1

Technical information: (202) 691-6467

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

Media contact: 691-5902

USDL 05-875

For release: 10:00 A.M. EDT

Tuesday, May 24, 2005

BUSINESS EMPLOYMENT DYNAMICS: THIRD QUARTER 2004

From June to September 2004, the number of job gains from opening and expanding private sector establishments was 7.8 million, and the number of job losses from closing and contracting establishments was

7.6 million, according to data released today by the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of

Labor. The gap between job gains and job losses narrowed during the third quarter of 2004, after widening

over the previous four quarters. (See charts A and B.)

Gross job gains are defined as increases in employment resulting from expansions of employment at

existing establishments or from the opening of establishments. Gross job losses are defined as declines in

employment at existing establishments or from the closing of establishments. The difference between the

number of gross jobs gained and the number of gross jobs lost is the net change in employment.

Private Sector Gross Job Gains and Job Losses

Opening and expanding private sector business establishments gained 7.8 million jobs in the third quarter of 2004, or 68,000 less than in the previous quarter. Over the quarter, expanding establishments added

6.1 million jobs, while opening establishments added 1.7 million jobs.

Gross job losses totaled 7.6 million, up by 335,000 from the second quarter of 2004. The increase in

gross job losses in the third quarter of 2004 represents a reversal of the downward trend in gross job losses.

In the third quarter of 2004, contracting establishments lost 6.0 million jobs, while closing establishments accounted for a loss of 1.6 million jobs. (See tables A, 1, 3, and chart B.)
2

Gross job gains ........................................ 7,396 7,646 7,745 7,857 7,789

At expanding establishments ........... 5,897 6,063 6,231 6,292 6,123

At opening establishments ............... 1,499 1,583 1,514 1,565 1,666

Gross job losses ....................................... 7,324 7,302 7,310 7,263 7,598

At contracting establishments ......... 5,893 5,816 5,871 5,726 5,953

At closing establishments ................ 1,431 1,486 1,439 1,537 1,645

Net employment change ......................... 72 344 435 594 191

 3 months ended

Category

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

1

Gross job gains ........................................ 6.9 7.2 7.2 7.2 7.2

At expanding establishments ........... 5.5 5.7 5.8 5.8 5.7

At opening establishments ............... 1.4 1.5 1.4 1.4 1.5

Gross job losses ....................................... 6.8 6.8 6.8 6.7 7.0

At contracting establishments ......... 5.5 5.4 5.5 5.3 5.5

At closing establishments ................ 1.3 1.4 1.3 1.4 1.5

Net employment change ......................... 0.1 0.4 0.4 0.5 0.2

As a percent of employment

 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.

Dec. 2003 Mar. 2004 June 2004 Sept. 2004

Levels (in thousands)

1

Sept. 2003

From June to September 2004, gross job gains represented 7.2 percent of private sector employment,

unchanged from the previous three quarters. Gross job losses were at 7.0 percent of private sector employment, an increase of 0.3 percentage point from the previous quarter. (See tables A and 2.) These gross job

gain and loss statistics demonstrate that a sizable number of jobs appear and disappear in the relatively short

time frame of one quarter.

Major Industry Sector Gross Job Gains and Gross Job Losses

Good-producing. The third quarter of 2004 saw gross job losses in the goods-producing sector

increase by 44,000 from the prior quarter to a total of 1,691,000. This was the first time since the first

quarter of 2003 that gross job losses have increased in this sector. The increasing gross job loss figure,

combined with the fact that expanding and opening establishments only gained 1,667,000 jobs, led to a net

loss of 24,000 jobs over the quarter among the goods-producing industries. (See tables B and 3.)

Manufacturing. Gross job gains in the manufacturing sector totaled 597,000 in the third quarter

of 2004, down by 7,000 from the previous quarter. This decline, together with an increase in gross job

losses of 26,000 to 612,000, led to a net decrease of 15,000 factory jobs. This sector returned to a net

loss of jobs in the third quarter after it had recorded its first net employment gain in four years during the

second quarter.

Construction. In construction, gross job gains fell to 799,000 during the quarter, while gross job losses

rose to 789,000, for a net gain of 10,000. The net job gain in this sector was 20,000 less than in the previous quarter and was 12,000 less than the net increase in the third quarter of 2003.

