For release 10:00 a.m. (EST), Wednesday, November 8, 2017 USDL-17-1481 

Technical Information: (202) 691-6553 • BDMInfo@bls.gov • www.bls.gov/bdm 

Media Contact: (202) 691-5902 • PressOffice@bls.gov 

BUSINESS EMPLOYMENT DYNAMICS – FIRST QUARTER 2017

From December 2016 to March 2017, gross job gains from opening and expanding private-sector 

establishments were 7.3 million, a decrease of 127,000 jobs over the quarter, the U.S. Bureau of Labor 

Statistics reported today. Over this period, gross job losses from closing and contracting private-sector 

establishments were 6.7 million, a decrease of 391,000 jobs from the previous quarter. The difference 

between the number of gross job gains and the number of gross job losses yielded a net employment 

gain of 654,000 jobs in the private-sector during the first quarter of 2017. (See chart 1, and tables A 

and 1.) 

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

that occur at all private businesses in the economy. Business Employment Dynamics (BED) statistics 

track these changes in employment at private-sector establishments from the third month of one quarter 

to the third month of the next. The difference between the number of gross job gains and the number of 

gross job losses is the net change in employment. (See Technical Note.) The BED data series include 

gross job gains and gross job losses by industry subsector, 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.

Gross job gains

Gross job losses

5,000

6,000

7,000

8,000

9,000

10,000

2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017

Chart 1. Total private sector gross job gains and gross job losses, seasonally adjusted

March 2007 - March 2017

Thousands

NOTE: Shaded area represents National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) defined recession period.
- 2 - 

Gross Job Gains 

In the first quarter of 2017, gross job gains represented 6.0 percent of private-sector employment. Gross 

job gains are the sum of increases in employment due to expansions at existing establishments and the 

addition of new jobs at opening establishments. Gross job gains at expanding establishments totaled 6.0 

million in the first quarter of 2017, a decrease of 21,000 compared to the previous quarter. Opening

establishments accounted for 1.3 million of the jobs gained in the first quarter of 2017, a decrease of 

106,000 jobs from the previous quarter. (See charts 2 and 3, and tables A, 1, 2, and 3.) 

Gross Job Losses

In the first quarter of 2017, gross job losses represented 5.4 percent of private-sector employment. Gross 

job losses are the result of contractions in employment at existing establishments and the loss of jobs at 

closing establishments. Contracting establishments lost 5.5 million jobs in the first quarter of 2017, a 

decrease of 239,000 jobs from the prior quarter. In the first quarter of 2017, closing establishments lost 

1.2 million jobs, a decrease of 152,000 jobs from the previous quarter. (See charts 2 and 3, and tables A,

1, 2, and 3.) 

Establishment Births and Deaths

In the first quarter of 2017, the number of establishment births (a subset of the openings data, see the 

Technical Note for more information) increased by 1,000, to a total of 240,000 establishments. These 

new establishments accounted for 800,000 jobs, a decrease of 68,000 jobs from the previous quarter. 

Data for establishment deaths (a subset of the closings data) are available through the second quarter of 

2016, when 724,000 jobs were lost at 214,000 establishments. (See table 8.) 

Industries

Gross job gains exceeded gross job losses in 12 of 13 industries in the first quarter of 2017. The serviceproviding industries experienced a net job increase of 451,000 jobs in the first quarter of 2017. Within 

service-providing industries, leisure and hospitality had the largest over-the-quarter net job increase, 

with a gain of 172,000 jobs. The net job increase in leisure and hospitality was the result of 1.3 million

gross job gains and 1.1 million gross job losses. The transportation and warehousing industry had the 

only net job decrease over the quarter. The goods-producing industries experienced a net job increase of

203,000 jobs in the first quarter of 2017. All of the goods-producing industries had positive net gains.

Construction added 125,000 jobs, natural resources and mining added 55,000 jobs, and manufacturing 

added 23,000 jobs. (See table 3.) 

Expansions

Contractions

4,000

5,000

6,000

7,000

8,000

'07 '08 '09 '10 '11 '12 '13 '14 '15 '16 '17

Chart 2. Components of private sector gross job gains and gross 

job losses at expanding and contracting establishments, 

seasonally adjusted: March 2007 - March 2017

Thousands

NOTE: Shaded area represents NBER defined recession period.

Openings

Closings

1,100

1,200

1,300

1,400

1,500

1,600

'07 '08 '09 '10 '11 '12 '13 '14 '15 '16 '17

Chart 3. Components of private sector gross job gains and gross 

job losses at opening and closing establishments, seasonally 

adjusted: March 2007 - March 2017

Thousands

NOTE: Shaded area represents NBER defined recession period.
- 3 - 

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

Category

3 months ended

Mar. June Sept. Dec. Mar.

2016 2016 2016 2016 2017

Levels (in thousands)

Gross job gains................................... 7,139 7,453 7,689 7,455 7,328

 At expanding establishments...... 5,855 6,083 6,232 6,040 6,019

 At opening establishments.......... 1,284 1,370 1,457 1,415 1,309

Gross job losses................................. 6,883 7,157 7,008 7,065 6,674

 At contracting establishments.... 5,685 5,847 5,760 5,760 5,521

 At closing establishments........... 1,198 1,310 1,248 1,305 1,153

Net employment change1.................. 256 296 681 390 654

Rates (percent)

Gross job gains................................... 6.0 6.2 6.4 6.2 6.0

 At expanding establishments...... 4.9 5.1 5.2 5.0 4.9

 At opening establishments.......... 1.1 1.1 1.2 1.2 1.1

Gross job losses................................. 5.7 6.0 5.8 5.9 5.4

 At contracting establishments.... 4.7 4.9 4.8 4.8 4.5

 At closing establishments........... 1.0 1.1 1.0 1.1 0.9

Net employment change1.................. 0.3 0.2 0.6 0.3 0.6

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.

Firm Size

In the first quarter of 2017, firms with 1-49 employees had a net employment gain of 369,000. Firms 

with 50-249 employees had a net employment gain of 197,000. Firms with 250 or more employees had a 

net employment gain of 120,000. Of the 2.0 million net jobs created over the last four quarters, firms 

with 1-49 employees contributed 33.8 percent of net job growth, while firms with 50-249 employees 

contributed 22.5 percent, and firms with 250 or more employees contributed 43.7 percent. (See tables 4 

and 5.) 

States

Gross job gains exceeded gross job losses in 44 states and the District of Columbia in the first quarter of 

2017. Over this period, 27 states exceeded the U.S. rate of gross job gains as a percent of employment, 

which was 6.0 percent. Alaska had the highest rate of gross job gains as a percent of employment at 9.4 

percent. Hawaii, Tennessee, and Puerto Rico had the lowest rate of gross job gains as a percent of 

employment at 5.1 percent. Alaska also had the highest rate of gross job losses as a percent of 

employment at 9.8 percent, above the national rate of 5.4 percent. Minnesota and the District of 

Columbia had the lowest rate of gross job losses as a percent of employment at 4.7 percent. (See tables 6 

and 7.) 
- 4 - 

For More Information 

Additional information on gross job gains and gross job losses is available online at www.bls.gov/bdm. 

