Technical Information:  (202) 691-6467     USDL 04-896
               http://www.bls.gov/bdm/
                                           For release: 10:00 A.M. EDT
Media Contact:                691-5902     Thursday, May 20, 2004


             BUSINESS EMPLOYMENT DYNAMICS:  THIRD QUARTER 2003
                                     
                                     
   From June to September 2003, the number of job gains from opening and
expanding establishments was 7.4 million, and the number of job losses 
from closing and contracting establishments was 7.3 million, according to
preliminary data released today by the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the
U.S. Department of Labor.  This release of the Business Employment Dynamics 
series includes major industry sectors for the first time.  During the third 
quarter of 2003, gross job losses exceeded gross job gains in goods-produc-
ing sectors, while gross job gains surpassed gross job losses in service-
providing sectors.
  
   Business Employment Dynamics statistics are derived from the Quarterly
Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW), also known as the ES-202 program.
Gross job gains are defined as increases in employment resulting from ex-
pansions of employment at existing establishments or from the opening of
establishments.  Gross job losses are defined as declines in employment at
existing establishments or from the closing of establishments.  The differ-
ence between the number of gross jobs gained and the number of gross jobs 
lost is the net change in employment.

Private Sector Gross Job Gains and Job Losses

   Opening and expanding private sector business establishments gained 7.4 
million jobs in the third quarter of 2003, or 164,000 less than in the se-
cond quarter of 2003.  Over the quarter, expanding establishments added
5.9 million jobs, while opening establishments added 1.5 million.
   
   Gross job losses totaled 7.3 million in the third quarter of 2003, down
by 378,000 from the second quarter of 2003.  The drop in gross job losses
during the quarter more than offset the drop in gross job gains, resulting
in the first net employment gain since the fourth quarter of 2000.  Gross
job losses have been on a downward trend since the third quarter of 2001.
In the third quarter of 2003, contracting establishments lost 5.9 million
jobs, while closing establishments accounted for a loss of 1.4 million
jobs.  (See tables A, 1, and 3.)

   From June to September 2003, gross job gains represented 6.9 percent of
private sector employment, while gross job losses represented 6.8 percent
of private sector employment.  (See tables A and 2.)  These gross job gain
and loss statistics demonstrate that a sizable number of jobs appear and
disappear in the relatively short time frame of one quarter.
                                  
                                  - 2 -

Table A.  3-month private sector gross job gains and losses, seasonally 
adjusted

(In thousands)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------     
                                  |             3 months ended
                                  |--------------------------------------
            Category              | Sept. | Dec.  | Mar.  | June  | Sept.
                                  | 2002  | 2002  | 2003  | 2003  | 2003
                                  |--------------------------------------                                                                              
                                  |         Levels (in thousands)     
----------------------------------|--------------------------------------    
Gross job gains...................| 7,763 | 7,702 | 7,472 | 7,560 | 7,396        
  At expanding establishments.....| 6,083 | 6,059 | 5,932 | 6,033 | 5,897
  At opening establishments.......| 1,680 | 1,643 | 1,540 | 1,527 | 1,499
Gross job losses..................| 7,974 | 7,877 | 7,876 | 7,702 | 7,324
  At contracting establishments...| 6,345 | 6,267 | 6,321 | 6,138 | 5,893
  At closing establishments.......| 1,629 | 1,610 | 1,555 | 1,564 | 1,431
                                  |--------------------------------------
Net employment change 1/..........|  -211 |  -175 |  -404 |  -142 |    72
                                  |--------------------------------------                                                                              
                                  |       As a percent of employment     
                                  |--------------------------------------                                                                                                                                                                                       
Gross job gains...................|  7.3  |  7.1  |  6.9  |  7.0  |  6.9
  At expanding establishments.....|  5.7  |  5.6  |  5.5  |  5.6  |  5.5
  At opening establishments.......|  1.6  |  1.5  |  1.4  |  1.4  |  1.4
Gross job losses..................|  7.4  |  7.3  |  7.4  |  7.2  |  6.8
  At contracting establishments...|  5.9  |  5.8  |  5.9  |  5.7  |  5.5
  At closing establishments.......|  1.5  |  1.5  |  1.5  |  1.5  |  1.3
                                  |--------------------------------------
Net employment change 1/..........| -0.1  | -0.2  | -0.5  | -0.2  |  0.1
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
  1/  The net employment change is the difference between total gross job
gains and total gross job losses.  See the Technical Note for further 
information.

Major Industry Sector Gross Job Gains and Gross Job Losses

   In the goods-producing sector, manufacturing job losses exceeded job
gains during the third quarter for a net loss of 152,000 jobs.  Quarter-
ly job gains in this sector declined throughout 2001, reaching a low of
547,000 in the second quarter of 2003.  Since peaking at 1,082,000 in 
the second quarter of 2001, gross job losses in manufacturing declined to 
701,000 in the third quarter of 2003, the lowest level since the third 
quarter of 1992.  (See tables B and 3.)  In construction, gross job gains 
exceeded gross job losses in the third quarter of 2003, registering the 
first net employment gain since the second quarter of 2001.
  
