Technical information:   (202) 691-6567      USDL 05-623
                http://www.bls.gov/cew/

                                             For release:  10:00 A.M. EDT
Media contact:                 691-5902      Thursday, April 14, 2005


           COUNTY EMPLOYMENT AND WAGES:  THIRD QUARTER 2004


   In September 2004, Rutherford County, Tenn., had the largest over-
the-year percentage increase in employment among the largest counties
in the U.S., according to preliminary data released today by the Bureau
of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor.  Rutherford County
experienced an over-the-year employment gain of 9.2 percent, compared
with national job growth of 1.3 percent.  St. Joseph County, Ind., had
the largest over-the-year gain in average weekly wages in the third
quarter of 2004, with an increase of 10.4 percent.  The U.S. average
weekly wage increased by 4.0 percent over the same time span.
   
   Of the 317 largest counties in the United States, as measured by
2003 employment, 139 had over-the-year percentage growth in employment
above the national average in September 2004, and 162 experienced
changes below the national average.  Average weekly wages grew faster
than the national average in 137 of the largest U.S. counties, while
the percent change in average weekly wages was below the national
average in 165 counties.  
   
   The employment and average weekly wage data by county are compiled
under the Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW) program,
also known as the ES-202 program.  The data are derived from reports
submitted by every employer subject to unemployment insurance (UI)
laws.  The 8.4 million employer reports cover 130.2 million full- and
part-time workers.  The attached tables and charts contain data for
the nation and for the 317 U.S. counties with annual average employment
levels of 75,000 or more in 2003.  In addition, data for San Juan, Puerto
Rico, are provided, but not used in calculating U.S. averages, or in the
analysis in the text.  (See Technical Note.) September 2004 employment
and 2004 third-quarter average weekly wages for all states are provided
in table 4 of this release.  Data for all states, metropolitan statisti-
cal areas, counties, and the nation through the second quarter of 2004
are available on the BLS Web site at http://www.bls.gov/cew/.  Prelimi-
nary data for the third quarter of 2004 and revised data for the first
and second quarters of 2004 will be available in April on the BLS Web
site.
   
Large County Employment
   
   In September 2004, national employment, as measured by the QCEW
program, was 130.2 million, up 1.3 percent from September 2003.  The
317 U.S. counties with 75,000 or more employees accounted for 70.2 per-
cent of total U.S. covered employment and 76.1 percent of total covered
wages.  These 317 counties had a net job gain of 1,073,000 over the year,
accounting for 63.8 percent of the U.S. employment increase.  Employment
increased in 242 of the large counties from September 2003 to September
2004.  Rutherford County, Tenn., had the largest over-the-year percentage
increase in employment (9.2 percent). Clark County, Nev., had the next
largest increase, 7.4 percent, followed by the counties of Riverside, Calif.
(7.2 percent), Elkhart, Ind. (6.8 percent), and Montgomery, Texas (6.6 per-
cent).  (See table 1.)

   Employment declined in 54 counties from September 2003 to September 2004.
The largest percentage decline in employment was in Trumbull County, Ohio
(-3.7 percent), followed by the counties of Tulare, Calif. (-2.7 percent),
Ingham, Mich. (-2.6 percent), Richmond, Ga. (-2.2 percent), and Okaloosa,
Fla. (-2.0 percent).

                                  - 2 -

Table A.  Top 10 counties ranked by September 2004 employment, September
2003-04 employment change, and September 2003-04 percent change in employment

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                            Employment in large counties
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                            |                           |     
  September 2004 employment | Net change in employment, |    Percent change    
         (thousands)        |     September 2003-04     |    in employment,          
                            |        (thousands)        |   September 2003-04
----------------------------|---------------------------|-----------------------
U.S.               130,248.9|U.S.                1,681.6|U.S.                1.3            
----------------------------|---------------------------|-----------------------     
Los Angeles, Calif.  4,019.6|Maricopa, Ariz.        58.6|Rutherford, Tenn.   9.2
Cook, Ill.           2,511.7|Clark, Nev.            56.5|Clark, Nev.         7.4    
New York, N.Y.       2,201.7|Orange, Calif.         44.1|Riverside, Calif.   7.2 
Harris, Texas        1,838.1|Riverside, Calif.      38.2|Elkhart, Ind.       6.8
Maricopa, Ariz.      1,633.3|Los Angeles, Calif.    29.4|Montgomery, Texas   6.6 
Orange, Calif.       1,468.4|Fairfax, Va.           24.9|Lee, Fla.           6.1 
Dallas, Texas        1,438.0|Miami-Dade, Fla.       20.0|Prince William, Va. 5.8 
San Diego, Calif.    1,268.0|Orange, Fla.           19.8|Utah, Utah          5.3 
King, Wash.          1,104.3|San Bernardino, Calif. 19.3|Loudoun, Va.        5.3 
Miami-Dade, Fla.       979.5|Hillsborough, Fla.     18.8|Sarasota, Fla.      5.1 
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


   The largest gains in employment from September 2003 to September 2004
were recorded in the counties of Maricopa, Ariz. (58,600), Clark, Nev.
(56,500), Orange, Calif. (44,100), Riverside, Calif. (38,200) and Los
Angeles, Calif. (29,400).  (See table A.)
   
   The largest absolute declines in employment occurred in Wayne County,
Mich. (-9,700), followed by the counties of Philadelphia, Pa. (-8,500),
Cook, Ill. (-7,100), Baltimore City, Md. (-6,800), and Milwaukee, Wis.
(-6,500).
   
Large County Average Weekly Wages

   The national average weekly wage in the third quarter of 2004 was
$733.  Average weekly wages were higher than the national average in
118 of the largest 317 U.S. counties.  New York County, N.Y., held the
top position among the highest-paid large counties with an average
weekly wage of $1,327.  Santa Clara County, Calif., was second with an
average weekly wage of $1,308, followed by Washington, D.C. ($1,207),
Arlington, Va. ($1,196), and Suffolk, Mass. ($1,178).  (See table B.)
   
   There were 198 counties with an average weekly wage below the
national average in the third quarter of 2004.  The lowest average
weekly wages were reported in Cameron County, Texas ($468), followed
by the counties of Hidalgo, Texas ($475), Horry, S.C. ($487), Webb,
Texas ($496), and Yakima, Wash. ($500).  (See table 1.)

                                  - 3 -

Table B.  Top 10 counties ranked by third quarter 2004 average weekly wages,
third quarter 2003-04 change in average weekly wages, and third quarter
2003-04 percent change in average weekly wages
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                      Average weekly wage in large counties
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------                                                         
                           |                           |   Percent change in
    Average weekly wage,   |  Change in average weekly |  average weekly wage,            
     third quarter 2004    |    wage, third quarter    |      third quarter                         
                           |          2003-04          |        2003-04
---------------------------|---------------------------|------------------------                                      
U.S.                   $733|U.S.                    $28|U.S.                 4.0
---------------------------|---------------------------|------------------------
New York, N.Y.       $1,327|Suffolk, Mass.          $98|St. Joseph, Ind.    10.4  
Santa Clara, Calif.   1,308|New York, N.Y.           87|Suffolk, Mass.       9.1  
Washington, D.C.      1,207|Arlington, Va.           86|Loudoun, Va.         8.4  
Arlington, Va.        1,196|Washington, D.C.         85|Rockingham, N.H.     8.1
Suffolk, Mass.        1,178|Loudoun, Va.             75|Arlington, Va.       7.7  
San Mateo, Calif.     1,132|Fairfield, Conn.         66|Washington, D.C.     7.6  
Fairfield, Conn.      1,132|St. Joseph, Ind.         64|Catawba, N.C.        7.3  
San Francisco, Calif. 1,107|Hartford, Conn.          56|Forsyth, N.C.        7.3  
Somerset, N.J.        1,093|Montgomery, Md.          56|Lexington, S.C.      7.3  
Fairfax, Va.          1,068|Rockingham, N.H.         55|Henrico, Va.         7.3  
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


   Over the year, the national average weekly wage rose by 4.0 percent.
Among the largest counties, St. Joseph, Ind., led the nation in growth
in average weekly wages, with an increase of 10.4 percent from the third
quarter of 2003.  Suffolk, Mass., was second with 9.1 percent growth,
followed by the counties of Loudoun, Va. (8.4 percent), Rockingham, N.H.
(8.1 percent), and Arlington, Va. (7.7 percent).

   
   Seven counties experienced over-the-year declines in average weekly
wages.  Kalamazoo County, Mich., had the largest decrease, -7.7 percent,
followed by the counties of Arapahoe, Colo. (-7.3 percent), Somerset,
N.J. (-6.9 percent), King, Wash. (-2.4 percent), and Santa Cruz, Calif.
(-1.3 percent).

Ten Largest U.S. Counties
   
   Of the 10 largest U.S. counties (based on 2003 employment levels),
9 reported increases in employment, while 1 showed a decline from
September 2003 to September 2004.  Maricopa County, Ariz., experienced
the fastest growth in employment among the largest counties, with a
3.7 percent increase.  Within Maricopa County, employment rose in every
industry group except information.  The largest gains were in construc-
tion (9.4 percent) and professional and business services (6.2 percent).
(See table 2.)  Orange County, Calif., had the next largest increase in
employment, 3.1 percent, followed by Miami-Dade, Fla. (2.1 percent).  The
only decrease in employment for the 10 largest counties was in Cook County,
Ill., with a 0.3 percent decline.  The next lowest change in employment was
recorded in Los Angeles County, Calif. (+0.7 percent), followed by the
counties of New York, N.Y.,  Dallas, Texas, and Harris, Texas (+0.8 percent
each).