Service-providing. The combined service-providing sector had gross job gains of 6.1 million in the third

quarter of 2004, exceeding gross job losses by 215,000. Although gross job gains decreased only slightly,
3

 Total private ....................................... 7,396 7,646 7,745 7,857 7,789 7,324 7,302 7,310 7,263 7,598

Goods-producing .................................... 1,605 1,665 1,764 1,696 1,667 1,755 1,697 1,670 1,647 1,691

Natural resources and mining .............. 272 286 314 283 271 292 285 282 282 290

Construction ............................................ 784 793 837 809 799 762 761 759 779 789

Manufacturing ..................................... 549 586 613 604 597 701 651 629 586 612

Service-providing.1.................................................... 5,791 5,981 5,981 6,161 6,122 5,569 5,605 5,640 5,616 5,907

Wholesale trade .................................. 308 317 319 325 329 323 320 314 302 327

Retail trade ........................................... 1,019 1,061 1,059 1,058 1,044 989 1,016 1,011 974 1,126

Transportation and warehousing .... 235 227 244 241 244 239 237 228 236 235

Utilities .................................................. 16 14 15 13 14 19 16 16 14 16

Information ........................................... 149 172 156 151 163 185 166 169 182 194

Financial activities .............................. 444 436 442 461 469 417 462 433 457 452

Professional and business services 1,356 1,438 1,411 1,509 1,416 1,287 1,302 1,378 1,321 1,366

Education and health services ......... 731 744 751 753 757 670 659 672 696 704

Leisure and hospitality ...................... 1,125 1,161 1,138 1,164 1,169 1,095 1,097 1,091 1,090 1,135

Other services ...................................... 286 288 307 301 297 309 293 291 304 308

 Gross job gains

Industry

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

(In thousands)

Gross job losses

3 months ended

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

2003 2003 2004 2004 2004 2003 2003 2004 2004

3 months ended

 1 Includes unclassified sector, not shown separately.

June

2004

.1

Dec.

an increase of 291,000 in gross job losses led to a considerably smaller net employment change (+215,000)

than was registered in the second quarter in this sector (+545,000).

Retail trade. Among the service-providing industries, retail trade had the sharpest turnaround in net job

change from the second to the third quarters. Gross job gains in retail trade decreased slightly to 1,044,000.

However, a large increase (152,000) in the number of gross job losses led to a net employment loss of

82,000. This was the first negative net change in jobs experienced in retail trade since the first quarter of

2003.

Information. The information sector gained 163,000 and lost 194,000 jobs in the third quarter of 2004,

for a net loss of 31,000 jobs. This makes 14 out of the past 15 quarters that this sector has recorded a net

job loss.

Professional and business services. Establishments in the professional and businesses services sector

had gross job gains of 1,416,000 in the third quarter of 2004, down from gross job gains of 1,509,000 in

the previous quarter. Conversely, gross job losses in this industry increased from 1,321,000 in the second

quarter to 1,366,000 this quarter. The net gain of 50,000 jobs represents the fifth consecutive quarter of

positive employment growth in this industry.

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 third quarter of 2004, the number of opening establishments exceeded the number of closing establishments, leading to a net addition of 9,000 units to the number

of total active private sector establishments. In addition, the number of establishments gaining jobs continued

to surpass the number of establishments losing jobs. Out of 6.5 million active private sector establishments,

a total of 1.8 million establishments gained jobs from June to September 2004. (See table C.) Of these,
4

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 overthe-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.

1.5 million were expanding establishments and 354,000 were opening establishments. During the third quarter of 2004, 1.8 million establishments lost jobs and of these, 1.5 million were contracting establishments and

345,000 were closing establishments.

More Information

For the not seasonally adjusted data and other seasonally adjusted time series not presented in this

release, as well as charts of gross job gains and gross job losses by industry, please refer to the Business

Employment Dynamics Web page on the BLS Web site at http://www.bls.gov/bdm. 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.