   In the service-providing sector, gross job gains in education and health
services have exceeded gross job losses continuously since the beginning of
the series on Business Employment Dynamics in September 1992.  In the third
quarter of 2003, this sector gained 731,000 jobs and lost 670,000 for a net
change of +61,000 jobs.  The net change in financial activities has been pos-
itive in almost all quarters since the beginning of the series.  Since the 
third quarter of 2002, this growth has been due to a steady level of gross 
job gains and a slow decline in job losses.

                                  - 3 -
  
   In the information sector, quarterly gross job gains peaked in the second 
quarter of 2000 at 306,000 jobs.  Since then, gross job gains in this sector 
have been on a downward trend and reached a low of 149,000 jobs in the third 
quarter of 2003.  Gross job losses rose from 222,000 jobs in the second quar-
ter of 2000 to a high of 334,000 jobs in the second quarter of 2001.  Gross 
job losses in this sector returned to a pre-recession level of 185,000 jobs 
by the third quarter of 2003.

Table B.  3-month private sector job gains and losses by industry,
seasonally adjusted

(In thousands)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                   |       Gross job gains       |       Gross job losses
                   |-----------------------------|-----------------------------
     Industry      |        3 months ended       |        3 months ended
                   |-----------------------------|-----------------------------
                   |Sept.|Dec. |Mar. |June |Sept.|Sept.|Dec. |Mar. |June |Sept.
                   |2002 |2002 |2003 |2003 |2003 |2002 |2002 |2003 |2003 |2003
-------------------|-----|-----|-----|-----|-----|-----|-----|-----|-----|-----
Total              |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |
  private 1/.......|7,763|7,702|7,472|7,560|7,396|7,974|7,877|7,876|7,702|7,324
Goods-producing....|1,682|1,652|1,692|1,657|1,605|1,880|1,889|1,932|1,897|1,755
  Natural resources|     |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |
    and mining.....|  290|  294|  310|  299|  272|  285|  297|  309|  294|  292
  Construction.....|  778|  778|  782|  811|  784|  812|  800|  829|  822|  762
  Manufacturing....|  614|  580|  600|  547|  549|  783|  792|  794|  781|  701
Service-           |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |
  providing 1/.....|6,081|6,050|5,780|5,903|5,791|6,094|5,988|5,944|5,805|5,569
  Wholesale        |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |
    trade..........|  316|  321|  320|  314|  308|  342|  348|  348|  334|  323
  Retail trade.....|1,050|1,057|  962|1,039|1,019|1,111|1,109|1,060|  996|  989
  Transportation   |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |
    and ware-      |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |
    housing........|  255|  239|  227|  230|  235|  254|  270|  237|  283|  239   
  Utilities........|   20|   13|   15|   14|   16|   20|   23|   15|   19|   19
  Information......|  165|  174|  166|  153|  149|  243|  208|  201|  194|  185
  Financial        |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |
    activities.....|  464|  488|  442|  455|  444|  455|  451|  428|  418|  417    
  Professional     |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |
    and business   |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |
    services.......|1,472|1,422|1,406|1,367|1,356|1,486|1,450|1,469|1,416|1,287
  Education and    |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |
    health         |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |
    services.......|  761|  776|  760|  745|  731|  676|  659|  680|  698|  670
  Leisure and      |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |
    hospitality....|1,148|1,151|1,083|1,166|1,125|1,151|1,126|1,161|1,105|1,095
  Other services...|  304|  300|  296|  303|  286|  315|  308|  305|  305|  309
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
   1/  Includes unclassified sector, not shown separtely.                                                          
                                  
                                  - 4 -

Number of Establishments Gaining and Losing Employment

   In the third quarter of 2003, the number of establishments gaining jobs
exceeded the number of establishments losing jobs for the first time since
March 2001.  Out of 6.4 million active private sector establishments, a to-
tal of 1.8 million establishments gained jobs from June to September 2003.  
(See table C.)  Of these, 1.5 million were expanding establishments and 
328,000 were opening establishments.  During the third quarter of 2003, 1.8 
million establishments lost jobs.  Of these, 1.5 million were contracting 
establishments and 318,000 were closing establishments.

Table C.  Number of private sector establishments by direction of employ-
ment change, seasonally adjusted
       
(In thousands)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------     
                                  |             3 months ended
            Category              |---------------------------------------
                                  | Sept. | Dec.  | Mar.  | June  | Sept.
                                  | 2002  | 2002  | 2003  | 2003  | 2003
----------------------------------|-------|-------|-------|-------|-------    
                                  |       |       |       |       |
Establishments gaining jobs.......| 1,789 | 1,801 | 1,750 | 1,788 | 1,791
  Expanding establishments........| 1,448 | 1,452 | 1,418 | 1,457 | 1,463
  Opening establishments..........|   341 |   349 |   332 |   331 |   328
                                  |---------------------------------------
Establishments losing jobs .......| 1,801 | 1,813 | 1,847 | 1,801 | 1,772
  Contracting establishments......| 1,476 | 1,484 | 1,513 | 1,473 | 1,454
  Closing establishments..........|   325 |   329 |   334 |   328 |   318
                                  |---------------------------------------
Net establishment change 1/.......|    16 |    20 |    -2 |     3 |    10
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
  1/  The net establishment change is the difference between the number of 
opening establishments and the number of closing establishments.  See the
Technical Note for further information.