                                  - 4 -

   Eight of the 10 largest U.S. counties saw over-the-year increases
in average weekly wages.  New York County, N.Y., had the fastest
growth in wages among the top 10 counties, 7.0 percent.  Within New
York County, wages increased the most in natural resources and mining
(15.2 percent) and financial activities (14.2 percent).  San Diego
County, Calif., was second in wage growth, increasing by 5.4 percent,
followed by Los Angeles County, Calif., with a gain of 4.9 percent.
The smallest wage gains among the 10 largest counties occurred in
Dallas County, Texas (3.0 percent) and Orange County, Calif. (3.3 per-
cent).  King County, Wash., experienced the only decline in average
weekly wages among the largest 10 counties (-2.4 percent).  The in-
formation sector in King County posted the largest drop in wages,
with a decline of 28.3 percent over the year.  A change in wage
coverage for business establishments in Washington State contributed
significantly to these wage declines.  See the Coverage section of the
Technical Note for more information.

Largest County by State

   Table 3 shows September 2004 employment and the 2004 third-quarter
average weekly wage in the largest county in each state.  (This table
includes two counties--Yellowstone, Mont., and Laramie, Wyo.--that have
employment levels below 75,000).  The employment levels in these counties
in September 2004 ranged from approximately 4 million in Los Angeles County,
Calif., to 39,800 in Laramie County, Wyo.  The highest average weekly wage
of these counties was in New York, N.Y. ($1,327), while the lowest average
weekly wage was in Yellowstone County, Mont. ($572).


   -------------------------------------------------------------------
  |       Introduction of the Location Quotient Calculator            |
  |                                                                   |
  |    In March 2005, the Bureau of Labor Statistics introduced a     |
  | new tool on its Web site for analyzing data from the Quarterly    |
  | Census of Employment and Wages program.  The Location Quotient    |
  | Calculator helps data users compare industry employment levels    |
  | in a defined area to that of a larger area or base.  For example, |
  | location quotients can be used to compare state employment by     |
  | industry to that of the nation; or employment in a city, county,  |
  | metropolitan statistical area, or other defined geographic subarea|
  | to that in the state.  A link to the Location Quotient Calculator |
  | and other relevant information can be found at http://www.bls.gov/|
  | cew/cewlq.htm.                                                    |
   ------------------------------------------------------------------- 






                                  - 5 -

Technical Note

   
   These data are the product of a federal-state cooperative program, the
Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW) program, also known as the
ES-202 program.  The data are derived from summaries of employment and to-
tal pay of workers covered by state and federal unemployment insurance (UI) 
legislation and provided by State Workforce Agencies (SWAs).  The summaries 
are a result of the administration of state unemployment insurance programs 
that require most employers to pay quarterly taxes based on the employment 
and wages of workers covered by UI.  Data for 2004 are preliminary and sub-
ject to revision.

   For purposes of this release, large counties are defined as having
employment levels of 75,000 or greater.  Each year, these large counties
are selected on the basis of the preliminary annual average of employment
for the previous year.  The 318 counties discussed in this release were
derived using 2003 preliminary annual averages of employment.  These
counties will be included in all 2004 quarterly releases.  The counties
in table 2 are selected and sorted each year based on the annual average
employment from the preceding year.

   The preliminary QCEW data presented in this release may differ from
data released by the individual states.  These potential differences result
from the states' continuing receipt of UI data over time and ongoing review
and editing.  The individual states determine their data release timetables.
   
Differences between QCEW, BED, and CES employment measures

   The Bureau publishes three different establishment-based employment
measures for any given quarter.  Each of these measures--QCEW, 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 pro-
cedure, 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 below.)  Additional information on each program can 
be obtained from the program Web sites shown in the table below.

                                  - 6 -

Summary of Major Differences between QCEW, BED, and CES Employment Measures
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------                                     
           |         QCEW        |         BED          |         CES
-----------|---------------------|----------------------|-----------------------
Source     |--Count of UI admini-|--Count of longitudi- |--Sample survey: 
           |  strative records   |  nally-linked UI ad- |  400,000 establish-
           |  submitted by 8.4   |  ministrative records|  ments
           |  million establish- |  submitted by 6.5    |
           |  ments              |  million private-sec-|
           |                     |  tor employers       |
-----------|---------------------|----------------------|-----------------------
Coverage   |--UI and UCFE cover- |--UI coverage, exclud-|Nonfarm wage and sal-
           |  age, including all |  ing government, pri-|  ary jobs:
           |  employers subject  |  vate households, and|--UI coverage, exclud-
           |  to state and feder-|  establishments with |  ing agriculture, pri-
           |  al UI laws         |  zero employment     |  vate households, and
           |                     |                      |  self-employed workers
           |                     |                      |--Other employment, in-
           |                     |                      |  cluding railroads, 
           |                     |                      |  religious organiza-
           |                     |                      |  tions, and other non-
           |                     |                      |  UI-covered jobs
-----------|---------------------|----------------------|-----------------------
Publication|--Quarterly          |--Quarterly           |--Monthly 
frequency  |  -7 months after the|  -8 months after the |  -Usually first Friday
           |   end of each quar- |   end of each quarter|   of following month
           |   ter               |                      |
-----------|---------------------|----------------------|-----------------------
Use of UI  |--Directly summarizes|--Links each new UI   |--Uses UI file as a sam-
file       |  and publishes each |  quarter to longitu- |  pling frame and annu-
           |  new quarter of UI  |  dinal database and  |  ally realigns (bench-
           |  data               |  directly summarizes |  marks) sample esti-    
           |                     |  gross job gains and |  mates to first quar-  
           |                     |  losses              |  ter UI levels
-----------|---------------------|----------------------|------------------------
Principal  |--Provides a quarter-|--Provides quarterly  |--Provides current month-
products   |  ly and annual uni- |  employer dynamics   |  ly estimates of employ-
           |  verse count of es- |  data on establish-  |  ment, hours, and earn-
           |  tablishments, em-  |  ment openings, clos-|  ings at the MSA, state,
           |  ployment, and wages|  ings, expansions,   |  and national level by
           |  at the county, MSA,|  and contractions at |  industry
           |  state, and national|  the national level  |
           |  levels by detailed |--Future expansions   |
           |  industry           |  will include data at|
           |                     |  the county, MSA, and|
           |                     |  state level and by  |
           |                     |  size of establish-  |
           |                     |  ment                |
-----------|---------------------|----------------------|--------------------------
Principal  |--Major uses include:|--Major uses include: |--Major uses include:
uses       |  -Detailed locality |  -Business cycle     |  -Principal national
           |   data              |   analysis           |   economic indicator
           |  -Periodic universe |  -Analysis of employ-|  -Official time series 
           |   counts for bench- |   er dynamics under- |   for employment change
           |   marking sample    |   lying economic ex- |   measures
           |   survey estimates  |   pansions and con-  |  -Input into other ma-
           |  -Sample frame for  |   tractions          |   jor economic indi-
           |   BLS establishment |  -Future:  Employment|   cators
           |   surveys           |   expansion and con- |
           |                     |   traction by size of|
           |                     |   establishment      |
-----------|---------------------|----------------------|--------------------------
Program    |--www.bls.gov/cew/   |--www.bls.gov/bdm/    |--www.bls.gov/ces/
Web sites  |                     |                      |
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                  
                                  - 7 -
   
Coverage
   
   Employment and wage data for workers covered by state UI laws and for
federal civilian workers covered by the Unemployment Compensation for
Federal Employees (UCFE) program 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 and industry of each 
of their establishments.  The employment and wage data included in this
release are derived from microdata summaries of more than 8 million employer 
reports of employment and wages submitted by states to the BLS.  These re-
ports are based on place of employment rather than place of residence.
   
   UI and UCFE coverage is broad and basically comparable from state to
state.  In 2003, UI and UCFE programs covered workers in 127.8 million
jobs.  The estimated 122.9 million workers in these jobs (after adjust-
ment for multiple jobholders) represented 96.6 percent of civilian wage 
and salary employment.  Covered workers received $4.826 trillion in pay,
representing 94.6 percent of the wage and salary component of personal
income and 43.9 percent of the gross domestic product.
   
   Major exclusions from UI coverage include self-employed workers, most
agricultural workers on small farms, all members of the Armed Forces, 
elected officials in most states, most employees of railroads, some domes-
tic workers, most student workers at schools, and employees of certain 
small nonprofit organizations.

   State and federal UI laws change periodically.  These changes may have
an impact on the employment and wages reported by employers covered under
the UI program.  Coverage changes may affect the over-the-year comparisons
presented in this news release.  Effective January 1, 2004, the Washington
Employment Security Department no longer includes as covered wages an em-
ployee's income attributable to the transfer of shares of stock to the em-
ployee.  This change in wage coverage pertains to all establishments in
Washington State and contributes significantly to over-the-year changes in
wages in the state in 2004.

