employees

Gross job gains ............................. 15.6 16.2 15.4 16.1 16.8

Expanding firms ......................... 7.2 7.7 7.3 7.6 7.6

Opening firms ............................ 61.6 58.9 59.0 60.6 62.2

Gross job losses ............................. 16.1 16.7 16.0 15.3 14.5

Contracting firms .......................... 8.0 8.1 7.6 7.2 6.9

Closing firms ............................. 59.6 61.0 61.1 60.6 61.1

Firm size 5 - 9 employees

Gross job gains ............................. 11.5 12.4 11.9 12.1 11.7

Expanding firms ......................... 10.7 11.6 11.0 11.3 11.0

Opening firms ............................ 15.6 16.5 16.6 16.4 15.2

Gross job losses ............................. 12.3 12.4 11.9 11.4 10.8

Contracting firms .......................... 11.6 11.7 11.1 10.5 10.0

Closing firms ............................. 16.3 16.0 16.1 16.0 15.8

Firm size 10 - 19 employees

Gross job gains ............................. 11.7 12.6 12.2 12.2 11.8

Expanding firms ......................... 12.0 12.9 12.4 12.5 12.1

Opening firms ............................ 10.1 11.1 11.2 10.6 10.1

Gross job losses ............................. 12.4 12.4 12.0 11.6 11.2

Contracting firms .......................... 12.7 12.8 12.3 11.8 11.3

Closing firms ............................. 10.8 10.3 10.4 10.4 10.4

Firm size 20 - 49 employees

Gross job gains ............................. 13.8 14.8 14.5 14.3 13.6

Expanding firms ......................... 14.9 16.1 15.6 15.5 14.8

Opening firms ............................ 7.7 7.9 8.5 7.8 7.7

Gross job losses ............................. 14.5 14.3 14.0 13.9 13.6

Contracting firms .......................... 15.7 15.7 15.2 15.0 14.5

Closing firms ............................. 8.0 7.5 7.5 7.7 7.5

Firm size 50 - 99 employees

Gross job gains ............................. 8.8 9.1 9.1 9.1 8.6

Expanding firms ......................... 9.9 10.4 10.3 10.3 9.7

Opening firms ............................ 2.9 2.7 2.8 2.9 2.9

Gross job losses ............................. 9.0 8.8 8.7 8.7 8.9

Contracting firms .......................... 10.1 9.9 9.8 9.8 9.9

Closing firms ............................. 3.0 2.9 2.6 2.7 2.6

See footnote at end of table.

Category

3 months ended
Table 4. Private sector percentage share 1 of gross job gains and losses, seasonally adjusted—Continued 

(Percent)

Dec. Mar. June Sept. Dec.

2007 2008 2008 2008 2008

Firm size 100 - 249 employees

Gross job gains ............................. 9.3 9.5 9.7 9.5 9.2

Expanding firms ......................... 10.8 11.1 11.3 11.0 10.7

Opening firms ............................ 1.3 1.4 1.3 1.3 1.4

Gross job losses ............................. 9.1 8.9 9.0 9.4 9.6

Contracting firms .......................... 10.5 10.4 10.4 10.8 10.9

Closing firms ............................. 1.6 1.5 1.5 1.4 1.6

Firm size 250 - 499 employees

Gross job gains ............................. 5.6 5.6 5.7 5.8 5.5

Expanding firms ......................... 6.6 6.7 6.7 6.8 6.6

Opening firms ............................ .3 .4 .4 .3 .4

Gross job losses ............................. 5.4 5.3 5.5 5.6 5.9

Contracting firms .......................... 6.3 6.3 6.4 6.5 6.7

Closing firms ............................. .5 .4 .4 .5 .6

Firm size 500 - 999 employees

Gross job gains ............................. 4.5 4.4 4.7 4.7 4.6

Expanding firms ......................... 5.3 5.3 5.5 5.5 5.5

Opening firms ............................ .2 .3 .2 .1 .1

Gross job losses ............................. 4.5 4.2 4.7 4.8 5.0

Contracting firms .......................... 5.4 5.0 5.6 5.6 5.7

Closing firms ............................. .1 .2 .2 .3 .3

Firm size 1,000 or more employees

Gross job gains ............................. 19.2 15.2 16.8 16.3 18.2

Expanding firms ......................... 22.6 18.1 20.0 19.4 21.9

Opening firms ............................ .2 .7 .0 .0 .0

Gross job losses ............................. 16.7 16.9 18.2 19.4 20.7

Contracting firms .......................... 19.8 20.1 21.6 22.8 24.1

Closing firms ............................. .0 .2 .2 .3 .1

1

 Shares measure the percent of the category represented by each firm size class, and rates may not sum to 100.0 

due to rounding.