More Information

   For the seasonally unadjusted data and other seasonally adjusted time
series not presented in this release, please refer to the BLS Web site at
http://www.bls.gov.  For more information, please see the Technical Note
of this release or the Business Employment Dynamics Web page at the BLS 
Web site http://www.bls.gov/bdm.  Additional information about the Busi-
ness Employment Dynamics data may be obtained by e-mailing BDMinfo@bls.gov.
   
  -------------------------------------------------------------------------   
 |        Comparing Business Employment Dynamics Data with Current         |
 |        Employment Statistics and Quarterly Census of Employment         |
 |                           and Wages Data                                |
 |                                                                         |
 |    The net change in employment from Business Employment Dynamics       |
 | (BED) data series will not match the net change in employment from      |
 | the monthly Current Employment Statistics (CES) survey.  The CES        |
 | estimates are based on monthly surveys from a sample of establishments, | 
 | while gross job gains and gross job losses are based on a quarterly     |
 | census of administrative records.  In addition, the CES has a different | 
 | coverage, excluding the agriculture sector but including establishments | 
 | not covered by the unemployment insurance program.  The net over-the-   |
 | quarter changes derived by aggregating component series in the BED data | 
 | may be different from the net employment change estimated from the CES  |
 | seasonally adjusted total employment series.  The intended use of the   |
 | BED statistics is to show the dynamic labor market flows that underlie  | 
 | the net changes in aggregate employment levels; data users who want     |
 | to track net changes in aggregate employment levels over time should    |
 | refer to CES data.                                                      |
 |                                                                         |
 |    BED data have a more limited scope than the Quarterly Census of      |
 | Employment and Wages (QCEW) data.  The data in this release, in con-    |
 | trast to QCEW data, exclude government employees, private households    |
 | (NAICS 814110), and establishments with zero employment. See the        |
 | Technical Note for further information.                                 |         
 |                                                                         |
  -------------------------------------------------------------------------

 
 
  
 


                                  - 5 -

Technical Note

   
   The Business Employment Dynamics (BED) data are a product of a federal-
state cooperative program known as Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages
(QCEW), or the ES-202 program.  The BED data are compiled by the U.S.
Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) from existing quarterly state unemployment
insurance (UI) records.  Most employers in the U.S. are required to file
quarterly reports on the employment and wages of workers covered by UI
laws, and to pay quarterly UI taxes.  The quarterly UI reports are sent by
the State Workforce Agencies (SWAs) to BLS and form the basis of the Bureau's 
establishment universe sampling frame.  These reports also are used to pro-
duce the quarterly QCEW data on total employment and wages and the longitu-
dinal BED data on gross job gains and losses.  Other important Bureau uses 
of the UI reports are in the Current Employment Statistics (CES) program. 
(See table below for differences between QCEW, CES, and BED.)
                                     
   In the BED program, the quarterly UI records are linked across quarters
to provide a longitudinal history for each establishment.  The linkage
process allows the tracking of net employment changes at the establishment
level, which in turn allows the estimation of jobs gained at opening and
expanding establishments and jobs lost at closing and contracting establish-
ments.

Differences between QCEW, BED, and CES employment measures

   The Bureau publishes three different establishment-based employment mea-
sures for any given quarter.  Each of these measures--QCEW, BED, and CES--
makes use of the quarterly UI employment reports in producing data; how-
ever, each measure has a somewhat different universe coverage, estimation 
procedure, and publication product.

   Differences in coverage and estimation methods can result in somewhat 
different measures of over-the-quarter employment change.  It is important to 
understand program differences and the intended uses of the program products.  
(See table below.)  Additional information on each program can be obtained 
from the program Web sites shown in the table.

                                  - 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 employers
           |  submitted by 8.2   |  ministrative records|
           |  million employers  |  submitted by 6.4    |
           |                     |  million private sec-|
           |                     |  tor employers       |
-----------|---------------------|----------------------|-----------------------
Coverage   |--UI and UCFE cover- |--UI Coverage, exclud-|Nonfarm wage and sal-
           |  age:  all employers|  ing government, pri-|  ary jobs:
           |  subject to state   |  vate households, and|--UI Coverage, exclud-
           |  and federal UI Laws|  establishments with |  ing agriculture, pri-
           |                     |  zero employment     |  vate households, and
           |                     |                      |  self-employed
           |                     |                      |--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 |  by NAICS supersector|
           |  industry           |--Future expansions   |
           |                     |  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 and Unemployment 
Compensation for Federal Employees (UCFE) laws are compiled from quarterly 
contribution reports submitted to the SWAs by employers.  In addition to the 
quarterly contribution reports, employers who operate multiple establishments 
within a state complete a questionnaire, called the "Multiple Worksite Report,"
which provides detailed information on the location of their establishments. 
These reports are based on place of employment rather than place of residence. 
UI and UCFE coverage is broad and basically comparable from state to state.
   