This information includes data on the levels and rates of gross job gains and gross job losses by firm 

size, 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 can be obtained by emailing BDMinfo@bls.gov. 

The Business Employment Dynamics for Second Quarter 2017 are scheduled to be released on 

Wednesday, January 24, 2018 at 10:00 a.m. (EST).

Revisions to Business Employment Dynamics (BED) Data 

Data in this release incorporate annual revisions to the BED series. Annual revisions are published each 

year with the release of first quarter data. These revisions cover the last four quarters of not seasonally 

adjusted data and five years of seasonally adjusted data. 
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). The BED data are compiled by 

the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) from existing QCEW records. Most employers in the U.S. are required to file quarterly reports 

on the employment and wages of workers covered by unemployment

insurance (UI) laws and to pay quarterly UI taxes. The QCEW is 

based largely on quarterly UI reports which are sent by businesses to 

the State Workforce Agencies (SWAs). These UI reports are supplemented by two additional BLS data collections to render administrative data into economic statistics. Together these data comprise the 

QCEW and form the basis of the Bureau’s establishment universe 

sampling frame.

These reports are used to produce the quarterly QCEW data on 

total employment and wages and the longitudinal BED data on gross 

job gains and losses. The QCEW is also the employment benchmark 

for the Current Employment Statistics (CES), Occupational Employment Statistics (OES), and Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey 

(JOLTS) programs and is a major input to the Bureau of Economic 

Analysis’s Personal Income Accounts.

In the BED program, the quarterly QCEW 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.

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

QCEW BED CES

Source Count of UI administrative records 

submitted by 9.9 million establishments 

Count of longitudinally-linked UI administrative records submitted by 

7.9 million private-sector establishments

Sample survey: 634,000 establishments

Coverage UI and UCFE coverage, including 

all employers subject to state and 

federal UI laws

UI coverage, excluding government, 

private households, and establishments with zero employment

Nonfarm wage and salary jobs:

UI coverage, excluding agriculture, private 

households, and self-employed workers

Other employment, including railroads, 

religious organizations, and other nonUI-covered jobs

Publication frequency

Quarterly

— 6 months after the end of each 

quarter

Quarterly

— 7 months after the end of each 

quarter

Monthly

— Usually the 3rd Friday after the end 

of the week including the 12th of the 

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 lossesUses UI file as a sampling frame and to 

annually realign sample-based estimates 

to population counts (benchmarking)

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 supersectors, 3-digit NAICS, 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 federal economic indicator

— Official time series for employment 

change measures

— Input into other major economic indicators

Program Web 

sites

www.bls.gov/cew/ www.bls.gov/bdm/ www.bls.gov/ces/
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—Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW), Business Employment Dynamics (BED), and Current Employment Statistics (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 employment change over time. It is important to understand program differences and the intended uses of the 

program products. (See table.) Additional information on each program can be obtained from the program websites 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 7.9 million private sector employer reports 

out of 9.9 million total reports of employment and wages submitted 

by states to BLS in the first quarter of 2017. 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 are also excluded from the national data. 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 first quarter 2017. 

Number of active establishments included in

Business Employment Dynamics data at the national level

 Millions

Total establishments QCEW program..........9.9 

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

 Private households...............0.2

 Zero employment.................1.5 

 

Total establishments included in Business

Employment Dynamics data.....................7.9 

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.

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 SWA identification numbers (SWAID). Between 95 and 97 percent of establishments identified as continuous from quarter to quarter are matched by SWA-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 SWA-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 SWA-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, 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. 

 

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 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-13 

ARIMA-SEATS. 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. 

Annual revisions are published each year with the release of the 

first quarter data. These revisions cover the last four quarters of not 

seasonally adjusted data and 5 years of seasonally adjusted data.

Additional statistics and other information

Several other programs within BLS produce closely related information. The QCEW program provides both quarterly and annual estimates of employment by state, county, and detailed industry. News 

releases on quarterly county employment and wages and the annual 

bulletin also are available upon request from the Division of Administrative Statistics and Labor Turnover (Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages), telephone (202) 691-6567; (www.bls.gov/cew/); 

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

The Current Employment Statistics (CES) program produces 

monthly estimates of employment, its net change, hours, 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 phone 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