Category

3 months ended
Table 5. Private sector gross job gains and losses by state, seasonally adjusted

Dec. Mar. June Sept. Dec. Dec. Mar. June Sept. Dec.

2007 2008 2008 2008 2008 2007 2008 2008 2008 2008

United States 1

 ............ 7,676,000 7,130,000 7,258,000 6,822,000 6,712,000 7,366,000 7,400,000 7,751,000 7,754,000 8,467,000

Alabama .................. 107,871 96,431 92,858 94,018 83,012 104,544 102,216 103,750 106,097 119,055

Alaska ..................... 24,875 24,026 27,326 23,290 25,991 26,209 21,293 23,152 25,878 26,540

Arizona .................. 157,454 131,093 135,186 136,644 127,435 173,557 157,425 169,011 160,041 194,334

Arkansas .................. 60,518 57,573 55,808 59,307 54,192 57,447 55,687 61,899 60,203 65,356

California .................. 991,318 883,486 924,534 823,743 820,811 917,701 970,184 992,365 968,431 1,021,575

Colorado .................. 147,704 144,403 142,518 136,670 128,334 142,396 139,549 143,312 148,638 161,291

Connecticut ............... 84,896 75,774 81,956 74,507 71,865 82,717 75,913 79,403 86,469 91,586

Delaware .................. 26,057 22,843 22,931 23,365 23,185 23,286 23,490 26,415 29,015 27,529

District of Columbia ... 26,858 27,668 29,566 27,587 24,920 26,855 24,968 26,545 26,265 30,282

Florida ..................... 503,784 462,893 456,432 437,465 439,888 557,019 508,941 559,962 548,854 582,767

Georgia .................. 246,217 241,910 235,469 223,052 214,679 257,581 248,694 265,860 259,344 299,093

Hawaii ..................... 27,626 27,444 26,659 24,608 23,763 26,283 28,861 35,007 34,248 33,212

Idaho ..................... 46,957 43,825 40,999 41,167 38,841 42,462 47,387 48,725 46,527 49,607

Illinois ..................... 289,963 257,263 279,798 251,615 244,677 284,241 277,394 274,501 293,498 330,096

Indiana ..................... 147,408 128,823 148,823 142,552 129,136 152,272 151,313 156,699 160,977 191,303

Iowa ........................ 76,423 75,913 75,492 72,202 71,402 72,570 75,739 77,074 75,503 85,180

Kansas ..................... 72,455 85,756 73,245 66,962 74,781 72,803 76,089 76,424 75,491 78,274

Kentucky .................. 98,760 89,802 92,385 82,716 85,906 91,580 94,167 94,347 98,439 106,165

Louisiana .................. 114,566 105,843 106,666 101,375 119,844 102,061 101,310 110,348 117,794 105,818

Maine ..................... 39,812 35,386 39,310 35,228 38,175 36,533 38,311 38,951 42,054 41,665

Maryland .................. 133,972 129,204 130,724 127,690 125,257 137,186 132,403 144,023 142,439 156,325

Massachusetts ............ 163,903 156,011 170,476 151,905 146,760 169,769 152,572 161,310 172,780 188,813

Michigan .................. 226,325 207,642 227,833 205,970 201,544 249,067 242,937 245,121 263,868 295,072

Minnesota ............... 140,089 139,026 141,178 131,850 118,610 143,481 142,695 144,422 145,373 155,252

Mississippi ............... 65,791 57,582 55,524 54,090 57,009 57,571 58,523 68,125 66,097 68,718

Missouri .................. 138,451 137,642 142,593 133,936 133,000 141,379 139,452 147,646 144,905 167,561