   Major exclusions from UI coverage are self-employed workers, religious or-
ganizations, most agricultural workers on small farms, all members of the 
Armed Forces, elected officials in most states, most employees of railroads, 
some domestic workers, most student workers at schools, and employees of cer-
tain small nonprofit organizations.
   
   Gross job gains and gross job losses in this release are derived from lon-
gitudinal histories of over 6.4 million private sector employer reports out 
of 8.2 million total reports of employment and wages submitted by states to 
BLS in the first quarter of 2003.  Gross job gains and gross job losses data 
in this release do not report estimates for government employees or private 
households (NAICS 814110), and do not include establishments with zero employ-
ment over three quarters.  Data from Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands also
are excluded from the national data.  As an illustration, the table below 
shows, in millions of establishments, the number of establishments excluded 
from the gross job gains and gross job losses data in the fourth quarter 2002:


             Number of active establishments included in 
                  Business Employment Dynamics data

                                                                   Millions

Total establishments ES-202 program..................................8.2

    Excluded:  Public sector.........................................0.3 
               Private households....................................0.5
               Zero employment.......................................1.0      
               Establishments in Puerto Rico 
                 and the Virgin Islands..............................0.0*
         
Total establishments included in Business
  Employment Dynamics data...........................................6.4
   
   *Approximately 48,000 establishments.

Concepts and methodology

   The Business Employment Dynamics data measure the net change in employment 
at the establishment level.  These changes come about in one of four ways.  A 
net increase in employment can come from either opening establishments or ex-
panding establishments.  A net decrease in employment can come from either 
closing establishments or contracting establishments.  Gross job gains include 
the sum of all jobs added at either opening or expanding establishments.  Gross 
job losses include the sum of all jobs lost in either closing or contracting 
establishments.  The net change in employment is the difference between gross 
job gains and gross job losses.
                                  
                                  - 8 -
   
   The formal definitions of establishment-level employment changes are as 
follows:                          

   Openings.  These are either establishments with positive third-month em-
ployment for the first time in the current quarter, with no links to the 
prior quarter, or with positive third-month employment in the current quarter 
following zero employment in the previous quarter.
                                     
   Expansions.  These are establishments with positive employment in the third 
month in both the previous and current quarters, with a net increase in employ-
ment over this period.
   
   Closings.  These are either establishments with positive third-month employ-
ment in the previous quarter, with no employment or zero employment reported 
in the current quarter.
   
   Contractions.  These are establishments with positive employment in the 
third month in both the previous and current quarters, with a net decrease in 
employment over this period.

   All establishment-level employment changes are measured from the third 
month of each quarter.  Not all establishments change their employment levels; 
these establishments count towards estimates of total employment, but not for 
levels of gross job gains and gross job losses.

   Gross job gains and gross job losses are expressed as rates by dividing 
their levels by the average of employment in the current and previous quarters. 
This provides a symmetric growth rate.  The rates are calculated for the com-
ponents of gross job gains and gross job losses and then summed to form their
respective totals.  These rates can be added and subtracted just as their levels 
can.  For instance, the difference between the gross job gains rate and the 
gross job losses rate is the net growth rate.

   The linkage process matches establishments' unique SESA identification 
numbers (SESA-ID).  Between 95 to 97 percent of establishments identified as 
continuous from quarter to quarter are matched by SESA-ID.  The rest are 
linked in one of three ways.  The first method uses predecessor and successor 
information, identified by the states, which relates records with different 
SESA-IDs across quarters.  Predecessor and successor relations can come about 
for a variety of reasons, including a change in ownership, a firm restructur-
ing, or a UI account restructuring.  If a match cannot be attained in this 
manner, a probability-based match is used.  This match attempts to identify 
two establishments with different SESA-IDs as continuous.  The match is based 
upon comparisons such as the same name, address, and phone number.  Third, an
analyst examines unmatched records individually and makes a possible match.

   In order to ensure the highest possible quality of data, SESAs verify with 
employers and update, if necessary, the industry, location, and ownership 
classification of all establishments on a 3-year cycle.  Changes in establish-
ment classification codes resulting from the verification process are intro-
duced with the data reported for the first quarter of the year.  Changes re-
sulting from improved employer reporting also are introduced in the first 
quarter.   

                                  - 9 -

Seasonal adjustment

   Over the course of a year, the levels of employment and the associated
job flows undergo sharp fluctuations due to such seasonal events as changes
in the weather, reduced or expanded production, harvests, major holidays,
and the opening and closing of schools.  The effect of such seasonal
variation can be very large.