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

Sept. 2003 Dec. 2003 Mar. 2004 June 2004 Sept. 2004

 Establishments gaining jobs ................... 1,791 1,815 1,854 1,847 1,840

 Expanding establishments ................... 1,463 1,467 1,505 1,504 1,486

 Opening establishments ....................... 328 348 349 343 354

 Establishments losing jobs...................... 1,772 1,775 1,794 1,792 1,814

 Contracting establishments ................. 1,454 1,453 1,466 1,462 1,469

 Closing establishments ........................ 318 322 328 330 345

 Net establishment change ....................... 10 26 21 13 9

 (In thousands)

 3 months ended

Category

1

 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.
Technical Note

Source Count of UI administrative records Count of longitudinally-linked UI Sample survey: 400,000 employers

submitted by 8.4 million employers administrative records submitted by

6.5 million private sector employers

Coverage UI and UCFE coverage, including UI coverage, excluding govern- Nonfarm wage and salary jobs:

all employers subject to state and ment, private households, and estab- UI coverage, excluding agriculture,

federal UI laws lishments with zero employment private households, and self-employed workers

Other employment, including railroads, religious organizations, and

other non-UI-covered jobs

Publication Quarterly Quarterly Monthly

frequency - 7 months after the end of each - 8 months after the end of each - Usually first Friday of following

quarter quarter month

Use of UI file Directly summarizes and pub- Links each new UI quarter to Uses UI file as a sampling frame

 lishes each new quarter of UI longitudinal database and directly and annually realigns (benchmarks)

 data

Principal Provides a quarterly and annual Provides quarterly employer dynam- Provides current monthly estimates

products universe count of estab- ics data on establishment open- of employment, hours, and earnings

lishments, employment, and ings, closings, expansions, and con- at the MSA, state, and national levwages at the county, MSA, tractions at the national level by el by industry

state, and national levels by NAICS supersectors

detailed industry Future expansions will include data

at the county, MSA, and state level

Principal uses Major uses include: Major uses include: Major uses include:

- Detailed locality data - Business cycle analysis - Principal national economic

- Periodic universe counts for - Analysis of employer dynamics indicator

benchmarking sample survey underlying economic expansions - Official time series for

estimates and contractions employment change measures

- Sample frame for BLS - Future: employment expansion - Input into other major economic

establishment surveys and contraction by size of estab- indicators

lishment

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

Web sites

•

•

•

•

 •

•

•

• •

•

•

• •

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

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

 QCEW BED CES

•

sample estimates to first quarter

UI levels

summarizes gross job gains

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

Workforce Agencies (SWAs) to BLS and form the basis of the

Bureau’s establishment universe sampling frame. These

reports also are 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 BLS uses of the

UI reports are in the Current Employment Statistics (CES)

program. (See table below for differences between QCEW, CES,

and BED.)

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

establishments and jobs lost at closing and contracting

establishments.

Differences between QCEW, BED, and CES employment measures

The BLS publishes three different establishment-based

employment measures for any given quarter. Each of these

measures—QCEW, BED, and CES—makes use of the quarterly

and losses

and by size of establishment
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 over-the-quarter employment change. It is important to understand program

differences and the intended uses of the program products.

(See table on previous page.) Additional information on each

program can be obtained from the program Web sites shown

in the table.

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 SWAs 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 self-employed

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 over 6.5 million private

sector employer reports out of 8.4 million total reports of

employment and wages submitted by states to BLS in the

third quarter of 2004. 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 over three

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 gross job gains and gross

job losses data in the third quarter of 2004:

Concepts and methodology

The Business Employment Dynamics data measure the net

change in employment at the establishment level. These

changes come about in one of four ways. A net increase in

employment can come from either opening establishments or

expanding establishments. A net decrease in employment can

come from either closing establishments or contracting

establishments. Gross job gains include the sum of all jobs

added at either opening or expanding establishments. Gross

job losses include the sum of all jobs lost in either closing or

contracting establishments. The net change in employment is

the difference between gross job gains and gross job losses.

The formal definitions of establishment-level employment

changes are as follows:

Openings. These are either establishments 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 establishments 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 establishments with positive thirdmonth employment in the previous quarter, with no

employment or zero employment reported in the current quarter.

Contractions. These are establishments with positive

employment in the third month in both the previous and current

quarters, with a net decrease in employment over this period.

All establishment-level employment changes are measured

from the third month of each quarter. Not all establishments

change their employment levels; these establishments 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.