Concepts and methodology
   
   Monthly employment is based on the number of workers who worked during
or received pay for the pay period including the 12th of the month.  With
few exceptions, all employees of covered firms are reported, including pro-
duction and sales workers, corporation officials, executives, supervisory 
personnel, and clerical workers.  Workers on paid vacations and part-time 
workers also are included.
   
   Average weekly wage values are calculated by dividing quarterly total
wages by the average of the three monthly employment levels (all employees,
as described above) and dividing the result by 13, for the 13 weeks in the
quarter.  These calculations are made using unrounded employment and wage
values.  The average wage values that can be calculated using rounded data
from the BLS database may differ from the averages reported.  Included in
the quarterly wage data are non-wage cash payments such as bonuses, the cash
value of meals and lodging when supplied, tips and other gratuities, and, in
some states, employer contributions to certain deferred compensation plans
such as 401(k) plans and stock options.
   
   Average weekly wages are affected by the ratio of full-time to part-
time workers as well as the number of individuals in high-paying and low-
paying occupations and the incidence of pay periods within a quarter.
When comparing average weekly wage levels between industries and/or states,
these factors should be taken into consideration.

                                  - 8 -

   Federal government pay levels are subject to periodic, sometimes large,
fluctuations due to a calendar effect that consists of some quarters having
more pay periods than others.   Most federal employees are paid on a bi-
weekly pay schedule.  As a result of this schedule, in some quarters,
federal wages contain payments for six pay periods, while in other quarters
their wages include payments for seven pay periods.  Over-the-year
comparisons of average weekly wages may reflect this calendar effect.
Higher growth in average weekly wages may be attributed, in part, to a
comparison of quarterly wages for the current year, which include seven pay
periods, with year-ago wages that reflect only six pay periods.  An
opposite effect will occur when wages in the current period, which contain
six pay periods, are compared with year-ago wages that include seven pay
periods.   The effect on over-the-year pay comparisons can be pronounced in
federal government due to the uniform nature of federal payroll processing.
This pattern may exist in private sector pay, however, because there are
more pay period types (weekly, biweekly, semimonthly, monthly) it is less
pronounced.  The effect is most visible in counties with large concentra-
tions of federal employment.
                            
   In order to ensure the highest possible quality of data, states verify
with employers and update, if necessary, the industry, location, and own-
ership classification of all establishments on a 3-year cycle.  Changes
in establishment classification codes resulting from this process are in-
troduced with the data reported for the first quarter of the year.  Changes 
resulting from improved employer reporting also are introduced in the first 
quarter. 

   QCEW data are not designed as a time series.  QCEW data are simply the
sums of individual establishment records and reflect the number of
establishments that exist in a county or industry at a point in time.
Establishments can move in or out of a county or industry for a number of
reasons--some reflecting economic events, others reflecting administrative
changes.  For example, economic change would come from a firm relocating
into the county; administrative change would come from a company correcting
its county designation.
   
   The over-the-year changes of employment and wages presented in this
release have been adjusted to account for most of the administrative
corrections made to the underlying establishment reports.  This is done by
modifying the prior-year levels used to calculate the over-the-year changes. 
Percent changes are calcuated using an adjusted version of the final 2003
quarterly data as the base data.  The adjusted prior-year levels used to
calculate the over-the-year percent change in employment and wages are not
published.  These adjusted prior-year levels do not match the unadjusted
data maintained on the BLS Web site.  Over-the-year change calculations
based on data from the Web site, or from data published in prior BLS news
releases, may differ substantially from the over-the-year changes presented
in this news release.
   
   The adjusted data used to calculate the over-the-year change measures
presented in this release account for most of the administrative changes--
those occurring when employers update the industry, location, and ownership
information of their establishments.  The most common adjustments for
administrative change are the result of updated information about the
county location of individual establishments.

   The adjusted data do not account for administrative changes caused by
(1) multi-unit employers who start reporting for each individual estab-
lishment rather than as a single entity and (2) the classification of
establishments previously reported in the unknown county or unknown in-
dustry categories.

                                   - 9 -

   The adjusted data used to calculate the over-the-year change measures
presented in any County Employment and Wages news release are valid for
comparisons between the starting and ending points (a 12-month period)
used in that particular release.  Comparisons may not be valid for any
time period other than the one featured in a release even if the changes
were calculated using adjusted data.

   County definitions are assigned according to Federal Information
Processing Standards Publications (FIPS PUBS) as issued by the National
Institute of Standards and Technology, after approval by the Secretary of
Commerce pursuant to Section 5131 of the Information Technology Management
Reform Act of 1996 and the Computer Security Act of 1987, Public Law 104-
106.  Areas shown as counties include those designated as independent cities 
in some jurisdictions and, in Alaska, those designated as census areas where 
counties have not been created.  County data also are presented for the New 
England states for comparative purposes even though townships are the more 
common designation used in New England (and New Jersey).  The regions re-
ferred to in this release are defined as census regions.

Additional statistics and other information
   
   An annual bulletin, Employment and Wages, features comprehensive infor-
mation by detailed industry on establishments, employment, and wages for 
the nation and all states.  Employment and Wages Annual Averages, 2003
is available for sale from the BLS Publications Sales Center, P.O. Box
2145, Chicago, Illinois 60690, telephone 312-353-1880.  The 2003 bulletin
will be available in April 2005 in a portable document format (PDF) on the BLS
Web site at http://www.bls.gov/cew/cewbultn03.htm.  
   
   News releases on quarterly measures of gross job flows also are 
available upon request from the Division of Administrative Statistics 
and Labor Turnover (Business Employment Dynamics), telephone 202-691-6467;
(http://www.bls.gov/bdm/); (e-mail: BDMInfo@bls.gov).
   
   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. Covered(1) establishments, employment, and wages in the 318 largest counties,
third quarter 2004(2)
                                                                                                     
                                                                                                     
                                                     Employment              Average weekly wage(5)  
                                                                                                     
                          Establishments,                                                            
                           third quarter                                            Percent          
        County(3)               2004       September    Percent   Ranking  Average  change,  Ranking 
                            (thousands)       2004      change,      by     weekly   third      by   
                                          (thousands)  September  percent    wage   quarter  percent 
                                                      2003-04(4)   change           2003-04   change 
                                                                                      (4)            
                                                                                                                                                                                                          
United States(6).........       8,421.8     130,248.9       1.3         -     $733      4.0        - 
                                                                                                     
Jefferson, AL............          18.5         368.3       0.0       244      739      3.6      172 
Madison, AL..............           7.9         165.3       2.6        66      773      2.7      238 
Mobile, AL...............           9.6         161.3      -0.3       261      601      2.6      247 
Montgomery, AL...........           6.6         131.3       1.4       134      619      2.1      276 
Tuscaloosa, AL...........           4.2          78.8       3.0        51      614      2.7      238 
Anchorage Borough, AK....           7.7         145.0       0.8       175      809      4.0      138 
Maricopa, AZ.............          79.9       1,633.3       3.7        32      731      4.7       77 
Pima, AZ.................          17.5         339.6       2.9        56      640      4.1      133 
Benton, AR...............           4.5          86.1       4.4        16      679      4.5      102 
Pulaski, AR..............          13.3         242.6       0.9       166      669      4.7       77 
                                                                                                     
Washington, AR...........           5.1          87.0       2.3        81      599      6.6       15 
Alameda, CA..............          47.7         674.8      -0.5       270      971      3.6      172 
Contra Costa, CA.........          27.4         339.2       0.7       189      923      5.2       53 
Fresno, CA...............          28.6         348.8      -0.4       266      591      3.5      187 
Kern, CA.................          15.8         257.7       0.4       217      632      5.0       60 
Los Angeles, CA..........         360.1       4,019.6       0.7       189      833      4.9       68 
Marin, CA................          11.8         110.3       0.8       175      914      4.8       72 
Monterey, CA.............          11.9         180.2       1.1       154      643      4.7       77 
Orange, CA...............          89.7       1,468.4       3.1        47      840      3.3      199 
Placer, CA...............           9.4         130.9       3.7        32      738      3.2      202 
                                                                                                     
Riverside, CA............          38.3         572.4       7.2         3      635      5.3       49 
Sacramento, CA...........          46.5         608.8       1.4       134      817      2.4      262 
San Bernardino, CA.......          41.9         600.7       3.3        40      655      4.1      133 
San Diego, CA............          86.2       1,268.0       1.4       134      800      5.4       44 
San Francisco, CA........          43.0         521.9      -0.6       277    1,107      3.4      194 
San Joaquin, CA..........          15.8         221.9       0.6       199      649      3.5      187 
San Luis Obispo, CA......           8.6         101.7       0.4       217      631      6.9       12 
San Mateo, CA............          22.7         328.7       0.0       244    1,132      0.8      301 
Santa Barbara, CA........          13.1         180.6       0.6       199      702      3.7      163 
Santa Clara, CA..........          52.3         850.8       0.7       189    1,308      3.1      209 
                                                                                                     