2007 March 584 7,815 6,331 1,484 7,231 5,894 1,337

June 132 7,647 6,205 1,442 7,515 6,084 1,431

September -209 7,376 5,870 1,506 7,585 6,190 1,395

December 268 7,687 6,181 1,506 7,419 6,040 1,379

2008 March -199 7,320 5,860 1,460 7,519 6,111 1,408

June -593 7,281 5,833 1,448 7,874 6,363 1,511

September -913 6,944 5,535 1,409 7,857 6,436 1,421

December -1,838 6,738 5,345 1,393 8,576 7,056 1,520

2009 March -2,680 5,918 4,675 1,243 8,598 7,142 1,456

June -1,667 6,425 5,080 1,345 8,092 6,674 1,418

September -849 6,399 5,139 1,260 7,248 5,854 1,394

December -264 6,665 5,308 1,357 6,929 5,605 1,324

2010 March -247 6,325 5,108 1,217 6,572 5,324 1,248

June 698 6,995 5,674 1,321 6,297 5,090 1,207

September 237 6,741 5,438 1,303 6,504 5,231 1,273

December 566 7,052 5,639 1,413 6,486 5,219 1,267

2011 March 334 6,540 5,322 1,218 6,206 5,025 1,181

June 582 6,966 5,625 1,341 6,384 5,115 1,269

September 841 7,205 5,810 1,395 6,364 5,172 1,192

December 335 6,865 5,503 1,362 6,530 5,273 1,257

2012 March 948 7,080 5,746 1,334 6,132 5,005 1,127

June 616 7,051 5,724 1,327 6,435 5,266 1,169

September 252 6,881 5,571 1,310 6,629 5,430 1,199

December 695 7,110 5,753 1,357 6,415 5,225 1,190

2013 March 560 6,933 5,701 1,232 6,373 5,194 1,179

June 674 7,155 5,834 1,321 6,481 5,275 1,206

September 476 7,048 5,708 1,340 6,572 5,425 1,147

December 717 7,267 5,936 1,331 6,550 5,346 1,204

2014 March 433 6,947 5,680 1,267 6,514 5,365 1,149

June 884 7,459 6,118 1,341 6,575 5,355 1,220

September 522 7,226 5,900 1,326 6,704 5,516 1,188

December 1,084 7,642 6,268 1,374 6,558 5,323 1,235

2015 March 226 7,032 5,722 1,310 6,806 5,606 1,200

June 833 7,589 6,245 1,344 6,756 5,563 1,193

September 414 7,324 5,964 1,360 6,910 5,695 1,215

December 1,010 7,851 6,387 1,464 6,841 5,573 1,268

2016 March 256 7,139 5,855 1,284 6,883 5,685 1,198

June 296 7,453 6,083 1,370 7,157 5,847 1,310

September 681 7,689 6,232 1,457 7,008 5,760 1,248

December 390 7,455 6,040 1,415 7,065 5,760 1,305

2017 March 654 7,328 6,019 1,309 6,674 5,521 1,153

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

Year 3 months ended Net change 1

Gross job gains

Total Total

Gross job losses
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

2007 March 0.5 6.9 5.6 1.3 6.4 5.2 1.2

June 0.1 6.7 5.4 1.3 6.6 5.3 1.3

September -0.2 6.4 5.1 1.3 6.6 5.4 1.2

December 0.2 6.7 5.4 1.3 6.5 5.3 1.2

2008 March -0.1 6.4 5.1 1.3 6.5 5.3 1.2

June -0.5 6.4 5.1 1.3 6.9 5.6 1.3

September -0.9 6.1 4.9 1.2 7.0 5.7 1.3

December -1.7 6.0 4.8 1.2 7.7 6.3 1.4

2009 March -2.4 5.4 4.3 1.1 7.8 6.5 1.3

June -1.5 6.0 4.7 1.3 7.5 6.2 1.3

September -0.8 6.0 4.8 1.2 6.8 5.5 1.3

December -0.3 6.3 5.0 1.3 6.6 5.3 1.3

2010 March -0.2 6.0 4.8 1.2 6.2 5.0 1.2

June 0.7 6.6 5.4 1.2 5.9 4.8 1.1

September 0.2 6.3 5.1 1.2 6.1 4.9 1.2

December 0.5 6.6 5.3 1.3 6.1 4.9 1.2

2011 March 0.3 6.1 5.0 1.1 5.8 4.7 1.1

June 0.5 6.4 5.2 1.2 5.9 4.7 1.2

September 0.8 6.7 5.4 1.3 5.9 4.8 1.1

December 0.4 6.4 5.1 1.3 6.0 4.8 1.2

2012 March 0.8 6.4 5.2 1.2 5.6 4.6 1.0

June 0.5 6.4 5.2 1.2 5.9 4.8 1.1

September 0.2 6.2 5.0 1.2 6.0 4.9 1.1

December 0.6 6.4 5.2 1.2 5.8 4.7 1.1

2013 March 0.5 6.2 5.1 1.1 5.7 4.6 1.1

June 0.6 6.4 5.2 1.2 5.8 4.7 1.1

September 0.5 6.3 5.1 1.2 5.8 4.8 1.0

December 0.6 6.4 5.2 1.2 5.8 4.7 1.1

2014 March 0.4 6.1 5.0 1.1 5.7 4.7 1.0

June 0.7 6.5 5.3 1.2 5.8 4.7 1.1

September 0.4 6.2 5.1 1.1 5.8 4.8 1.0

December 0.9 6.6 5.4 1.2 5.7 4.6 1.1

2015 March 0.2 6.0 4.9 1.1 5.8 4.8 1.0

June 0.7 6.4 5.3 1.1 5.7 4.7 1.0

September 0.4 6.2 5.0 1.2 5.8 4.8 1.0

December 0.8 6.6 5.4 1.2 5.8 4.7 1.1

2016 March 0.3 6.0 4.9 1.1 5.7 4.7 1.0

June 0.2 6.2 5.1 1.1 6.0 4.9 1.1

September 0.6 6.4 5.2 1.2 5.8 4.8 1.0

December 0.3 6.2 5.0 1.2 5.9 4.8 1.1

2017 March 0.6 6.0 4.9 1.1 5.4 4.5 0.9

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

Total Total

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

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

2016 2016 2016 2016 2017 2016 2016 2016 2016 2017

Total private 1

Gross job gains ........................ 7,139 7,453 7,689 7,455 7,328 6.0 6.2 6.4 6.2 6.0

At expanding establishments ...... 5,855 6,083 6,232 6,040 6,019 4.9 5.1 5.2 5.0 4.9

At opening establishments ......... 1,284 1,370 1,457 1,415 1,309 1.1 1.1 1.2 1.2 1.1

Gross job losses ........................ 6,883 7,157 7,008 7,065 6,674 5.7 6.0 5.8 5.9 5.4

At contracting establishments ... 5,685 5,847 5,760 5,760 5,521 4.7 4.9 4.8 4.8 4.5

At closing establishments ......... 1,198 1,310 1,248 1,305 1,153 1.0 1.1 1.0 1.1 0.9

Net employment change ............. 256 296 681 390 654 0.3 0.2 0.6 0.3 0.6

Goods-producing

Gross job gains ........................ 1,317 1,335 1,313 1,319 1,394 6.3 6.4 6.3 6.3 6.6

At expanding establishments ...... 1,125 1,149 1,107 1,126 1,206 5.4 5.5 5.3 5.4 5.7

At opening establishments ......... 192 186 206 193 188 0.9 0.9 1.0 0.9 0.9

Gross job losses ........................ 1,303 1,381 1,308 1,297 1,191 6.2 6.6 6.3 6.2 5.7

At contracting establishments ... 1,114 1,172 1,113 1,101 1,009 5.3 5.6 5.4 5.3 4.8

At closing establishments ......... 189 209 195 196 182 0.9 1.0 0.9 0.9 0.9

Net employment change ............. 14 -46 5 22 203 0.1 -0.2 0.0 0.1 0.9

Natural resources and mining

Gross job gains ........................ 257 262 248 252 287 13.4 13.9 13.4 13.6 15.3

At expanding establishments ...... 223 230 216 220 253 11.6 12.2 11.7 11.9 13.5

At opening establishments ......... 34 32 32 32 34 1.8 1.7 1.7 1.7 1.8

Gross job losses ........................ 278 296 257 269 232 14.5 15.7 13.9 14.6 12.4

At contracting establishments ... 244 262 225 238 199 12.7 13.9 12.2 12.9 10.6

At closing establishments ......... 34 34 32 31 33 1.8 1.8 1.7 1.7 1.8

Net employment change ............. -21 -34 -9 -17 55 -1.1 -1.8 -0.5 -1.0 2.9

Construction

Gross job gains ........................ 676 660 665 654 707 10.1 9.8 10.0 9.7 10.3

At expanding establishments ...... 553 544 532 533 584 8.3 8.1 8.0 7.9 8.5

At opening establishments ......... 123 116 133 121 123 1.8 1.7 2.0 1.8 1.8

Gross job losses ........................ 619 651 622 635 582 9.3 9.8 9.3 9.5 8.5