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

 Number of active establishments included in

 Business Employment Dynamics data

 Millions

 Total establishments QCEW program ................. 8.4

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

Private households ....................... 0.5

Zero employment ......................... 1.0

Establishments in Puerto Rico

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

 Total establishments included in Business

 Employment Dynamics data ............................. 6.5
examines unmatched records individually and makes a possible

match.

In order to ensure the highest possible quality of data,

SWAs 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.

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 establishments are independently

seasonally adjusted; net changes are calculated based on

the difference between gross job gains and gross job losses.

Similarly, 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 the total private sector are

calculated by summing the seasonally adjusted data for all

sectors, including the unclassified sector, which is not

published separately.

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 are

available upon request from the Division of Administrative

Statistics and Labor Turnover, Bureau of Labor Statistics,

U.S. Department of Labor, Washington, DC 20212; telephone 202-691-6567; (http://www.bls.gov/cew/); (e-mail:

CEWInfo@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 job losses, seasonally adjusted

(In thousands)

Gross job gains Gross job losses

Year 3 months ended Net change1Expanding Opening Contracting Closing

establishments establishments establishments establishments

1992 September 455 7,377 5,632 1,745 6,922 5,351 1,571

 December 216 7,101 5,465 1,636 6,885 5,487 1,398

1993 March 313 7,309 5,410 1,899 6,996 5,354 1,642

 June 786 7,330 5,794 1,536 6,544 5,136 1,408

 September 874 7,523 5,881 1,642 6,649 5,316 1,333

 December 641 7,436 5,840 1,596 6,795 5,420 1,375

1994 March 517 7,400 5,807 1,593 6,883 5,435 1,448

 June 1,021 7,807 6,060 1,747 6,786 5,295 1,491

 September 1,175 7,972 6,227 1,745 6,797 5,493 1,304

 December 507 7,630 5,998 1,632 7,123 5,647 1,476

1995 March 746 7,782 6,129 1,653 7,036 5,660 1,376

 June 402 7,714 6,017 1,697 7,312 5,839 1,473

 September 771 7,970 6,291 1,679 7,199 5,680 1,519

 December 407 7,877 6,153 1,724 7,470 5,934 1,536

1996 March 460 7,943 6,190 1,753 7,483 5,957 1,526

 June 642 8,080 6,302 1,778 7,438 5,894 1,544

 September 632 8,189 6,326 1,863 7,557 5,998 1,559

 December 861 8,278 6,409 1,869 7,417 5,889 1,528

1997 March 799 8,292 6,448 1,844 7,493 5,900 1,593

 June 594 8,098 6,342 1,756 7,504 5,925 1,579

 September 854 8,593 6,680 1,913 7,739 5,981 1,758

 December 702 8,731 6,727 2,004 8,029 6,068 1,961

1998 March 747 8,788 6,633 2,155 8,041 6,107 1,934

 June 666 8,722 6,569 2,153 8,056 6,218 1,838

 September 659 8,539 6,574 1,965 7,880 6,161 1,719

 December 759 8,576 6,778 1,798 7,817 6,060 1,757

1999 March 380 8,744 6,733 2,011 8,364 6,466 1,898

 June 569 8,800 6,788 2,012 8,231 6,419 1,812

 September 548 8,817 6,871 1,946 8,269 6,397 1,872

 December 1,105 9,144 7,112 2,032 8,039 6,264 1,775

2000 March 818 8,906 6,988 1,918 8,088 6,361 1,727

 June 541 8,764 6,975 1,789 8,223 6,509 1,714

 September 146 8,724 6,834 1,890 8,578 6,719 1,859

 December 336 8,690 6,862 1,828 8,354 6,582 1,772

2001 March -101 8,555 6,768 1,787 8,656 6,756 1,900

 June -771 8,254 6,439 1,815 9,025 7,149 1,876

 September -1,380 7,749 5,990 1,759 9,129 7,174 1,955

 December -871 7,893 6,055 1,838 8,764 6,995 1,769

2002 March -1 8,128 6,324 1,804 8,129 6,400 1,729

 June -80 8,050 6,246 1,804 8,130 6,411 1,719

 September -211 7,763 6,083 1,680 7,974 6,345 1,629

 December -175 7,702 6,059 1,643 7,877 6,267 1,610

2003 March -404 7,472 5,932 1,540 7,876 6,321 1,555

 June -142 7,560 6,033 1,527 7,702 6,138 1,564

 September 72 7,396 5,897 1,499 7,324 5,893 1,431

 December 344 7,646 6,063 1,583 7,302 5,816 1,486

2004 March 435 7,745 6,231 1,514 7,310 5,871 1,439

 June 594 7,857 6,292 1,565 7,263 5,726 1,537

 September 191 7,789 6,123 1,666 7,598 5,953 1,645

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

Total Total
Table 2. Private sector gross job gains and losses, as a percent of employment1