Montana .................. 32,517 30,702 27,908 27,599 28,115 28,468 30,160 31,601 28,770 31,199

Nebraska .................. 47,931 46,332 44,468 45,474 44,255 47,536 42,107 47,868 45,394 50,122

Nevada ..................... 85,876 76,077 71,885 66,270 62,916 77,350 85,232 84,034 86,950 99,850

New Hampshire ......... 39,237 35,433 38,576 34,837 33,804 38,422 37,137 38,970 38,872 41,707

New Jersey ............... 227,637 202,756 230,667 196,277 189,705 218,322 213,561 225,045 234,424 247,770

New Mexico ............ 47,752 44,333 43,833 44,736 39,679 44,620 41,459 47,977 45,529 51,967

New York ............... 492,874 435,576 471,669 440,884 441,693 439,494 450,588 466,336 470,365 511,515

North Carolina ............ 233,942 222,100 207,441 206,032 199,409 217,800 221,137 237,807 240,101 266,928

North Dakota ............ 20,281 21,771 19,325 20,897 19,509 17,305 17,438 18,918 18,489 19,267

Ohio ........................ 270,727 243,918 271,662 245,865 228,707 274,342 283,287 273,471 281,477 320,542

Oklahoma ............... 80,007 86,731 81,885 80,037 77,009 77,962 72,919 80,295 77,491 83,065

Oregon ..................... 107,206 97,406 89,219 97,615 86,078 103,814 100,289 110,881 98,568 126,138

Pennsylvania ............ 289,282 267,831 287,681 267,451 255,471 275,587 274,187 282,520 290,479 310,328

Rhode Island ............ 25,807 23,562 26,773 24,724 21,871 28,218 26,635 27,873 28,605 30,457

South Carolina ............ 103,048 99,070 92,276 87,937 84,926 105,799 100,963 107,813 108,041 123,569

South Dakota ............ 21,382 21,942 21,298 21,110 20,975 20,270 19,382 21,663 20,789 22,676

Tennessee ............... 141,888 133,791 131,679 126,191 117,983 133,361 138,012 150,958 158,301 162,740

Texas ..................... 568,802 535,846 529,866 499,414 534,436 487,640 484,274 520,811 533,886 563,061

Utah ........................ 81,880 71,826 70,125 67,227 65,565 75,317 71,419 77,237 73,222 82,140

Vermont .................. 20,368 17,728 18,395 17,109 17,491 18,694 19,372 18,709 19,096 20,345

Virginia .................. 184,806 186,117 185,464 176,537 169,652 186,717 181,561 190,261 198,251 209,325

Washington ............... 185,367 185,681 160,249 172,149 156,619 164,540 167,911 188,699 163,055 203,989

West Virginia ............ 40,109 36,735 35,116 38,356 37,530 36,420 37,112 37,914 36,140 38,723

Wisconsin ............... 136,739 133,678 138,886 129,435 127,923 135,453 136,642 144,751 150,913 162,478

Wyoming .................. 23,500 23,351 19,438 21,024 19,620 18,010 19,803 23,122 18,684 19,854

Puerto Rico ............... 49,548 43,097 43,855 42,205 44,854 49,977 56,195 52,124 47,635 50,209

Virgin Islands ............ 2,261 2,193 2,119 1,927 1,881 2,234 2,157 2,482 2,302 2,197

1 The sum of the states will not necessarily add to the U.S. total because of the independent seasonal adjustment of each state.

NOTE: Totals for the United States do not include data for Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands.

State

Gross job gains 

(3 months ended)

Gross job losses

(3 months ended)
Table 6. Private sector gross job gains and losses as a percent of total employment by state, seasonally adjusted

Dec. Mar. June Sept. Dec. Dec. Mar. June Sept. Dec.