At contracting establishments ... 507 525 507 515 474 7.6 7.9 7.6 7.7 6.9

At closing establishments ......... 112 126 115 120 108 1.7 1.9 1.7 1.8 1.6

Net employment change ............. 57 9 43 19 125 0.8 0.0 0.7 0.2 1.8

Manufacturing

Gross job gains ........................ 384 413 400 413 400 3.1 3.3 3.2 3.3 3.3

At expanding establishments ...... 349 375 359 373 369 2.8 3.0 2.9 3.0 3.0

At opening establishments ......... 35 38 41 40 31 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.3

Gross job losses ........................ 406 434 429 393 377 3.2 3.5 3.5 3.2 3.0

At contracting establishments ... 363 385 381 348 336 2.9 3.1 3.1 2.8 2.7

At closing establishments ......... 43 49 48 45 41 0.3 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.3

Net employment change ............. -22 -21 -29 20 23 -0.1 -0.2 -0.3 0.1 0.3

Service-providing 1

Gross job gains ........................ 5,822 6,118 6,376 6,136 5,934 5.9 6.2 6.4 6.1 5.9

At expanding establishments ...... 4,730 4,934 5,125 4,914 4,813 4.8 5.0 5.1 4.9 4.8

At opening establishments ......... 1,092 1,184 1,251 1,222 1,121 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.2 1.1

Gross job losses ........................ 5,580 5,776 5,700 5,768 5,483 5.6 5.8 5.8 5.8 5.5

At contracting establishments ... 4,571 4,675 4,647 4,659 4,512 4.6 4.7 4.7 4.7 4.5

At closing establishments ......... 1,009 1,101 1,053 1,109 971 1.0 1.1 1.1 1.1 1.0

Net employment change ............. 242 342 676 368 451 0.3 0.4 0.6 0.3 0.4

Wholesale trade

Gross job gains ........................ 261 274 277 272 263 4.4 4.7 4.8 4.6 4.4

At expanding establishments ...... 217 226 226 225 220 3.7 3.9 3.9 3.8 3.7

At opening establishments ......... 44 48 51 47 43 0.7 0.8 0.9 0.8 0.7

Gross job losses ........................ 268 272 262 256 249 4.6 4.6 4.5 4.3 4.2

At contracting establishments ... 210 213 209 201 196 3.6 3.6 3.6 3.4 3.3

At closing establishments ......... 58 59 53 55 53 1.0 1.0 0.9 0.9 0.9

Net employment change ............. -7 2 15 16 14 -0.2 0.1 0.3 0.3 0.2

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

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

2016 2016 2016 2016 2017 2016 2016 2016 2016 2017

Retail trade

Gross job gains ........................ 970 934 957 895 927 6.2 5.9 6.0 5.6 5.9

At expanding establishments ...... 846 804 817 777 805 5.4 5.1 5.1 4.9 5.1

At opening establishments ......... 124 130 140 118 122 0.8 0.8 0.9 0.7 0.8

Gross job losses ........................ 864 912 960 923 881 5.5 5.7 6.1 5.9 5.6

At contracting establishments ... 756 801 836 803 775 4.8 5.0 5.3 5.1 4.9

At closing establishments ......... 108 111 124 120 106 0.7 0.7 0.8 0.8 0.7

Net employment change ............. 106 22 -3 -28 46 0.7 0.2 -0.1 -0.3 0.3

Transportation and warehousing

Gross job gains ........................ 239 249 290 383 245 5.0 5.3 6.0 7.8 5.0

At expanding establishments ...... 206 213 250 339 215 4.3 4.5 5.2 6.9 4.4

At opening establishments ......... 33 36 40 44 30 0.7 0.8 0.8 0.9 0.6

Gross job losses ........................ 292 249 229 232 323 6.2 5.3 4.8 4.8 6.6

At contracting establishments ... 256 211 190 194 290 5.4 4.5 4.0 4.0 5.9

At closing establishments ......... 36 38 39 38 33 0.8 0.8 0.8 0.8 0.7

Net employment change ............. -53 0 61 151 -78 -1.2 0.0 1.2 3.0 -1.6

Utilities

Gross job gains ........................ 10 13 11 12 11 1.8 2.4 2.0 2.2 2.0

At expanding establishments ...... 8 11 10 10 10 1.4 2.0 1.8 1.8 1.8

At opening establishments ......... 2 2 1 2 1 0.4 0.4 0.2 0.4 0.2

Gross job losses ........................ 10 13 14 13 10 1.8 2.4 2.6 2.4 1.8

At contracting establishments ... 9 11 12 11 9 1.6 2.0 2.2 2.0 1.6

At closing establishments ......... 1 2 2 2 1 0.2 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.2

Net employment change ............. 0 0 -3 -1 1 0.0 0.0 -0.6 -0.2 0.2

 Information

Gross job gains ........................ 139 157 153 142 142 5.0 5.6 5.4 5.1 5.1

At expanding establishments ...... 117 131 124 115 120 4.2 4.7 4.4 4.1 4.3

At opening establishments ......... 22 26 29 27 22 0.8 0.9 1.0 1.0 0.8

Gross job losses ........................ 140 141 152 150 139 5.0 5.0 5.4 5.3 4.9

At contracting establishments ... 111 109 126 121 116 4.0 3.9 4.5 4.3 4.1

At closing establishments ......... 29 32 26 29 23 1.0 1.1 0.9 1.0 0.8

Net employment change ............. -1 16 1 -8 3 0.0 0.6 0.0 -0.2 0.2

Financial activities

Gross job gains ........................ 358 388 391 382 353 4.5 4.8 4.9 4.8 4.4

At expanding establishments ...... 284 313 311 298 289 3.6 3.9 3.9 3.7 3.6

At opening establishments ......... 74 75 80 84 64 0.9 0.9 1.0 1.1 0.8

Gross job losses ........................ 339 354 350 356 336 4.3 4.4 4.4 4.4 4.2

At contracting establishments ... 262 272 276 274 262 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.4 3.3

At closing establishments ......... 77 82 74 82 74 1.0 1.0 0.9 1.0 0.9

Net employment change ............. 19 34 41 26 17 0.2 0.4 0.5 0.4 0.2

Professional and business services

Gross job gains ........................ 1,274 1,431 1,474 1,395 1,285 6.4 7.2 7.4 7.0 6.3

At expanding establishments ...... 1,041 1,173 1,199 1,121 1,058 5.2 5.9 6.0 5.6 5.2

At opening establishments ......... 233 258 275 274 227 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.4 1.1

Gross job losses ........................ 1,368 1,354 1,282 1,359 1,265 6.9 6.7 6.4 6.7 6.3

At contracting establishments ... 1,117 1,065 1,022 1,075 1,026 5.6 5.3 5.1 5.3 5.1

At closing establishments ......... 251 289 260 284 239 1.3 1.4 1.3 1.4 1.2

Net employment change ............. -94 77 192 36 20 -0.5 0.5 1.0 0.3 0.0

Education and health services

Gross job gains ........................ 909 966 1,044 966 948 4.3 4.5 4.8 4.4 4.3