, seasonally adjusted

(Percent)

Gross job gains Gross job losses

Year 3 months ended Net change2Expanding Opening Contracting Closing

establishments establishments establishments establishments

1992 September 0.5 8.3 6.3 2.0 7.8 6.0 1.8

 December 0.2 7.9 6.1 1.8 7.7 6.1 1.6

1993 March 0.3 8.1 6.0 2.1 7.8 6.0 1.8

 June 0.8 8.1 6.4 1.7 7.3 5.7 1.6

 September 0.9 8.2 6.4 1.8 7.3 5.8 1.5

 December 0.6 8.0 6.3 1.7 7.4 5.9 1.5

1994 March 0.5 8.0 6.3 1.7 7.5 5.9 1.6

 June 1.1 8.4 6.5 1.9 7.3 5.7 1.6

 September 1.2 8.4 6.6 1.8 7.2 5.8 1.4

 December 0.6 8.0 6.3 1.7 7.4 5.9 1.5

1995 March 0.8 8.1 6.4 1.7 7.3 5.9 1.4

 June 0.5 8.0 6.2 1.8 7.5 6.0 1.5

 September 0.8 8.2 6.5 1.7 7.4 5.8 1.6

 December 0.4 8.1 6.3 1.8 7.7 6.1 1.6

1996 March 0.4 8.1 6.3 1.8 7.7 6.1 1.6

 June 0.6 8.2 6.4 1.8 7.6 6.0 1.6

 September 0.7 8.3 6.4 1.9 7.6 6.0 1.6

 December 0.9 8.3 6.4 1.9 7.4 5.9 1.5

1997 March 0.7 8.2 6.4 1.8 7.5 5.9 1.6

 June 0.5 7.9 6.2 1.7 7.4 5.8 1.6

 September 0.8 8.4 6.5 1.9 7.6 5.9 1.7

 December 0.6 8.4 6.5 1.9 7.8 5.9 1.9

1998 March 0.7 8.5 6.4 2.1 7.8 5.9 1.9

 June 0.6 8.4 6.3 2.1 7.8 6.0 1.8

 September 0.7 8.2 6.3 1.9 7.5 5.9 1.6

 December 0.7 8.1 6.4 1.7 7.4 5.7 1.7

1999 March 0.3 8.2 6.3 1.9 7.9 6.1 1.8

 June 0.6 8.3 6.4 1.9 7.7 6.0 1.7

 September 0.5 8.2 6.4 1.8 7.7 6.0 1.7

 December 1.1 8.5 6.6 1.9 7.4 5.8 1.6

2000 March 0.8 8.2 6.4 1.8 7.4 5.8 1.6

 June 0.4 7.9 6.3 1.6 7.5 5.9 1.6

 September 0.1 7.9 6.2 1.7 7.8 6.1 1.7

 December 0.3 7.9 6.2 1.7 7.6 6.0 1.6

2001 March -0.1 7.7 6.1 1.6 7.8 6.1 1.7

 June -0.8 7.4 5.8 1.6 8.2 6.5 1.7

 September -1.3 7.1 5.5 1.6 8.4 6.6 1.8

 December -0.8 7.3 5.6 1.7 8.1 6.5 1.6

2002 March 0.1 7.6 5.9 1.7 7.5 5.9 1.6

 June -0.1 7.5 5.8 1.7 7.6 6.0 1.6

 September -0.1 7.3 5.7 1.6 7.4 5.9 1.5

 December -0.2 7.1 5.6 1.5 7.3 5.8 1.5

2003 March -0.5 6.9 5.5 1.4 7.4 5.9 1.5

 June -0.2 7.0 5.6 1.4 7.2 5.7 1.5

 September 0.1 6.9 5.5 1.4 6.8 5.5 1.3

 December 0.4 7.2 5.7 1.5 6.8 5.4 1.4

2004 March 0.4 7.2 5.8 1.4 6.8 5.5 1.3

 June 0.5 7.2 5.8 1.4 6.7 5.3 1.4

 September 0.2 7.2 5.7 1.5 7.0 5.5 1.5

 

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

 2See footnote 1, table 1.