2007 2008 2008 2008 2008 2007 2008 2008 2008 2008

United States .......................... 6.8 6.2 6.4 6.1 6.0 6.5 6.5 6.8 6.9 7.6

Alabama ............................. 6.8 6.0 5.9 5.9 5.4 6.5 6.5 6.6 6.7 7.7

Alaska ................................. 10.6 10.2 11.5 9.7 10.9 11.2 9.0 9.7 10.8 11.2

Arizona ............................... 7.0 5.9 6.2 6.3 6.0 7.7 7.1 7.7 7.3 9.1

Arkansas .............................. 6.2 5.8 5.7 6.1 5.6 5.8 5.7 6.3 6.2 6.8

California ........................... 7.7 6.8 7.2 6.5 6.5 7.0 7.5 7.7 7.6 8.1

Colorado .............................. 7.6 7.4 7.3 7.0 6.7 7.3 7.1 7.3 7.7 8.3

Connecticut ......................... 5.9 5.3 5.7 5.2 5.1 5.7 5.3 5.5 6.0 6.5

Delaware .............................. 7.1 6.2 6.3 6.5 6.6 6.4 6.4 7.3 8.0 7.8

District of Columbia ............... 6.0 6.2 6.6 6.1 5.6 6.1 5.6 5.9 5.8 6.8

Florida ................................. 7.4 6.8 6.8 6.6 6.9 8.1 7.5 8.4 8.3 9.0

Georgia .............................. 7.3 7.1 7.0 6.7 6.6 7.5 7.3 7.9 7.7 9.1

Hawaii ............................... 5.4 5.4 5.3 4.9 4.9 5.2 5.7 6.9 6.9 6.8

Idaho .................................... 8.5 8.0 7.5 7.6 7.3 7.7 8.6 8.9 8.6 9.4

Illinois ................................ 5.7 5.0 5.5 5.0 4.9 5.6 5.4 5.4 5.8 6.7

Indiana ............................... 5.9 5.2 6.0 5.7 5.4 6.0 6.1 6.3 6.6 7.9

Iowa .................................... 6.1 6.0 6.0 5.7 5.7 5.8 6.0 6.1 6.1 6.8

Kansas ................................. 6.5 7.7 6.5 6.0 6.7 6.6 6.7 6.8 6.7 7.0

Kentucky .............................. 6.6 5.9 6.1 5.6 5.8 6.1 6.3 6.3 6.6 7.2

Louisiana .............................. 7.4 6.9 6.9 6.6 7.8 6.7 6.5 7.1 7.7 6.8

Maine ................................ 8.0 7.0 7.8 7.0 7.7 7.3 7.6 7.8 8.4 8.4

Maryland ............................ 6.4 6.2 6.3 6.2 6.1 6.6 6.4 7.0 6.9 7.6

Massachusetts ....................... 5.9 5.6 6.0 5.4 5.2 6.1 5.5 5.8 6.2 6.8

Michigan ............................. 6.4 5.9 6.5 5.9 5.9 7.0 6.9 6.9 7.6 8.7

Minnesota ........................... 6.0 6.0 6.1 5.7 5.2 6.2 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.8

Mississippi ........................... 7.3 6.3 6.2 6.1 6.6 6.4 6.5 7.6 7.4 7.8

Missouri .............................. 6.0 6.0 6.2 5.9 5.9 6.2 6.1 6.4 6.4 7.4

Montana ............................... 9.0 8.5 7.8 7.7 7.9 8.0 8.4 8.8 8.1 8.8

Nebraska .............................. 6.3 6.0 5.8 6.0 5.7 6.2 5.5 6.2 6.0 6.6

Nevada ............................... 7.6 6.7 6.5 6.0 5.8 6.8 7.6 7.6 8.0 9.3

New Hampshire ..................... 7.2 6.5 7.1 6.4 6.3 7.1 6.8 7.2 7.2 7.8

New Jersey ........................... 6.8 6.1 6.9 5.9 5.8 6.5 6.3 6.7 7.0 7.5

New Mexico ........................ 7.5 6.9 6.8 7.0 6.2 7.0 6.5 7.5 7.2 8.2

New York ........................... 6.9 6.1 6.6 6.1 6.2 6.2 6.3 6.5 6.5 7.1

North Carolina ........................ 6.8 6.5 6.1 6.1 6.0 6.4 6.5 7.0 7.2 8.1

North Dakota ........................ 7.2 7.7 6.8 7.3 6.8 6.2 6.1 6.7 6.4 6.7

Ohio .................................... 6.0 5.4 6.1 5.5 5.1 6.1 6.3 6.0 6.2 7.2