Santa Cruz, CA...........           8.3         100.3       1.4       134      684     -1.3      308 
Solano, CA...............           9.5         128.1       0.8       175      696      2.5      257 
Sonoma, CA...............          17.2         193.1       1.5       121      732      2.7      238 
Stanislaus, CA...........          13.1         174.9       0.3       225      632      3.8      157 
Tulare, CA...............           8.5         135.9      -2.7       307      531      5.1       58 
Ventura, CA..............          20.5         302.2       0.9       166      779      1.3      296 
Yolo, CA.................           5.1          98.6       1.3       141      734      5.0       60 
Adams, CO................           8.7         143.9       0.8       175      706      2.6      247 
Arapahoe, CO.............          19.0         269.0      -0.3       261      870     -7.3      311 
Boulder, CO..............          11.9         153.5       2.5        73      870      0.6      304 
                                                                                                     
Denver, CO...............          24.6         427.3       1.5       121      888      2.9      224 
El Paso, CO..............          16.1         237.9       1.5       121      696      2.7      238 
Jefferson, CO............          18.2         204.4       0.7       189      765      3.2      202 
Larimer, CO..............           9.3         124.4       2.1        87      689      3.1      209 
Fairfield, CT............          31.8         411.4       0.1       233    1,132      6.2       20 
Hartford, CT.............          24.4         483.0       1.1       154      916      6.5       16 
New Haven, CT............          22.0         362.2       2.1        87      811      3.4      194 
New London, CT...........           6.6         129.4       0.0       244      762      4.2      120 
New Castle, DE...........          19.3         280.2       0.3       225      858      2.4      262 
Washington, DC...........          30.1         658.3       1.2       147    1,207      7.6        6 
                                                                                                     
Alachua, FL..............           6.0         123.4       1.7       111      566      5.4       44 
Brevard, FL..............          12.9         194.5       (7)         -      727      (7)        - 
Broward, FL..............          58.6         687.9       1.8       105      696      3.6      172 
Collier, FL..............          10.7         115.8       3.6        35      649      4.7       77 
Duval, FL................          23.0         436.3       2.6        66      711      2.4      262 
Escambia, FL.............           7.4         124.8       2.8        62      583      3.2      202 
Hillsborough, FL.........          32.2         606.5       3.2        45      694      3.7      163 
Lee, FL..................          15.7         194.3       6.1         6      637      6.0       27 
Leon, FL.................           7.4         143.6       1.9        98      631      3.6      172 
Manatee, FL..............           7.3         116.9       4.4        16      571      4.6       91 
                                                                                                     
Marion, FL...............           6.8          90.3       4.7        13      541      3.6      172 
Miami-Dade, FL...........          82.6         979.5       2.1        87      717      (7)        - 
Okaloosa, FL.............           5.5          79.8      -2.0       304      592      6.9       12 
Orange, FL...............          30.8         624.4       3.3        40      682      5.7       33 
Palm Beach, FL...........          44.2         503.7       1.1       154      720      3.9      147 
Pasco, FL................           7.7          84.0       3.1        47      534      6.2       20 
Pinellas, FL.............          29.0         437.1       3.9        25      638      2.2      272 
Polk, FL.................          10.8         185.7       4.4        16      601      3.6      172 
Sarasota, FL.............          13.4         153.9       5.1        10      618      5.3       49 
Seminole, FL.............          12.6         153.4       4.4        16      645      2.9      224 
                                                                                                     
Volusia, FL..............          12.3         149.2       (7)         -      558      (7)        - 
Bibb, GA.................           4.7          85.9       0.5       205      623      4.4      111 
Chatham, GA..............           7.0         127.1       1.5       121      631      4.5      102 
Clayton, GA..............           4.4         106.1       (7)         -      808      5.8       29 
Cobb, GA.................          19.8         296.8      -1.3       293      803      3.6      172 
De Kalb, GA..............          16.9         288.7      -0.9       287      792      2.9      224 
Fulton, GA...............          37.1         726.6       1.5       121      958      4.2      120 
Gwinnett, GA.............          21.4         307.9       3.1        47      773      1.2      297 
Muscogee, GA.............           4.7          95.9      -1.7       300      589      3.9      147 
Richmond, GA.............           4.8         102.8      -2.2       305      627      4.7       77 
                                                                                                     
Honolulu, HI.............          23.2         426.7       2.7        64      703      4.6       91 
Ada, ID..................          13.2         190.6       3.9        25      675      4.5      102 
Champaign, IL............           3.9          90.6       0.6       199      639      2.2      272 
Cook, IL.................         126.7       2,511.7      -0.3       261      871      4.3      116 
Du Page, IL..............          32.6         577.1       0.8       175      851      2.4      262 
Kane, IL.................          11.1         201.6       0.4       217      686      2.7      238 
Lake, IL.................          19.0         326.9       1.2       147      874      4.5      102 
McHenry, IL..............           7.5          96.8       2.5        73      666      2.6      247 
McLean, IL...............           3.4          83.9      -1.9       301      702      1.4      292 
Madison, IL..............           5.6          93.5      -1.0       290      614      4.8       72 
                                                                                                     
Peoria, IL...............           4.6          98.4       2.3        81      692      4.8       72 
Rock Island, IL..........           3.4          78.3      -0.7       282      715      2.1      276 
St. Clair, IL............           5.1          92.9      -0.1       255      606      5.0       60 
Sangamon, IL.............           5.1         130.3       (7)         -      736      (7)        - 
Will, IL.................          10.8         163.9       2.9        56      698      2.2      272 
Winnebago, IL............           6.6         137.6       0.7       189      632      0.6      304 
Allen, IN................           8.7         180.5       1.2       147      658      2.7      238 
Elkhart, IN..............           4.8         126.3       6.8         4      658      5.6       34 
Hamilton, IN.............           6.2          90.6       4.9        11      755      4.1      133 
Lake, IN.................           9.9         193.9       0.0       244      670      4.2      120 
                                                                                                     
Marion, IN...............          23.7         581.1       1.5       121      765      3.8      157 
St. Joseph, IN...........           6.0         125.0       1.6       118      677     10.4        1 
Vanderburgh, IN..........           4.8         107.4      -1.3       293      628      5.4       44 
Linn, IA.................           6.1         116.0       0.9       166      706      3.4      194 
Polk, IA.................          14.2         261.5       1.8       105      740      4.7       77 
Scott, IA................           5.1          86.4       1.9        98      604      2.5      257 
Johnson, KS..............          18.9         296.6       1.9        98      764      3.8      157 
Sedgwick, KS.............          11.6         241.3       1.2       147      689      6.5       16 
Shawnee, KS..............           4.7          94.6      -1.5       298      624      4.2      120 
Fayette, KY..............           8.8         166.5       0.8       175      681      3.7      163 
                                                                                                     
Jefferson, KY............          21.6         417.1       0.0       244      726      5.5       39 
Caddo, LA................           7.0         122.0       1.8       105      612      5.5       39 
Calcasieu, LA............           4.6          80.8      -0.4       266      598      0.7      302 
East Baton Rouge, LA.....          13.1         244.9       0.8       175      618      2.0      281 
Jefferson, LA............          14.0         210.5      -0.4       266      613      4.3      116 
Lafayette, LA............           7.6         118.4      -0.5       270      635      1.6      287 
Orleans, LA..............          12.6         244.6      -1.6       299      677      1.5      290 
Cumberland, ME...........          12.0         171.0       1.1       154      671      5.5       39 
Anne Arundel, MD.........          13.6         215.7       2.4        77      773      3.9      147 
Baltimore, MD............          20.7         366.0       1.8       105      751      2.3      270 
                                                                                                     
Frederick, MD............           5.5          90.2       2.8        62      701      4.9       68 
Howard, MD...............           8.0         138.6       0.1       233      846      5.0       60 
Montgomery, MD...........          31.5         450.6       0.5       205      953      6.2       20 
Prince Georges, MD.......          15.2         314.9       1.6       118      820      5.8       29 
Baltimore City, MD.......          14.1         355.4      -1.9       301      825      1.2      297 
Barnstable, MA...........           9.3          99.4      -0.2       258      635      4.6       91 
Bristol, MA..............          15.4         218.9      -0.5       270      672      6.2       20 
Essex, MA................          20.8         294.1      -0.9       287      800      3.1      209 
Hampden, MA..............          14.2         198.6      -1.1       291      704      6.0       27 
Middlesex, MA............          48.2         782.0      -0.5       270    1,043      4.6       91 
                                                                                                     
Norfolk, MA..............          21.9         316.2      -0.8       285      885      1.6      287 
Plymouth, MA.............          13.7         175.0       1.3       141      719      4.8       72 
Suffolk, MA..............          22.4         557.5      -0.5       270    1,178      9.1        2 
Worcester, MA............          20.5         318.3       0.1       233      783      6.1       24 
Genesee, MI..............           8.6         155.3       0.4       217      715      2.6      247 
Ingham, MI...............           7.0         164.9      -2.6       306      723      3.0      217 
Kalamazoo, MI............           5.5         116.1      -0.2       258      688     -7.7      312 
Kent, MI.................          14.6         336.4       1.3       141      703      2.6      247 
Macomb, MI...............          18.1         325.4       0.5       205      818      4.2      120 
Oakland, MI..............          41.4         717.1      -0.8       285      893      2.9      224 
                                                                                                     