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

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

 Category 3 months ended 3 months ended

Sept. 2003 Dec. 2003 Mar. 2004 June 2004 Sept. 2004 Sept. 2003 Dec. 2003 Mar. 2004 June 2004 Sept. 2004 

Total private1

Gross job gains 7,396 7,646 7,745 7,857 7,789 6.9 7.2 7.2 7.2 7.2

 At expanding establishments 5,897 6,063 6,231 6,292 6,123 5.5 5.7 5.8 5.8 5.7

 At opening establishments 1,499 1,583 1,514 1,565 1,666 1.4 1.5 1.4 1.4 1.5

Gross job losses 7,324 7,302 7,310 7,263 7,598 6.8 6.8 6.8 6.7 7.0

 At contracting establishments 5,893 5,816 5,871 5,726 5,953 5.5 5.4 5.5 5.3 5.5

 At closing establishments 1,431 1,486 1,439 1,537 1,645 1.3 1.4 1.3 1.4 1.5

Net employment change 72 344 435 594 191 0.1 0.4 0.4 0.5 0.2

Goods-producing

Gross job gains 1,605 1,665 1,764 1,696 1,667 7.1 7.3 7.7 7.4 7.3

 At expanding establishments 1,343 1,391 1,487 1,444 1,403 5.9 6.1 6.5 6.3 6.1

 At opening establishments 262 274 277 252 264 1.2 1.2 1.2 1.1 1.2

Gross job losses 1,755 1,697 1,670 1,647 1,691 7.7 7.4 7.3 7.2 7.4

 At contracting establishments 1,443 1,391 1,372 1,334 1,366 6.3 6.1 6.0 5.8 6.0

 At closing establishments 312 306 298 313 325 1.4 1.3 1.3 1.4 1.4

Net employment change -150 -32 94 49 -24 -0.6 -0.1 0.4 0.2 -0.1

Natural resources and mining

Gross job gains 272 286 314 283 271 16.4 17.3 18.5 16.8 16.3

 At expanding establishments 225 233 266 243 230 13.6 14.1 15.7 14.4 13.8

 At opening establishments 47 53 48 40 41 2.8 3.2 2.8 2.4 2.5

Gross job losses 292 285 282 282 290 17.7 17.2 16.6 16.7 17.4

 At contracting establishments 243 239 234 235 243 14.7 14.4 13.8 13.9 14.6

 At closing establishments 49 46 48 47 47 3.0 2.8 2.8 2.8 2.8

Net employment change -20 1 32 1 -19 -1.3 0.1 1.9 0.1 -1.1

Construction

Gross job gains 784 793 837 809 799 11.7 11.8 12.3 11.7 11.6

 At expanding establishments 636 641 669 655 643 9.5 9.5 9.8 9.5 9.3

 At opening establishments 148 152 168 154 156 2.2 2.3 2.5 2.2 2.3

Gross job losses 762 761 759 779 789 11.4 11.3 11.1 11.3 11.4

 At contracting establishments 601 599 602 609 616 9.0 8.9 8.8 8.8 8.9

 At closing establishments 161 162 157 170 173 2.4 2.4 2.3 2.5 2.5

Net employment change 22 32 78 30 10 0.3 0.5 1.2 0.4 0.2