   Because these seasonal events follow a more or less regular pattern each 
year, their influence can be eliminated by adjusting these statistics from 
quarter to quarter.  These adjustments make nonseasonal developments, such as 
declines in economic activity, easier to recognize.  For example, the large 
number of youths taking summer jobs is likely to obscure other changes that 
have taken place in June relative to March, making it difficult to determine 
if the level of economic activity has risen or declined.  However, because
the effect of students finishing school in previous years is known, the 
statistics for the current year can be adjusted to allow for a comparable 
change.  The adjusted figures provide a more useful tool with which to analyze 
changes in economic activity.

   The employment data series for opening, expanding, closing, and contract-
ing establishments are independently seasonally adjusted; net changes are 
calculated based on the difference between gross job gains and gross job 
losses.  Similarly, the establishment counts data series for opening, expanding, 
closing, and contracting establishments are independently adjusted, and the 
net changes are calculated based on the difference between the number of open-
ing and closing establishments.  Additionally, establishment and employment 
levels are independently seasonally adjusted to calculate the seasonally ad-
justed rates.  Concurrent seasonal adjustment is run using X-12 ARIMA.  Sea-
sonally adjusted data series for the total private sector are calculated by 
summing the seasonally adjusted data for all sectors, including the unclassi-
fied sector, which is not published separately.
   
   The net over-the-quarter change derived by summing the BED component series 
will differ from the net employment change estimated from the seasonally ad-
justed total private employment series from the CES program.  The intended use 
of BED statistics is to show the dynamic labor market changes that underlie 
the net employment change statistic.  As such, data users interested particu-
larly in the net employment change and not in the gross job flows underlying 
this change should refer to CES data for over-the-quarter net employment
changes.
   
Reliability of the data
   
   Since the data series on Business Employment Dynamics are based on admini-
strative rather than sample data, there are no issues related to sampling 
error.  Nonsampling error, however, still exists.  Nonsampling errors can oc-
cur for many reasons, such as the employer submitting corrected employment 
data after the end of the quarter or typographical errors made by businesses 
when providing information.  Such errors, however, are likely to be distri-
buted randomly throughout the dataset.
   
   Changes in administrative data sometimes create complications for the 
linkage process.  This can result in overstating openings and closings while 
understating expansions and contractions.  The BLS continues to refine methods 
for improving the linkage process to alleviate the effects of these compli-
cations.
   
   The BED data series are subject to periodic minor changes based on correc-
tions in QCEW records, updates on predecessors and successors information, and
seasonal adjustment revisions.

                                  - 10 -

Additional statistics and other information
   
   Several other programs within BLS produce closely related information.  
The QCEW program, also known as the ES-202 program, provides both quarterly 
and annual estimates of employment by state, county, and detailed industry. 
News releases on quarterly county employment and wages are available upon 
request from the Division of Administrative Statistics and Labor Turnover, 
Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, Washington, DC 20212; 
telephone 202-691-6567; (http://www.bls.gov/cew/); (e-mail: CEWInfo@bls.gov).
                                     
   The CES program produces monthly estimates of employment, its net change, 
and earnings by detailed industry.  These estimates are part of the Employ-
ment Situation report put out monthly by BLS.
                                     
   The Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) program provides month-
ly measures of job openings, as well as employee hires and separations.

   Information in this release will be made available to sensory impaired in-
dividuals upon request.  Voice phone:  202-691-5200; TDD message referral 
number: 1-800-877-8339.
 
 

     
Table 1.  Private sector gross job gains and job losses, seasonally adjusted
               

(In thousands)

                                                  Gross job gains                       Gross job losses
Year  3 months ended  Net change (1) Total    Expanding      Opening      Total     Contracting      Closing
                                           establishments establishments           establishments establishments

1992  September            455      7,377       5,632         1,745       6,922       5,351           1,571
      December             216      7,101       5,465         1,636       6,885       5,487           1,398
  
1993  March                313      7,309       5,410         1,899       6,996       5,354           1,642
      June                 786      7,330       5,794         1,536       6,544       5,136           1,408
      September            874      7,523       5,881         1,642       6,649       5,316           1,333
      December             641      7,436       5,840         1,596       6,795       5,420           1,375
  
1994  March                517      7,400       5,807         1,593       6,883       5,435           1,448
      June               1,021      7,807       6,060         1,747       6,786       5,295           1,491
      September          1,175      7,972       6,227         1,745       6,797       5,493           1,304
      December             507      7,630       5,998         1,632       7,123       5,647           1,476
  
1995  March                746      7,782       6,129         1,653       7,036       5,660           1,376
      June                 402      7,714       6,017         1,697       7,312       5,839           1,473
      September            771      7,970       6,291         1,679       7,199       5,680           1,519
      December             407      7,877       6,153         1,724       7,470       5,934           1,536
  