Ottawa, MI...............           5.8         115.1       3.0        51      672      3.9      147 
Saginaw, MI..............           4.6          89.9      -1.4       297      691      2.4      262 
Washtenaw, MI............           8.2         195.2       0.4       217      847      1.8      282 
Wayne, MI................          35.0         791.2      -1.2       292      874      4.7       77 
Anoka, MN................           7.5         113.1       1.0       161      734      4.9       68 
Dakota, MN...............           9.7         169.2       2.0        93      740      2.9      224 
Hennepin, MN.............          40.5         827.3       0.8       175      933      2.6      247 
Olmsted, MN..............           3.3          87.3       0.7       189      819      3.5      187 
Ramsey, MN...............          14.9         329.6       0.3       225      819      2.9      224 
St. Louis, MN............           5.7          94.8       1.4       134      634      2.4      262 
                                                                                                     
Stearns, MN..............           4.2          77.7       1.2       147      611      6.1       24 
Harrison, MS.............           4.6          90.0      -0.5       270      520     -0.2      306 
Hinds, MS................           6.6         130.2       0.1       233      651      4.0      138 
Boone, MO................           4.3          78.2       2.6        66      585      2.8      235 
Clay, MO.................           4.9          86.9       0.5       205      698      4.5      102 
Greene, MO...............           8.0         146.2       0.8       175      591      4.2      120 
Jackson, MO..............          18.7         363.3      -0.3       261      757      4.6       91 
St. Charles, MO..........           7.3         114.9       (7)         -      644      3.9      147 
St. Louis, MO............          33.7         617.5      -0.1       255      778      1.4      292 
St. Louis City, MO.......           8.2         224.8       (7)         -      811      4.0      138 
                                                                                                     
Douglas, NE..............          14.9         309.4       0.5       205      702      3.4      194 
Lancaster, NE............           7.5         153.6       2.5        73      621      4.0      138 
Clark, NV................          39.0         822.6       7.4         2      701      4.6       91 
Washoe, NV...............          12.7         209.0       4.7        13      713      2.7      238 
Hillsborough, NH.........          12.4         194.2       0.8       175      828      6.3       19 
Rockingham, NH...........          10.7         136.7       2.9        56      738      8.1        4 
Atlantic, NJ.............           6.6         147.3      -0.3       261      666      2.9      224 
Bergen, NJ...............          34.3         447.7       0.2       229      910      2.9      224 
Burlington, NJ...........          11.1         198.8       1.0       161      789      3.5      187 
Camden, NJ...............          13.4         210.8       3.8        29      741      2.2      272 
                                                                                                     
Essex, NJ................          21.4         357.4       0.1       233      947      4.3      116 
Gloucester, NJ...........           6.1         100.4       3.9        25      679      5.4       44 
Hudson, NJ...............          13.9         234.4       0.4       217      980      5.6       34 
Mercer, NJ...............          10.7         217.4      -0.9       287      934      1.5      290 
Middlesex, NJ............          20.7         392.0       0.8       175      938      4.0      138 
Monmouth, NJ.............          19.9         254.9       2.7        64      786      3.7      163 
Morris, NJ...............          17.7         281.3       0.4       217    1,034      2.3      270 
Ocean, NJ................          11.5         148.9       3.0        51      623      3.1      209 
Passaic, NJ..............          12.5         178.1       2.0        93      786      4.2      120 
Somerset, NJ.............           9.9         166.1       (7)         -    1,093     -6.9      310 
                                                                                                     
Union, NJ................          14.9         232.1       (7)         -      912      (7)        - 
Bernalillo, NM...........          16.5         315.6       1.5       121      665      2.6      247 
Albany, NY...............           9.6         227.9       0.0       244      787      4.7       77 
Bronx, NY................          15.4         216.4       1.2       147      746      5.8       29 
Broome, NY...............           4.5          94.3      -0.4       266      602      4.2      120 
Dutchess, NY.............           7.9         116.5       1.5       121      744      1.6      287 
Erie, NY.................          23.3         457.9       0.7       189      663      5.2       53 
Kings, NY................          42.0         446.5       1.7       111      665      3.6      172 
Monroe, NY...............          17.7         379.9      -0.7       282      752      5.0       60 
Nassau, NY...............          50.7         597.4       0.6       199      808      3.5      187 
                                                                                                     
New York, NY.............         112.7       2,201.7       0.8       175    1,327      7.0       11 
Oneida, NY...............           5.3         108.3       0.6       199      581      3.2      202 
Onondaga, NY.............          12.6         249.0       0.9       166      687      2.8      235 
Orange, NY...............           9.3         127.4       1.4       134      632      4.5      102 
Queens, NY...............          40.3         478.1       0.9       166      751      1.8      282 
Richmond, NY.............           8.1          88.3       1.5       121      693      4.2      120 
Rockland, NY.............           9.4         110.5       0.1       233      772      3.6      172 
Suffolk, NY..............          47.7         602.1       1.1       154      797      4.2      120 
Westchester, NY..........          35.3         410.4       1.7       111      963      (7)        - 
Buncombe, NC.............           6.9         106.6       0.9       166      588      4.6       91 
                                                                                                     
Catawba, NC..............           4.2          86.7       1.3       141      588      7.3        7 
Cumberland, NC...........           5.6         112.0       2.9        56      584      5.4       44 
Durham, NC...............           6.1         166.3       0.9       166      955      3.6      172 
Forsyth, NC..............           8.4         176.3       0.5       205      761      7.3        7 
Guilford, NC.............          13.6         266.5       1.5       121      674      2.7      238 
Mecklenburg, NC..........          27.2         507.2       0.5       205      838      1.8      282 
New Hanover, NC..........           6.4          92.9       4.0        23      598      4.7       77 
Wake, NC.................          23.3         392.6       3.3        40      734      3.2      202 
Cass, ND.................           5.4          90.0       3.7        32      610      3.9      147 
Butler, OH...............           6.9         134.5       2.1        87      663      3.8      157 
                                                                                                     
Cuyahoga, OH.............          38.2         759.8       0.0       244      776      4.9       68 
Franklin, OH.............          29.1         685.4       0.1       233      741      3.8      157 
Hamilton, OH.............          24.6         543.8       0.2       229      808      5.8       29 
Lake, OH.................           6.7          98.8       0.0       244      630      3.6      172 
Lorain, OH...............           6.2         102.3       0.5       205      646      5.0       60 
Lucas, OH................          10.8         226.7       0.1       233      669      1.4      292 
Mahoning, OH.............           6.4         106.9       1.0       161      570      3.1      209 
Montgomery, OH...........          13.2         285.7      -0.5       270      707      4.0      138 
Stark, OH................           9.1         166.8       0.0       244      596      3.7      163 
Summit, OH...............          14.7         268.5       1.2       147      694      2.1      276 
                                                                                                     
Trumbull, OH.............           4.8          83.5      -3.7       308      685      6.4       18 
Oklahoma, OK.............          21.7         408.3       1.9        98      645      3.2      202 
Tulsa, OK................          18.2         320.0       1.0       161      667      5.0       60 
Clackamas, OR............          11.5         138.7       2.1        87      688      3.6      172 
Jackson, OR..............           6.2          81.4       3.3        40      571      3.6      172 
Lane, OR.................          10.4         142.2       3.3        40      598      3.1      209 
Marion, OR...............           8.5         135.7       2.6        66      580      1.4      292 
Multnomah, OR............          25.5         422.4       1.6       118      760      3.7      163 
Washington, OR...........          14.6         227.7       3.2        45      877      5.5       39 
Allegheny, PA............          35.6         687.2      -0.6       277      774      3.6      172 
                                                                                                     
Berks, PA................           9.0         163.1       1.7       111      668      3.6      172 
Bucks, PA................          19.9         257.3       2.6        66      709      4.1      133 
Chester, PA..............          14.5         224.3       2.0        93      902      4.6       91 
Cumberland, PA...........           5.7         126.5       1.9        98      704      2.9      224 
Dauphin, PA..............           7.0         176.0       1.5       121      736      4.8       72 
Delaware, PA.............          13.5         207.7      -0.2       258      778      3.9      147 
Erie, PA.................           7.2         127.9       1.8       105      586      3.0      217 
Lackawanna, PA...........           5.8          98.7       1.1       154      586      4.6       91 
Lancaster, PA............          11.7         226.4       1.7       111      656      4.6       91 
Lehigh, PA...............           8.4         174.2       0.4       217      726      3.7      163 
                                                                                                     
Luzerne, PA..............           8.0         141.8      -0.6       277      599      4.0      138 
Montgomery, PA...........          27.6         480.6       0.3       225      909      4.7       77 
Northampton, PA..........           6.1          91.5       0.5       205      664      4.7       77 
Philadelphia, PA.........          28.5         627.6      -1.3       293      869      5.3       49 
Westmoreland, PA.........           9.4         136.8       3.5        37      605      4.5      102 
York, PA.................           8.5         169.0       2.6        66      666      3.9      147 
Kent, RI.................           5.6          81.7       0.5       205      676      2.4      262 
Providence, RI...........          17.8         288.5       0.0       244      731      5.2       53 
Charleston, SC...........          11.8         194.1       3.4        38      621      3.7      163 
Greenville, SC...........          12.1         221.1       0.5       205      663      3.3      199 
                                                                                                     