Manufacturing

Gross job gains 549 586 613 604 597 3.8 4.1 4.3 4.2 4.2

 At expanding establishments 482 517 552 546 530 3.3 3.6 3.9 3.8 3.7

 At opening establishments 67 69 61 58 67 0.5 0.5 0.4 0.4 0.5

Gross job losses 701 651 629 586 612 4.9 4.6 4.5 4.1 4.2

 At contracting establishments 599 553 536 490 507 4.2 3.9 3.8 3.4 3.5

 At closing establishments 102 98 93 96 105 0.7 0.7 0.7 0.7 0.7

Net employment change -152 -65 -16 18 -15 -1.1 -0.5 -0.2 0.1 0.0

Service-providing1

Gross job gains 5,791 5,981 5,981 6,161 6,122 6.9 7.1 7.1 7.2 7.1

 At expanding establishments 4,554 4,672 4,744 4,848 4,720 5.4 5.5 5.6 5.7 5.5

 At opening establishments 1,237 1,309 1,237 1,313 1,402 1.5 1.6 1.5 1.5 1.6

Gross job losses 5,569 5,605 5,640 5,616 5,907 6.6 6.6 6.6 6.6 6.9

 At contracting establishments 4,450 4,425 4,499 4,392 4,587 5.3 5.2 5.3 5.2 5.4

 At closing establishments 1,119 1,180 1,141 1,224 1,320 1.3 1.4 1.3 1.4 1.5

Net employment change 222 376 341 545 215 0.3 0.5 0.5 0.6 0.2

Wholesale trade

Gross job gains 308 317 319 325 329 5.6 5.7 5.7 5.7 5.8

 At expanding establishments 249 257 258 266 267 4.5 4.6 4.6 4.7 4.7

 At opening establishments 59 60 61 59 62 1.1 1.1 1.1 1.0 1.1

Gross job losses 323 320 314 302 327 5.8 5.7 5.6 5.3 5.8

 At contracting establishments 250 245 243 226 243 4.5 4.4 4.3 4.0 4.3

 At closing establishments 73 75 71 76 84 1.3 1.3 1.3 1.3 1.5

Net employment change -15 -3 5 23 2 -0.2 0.0 0.1 0.4 0.0

Retail trade

Gross job gains 1,019 1,061 1,059 1,058 1,044 6.7 7.1 7.0 6.9 6.9

 At expanding establishments 848 886 890 885 845 5.6 5.9 5.9 5.8 5.6

 At opening establishments 171 175 169 173 199 1.1 1.2 1.1 1.1 1.3

Gross job losses 989 1,016 1,011 974 1,126 6.6 6.8 6.7 6.4 7.5

 At contracting establishments 839 857 857 820 920 5.6 5.7 5.7 5.4 6.1

 At closing establishments 150 159 154 154 206 1.0 1.1 1.0 1.0 1.4

Net employment change 30 45 48 84 -82 0.1 0.3 0.3 0.5 -0.6

See footnote at end of table.
Table 3. Private sector gross job gains and losses by industry, seasonally adjusted--Continued

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

 Category 3 months ended 3 months ended

Sept. 2003 Dec. 2003 Mar. 2004 June 2004 Sept. 2004 Sept. 2003 Dec. 2003 Mar. 2004 June 2004 Sept. 2004 