Oklahoma ........................... 6.5 7.0 6.6 6.4 6.2 6.4 5.9 6.5 6.2 6.8

Oregon ................................. 7.3 6.7 6.2 6.8 6.1 7.1 6.9 7.7 6.9 8.9

Pennsylvania ........................ 5.8 5.4 5.8 5.4 5.2 5.6 5.6 5.7 5.9 6.4

Rhode Island ........................ 6.2 5.7 6.5 6.1 5.5 6.8 6.4 6.8 7.0 7.5

South Carolina ........................ 6.6 6.3 5.9 5.7 5.6 6.7 6.5 6.9 7.1 8.2

South Dakota ........................ 6.6 6.7 6.5 6.5 6.4 6.2 5.9 6.7 6.4 7.0

Tennessee ........................... 6.1 5.7 5.7 5.5 5.2 5.7 5.8 6.5 6.9 7.2

Texas ................................. 6.7 6.1 6.1 5.8 6.2 5.6 5.6 6.0 6.2 6.5

Utah .................................... 7.9 7.0 6.8 6.6 6.5 7.3 6.9 7.5 7.1 8.1

Vermont .............................. 8.2 7.0 7.4 6.9 7.1 7.5 7.7 7.4 7.7 8.2

Virginia .............................. 6.1 6.2 6.2 5.9 5.8 6.2 6.0 6.3 6.6 7.1

Washington ........................... 7.7 7.6 6.7 7.2 6.6 6.8 7.0 7.8 6.8 8.5

West Virginia ........................ 7.0 6.4 6.2 6.8 6.6 6.3 6.5 6.6 6.3 6.8

Wisconsin ........................... 5.7 5.6 5.8 5.4 5.4 5.7 5.7 6.1 6.4 6.8

Wyoming .............................. 10.8 10.5 8.7 9.5 8.8 8.2 8.9 10.4 8.4 8.9

Puerto Rico ........................... 6.7 5.9 6.1 5.9 6.3 6.8 7.6 7.2 6.6 7.0

Virgin Islands ........................ 6.8 6.6 6.5 5.9 5.8 6.8 6.5 7.5 7.1 6.7

NOTE: Totals for the United States do not include data for Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands.

State

Gross job gains as a percent of employment 

(3 months ended)

Gross job losses as a percent of employment

(3 months ended)
Table 7. Private sector establishment births and deaths, seasonally adjusted

(Levels in thousands)