At expanding establishments ...... 743 781 872 774 786 3.5 3.6 4.0 3.5 3.6

At opening establishments ......... 166 185 172 192 162 0.8 0.9 0.8 0.9 0.7

Gross job losses ........................ 826 885 824 905 813 3.8 4.1 3.8 4.1 3.7

At contracting establishments ... 669 702 656 709 656 3.1 3.3 3.0 3.2 3.0

At closing establishments ......... 157 183 168 196 157 0.7 0.8 0.8 0.9 0.7

Net employment change ............. 83 81 220 61 135 0.5 0.4 1.0 0.3 0.6

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

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

2016 2016 2016 2016 2017 2016 2016 2016 2016 2017

 Leisure and hospitality

Gross job gains ........................ 1,292 1,313 1,350 1,308 1,321 8.3 8.4 8.7 8.4 8.4

At expanding establishments ...... 1,030 1,030 1,056 1,016 1,054 6.6 6.6 6.8 6.5 6.7

At opening establishments ......... 262 283 294 292 267 1.7 1.8 1.9 1.9 1.7

Gross job losses ........................ 1,165 1,278 1,304 1,240 1,149 7.5 8.2 8.4 8.0 7.2

At contracting establishments ... 959 1,061 1,086 1,027 955 6.2 6.8 7.0 6.6 6.0

At closing establishments ......... 206 217 218 213 194 1.3 1.4 1.4 1.4 1.2

Net employment change ............. 127 35 46 68 172 0.8 0.2 0.3 0.4 1.2

 Other services

Gross job gains ........................ 282 303 309 281 286 6.9 7.4 7.6 6.8 6.9

At expanding establishments ...... 221 237 241 219 228 5.4 5.8 5.9 5.3 5.5

At opening establishments ......... 61 66 68 62 58 1.5 1.6 1.7 1.5 1.4

Gross job losses ........................ 270 283 286 293 272 6.6 6.9 7.0 7.1 6.6

At contracting establishments ... 211 220 222 231 212 5.2 5.4 5.4 5.6 5.1

At closing establishments ......... 59 63 64 62 60 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.5 1.5

Net employment change ............. 12 20 23 -12 14 0.3 0.5 0.6 -0.3 0.3

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 gross job gains and losses by firm size, seasonally adjusted

(In thousands)

gains losses gains losses gains losses gains losses

2007 March 478 6,333 5,855 173 3,445 3,272 98 1,158 1,060 207 1,730 1,523

June 163 6,239 6,076 -33 3,330 3,363 99 1,171 1,072 97 1,738 1,641

September -215 5,920 6,135 -116 3,263 3,379 -34 1,079 1,113 -65 1,578 1,643

December 270 6,251 5,981 10 3,317 3,307 56 1,139 1,083 204 1,795 1,591

2008 March -274 5,831 6,105 -152 3,235 3,387 -11 1,079 1,090 -111 1,517 1,628

June -548 5,850 6,398 -287 3,174 3,461 -44 1,090 1,134 -217 1,586 1,803

September -956 5,532 6,488 -343 3,051 3,394 -140 1,020 1,160 -473 1,461 1,934

December -1,886 5,338 7,224 -689 2,910 3,599 -375 947 1,322 -822 1,481 2,303

2009 March -2,638 4,617 7,255 -983 2,721 3,704 -616 810 1,426 -1,039 1,086 2,125

June -1,763 5,169 6,932 -474 2,946 3,420 -281 950 1,231 -1,008 1,273 2,281

September -906 5,164 6,070 -372 2,826 3,198 -110 932 1,042 -424 1,406 1,830

December -317 5,403 5,720 -159 2,940 3,099 -45 962 1,007 -113 1,501 1,614

2010 March -234 5,115 5,349 -195 2,863 3,058 -2 914 916 -37 1,338 1,375

June 664 5,805 5,141 235 3,093 2,858 204 1,071 867 225 1,641 1,416

September 226 5,525 5,299 26 2,946 2,920 87 998 911 113 1,581 1,468

December 502 5,781 5,279 92 3,051 2,959 92 1,034 942 318 1,696 1,378

2011 March 340 5,375 5,035 99 2,983 2,884 122 971 849 119 1,421 1,302

June 537 5,746 5,209 190 3,073 2,883 169 1,063 894 178 1,610 1,432

September 852 5,974 5,122 272 3,137 2,865 171 1,066 895 409 1,771 1,362

December 297 5,585 5,288 45 2,970 2,925 44 981 937 208 1,634 1,426

2012 March 972 5,904 4,932 388 3,173 2,785 220 1,054 834 364 1,677 1,313

June 612 5,828 5,216 174 3,039 2,865 158 1,074 916 280 1,715 1,435

September 226 5,581 5,355 55 2,963 2,908 54 1,006 952 117 1,612 1,495

December 637 5,779 5,142 180 3,025 2,845 94 1,014 920 363 1,740 1,377

2013 March 588 5,743 5,155 221 3,078 2,857 155 1,027 872 212 1,638 1,426

June 649 5,912 5,263 221 3,084 2,863 137 1,074 937 291 1,754 1,463

September 439 5,748 5,309 208 3,054 2,846 62 1,017 955 169 1,677 1,508

December 651 5,894 5,243 131 3,026 2,895 108 1,036 928 412 1,832 1,420

2014 March 459 5,662 5,203 248 3,077 2,829 153 1,034 881 58 1,551 1,493

June 888 6,142 5,254 299 3,179 2,880 216 1,123 907 373 1,840 1,467

September 502 5,845 5,343 168 3,051 2,883 102 1,058 956 232 1,736 1,504

December 987 6,166 5,179 225 3,111 2,886 157 1,087 930 605 1,968 1,363

2015 March 237 5,664 5,427 181 3,102 2,921 79 1,022 943 -23 1,540 1,563

June 834 6,256 5,422 316 3,197 2,881 189 1,135 946 329 1,924 1,595

September 381 5,884 5,503 113 3,038 2,925 59 1,038 979 209 1,808 1,599

December 895 6,270 5,375 250 3,183 2,933 101 1,078 977 544 2,009 1,465

2016 March 273 5,743 5,470 220 3,124 2,904 60 1,015 955 -7 1,604 1,611

June 300 6,051 5,751 64 3,125 3,061 116 1,109 993 120 1,817 1,697

September 665 6,229 5,564 147 3,135 2,988 80 1,080 1,000 438 2,014 1,576

December 326 5,920 5,594 88 3,076 2,988 52 1,033 981 186 1,811 1,625

2017 March 686 5,952 5,266 369 3,206 2,837 197 1,077 880 120 1,669 1,549

NOTE: See http://www.bls.gov/bdm/bdmfirmsize.htm for more detailed firm size class data

Gross job Net 

change

Gross job

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

3 Net change totals for the firm-level data differ from the establishment-level data due to independent seasonal adjustment.