1996  March                460      7,943       6,190         1,753       7,483       5,957           1,526
      June                 642      8,080       6,302         1,778       7,438       5,894           1,544
      September            632      8,189       6,326         1,863       7,557       5,998           1,559
      December             861      8,278       6,409         1,869       7,417       5,889           1,528
  
1997  March                799      8,292       6,448         1,844       7,493       5,900           1,593
      June                 594      8,098       6,342         1,756       7,504       5,925           1,579
      September            854      8,593       6,680         1,913       7,739       5,981           1,758
      December             702      8,731       6,727         2,004       8,029       6,068           1,961
  
1998  March                747      8,788       6,633         2,155       8,041       6,107           1,934
      June                 666      8,722       6,569         2,153       8,056       6,218           1,838
      September            659      8,539       6,574         1,965       7,880       6,161           1,719
      December             759      8,576       6,778         1,798       7,817       6,060           1,757
  
1999  March                380      8,744       6,733         2,011       8,364       6,466           1,898
      June                 569      8,800       6,788         2,012       8,231       6,419           1,812
      September            548      8,817       6,871         1,946       8,269       6,397           1,872
      December           1,105      9,144       7,112         2,032       8,039       6,264           1,775
  
2000  March                818      8,906       6,988         1,918       8,088       6,361           1,727
      June                 541      8,764       6,975         1,789       8,223       6,509           1,714
      September            146      8,724       6,834         1,890       8,578       6,719           1,859
      December             336      8,690       6,862         1,828       8,354       6,582           1,772
  
2001  March               -101      8,555       6,768         1,787       8,656       6,756           1,900
      June                -771      8,254       6,439         1,815       9,025       7,149           1,876
      September         -1,380      7,749       5,990         1,759       9,129       7,174           1,955
      December            -871      7,893       6,055         1,838       8,764       6,995           1,769
  
2002  March                 -1      8,128       6,324         1,804       8,129       6,400           1,729
      June                 -80      8,050       6,246         1,804       8,130       6,411           1,719
      September           -211      7,763       6,083         1,680       7,974       6,345           1,629
      December            -175      7,702       6,059         1,643       7,877       6,267           1,610
  
2003  March               -404      7,472       5,932         1,540       7,876       6,321           1,555
      June                -142      7,560       6,033         1,527       7,702       6,138           1,564
      September             72      7,396       5,897         1,499       7,324       5,893           1,431

(1) Net change is the difference between total gross job gains and total gross job losses.
 
 
 
 

Table 2.  Private sector gross job gains and losses, as a percent of employment, (1) seasonally adjusted
                      
(Percent)

                                                  Gross job gains                       Gross job losses
Year  3 months ended  Net change (2) Total    Expanding      Opening      Total     Contracting      Closing
                                           establishments establishments           establishments establishments

1992  September            0.5        8.3         6.3           2.0         7.8         6.0             1.8
      December             0.2        7.9         6.1           1.8         7.7         6.1             1.6
  
1993  March                0.3        8.1         6.0           2.1         7.8         6.0             1.8
      June                 0.8        8.1         6.4           1.7         7.3         5.7             1.6
      September            0.9        8.2         6.4           1.8         7.3         5.8             1.5
      December             0.6        8.0         6.3           1.7         7.4         5.9             1.5
  
1994  March                0.5        8.0         6.3           1.7         7.5         5.9             1.6
      June                 1.1        8.4         6.5           1.9         7.3         5.7             1.6
      September            1.2        8.4         6.6           1.8         7.2         5.8             1.4
      December             0.6        8.0         6.3           1.7         7.4         5.9             1.5
  
1995  March                0.8        8.1         6.4           1.7         7.3         5.9             1.4
      June                 0.5        8.0         6.2           1.8         7.5         6.0             1.5
      September            0.8        8.2         6.5           1.7         7.4         5.8             1.6
      December             0.4        8.1         6.3           1.8         7.7         6.1             1.6
  
1996  March                0.4        8.1         6.3           1.8         7.7         6.1             1.6
      June                 0.6        8.2         6.4           1.8         7.6         6.0             1.6
      September            0.7        8.3         6.4           1.9         7.6         6.0             1.6
      December             0.9        8.3         6.4           1.9         7.4         5.9             1.5
  
1997  March                0.7        8.2         6.4           1.8         7.5         5.9             1.6
      June                 0.5        7.9         6.2           1.7         7.4         5.8             1.6
      September            0.8        8.4         6.5           1.9         7.6         5.9             1.7
      December             0.6        8.4         6.5           1.9         7.8         5.9             1.9
  
1998  March                0.7        8.5         6.4           2.1         7.8         5.9             1.9
      June                 0.6        8.4         6.3           2.1         7.8         6.0             1.8
      September            0.7        8.2         6.3           1.9         7.5         5.9             1.6
      December             0.7        8.1         6.4           1.7         7.4         5.7             1.7
  
1999  March                0.3        8.2         6.3           1.9         7.9         6.1             1.8
      June                 0.6        8.3         6.4           1.9         7.7         6.0             1.7
      September            0.5        8.2         6.4           1.8         7.7         6.0             1.7
      December             1.1        8.5         6.6           1.9         7.4         5.8             1.6
  