Transportation and warehousing

Gross job gains 235 227 244 241 244 6.0 5.7 6.1 6.0 6.0

 At expanding establishments 193 191 205 202 203 4.9 4.8 5.1 5.0 5.0

 At opening establishments 42 36 39 39 41 1.1 0.9 1.0 1.0 1.0

Gross job losses 239 237 228 236 235 6.1 6.0 5.7 5.9 5.8

 At contracting establishments 193 188 183 192 190 4.9 4.8 4.6 4.8 4.7

 At closing establishments 46 49 45 44 45 1.2 1.2 1.1 1.1 1.1

Net employment change -4 -10 16 5 9 -0.1 -0.3 0.4 0.1 0.2

Utilities

Gross job gains 16 14 15 13 14 2.7 2.4 2.7 2.3 2.5

 At expanding establishments 14 12 13 11 13 2.4 2.1 2.3 1.9 2.3

 At opening establishments 2 2 2 2 1 0.3 0.3 0.4 0.4 0.2

Gross job losses 19 16 16 14 16 3.3 2.7 2.9 2.5 2.8

 At contracting establishments 15 14 14 12 13 2.6 2.4 2.5 2.1 2.3

 At closing establishments 4 2 2 2 3 0.7 0.3 0.4 0.4 0.5

Net employment change -3 -2 -1 -1 -2 -0.6 -0.3 -0.2 -0.2 -0.3

 Information

Gross job gains 149 172 156 151 163 4.7 5.5 5.0 4.8 5.3

 At expanding establishments 120 131 132 125 135 3.8 4.2 4.2 4.0 4.4

 At opening establishments 29 41 24 26 28 0.9 1.3 0.8 0.8 0.9

Gross job losses 185 166 169 182 194 5.8 5.2 5.4 5.9 6.3

 At contracting establishments 150 121 138 146 148 4.7 3.8 4.4 4.7 4.8

 At closing establishments 35 45 31 36 46 1.1 1.4 1.0 1.2 1.5

Net employment change -36 6 -13 -31 -31 -1.1 0.3 -0.4 -1.1 -1.0

Financial activities

Gross job gains 444 436 442 461 469 5.7 5.5 5.7 5.9 5.9

 At expanding establishments 344 333 343 362 364 4.4 4.2 4.4 4.6 4.6

 At opening establishments 100 103 99 99 105 1.3 1.3 1.3 1.3 1.3

Gross job losses 417 462 433 457 452 5.3 5.9 5.5 5.8 5.7

 At contracting establishments 321 354 325 324 334 4.1 4.5 4.1 4.1 4.2

 At closing establishments 96 108 108 133 118 1.2 1.4 1.4 1.7 1.5

Net employment change 27 -26 9 4 17 0.4 -0.4 0.2 0.1 0.2

Professional and business services

Gross job gains 1,356 1,438 1,411 1,509 1,416 8.5 9.0 8.8 9.3 8.7

 At expanding establishments 1,085 1,136 1,156 1,214 1,124 6.8 7.1 7.2 7.5 6.9

 At opening establishments 271 302 255 295 292 1.7 1.9 1.6 1.8 1.8

Gross job losses 1,287 1,302 1,378 1,321 1,366 8.1 8.2 8.5 8.2 8.3

 At contracting establishments 996 1,000 1,080 988 1,035 6.3 6.3 6.7 6.1 6.3

 At closing establishments 291 302 298 333 331 1.8 1.9 1.8 2.1 2.0

Net employment change 69 136 33 188 50 0.4 0.8 0.3 1.1 0.4

Education and health services

Gross job gains 731 744 751 753 757 4.6 4.7 4.7 4.7 4.7

 At expanding establishments 607 616 633 635 626 3.8 3.9 4.0 4.0 3.9

 At opening establishments 124 128 118 118 131 0.8 0.8 0.7 0.7 0.8

Gross job losses 670 659 672 696 704 4.3 4.1 4.3 4.3 4.4

 At contracting establishments 548 529 551 560 562 3.5 3.3 3.5 3.5 3.5

 At closing establishments 122 130 121 136 142 0.8 0.8 0.8 0.8 0.9

Net employment change 61 85 79 57 53 0.3 0.6 0.4 0.4 0.3

 Leisure and hospitality

Gross job gains 1,125 1,161 1,138 1,164 1,169 9.3 9.5 9.2 9.3 9.4

 At expanding establishments 849 866 854 889 883 7.0 7.1 6.9 7.1 7.1

 At opening establishments 276 295 284 275 286 2.3 2.4 2.3 2.2 2.3

Gross job losses 1,095 1,097 1,091 1,090 1,135 9.0 8.9 8.8 8.7 9.1

 At contracting establishments 879 875 870 873 888 7.2 7.1 7.0 7.0 7.1

 At closing establishments 216 222 221 217 247 1.8 1.8 1.8 1.7 2.0

Net employment change 30 64 47 74 34 0.3 0.6 0.4 0.6 0.3

 Other services

Gross job gains 286 288 307 301 297 7.6 7.6 8.1 7.9 7.8

 At expanding establishments 227 227 242 236 235 6.0 6.0 6.4 6.2 6.2

 At opening establishments 59 61 65 65 62 1.6 1.6 1.7 1.7 1.6

Gross job losses 309 293 291 304 308 8.2 7.8 7.6 8.0 8.2

 At contracting establishments 246 229 225 235 237 6.5 6.1 5.9 6.2 6.3

 At closing establishments 63 64 66 69 71 1.7 1.7 1.7 1.8 1.9

Net employment change -23 -5 16 -3 -11 -0.6 -0.2 0.5 -0.1 -0.4

1 Includes unclassified sector, not shown separately.