Year 3 months ended

Total private by firm1 Firm size 1 - 49 employees

1 Total gross job gains and gross job losses by firm are lower than total gross job gains and gross job losses by establishment, as some establishment gains 

and losses within a firm are offset during the aggregation process. 

Firm size 50 - 249 employees Firm size 250 or more

Net 

change2,3

Gross job Net 

change

Gross job Net 

change
Table 5. Components of private sector gross job gains and losses by firm size, seasonally adjusted

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

2016 2016 2016 2016 2017 2016 2016 2016 2016 2017

Total private by firm 1

Gross job gains ..................... 5,743 6,051 6,229 5,920 5,952 4.8 5.1 5.2 4.9 4.9

At expanding firms ............ 4,837 5,149 5,271 4,976 5,026 4.0 4.3 4.4 4.1 4.1

At opening firms ............... 906 902 958 944 926 0.8 0.8 0.8 0.8 0.8

Gross job losses ..................... 5,470 5,751 5,564 5,594 5,266 4.6 4.8 4.6 4.6 4.4

At contracting firms ............ 4,624 4,837 4,713 4,734 4,442 3.9 4.0 3.9 3.9 3.7

At closing firms .................. 846 914 851 860 824 0.7 0.8 0.7 0.7 0.7

Net employment change ............ 273 300 665 326 686 0.2 0.3 0.6 0.3 0.5

Firm size 1 to 49 employees

Gross job gains ..................... 3,124 3,125 3,135 3,076 3,206 9.3 9.3 9.3 9.1 9.4

At expanding firms ............ 2,253 2,264 2,219 2,171 2,316 6.7 6.7 6.6 6.4 6.8

At opening firms ............... 871 861 916 905 890 2.6 2.6 2.7 2.7 2.6

Gross job losses ..................... 2,904 3,061 2,988 2,988 2,837 8.6 9.1 8.8 8.8 8.3

At contracting firms ............ 2,091 2,189 2,171 2,163 2,042 6.2 6.5 6.4 6.4 6.0

At closing firms .................. 813 872 817 825 795 2.4 2.6 2.4 2.4 2.3

Net employment change ............ 220 64 147 88 369 0.7 0.2 0.5 0.3 1.1

Firm size 50 to 249 employees

Gross job gains ..................... 1,015 1,109 1,080 1,033 1,077 4.6 5.1 5.0 4.8 4.9

At expanding firms ............ 984 1,072 1,042 997 1,046 4.5 4.9 4.8 4.6 4.8

At opening firms ............... 31 37 38 36 31 0.1 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.1

Gross job losses ..................... 955 993 1,000 981 880 4.4 4.6 4.6 4.5 4.0

At contracting firms ............ 926 960 970 951 854 4.3 4.4 4.5 4.4 3.9

At closing firms .................. 29 33 30 30 26 0.1 0.2 0.1 0.1 0.1

Net employment change ............ 60 116 80 52 197 0.2 0.5 0.4 0.3 0.9

Firm size 250 or more employees

Gross job gains ..................... 1,604 1,817 2,014 1,811 1,669 2.5 2.8 3.1 2.8 2.5

At expanding firms ............ 1,600 1,813 2,010 1,808 1,664 2.5 2.8 3.1 2.8 2.5

At opening firms ............... 4 4 4 3 5 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

Gross job losses ..................... 1,611 1,697 1,576 1,625 1,549 2.5 2.6 2.4 2.5 2.4

At contracting firms ............ 1,607 1,688 1,572 1,620 1,546 2.5 2.6 2.4 2.5 2.4

At closing firms .................. 4 9 4 5 3 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

Net employment change ............ -7 120 438 186 120 0.0 0.2 0.7 0.3 0.1

1 Total gross job gains and gross job losses by firm are lower than total gross job gains and gross job losses by establishment, as some establishment 

gains and losses within a firm are offset during the aggregation process. 

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 6. Private sector gross job gains and losses by state, seasonally adjusted

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

2016 2016 2016 2016 2017 2016 2016 2016 2016 2017

United States 1 ............ 7,139,000 7,453,000 7,689,000 7,455,000 7,328,000 6,883,000 7,157,000 7,008,000 7,065,000 6,674,000

Alabama .................. 90,793 90,760 96,889 91,681 95,018 86,214 91,306 90,051 90,287 81,340

Alaska ..................... 24,277 26,205 22,603 24,029 23,211 24,338 28,231 27,693 24,699 24,169

Arizona .................. 135,581 139,046 164,484 138,291 136,971 130,588 138,270 120,568 126,313 126,704

Arkansas .................. 54,640 54,032 61,522 58,062 56,151 54,408 57,902 54,893 53,892 50,773

California .................. 943,771 981,914 990,473 980,183 962,840 894,779 933,875 880,241 910,192 872,313

Colorado .................. 140,988 149,843 153,653 143,107 147,416 130,307 138,773 134,971 140,926 133,241

Connecticut ............... 74,868 77,561 74,841 72,719 79,177 71,778 76,530 76,198 75,033 73,288

Delaware .................. 24,679 25,377 23,909 23,338 24,976 24,481 25,216 24,652 23,351 22,313

District of Columbia ... 26,874 29,953 31,846 28,788 29,705 28,471 29,503 29,467 28,695 24,377

Florida ..................... 444,007 464,716 539,960 487,710 445,222 411,436 428,968 427,925 445,725 409,290

Georgia .................. 223,883 248,515 243,716 239,884 230,965 206,845 229,940 213,118 211,569 212,760

Hawaii ..................... 27,561 28,651 31,080 26,673 27,379 26,056 30,358 25,354 26,775 25,523

Idaho ..................... 46,462 41,251 45,011 42,845 45,963 36,462 40,329 41,174 38,897 37,152

Illinois ..................... 283,828 302,719 294,960 309,191 298,256 284,187 301,468 291,637 290,285 276,590

Indiana ..................... 141,901 138,247 149,878 142,574 149,579 137,248 136,065 133,516 137,206 131,859

Iowa ........................ 79,212 74,136 79,033 73,955 78,764 70,423 81,142 75,042 76,993 71,324

Kansas ..................... 65,870 63,815 69,905 67,413 66,295 67,138 69,868 63,576 64,801 63,041

Kentucky .................. 90,742 97,533 107,152 95,679 90,878 92,705 93,542 98,989 90,662 85,832

Louisiana .................. 97,906 96,125 107,420 94,259 102,536 107,783 110,705 103,707 103,469 93,274

Maine ..................... 36,757 38,785 33,988 37,196 36,582 34,506 34,616 37,257 35,905 32,852

Maryland .................. 131,658 135,312 139,923 140,769 131,540 128,032 130,754 127,394 131,349 126,358