Horry, SC................           8.0         108.4       4.6        15      487      3.0      217 
Lexington, SC............           5.5          86.3       1.8       105      589      7.3        7 
Richland, SC.............           9.4         208.0       2.0        93      645      4.4      111 
Spartanburg, SC..........           6.2         115.0      -0.6       277      654      4.1      133 
Minnehaha, SD............           6.0         109.4       1.7       111      624      5.6       34 
Davidson, TN.............          17.9         432.2       0.9       166      733      3.1      209 
Hamilton, TN.............           8.3         191.1       1.7       111      645      3.0      217 
Knox, TN.................          10.3         219.1       3.4        38      632      2.8      235 
Rutherford, TN...........           3.7          91.6       9.2         1      647      0.9      300 
Shelby, TN...............          19.8         495.9       0.1       233      787      6.8       14 
                                                                                                     
Bell, TX.................           4.2          91.5       3.6        35      573      4.0      138 
Bexar, TX................          29.8         661.0       0.7       189      644      4.2      120 
Brazoria, TX.............           4.1          76.1       0.0       244      693      3.0      217 
Brazos, TX...............           3.5          78.9       1.5       121      535      2.7      238 
Cameron, TX..............           6.1         115.6       0.7       189      468      4.7       77 
Collin, TX...............          12.8         211.8       (7)         -      797      1.0      299 
Dallas, TX...............          68.2       1,438.0       0.8       175      889      3.0      217 
Denton, TX...............           8.5         133.2       2.6        66      639      2.9      224 
El Paso, TX..............          12.5         254.5       0.5       205      531      4.5      102 
Fort Bend, TX............           6.4         102.3       4.4        16      729      2.1      276 
                                                                                                     
Galveston, TX............           4.8          86.6      -1.9       301      641      3.9      147 
Harris, TX...............          90.2       1,838.1       0.8       175      862      4.5      102 
Hidalgo, TX..............           9.3         185.3       3.9        25      475      4.2      120 
Jefferson, TX............           5.8         117.2      -0.1       255      661      2.6      247 
Lubbock, TX..............           6.5         118.5       2.9        56      554      0.7      302 
McLennan, TX.............           4.7          99.4       2.3        81      583      1.7      286 
Montgomery, TX...........           6.4          92.8       6.6         5      654      3.0      217 
Nueces, TX...............           8.0         143.3       0.7       189      612      5.2       53 
Potter, TX...............           3.9          76.5       0.1       233      585      5.6       34 
Smith, TX................           4.9          86.8       1.9        98      648      6.1       24 
                                                                                                     
Tarrant, TX..............          34.0         701.0       1.3       141      758      5.0       60 
Travis, TX...............          25.2         516.3       2.4        77      824      2.4      262 
Webb, TX.................           4.3          78.0       2.3        81      496      4.4      111 
Williamson, TX...........           5.1          87.0       4.1        22      746     -0.4      307 
Davis, UT................           6.4          94.2       4.0        23      614      3.2      202 
Salt Lake, UT............          35.0         524.7       2.3        81      671      3.5      187 
Utah, UT.................          11.2         152.2       5.3         8      565      2.5      257 
Weber, UT................           5.4          86.8       1.3       141      556      1.8      282 
Chittenden, VT...........           5.7          96.4       2.1        87      725      5.1       58 
Arlington, VA............           7.0         155.6       (7)         -    1,196      7.7        5 
                                                                                                     
Chesterfield, VA.........           6.7         112.4       2.9        56      670      4.2      120 
Fairfax, VA..............          29.8         548.5       4.8        12    1,068      2.5      257 
Henrico, VA..............           8.3         166.8       1.4       134      779      7.3        7 
Loudoun, VA..............           6.3         115.2       5.3         8      970      8.4        3 
Prince William, VA.......           6.0          95.9       5.8         7      664      3.8      157 
Alexandria City, VA......           5.7          92.9       0.9       166      948      4.6       91 
Chesapeake City, VA......           4.8          93.6       4.2        21      582      3.7      163 
Newport News City, VA....           3.7          97.3       2.5        73      673      4.7       77 
Norfolk City, VA.........           5.6         144.5       0.1       233      722      3.4      194 
Richmond City, VA........           6.9         157.4       0.2       229      824      3.5      187 
                                                                                                     
Virginia Beach City, VA..          10.6         174.0       3.8        29      567      3.1      209 
Clark, WA................          10.4         122.1       3.8        29      685      3.3      199 
King, WA.................          77.3       1,104.3       1.1       154      940     -2.4      309 
Kitsap, WA...............           6.1          80.2       3.0        51      695      2.1      276 
Pierce, WA...............          19.6         252.0       1.5       121      673      5.2       53 
Snohomish, WA............          16.1         212.0       3.0        51      763      2.6      247 
Spokane, WA..............          14.6         193.5       1.0       161      604      2.5      257 
Thurston, WA.............           6.2          91.5       2.4        77      681      2.9      224 
Yakima, WA...............           8.3         104.5       0.6       199      500      4.4      111 
Kanawha, WV..............           6.2         107.7      -0.7       282      627      4.3      116 
                                                                                                     
Brown, WI................           6.8         146.6       0.2       229      657      4.0      138 
Dane, WI.................          13.9         292.4       2.3        81      715      4.4      111 
Milwaukee, WI............          22.2         492.8      -1.3       293      750      5.6       34 
Outagamie, WI............           5.0         100.7       3.1        47      653      5.5       39 
Racine, WI...............           4.3          76.8       2.0        93      694      3.9      147 
Waukesha, WI.............          13.5         228.9       1.9        98      759      5.3       49 
Winnebago, WI............           4.0          87.6      -0.6       277      707      4.7       77 
                                                                                                     
San Juan, PR.............          13.4         324.3       2.4        77      475      2.6      247 

  1 Includes workers covered by Unemployment Insurance (UI) and Unemployment Compensation for Federal
Employees (UCFE) programs. These 317 U.S. counties comprise 70.2 percent of the total covered workers
in the U.S.
  2 Data are preliminary.
  3 Includes areas not officially designated as counties.  See Technical Note.
  4 Percent changes were computed from quarterly employment and pay data adjusted for noneconomic
county reclassifications.  See Technical Note.
  5 Average weekly wages were calculated using unrounded data.
  6 Totals for the United States do not include data for Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands.
  7 Data do not meet BLS or State agency disclosure standards.





Table 2. Covered(1) establishments, employment, and wages in the ten largest counties,
third quarter 2004(2)
                                                                                                       
                                                                                                       
                                                                    Employment         Average weekly  
                                                                                           wage(4)     
                                              Establishments,                                          
                                               third quarter                                           
         County by NAICS supersector                2004                    Percent            Percent 
                                                (thousands)    September    change,  Average   change, 
                                                                  2004     September  weekly    third  
                                                              (thousands) 2003-04(3)   wage    quarter 
                                                                                              2003-04(3)
                                                                                                                                                                                                              
United States(5).............................       8,421.8     130,248.9       1.3     $733       4.0 
  Private industry...........................       8,149.4     109,436.9       1.4      724       4.0 
    Natural resources and mining.............         122.7       1,777.2       0.5      654       7.7 
    Construction.............................         823.7       7,167.2       3.3      769       3.4 
    Manufacturing............................         370.7      14,332.0      -0.4      898       5.2 
    Trade, transportation, and utilities.....       1,859.1      25,216.7       0.7      648       3.8 
    Information..............................         143.4       3,062.0      -2.4    1,120       1.8 
    Financial activities.....................         785.8       7,899.5       0.5    1,039       4.0 
    Professional and business services.......       1,341.4      16,486.7       3.0      859       4.4 
    Education and health services............         747.7      16,097.5       2.0      704       4.5 
    Leisure and hospitality..................         680.4      12,747.5       2.4      314       3.0 
    Other services...........................       1,082.4       4,281.7       0.2      477       3.2 
  Government.................................         272.3      20,812.0       0.6      781       4.1 
                                                                                                       
Los Angeles, CA..............................         360.1       4,019.6       0.7      833       4.9 
  Private industry...........................         356.3       3,472.9       1.2      814       5.3 
    Natural resources and mining.............           0.6          12.0       0.9    1,031      29.0 
    Construction.............................          13.1         144.4       8.0      827       4.3 
    Manufacturing............................          17.1         478.5      -2.3      874       8.0 
    Trade, transportation, and utilities.....          53.5         776.6       1.5      706       3.7 
    Information..............................           8.8         205.2       1.9    1,370       6.1 
    Financial activities.....................          23.0         235.6       0.7    1,269       7.8 
    Professional and business services.......          39.9         566.2       1.3      919       4.4 
    Education and health services............          26.9         453.9       0.7      759       4.4 
    Leisure and hospitality..................          25.5         373.0       1.8      505       5.9 
    Other services...........................         147.8         226.5       3.1      404       2.3 
  Government.................................           3.9         546.8      -1.9      956       3.6 
                                                                                                       