2000  March                0.8        8.2         6.4           1.8         7.4         5.8             1.6
      June                 0.4        7.9         6.3           1.6         7.5         5.9             1.6
      September            0.1        7.9         6.2           1.7         7.8         6.1             1.7
      December             0.3        7.9         6.2           1.7         7.6         6.0             1.6
  
2001  March               -0.1        7.7         6.1           1.6         7.8         6.1             1.7
      June                -0.8        7.4         5.8           1.6         8.2         6.5             1.7
      September           -1.3        7.1         5.5           1.6         8.4         6.6             1.8
      December            -0.8        7.3         5.6           1.7         8.1         6.5             1.6
  
2002  March                0.1        7.6         5.9           1.7         7.5         5.9             1.6
      June                -0.1        7.5         5.8           1.7         7.6         6.0             1.6
      September           -0.1        7.3         5.7           1.6         7.4         5.9             1.5
      December            -0.2        7.1         5.6           1.5         7.3         5.8             1.5
  
2003  March               -0.5        6.9         5.5           1.4         7.4         5.9             1.5
      June                -0.2        7.0         5.6           1.4         7.2         5.7             1.5
      September            0.1        6.9         5.5           1.4         6.8         5.5             1.3

(1) The rates measure gross job gains and job losses as a percentage of the average of the previous and current employment.
(2) See footnote 1, table 1.
 
 
 
 

Table 3.  Private sector gross job gains and losses by industry, seasonally adjusted
                          Gross job gains and job losses (in thousands) Gross job gains and losses as a percent of employment
     Category                           3 months ended				   3 months ended
                                Sept.  Dec.    Mar.    June    Sept.     Sept.  Dec.    Mar.    June    Sept.  
                                2002   2002    2003    2003    2003      2002   2002    2003    2003    2003
Total private (1)

Gross job gains                 7,763   7,702   7,472   7,560   7,396     7.3     7.1     6.9     7.0     6.9
  At expanding establishments   6,083   6,059   5,932   6,033   5,897     5.7     5.6     5.5     5.6     5.5
  At opening establishments     1,680   1,643   1,540   1,527   1,499     1.6     1.5     1.4     1.4     1.4
Gross job losses        	  7,974   7,877   7,876   7,702   7,324     7.4     7.3     7.4     7.2     6.8
  At contracting establishments 6,345   6,267   6,321   6,138   5,893     5.9     5.8     5.9     5.7     5.5
  At closing establishments     1,629   1,610   1,555   1,564   1,431     1.5     1.5     1.5     1.5     1.3
Net employment change            -211    -175    -404    -142      72    -0.1    -0.2    -0.5    -0.2     0.1

Goods-producing

Gross job gains            	  1,682   1,652   1,692   1,657   1,605     7.2     7.1     7.3     7.2     7.1
  At expanding establishments   1,380   1,359   1,395   1,378   1,343     5.9     5.8     6.0     6.0     5.9
  At opening establishments       302     293     297     279     262     1.3     1.3     1.3     1.2     1.2
Gross job losses                1,880   1,889   1,932   1,897   1,755     8.0     8.0     8.3     8.3     7.7
  At contracting establishments 1,535   1,551   1,579   1,558   1,443     6.5     6.6     6.8     6.8     6.3
  At closing establishments       345     338     353     339     312     1.5     1.4     1.5     1.5     1.4
Net employment change            -198    -237    -240    -240    -150    -0.8    -0.9    -1.0    -1.1    -0.6

Natural resources and mining

Gross job gains                   290     294     310     299     272    17.5    17.6    18.5    17.9    16.4
  At expanding establishments     237     240     256     249     225    14.3    14.4    15.3    14.9    13.6
  At opening establishments        53      54      54      50      47     3.2     3.2     3.2     3.0     2.8
Gross job losses                  285     297     309     294     292    17.2    17.8    18.4    17.6    17.7
  At contracting establishments   233     245     247     240     243    14.1    14.7    14.7    14.4    14.7
  At closing establishments        52      52      62      54      49     3.1     3.1     3.7     3.2     3.0
Net employment change               5      -3       1       5     -20     0.3    -0.2     0.1     0.3    -1.3

Construction

Gross job gains                   778     778     782     811     784    11.7    11.6    11.7    12.2    11.7
  At expanding establishments     619     616     619     654     636     9.3     9.2     9.3     9.8     9.5
  At opening establishments       159     162     163     157     148     2.4     2.4     2.4     2.4     2.2
Gross job losses                  812     800     829     822     762    12.1    12.0    12.4    12.3    11.4
  At contracting establishments   643     637     660     653     601     9.6     9.6     9.9     9.8     9.0
  At closing establishments       169     163     169     169     161     2.5     2.4     2.5     2.5     2.4
Net employment change             -34     -22     -47     -11      22    -0.4    -0.4    -0.7    -0.1     0.3