Massachusetts ............ 163,984 182,828 174,563 171,192 168,627 154,476 159,124 167,415 165,880 156,939

Michigan .................. 193,986 217,902 208,459 204,720 211,095 179,533 196,003 202,265 200,138 184,414

Minnesota ............... 132,819 143,583 148,763 140,520 142,651 127,554 133,901 133,973 138,963 117,302

Mississippi ............... 51,728 50,515 56,026 56,611 51,514 55,123 58,142 49,476 50,218 52,216

Missouri .................. 131,362 133,732 132,102 134,067 138,174 125,523 127,768 125,330 133,207 116,324

Montana .................. 29,091 29,559 28,377 29,076 30,348 27,279 31,986 28,603 27,842 26,801

Nebraska .................. 47,358 45,783 51,489 46,158 48,350 44,737 47,712 47,315 49,989 42,036

Nevada ..................... 72,047 72,895 77,042 71,548 75,922 66,108 65,362 63,229 64,782 59,528

New Hampshire ......... 33,670 36,640 36,134 35,405 32,723 32,852 33,071 35,328 33,335 32,020

New Jersey ............... 197,702 217,390 212,548 217,599 191,080 202,392 191,614 200,091 200,514 198,940

New Mexico ............ 39,814 40,215 43,313 41,275 40,142 39,727 42,367 38,844 40,739 39,132

New York ............... 475,125 482,639 490,500 472,712 482,960 444,730 452,880 458,750 461,337 446,567

North Carolina ............ 213,858 223,089 221,742 225,601 222,190 197,618 207,520 208,519 205,302 199,056

North Dakota ............ 23,641 23,256 27,990 23,021 26,128 31,323 30,933 24,632 26,535 22,998

Ohio ........................ 255,575 261,010 263,761 260,009 260,122 237,713 263,358 261,433 249,754 236,913

Oklahoma ............... 72,625 72,166 79,254 81,574 78,427 80,485 84,369 75,254 78,496 81,448

Oregon ..................... 109,011 105,151 106,360 103,156 108,577 89,365 102,770 99,322 96,506 89,507

Pennsylvania ............ 273,803 268,296 285,638 274,781 268,559 265,993 273,456 258,739 260,840 254,346

Rhode Island ............ 23,971 25,378 23,258 23,989 26,217 24,549 25,729 24,390 23,904 24,785

South Carolina ............ 98,954 102,914 104,404 108,676 100,891 98,283 94,867 93,113 90,148 92,823

South Dakota ............ 21,547 21,921 22,238 21,044 22,209 21,180 21,593 21,398 21,233 20,656

Tennessee ............... 132,274 141,910 147,480 144,675 128,481 128,616 132,811 130,083 126,150 123,277

Texas ..................... 535,504 569,649 617,457 588,802 580,416 571,800 545,548 541,252 538,726 519,376

Utah ........................ 84,240 79,060 86,460 79,259 91,646 68,971 74,471 77,794 75,963 72,367

Vermont .................. 17,059 18,779 18,354 17,998 16,827 17,742 18,235 18,795 17,636 17,258

Virginia .................. 183,177 197,646 192,072 194,325 186,996 184,958 188,255 189,545 180,449 172,727

Washington ............... 187,856 192,404 177,681 191,782 185,519 159,898 158,624 175,845 179,259 152,983

West Virginia ............ 32,334 31,573 35,225 34,777 34,065 38,085 37,617 34,886 33,887 34,690

Wisconsin ............... 137,502 138,276 133,986 134,052 143,931 127,509 139,248 134,840 131,290 116,833

Wyoming .................. 17,029 15,960 17,147 17,940 17,837 19,984 21,748 17,942 17,692 16,484

Puerto Rico ............... 38,377 37,755 39,088 38,952 34,349 40,221 37,274 38,609 36,267 38,301

Virgin Islands ............ 1,651 1,792 1,722 1,644 1,463 1,577 1,586 1,856 1,665 1,497

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 Gross job losses

(3 months ended) (3 months ended)
Table 7. Private sector gross job gains and losses as a percent of total employment by state, seasonally adjusted

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

2016 2016 2016 2016 2017 2016 2016 2016 2016 2017

United States .......................... 6.0 6.2 6.4 6.2 6.0 5.7 6.0 5.8 5.9 5.4

Alabama ............................. 5.9 5.8 6.2 5.8 6.1 5.5 5.9 5.8 5.8 5.2

Alaska ................................. 9.6 10.4 9.1 9.8 9.4 9.6 11.2 11.2 10.0 9.8

Arizona ............................... 5.9 6.2 7.2 6.0 5.8 5.7 6.0 5.2 5.5 5.4

Arkansas .............................. 5.5 5.4 6.2 5.9 5.6 5.4 5.9 5.6 5.4 5.0

California ........................... 6.6 6.9 6.9 6.9 6.7 6.3 6.6 6.2 6.3 6.0

Colorado .............................. 6.6 7.0 7.1 6.6 6.8 6.1 6.5 6.2 6.5 6.2

Connecticut ......................... 5.3 5.4 5.2 5.1 5.5 5.0 5.4 5.4 5.2 5.1

Delaware .............................. 6.6 6.8 6.3 6.2 6.6 6.5 6.7 6.6 6.2 5.9

District of Columbia ............... 5.3 5.9 6.2 5.6 5.7 5.6 5.8 5.8 5.6 4.7

Florida ................................. 6.2 6.5 7.4 6.7 6.1 5.8 5.9 5.8 6.1 5.5

Georgia .............................. 6.2 6.9 6.7 6.6 6.3 5.8 6.4 5.9 5.8 5.8

Hawaii ............................... 5.2 5.4 6.0 5.0 5.1 5.0 5.8 4.8 5.0 4.8

Idaho ................................. 8.2 7.2 7.9 7.5 7.9 6.5 7.0 7.3 6.7 6.3

Illinois ................................ 5.6 6.0 5.7 6.1 5.8 5.6 5.9 5.7 5.6 5.4

Indiana ............................... 5.5 5.4 5.8 5.4 5.7 5.3 5.2 5.1 5.2 5.1

Iowa .................................... 6.1 5.7 6.1 5.7 6.1 5.4 6.2 5.8 5.9 5.5