Cook, IL.....................................         126.7       2,511.7      -0.3      871       4.3 
  Private industry...........................         125.4       2,195.1      -0.1      862       4.2 
    Natural resources and mining.............           0.1           1.4       (6)    1,137       (6) 
    Construction.............................          10.6          98.8      -4.0    1,073       3.6 
    Manufacturing............................           7.6         257.7      -1.6      908       7.1 
    Trade, transportation, and utilities.....          26.5         477.0       0.2      732       5.5 
    Information..............................           2.5          61.4      -5.5    1,206       2.5 
    Financial activities.....................          14.0         215.8      -1.1    1,318       4.9 
    Professional and business services.......          25.9         409.4       1.4    1,052       3.4 
    Education and health services............          12.5         348.0       0.4      761       3.8 
    Leisure and hospitality..................          10.6         226.5       1.7      378       4.4 
    Other services...........................          12.6          94.1      -1.2      633       3.1 
  Government.................................           1.2         316.5      -1.5      932       4.7 
                                                                                                       
New York, NY.................................         112.7       2,201.7       0.8    1,327       7.0 
  Private industry...........................         112.4       1,764.4       1.0    1,404       7.4 
    Natural resources and mining.............           0.0           0.1     -15.6    1,124      15.2 
    Construction.............................           2.1          29.3      -3.5    1,312       0.8 
    Manufacturing............................           3.3          45.6      -1.6    1,016       6.5 
    Trade, transportation, and utilities.....          21.8         233.1       1.4      996       3.2 
    Information..............................           4.2         130.2      -0.9    1,723       8.0 
    Financial activities.....................          16.9         347.9       0.0    2,406      14.2 
    Professional and business services.......          22.6         430.2       0.8    1,517       5.5 
    Education and health services............           8.0         267.1       1.1      923       3.0 
    Leisure and hospitality..................          10.3         188.3       4.1      642       3.5 
    Other services...........................          16.0          81.1       0.6      776       2.8 
  Government.................................           0.2         437.3      -0.1    1,023       4.9 
                                                                                                       
Harris, TX...................................          90.2       1,838.1       0.8      862       4.5 
  Private industry...........................          89.8       1,594.9       0.7      871       5.1 
    Natural resources and mining.............           1.3          63.1       1.5    2,018      11.1 
    Construction.............................           6.3         129.7      -8.1      842       6.4 
    Manufacturing............................           4.6         163.9      -0.1    1,080       6.6 
    Trade, transportation, and utilities.....          21.2         388.5       0.2      782       2.6 
    Information..............................           1.4          33.4      -1.7    1,064       3.7 
    Financial activities.....................           9.7         114.6       2.2    1,046       0.7 
    Professional and business services.......          17.1         289.7       3.7      988       8.0 
    Education and health services............           9.1         188.8       0.7      781       3.6 
    Leisure and hospitality..................           6.8         161.5       2.8      323       1.6 
    Other services...........................          10.4          57.1       1.2      513       2.6 
  Government.................................           0.4         243.2       1.5      796       0.1 
                                                                                                       
Maricopa, AZ.................................          79.9       1,633.3       3.7      731       4.7 
  Private industry...........................          79.4       1,414.4       3.9      726       4.3 
    Natural resources and mining.............           0.5           7.6       0.4      564      12.8 
    Construction.............................           8.3         143.2       9.4      717       3.8 
    Manufacturing............................           3.2         128.4       0.8    1,039       6.3 
    Trade, transportation, and utilities.....          18.3         328.5       3.9      713       3.9 
    Information..............................           1.5          33.6      -7.8      857       5.2 
    Financial activities.....................           9.6         135.7       1.9      900       2.0 
    Professional and business services.......          17.7         270.4       6.2      719       6.0 
    Education and health services............           7.8         167.1       5.8      776       4.7 
    Leisure and hospitality..................           5.7         152.8       2.2      353       3.2 
    Other services...........................           5.6          44.7       1.7      499       4.0 
  Government.................................           0.5         218.8       2.3      766       7.0 
                                                                                                       
Dallas, TX...................................          68.2       1,438.0       0.8      889       3.0 
  Private industry...........................          67.7       1,281.0       0.9      894       3.1 
    Natural resources and mining.............           0.5           6.5       5.2    2,143     -10.3 
    Construction.............................           4.4          76.5       0.6      798       3.4 
    Manufacturing............................           3.4         144.2       1.0    1,013       5.7 
    Trade, transportation, and utilities.....          15.7         310.0       0.0      879       4.8 
    Information..............................           1.8          59.2      -5.9    1,222       2.5 
    Financial activities.....................           8.7         140.1       1.0    1,115       1.4 
    Professional and business services.......          13.8         244.6       3.0      962       1.7 
    Education and health services............           6.2         130.8       1.0      862       5.3 
    Leisure and hospitality..................           5.1         126.0       1.6      401       0.3 
    Other services...........................           6.6          39.7      -3.4      570       2.7 
  Government.................................           0.5         157.0       (6)      840       (6) 
                                                                                                       
Orange, CA...................................          89.7       1,468.4       3.1      840       3.3 
  Private industry...........................          88.3       1,328.4       3.2      835       3.3 
    Natural resources and mining.............           0.2           7.4       7.3      515       1.6 
    Construction.............................           6.6          96.3       9.3      882       2.8 
    Manufacturing............................           5.9         183.8       0.9      987       5.2 
    Trade, transportation, and utilities.....          17.2         266.5       2.0      785       2.3 
    Information..............................           1.4          32.6      -3.4    1,205      10.1 
    Financial activities.....................          10.0         136.8       6.1    1,361       0.8 
    Professional and business services.......          17.5         264.1       3.9      834       2.1 
    Education and health services............           9.2         127.9       1.7      785       6.9 
    Leisure and hospitality..................           6.7         165.6       3.2      368       4.0 
    Other services...........................          13.4          46.9       3.7      510       2.4 
  Government.................................           1.4         140.0       1.8      886       3.4 
                                                                                                       
San Diego, CA................................          86.2       1,268.0       1.4      800       5.4 
  Private industry...........................          84.8       1,058.6       1.6      780       5.5 
    Natural resources and mining.............           0.9          11.6      -1.4      498       6.2 
    Construction.............................           6.7          90.0       9.9      822       5.4 
    Manufacturing............................           3.5         104.8      -0.2    1,070       9.4 
    Trade, transportation, and utilities.....          14.2         211.7       2.4      654       3.3 
    Information..............................           1.3          36.7      -1.3    1,682      11.6 
    Financial activities.....................           9.1          81.2       1.4    1,012       0.5 
    Professional and business services.......          14.9         203.6       0.9      910       4.7 
    Education and health services............           7.6         118.2      -1.0      734       6.5 
    Leisure and hospitality..................           6.6         147.7       1.6      378       8.3 
    Other services...........................          20.0          52.8       1.4      440       3.0 
  Government.................................           1.4         209.4       0.1      907       5.3 
                                                                                                       
King, WA.....................................          77.3       1,104.3       1.1      940      -2.4 
  Private industry...........................          76.7         950.8       1.1      946      -3.3 
    Natural resources and mining.............           0.4           3.3      -4.5      966       3.1 
    Construction.............................           6.2          57.9       1.6      882       1.7 
    Manufacturing............................           2.6         102.2      -1.6    1,205       8.4 
    Trade, transportation, and utilities.....          14.8         218.7       1.5      817       4.3 
    Information..............................           1.5          67.8      -1.5    2,135     -28.3 
    Financial activities.....................           6.2          76.0      -1.6    1,106       0.5 
    Professional and business services.......          12.0         163.1       4.1    1,039       4.0 
    Education and health services............           6.0         110.6       3.2      729       4.6 
    Leisure and hospitality..................           5.5         105.1       2.3      401       0.5 
    Other services...........................          21.5          46.1      -4.7      483       8.3 
  Government.................................           0.5         153.5       1.1      903       4.0 
                                                                                                       
Miami-Dade, FL...............................          82.6         979.5       2.1      717       (6) 
  Private industry...........................          82.3         829.7       2.6      694       3.4 
    Natural resources and mining.............           0.5           8.0       6.7      437       0.9 
    Construction.............................           5.2          42.2       3.3      761       9.2 
    Manufacturing............................           2.8          50.4       0.6      646       5.2 
    Trade, transportation, and utilities.....          24.0         240.4       0.5      664       3.9 
    Information..............................           1.8          26.6      -3.1    1,021       9.8 
    Financial activities.....................           8.9          67.5       2.6      965      -0.4 
    Professional and business services.......          16.4         136.5       6.4      804       2.8 
    Education and health services............           8.2         125.2       2.0      730       2.5 
    Leisure and hospitality..................           5.6          94.6       5.7      403       3.6 
    Other services...........................           7.7          35.1       1.4      434       1.6 
  Government.................................           0.3         149.8      -0.6      849       (6) 

  1 Includes workers covered by Unemployment Insurance (UI) and Unemployment Compensation for Federal
Employees (UCFE) programs.
  2 Data are preliminary.
  3 Percent changes were computed from quarterly employment and pay data adjusted for noneconomic
county reclassifications.  See Technical Note.
  4 Average weekly wages were calculated using unrounded data.
  5 Totals for the United States do not include data for Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands.
  6 Data do not meet BLS or State agency disclosure standards.
Table 3. Covered(1) establishments, employment, and wages in the largest county by
state, third quarter 2004(2)
                                                                                   
                                                                                   
                                                Employment         Average weekly  
                                                                       wage(5)     
                          Establishments,                                          
                           third quarter                                           
        County(3)               2004                    Percent            Percent 
                            (thousands)    September    change,  Average   change, 
                                              2004     September  weekly    third  
                                          (thousands) 2003-04(4)   wage    quarter 
                                                                         2003-04(4)
                                                                                                                                                                      