Level Rate 3 Level Rate Level Rate Level Rate

1992 September ................... N/A N/A 149 2.8 N/A N/A 951 1.1

December ..................... N/A N/A 153 2.8 N/A N/A 931 1.0

1993 March .......................... N/A N/A 158 2.9 N/A N/A 1,038 1.2

June .......................... 175 3.2 155 2.8 1,064 1.2 915 1.0

September ................... 186 3.4 144 2.6 1,123 1.2 850 .9

December ..................... 174 3.1 147 2.7 1,109 1.2 899 1.0

1994 March .......................... 180 3.2 157 2.8 1,109 1.2 965 1.0

June .......................... 186 3.3 162 2.9 1,196 1.3 959 1.0

September ................... 192 3.4 151 2.7 1,184 1.3 849 .9

December ..................... 188 3.3 166 2.9 1,133 1.2 942 1.0

1995 March .......................... 187 3.3 156 2.7 1,154 1.2 910 .9

June .......................... 189 3.3 162 2.8 1,190 1.2 960 1.0

September ................... 186 3.2 164 2.9 1,142 1.2 957 1.0

December ..................... 190 3.3 168 2.9 1,164 1.2 972 1.0

1996 March .......................... 194 3.4 169 2.9 1,193 1.2 1,004 1.0

June .......................... 191 3.3 166 2.9 1,261 1.3 960 1.0

September ................... 199 3.4 166 2.8 1,233 1.2 1,007 1.0

December ..................... 204 3.5 170 2.9 1,302 1.3 992 1.0

1997 March .......................... 202 3.4 173 2.9 1,242 1.2 1,055 1.0

June .......................... 195 3.3 174 2.9 1,226 1.2 993 1.0

September ................... 196 3.3 166 2.8 1,241 1.2 1,007 1.0

December ..................... 196 3.3 184 3.1 1,274 1.2 1,154 1.1

1998 March .......................... 206 3.4 178 3.0 1,328 1.3 1,165 1.1

June .......................... 206 3.4 167 2.8 1,327 1.3 1,215 1.2

September ................... 201 3.3 178 2.9 1,257 1.2 1,102 1.0

December ..................... 192 3.1 180 2.9 1,198 1.1 1,088 1.0

1999 March .......................... 198 3.2 184 3.0 1,305 1.2 1,248 1.2

June .......................... 206 3.4 184 3.0 1,308 1.2 1,118 1.0

September ................... 206 3.3 186 3.0 1,243 1.2 1,127 1.0

December ..................... 203 3.3 183 3.0 1,207 1.1 1,102 1.0

2000 March .......................... 211 3.4 186 3.0 1,227 1.1 1,117 1.0

June .......................... 205 3.3 181 2.9 1,142 1.0 1,063 1.0

September ................... 212 3.4 199 3.2 1,166 1.1 1,167 1.1

December ..................... 200 3.2 194 3.1 1,144 1.0 1,120 1.0

2001 March .......................... 205 3.3 203 3.2 1,174 1.1 1,292 1.2

June .......................... 204 3.2 205 3.3 1,151 1.0 1,236 1.1

September ................... 204 3.2 209 3.3 1,156 1.1 1,232 1.1

December ..................... 197 3.1 200 3.2 1,121 1.0 1,150 1.1

2002 March .......................... 203 3.2 190 3.0 1,202 1.1 1,109 1.0

June .......................... 209 3.3 186 2.9 1,192 1.1 1,086 1.0

September ................... 201 3.2 184 2.9 1,055 1.0 1,026 1.0

December ..................... 203 3.2 191 3.0 1,026 1.0 1,028 1.0

2003 March .......................... 192 3.0 186 2.9 997 .9 1,007 .9

June .......................... 192 3.0 186 2.9 965 .9 956 .9

September ................... 193 3.0 179 2.8 959 .9 884 .8

December ..................... 201 3.1 179 2.8 1,010 .9 921 .9

2004 March .......................... 204 3.1 180 2.8 992 .9 912 .8

June .......................... 202 3.1 185 2.8 986 .9 912 .8

September ................... 210 3.2 186 2.8 1,021 .9 955 .9

December ..................... 212 3.2 180 2.7 1,001 .9 901 .8

2005 March .......................... 209 3.1 184 2.8 937 .9 846 .8

June .......................... 216 3.2 180 2.7 955 .9 844 .8

September ................... 220 3.3 185 2.8 1,001 .9 885 .8

December ..................... 223 3.3 188 2.8 980 .9 853 .8

2006 March .......................... 220 3.2 180 2.6 913 .8 738 .7

June .......................... 220 3.2 194 2.8 977 .9 846 .8

September ................... 210 3.1 195 2.8 930 .8 837 .7

December ..................... 221 3.2 193 2.8 969 .9 815 .7

2007 March .......................... 212 3.1 193 2.8 885 .8 758 .7

June .......................... 204 2.9 202 2.9 886 .8 856 .8

September ................... 218 3.1 203 2.9 948 .8 843 .7

December ..................... 210 3.0 207 3.0 908 .8 841 .7

2008 March .......................... 209 3.0 212 3.0 913 .8 807 .7

June .......................... 195 2.8 N/A N/A 860 .8 N/A N/A

September.......................... 187 2.7 N/A N/A 813 .7 N/A N/A

December ..................... 189 2.7 N/A N/A 794 .7 N/A N/A

1 Values for births are not available for the first three quarters of the time series. See the Technical Note for more information.

2 Values for deaths are not available for the most recent three quarters. See the Technical Note for more information.

3 The rates measure births and deaths as a percentage of the average of the previous and current quarter employment levels or total number of establishments.

Year 3 months ended

Number of Establishments Employment

Births 1 Deaths 2 Births Deaths