Kansas ................................. 5.8 5.7 6.2 5.9 5.8 5.9 6.3 5.6 5.7 5.6

Kentucky .............................. 5.9 6.2 6.8 6.1 5.7 6.0 6.0 6.3 5.8 5.4

Louisiana .............................. 6.0 6.0 6.8 5.9 6.4 6.7 6.9 6.5 6.5 5.9

Maine ................................ 7.2 7.7 6.7 7.4 7.2 6.9 6.8 7.4 7.1 6.4

Maryland ............................ 6.2 6.4 6.6 6.6 6.1 6.0 6.2 5.9 6.2 5.9

Massachusetts ....................... 5.4 6.0 5.7 5.6 5.5 5.1 5.2 5.4 5.4 5.1

Michigan ............................. 5.3 5.9 5.7 5.5 5.6 4.9 5.4 5.5 5.4 5.0

Minnesota ........................... 5.5 5.9 6.1 5.7 5.8 5.2 5.5 5.5 5.7 4.7

Mississippi ........................... 5.9 5.7 6.3 6.3 5.7 6.2 6.5 5.5 5.6 5.9

Missouri .............................. 5.6 5.7 5.7 5.7 5.9 5.3 5.4 5.4 5.6 4.9

Montana ............................... 7.9 7.9 7.6 7.8 8.1 7.3 8.6 7.7 7.5 7.1

Nebraska .............................. 5.9 5.7 6.4 5.7 5.9 5.5 5.9 5.9 6.2 5.2

Nevada ............................... 6.4 6.5 6.8 6.2 6.6 5.9 5.8 5.5 5.6 5.2

New Hampshire ..................... 6.0 6.5 6.4 6.3 5.7 5.8 5.9 6.3 5.9 5.6

New Jersey ........................... 5.8 6.4 6.3 6.4 5.5 6.0 5.7 5.9 5.9 5.8

New Mexico ........................ 6.4 6.4 7.0 6.6 6.4 6.4 6.7 6.2 6.5 6.2

New York ........................... 6.2 6.3 6.3 6.1 6.2 5.8 5.8 5.9 5.9 5.7

North Carolina ........................ 6.1 6.3 6.3 6.3 6.2 5.6 5.8 5.9 5.7 5.5

North Dakota ........................ 6.7 6.8 8.2 6.7 7.6 8.9 8.9 7.1 7.7 6.7

Ohio .................................... 5.5 5.6 5.7 5.7 5.7 5.2 5.7 5.7 5.4 5.1

Oklahoma ........................... 5.7 5.8 6.3 6.5 6.3 6.3 6.8 6.0 6.3 6.5

Oregon ................................. 7.1 6.8 6.9 6.6 6.9 5.8 6.6 6.4 6.3 5.7

Pennsylvania ........................ 5.4 5.3 5.6 5.4 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.1 5.1 5.0

Rhode Island ........................ 5.8 6.1 5.6 5.7 6.3 5.9 6.2 5.9 5.8 5.9

South Carolina ........................ 6.0 6.3 6.3 6.5 6.0 6.0 5.8 5.6 5.4 5.6

South Dakota ........................ 6.2 6.4 6.4 6.0 6.4 6.1 6.2 6.2 6.1 5.9

Tennessee ........................... 5.4 5.8 5.9 5.8 5.1 5.2 5.4 5.2 5.1 4.9

Texas ................................. 5.4 5.8 6.2 5.9 5.8 5.8 5.5 5.5 5.4 5.2

Utah .................................... 7.3 6.7 7.4 6.8 7.7 6.0 6.4 6.7 6.4 6.1

Vermont .............................. 6.7 7.4 7.2 7.0 6.6 6.9 7.2 7.4 7.0 6.8

Virginia .............................. 5.9 6.5 6.2 6.2 6.0 6.0 6.1 6.1 5.9 5.6

Washington ........................... 7.1 7.3 6.7 7.1 6.8 6.0 6.0 6.6 6.7 5.6

West Virginia ........................ 5.9 5.8 6.5 6.4 6.3 6.9 6.9 6.4 6.2 6.4

Wisconsin ........................... 5.6 5.7 5.5 5.5 5.9 5.2 5.7 5.6 5.3 4.8

Wyoming .............................. 8.1 7.7 8.5 8.8 8.8 9.4 10.6 8.8 8.7 8.1

Puerto Rico ........................... 5.7 5.6 5.8 5.8 5.1 6.0 5.5 5.7 5.4 5.7

Virgin Islands ........................ 6.0 6.5 6.2 6.0 5.3 5.8 5.7 6.8 6.0 5.5

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 Gross job losses as a percent of employment

(3 months ended) (3 months ended)
Table 8. Private sector establishment births and deaths, seasonally adjusted

(Levels in thousands)

Level Rate 2 Level Rate Level Rate Level Rate

2007 March 232 3.2 205 2.8 918 0.8 787 0.7

June 225 3.1 215 3.0 898 0.8 859 0.8

September 233 3.2 216 3.0 952 0.8 845 0.7

December 228 3.1 218 3.0 922 0.8 836 0.7

2008 March 226 3.1 224 3.1 919 0.8 832 0.7

June 221 3.0 238 3.3 876 0.8 913 0.8

September 216 3.0 233 3.2 849 0.8 881 0.8

December 211 2.9 253 3.5 819 0.7 951 0.9

2009 March 197 2.7 247 3.4 738 0.7 869 0.8

June 201 2.8 238 3.3 767 0.7 837 0.8

September 192 2.7 227 3.2 725 0.7 793 0.7

December 202 2.8 218 3.1 728 0.7 749 0.7

2010 March 193 2.7 211 3.0 706 0.7 687 0.7

June 193 2.7 202 2.9 730 0.7 665 0.6

September 207 2.9 204 2.9 754 0.7 701 0.7

December 216 3.0 201 2.8 805 0.8 700 0.7

2011 March 204 2.9 200 2.8 715 0.7 632 0.6

June 210 2.9 205 2.9 767 0.7 689 0.6

September 206 2.9 196 2.7 794 0.7 675 0.6

December 214 3.0 198 2.8 800 0.7 700 0.6

2012 March 236 3.3 188 2.6 787 0.7 614 0.6

June 217 3.0 194 2.7 799 0.7 673 0.6

September 210 2.9 196 2.7 804 0.7 692 0.6

December 218 3.0 183 2.5 809 0.7 673 0.6

2013 March 205 2.8 192 2.6 748 0.7 646 0.6

June 222 3.0 215 2.9 791 0.7 696 0.6

September 219 2.9 195 2.6 823 0.7 678 0.6

December 216 2.9 187 2.5 804 0.7 670 0.6

2014 March 221 2.9 189 2.5 782 0.7 633 0.6

June 220 2.9 205 2.7 806 0.7 718 0.6

September 224 3.0 200 2.6 828 0.7 706 0.6

December 223 2.9 197 2.6 837 0.7 708 0.6

2015 March 234 3.1 206 2.7 814 0.7 691 0.6

June 234 3.1 212 2.8 839 0.7 732 0.6

September 242 3.1 207 2.7 880 0.7 704 0.6

December 246 3.2 208 2.7 894 0.8 732 0.6

2016 March 236 3.0 202 2.6 787 0.7 660 0.6

June 242 3.1 214 2.7 838 0.7 724 0.6

September 240 3.1 N/A N/A 872 0.7 N/A N/A

December 239 3.0 N/A N/A 868 0.7 N/A N/A

2017 March 240 3.0 N/A N/A 800 0.7 N/A N/A

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

2 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 Deaths 1 Births Deaths