United States(6).........       8,421.8     130,248.9       1.3     $733       4.0 
                                                                                   
Jefferson, AL............          18.5         368.3       0.0      739       3.6 
Anchorage Borough, AK....           7.7         145.0       0.8      809       4.0 
Maricopa, AZ.............          79.9       1,633.3       3.7      731       4.7 
Pulaski, AR..............          13.3         242.6       0.9      669       4.7 
Los Angeles, CA..........         360.1       4,019.6       0.7      833       4.9 
Denver, CO...............          24.6         427.3       1.5      888       2.9 
Hartford, CT.............          24.4         483.0       1.1      916       6.5 
New Castle, DE...........          19.3         280.2       0.3      858       2.4 
Washington, DC...........          30.1         658.3       1.2    1,207       7.6 
Miami-Dade, FL...........          82.6         979.5       2.1      717       (7) 
                                                                                   
Fulton, GA...............          37.1         726.6       1.5      958       4.2 
Honolulu, HI.............          23.2         426.7       2.7      703       4.6 
Ada, ID..................          13.2         190.6       3.9      675       4.5 
Cook, IL.................         126.7       2,511.7      -0.3      871       4.3 
Marion, IN...............          23.7         581.1       1.5      765       3.8 
Polk, IA.................          14.2         261.5       1.8      740       4.7 
Johnson, KS..............          18.9         296.6       1.9      764       3.8 
Jefferson, KY............          21.6         417.1       0.0      726       5.5 
Orleans, LA..............          12.6         244.6      -1.6      677       1.5 
Cumberland, ME...........          12.0         171.0       1.1      671       5.5 
                                                                                   
Montgomery, MD...........          31.5         450.6       0.5      953       6.2 
Middlesex, MA............          48.2         782.0      -0.5    1,043       4.6 
Wayne, MI................          35.0         791.2      -1.2      874       4.7 
Hennepin, MN.............          40.5         827.3       0.8      933       2.6 
Hinds, MS................           6.6         130.2       0.1      651       4.0 
St. Louis, MO............          33.7         617.5      -0.1      778       1.4 
Yellowstone, MT..........           5.6          71.2       2.4      572       3.8 
Douglas, NE..............          14.9         309.4       0.5      702       3.4 
Clark, NV................          39.0         822.6       7.4      701       4.6 
Hillsborough, NH.........          12.4         194.2       0.8      828       6.3 
                                                                                   
Bergen, NJ...............          34.3         447.7       0.2      910       2.9 
Bernalillo, NM...........          16.5         315.6       1.5      665       2.6 
New York, NY.............         112.7       2,201.7       0.8    1,327       7.0 
Mecklenburg, NC..........          27.2         507.2       0.5      838       1.8 
Cass, ND.................           5.4          90.0       3.7      610       3.9 
Cuyahoga, OH.............          38.2         759.8       0.0      776       4.9 
Oklahoma, OK.............          21.7         408.3       1.9      645       3.2 
Multnomah, OR............          25.5         422.4       1.6      760       3.7 
Allegheny, PA............          35.6         687.2      -0.6      774       3.6 
Providence, RI...........          17.8         288.5       0.0      731       5.2 
                                                                                   
Greenville, SC...........          12.1         221.1       0.5      663       3.3 
Minnehaha, SD............           6.0         109.4       1.7      624       5.6 
Shelby, TN...............          19.8         495.9       0.1      787       6.8 
Harris, TX...............          90.2       1,838.1       0.8      862       4.5 
Salt Lake, UT............          35.0         524.7       2.3      671       3.5 
Chittenden, VT...........           5.7          96.4       2.1      725       5.1 
Fairfax, VA..............          29.8         548.5       4.8    1,068       2.5 
King, WA.................          77.3       1,104.3       1.1      940      -2.4 
Kanawha, WV..............           6.2         107.7      -0.7      627       4.3 
Milwaukee, WI............          22.2         492.8      -1.3      750       5.6 
                                                                                   
Laramie, WY..............           2.9          39.8       0.7      596       4.0 
                                                                                   
San Juan, PR.............          13.4         324.3       2.4      475       2.6 
St. Thomas, VI...........           1.7          22.6      -0.5      565       3.9 

  1 Includes workers covered by Unemployment Insurance (UI) and Unemployment
Compensation for Federal Employees (UCFE) programs.
  2 Data are preliminary.
  3 Includes areas not officially designated as counties. See Technical Note.
  4 Percent changes were computed from quarterly employment and pay data adjusted
for noneconomic county reclassifications. See Technical Note.
  5 Average weekly wages were calculated using unrounded data.
  6 Totals for the United States do not include data for Puerto Rico or the Virgin
Islands.
  7 Data do not meet BLS or State agency disclosure standards.





Table 4. Covered(1) establishments, employment, and wages by state, 
third quarter 2004(2)
                                                                                 
                                                                                 
                                                Employment        Average weekly 
                                                                      wage(3)    
                          Establishments,                                        
                           third quarter                                         
          State                 2004                    Percent           Percent
                            (thousands)    September    change,  Average  change,
                                              2004     September  weekly   third 
                                          (thousands)   2003-04    wage   quarter
                                                                          2003-04
                                                                                                                                                                  
United States(4).........       8,421.8     130,248.9       1.3     $733      4.0
                                                                                 
Alabama..................         114.4       1,858.0       1.8      629      3.6
Alaska...................          20.3         314.2       1.9      755      3.4
Arizona..................         126.3       2,357.6       3.6      691      4.9
Arkansas.................          76.4       1,145.7       1.4      570      5.2
California...............       1,204.0      15,106.6       1.5      829      3.9
Colorado.................         164.8       2,163.4       1.8      752      1.1
Connecticut..............         109.5       1,642.1       0.9      917      5.4
Delaware.................          29.1         414.9       2.0      769      2.1
District of Columbia.....          30.1         658.3       1.2    1,207      7.6
Florida..................         529.1       7,397.2       2.5      655      4.5
                                                                                 
Georgia..................         249.2       3,837.8       0.8      711      3.8
Hawaii...................          35.7         585.6       2.9      676      4.5
Idaho....................          49.6         608.1       3.0      569      4.0
Illinois.................         328.1       5,747.7       0.2      779      3.9
Indiana..................         152.6       2,887.8       1.4      655      4.5
Iowa.....................          91.8       1,431.8       1.2      604      4.1
Kansas...................          82.4       1,304.8       1.2      620      4.6
Kentucky.................         106.6       1,742.9       0.8      619      4.4
Louisiana................         116.7       1,861.1       0.1      595      2.8
Maine....................          50.1         608.8       0.7      603      4.3
                                                                                 
Maryland.................         155.0       2,479.5       1.2      795      4.2
Massachusetts............         211.3       3,156.5      -0.4      907      5.5
Michigan.................         254.3       4,344.5      -0.3      757      3.4
Minnesota................         158.1       2,629.9       1.0      753      3.2
Mississippi..............          66.7       1,113.8       1.0      540      3.6
Missouri.................         167.8       2,656.2       0.9      655      3.0
Montana..................          42.4         413.0       2.6      525      3.6
Nebraska.................          55.6         887.4       1.1      601      3.6
Nevada...................          63.5       1,168.5       6.5      703      4.1
New Hampshire............          47.6         622.6       1.4      731      6.1
                                                                                 
New Jersey...............         267.8       3,918.8       0.9      876      2.8
New Mexico...............          50.3         769.3       1.9      588      4.1
New York.................         556.3       8,307.9       0.9      891      5.3
North Carolina...........         229.9       3,814.9       1.9      654      4.1
North Dakota.............          24.3         327.2       2.0      548      4.0
Ohio.....................         288.3       5,333.0       0.4      685      4.1
Oklahoma.................          92.6       1,435.7       1.3      581      3.9
Oregon...................         120.5       1,627.6       2.5      676      3.7
Pennsylvania.............         330.9       5,531.4       0.7      722      4.3
Rhode Island.............          35.2         484.6       0.6      708      4.6
                                                                                 
South Carolina...........         112.9       1,799.2       1.4      604      4.1
South Dakota.............          28.6         375.5       2.0      538      4.9
Tennessee................         130.2       2,668.6       1.9      659      4.4
Texas....................         511.6       9,357.6       1.4      719      3.6
Utah.....................          77.5       1,084.4       3.4      607      3.2
Vermont..................          24.5         302.0       1.5      634      5.8
Virginia.................         206.5       3,522.7       2.7      757      4.6
Washington...............         213.0       2,749.9       1.7      756      0.4
West Virginia............          47.8         693.1       1.4      559      5.1
Wisconsin................         161.2       2,745.6       1.1      653      4.8
                                                                                 
Wyoming..................          22.6         253.6       1.5      590      5.0
                                                                                 
Puerto Rico..............          52.7       1,042.4       2.2      417      3.0
Virgin Islands...........           3.2          42.7       3.4      599      5.8

  1 Includes workers covered by Unemployment Insurance (UI) and Unemployment
Compensation for Federal Employees (UCFE) programs.
  2 Data are preliminary.
  3 Average weekly wages were calculated using unrounded data.
  4 Totals for the United States do not include data for Puerto Rico or the
Virgin Islands.