Manufacturing   

Gross job gains                   614     580     600     547     549     4.0     3.8     4.0     3.8     3.8
  At expanding establishments     524     503     520     475     482     3.4     3.3     3.5     3.3     3.3
  At opening establishments        90      77      80      72      67     0.6     0.5     0.5     0.5     0.5
Gross job losses                  783     792     794     781     701     5.1     5.2     5.3     5.4     4.9
  At contracting establishments   659     669     672     665     599     4.3     4.4     4.5     4.6     4.2
  At closing establishments       124     123     122     116     102     0.8     0.8     0.8     0.8     0.7
Net employment change            -169    -212    -194    -234    -152    -1.1    -1.4    -1.3    -1.6    -1.1

Service-providing (1)

Gross job gains                 6,081   6,050   5,780   5,903   5,791     7.2     7.2     6.9     7.0     6.9
  At expanding establishments   4,703   4,700   4,537   4,655   4,554     5.6     5.6     5.4     5.5     5.4
  At opening establishments     1,378   1,350   1,243   1,248   1,237     1.6     1.6     1.5     1.5     1.5
Gross job losses                6,094   5,988   5,944   5,805   5,569     7.2     7.1     7.0     7.0     6.6
  At contracting establishments 4,810   4,716   4,742   4,580   4,450     5.7     5.6     5.6     5.5     5.3
  At closing establishments     1,284   1,272   1,202   1,225   1,119     1.5     1.5     1.4     1.5     1.3
Net employment change             -13      62    -164      98     222     0.0     0.1    -0.1     0.0     0.3

Wholesale trade

Gross job gains                   316     321     320     314     308     5.6     5.7     5.7     5.6     5.6
  At expanding establishments     250     255     251     252     249     4.4     4.5     4.5     4.5     4.5
  At opening establishments        66      66      69      62      59     1.2     1.2     1.2     1.1     1.1
Gross job losses                  342     348     348     334     323     6.1     6.2     6.2     6.0     5.8
  At contracting establishments   263     266     269     256     250     4.7     4.7     4.8     4.6     4.5
  At closing establishments        79      82      79      78      73     1.4     1.5     1.4     1.4     1.3
Net employment change             -26     -27     -28     -20     -15    -0.5    -0.5    -0.5    -0.4    -0.2

Retail trade

Gross job gains                 1,050   1,057     962   1,039   1,019     6.9     7.0     6.4     6.9     6.7
  At expanding establishments     840     884     799     872     848     5.5     5.9     5.3     5.8     5.6
  At opening establishments       210     173     163     167     171     1.4     1.1     1.1     1.1     1.1
Gross job losses                1,111   1,109   1,060     996     989     7.3     7.3     7.0     6.7     6.6
  At contracting establishments   940     924     903     834     839     6.2     6.1     6.0     5.6     5.6
  At closing establishments       171     185     157     162     150     1.1     1.2     1.0     1.1     1.0
Net employment change             -61     -52     -98      43      30    -0.4    -0.3    -0.6     0.2     0.1

(1) See footnote at end of table

Table 3. Private sector gross job gains and losses by industry, seasonally adjusted--Continued
                          Gross job gains and job losses (in thousands)    Gross job gains and losses as a percent of employment
     Category                                3 months ended					   3 months ended
                                 Sept.  Dec.    Mar.    June    Sept.     Sept.  Dec.    Mar.    June    Sept.  
                                 2002   2002    2003    2003    2003      2002   2002    2003    2003    2003

Transportation and warehousing

Gross job gains                   255     239     227     230     235     6.4     6.0     5.6     5.8     6.0
  At expanding establishments     208     191     189     186     193     5.2     4.8     4.7     4.7     4.9
  At opening establishments        47      48      38      44      42     1.2     1.2     0.9     1.1     1.1
Gross job losses                  254     270     237     283     239     6.4     6.8     5.9     7.1     6.1
  At contracting establishments   203     208     189     234     193     5.1     5.2     4.7     5.9     4.9
  At closing establishments        51      62      48      49      46     1.3     1.6     1.2     1.2     1.2
Net employment change               1     -31     -10     -53      -4     0.0    -0.8    -0.3    -1.3    -0.1

Utilities

Gross job gains                    20      13      15      14      16     3.4     2.2     2.5     2.4     2.7
  At expanding establishments      16      11      13      12      14     2.7     1.9     2.2     2.1     2.4
  At opening establishments         4       2       2       2       2     0.7     0.3     0.3     0.3     0.3
Gross job losses                   20      23      15      19      19     3.3     3.9     2.5     3.2     3.3
  At contracting establishments    18      20      13      17      15     3.0     3.4     2.2     2.9     2.6
  At closing establishments         2       3       2       2       4     0.3     0.5     0.3     0.3     0.7
Net employment change               0     -10       0      -5      -3     0.1    -1.7     0.0    -0.8    -0.6

Information

Gross job gains                   165     174     166     153     149     4.9     5.2     5.1     4.8     4.7
  At expanding establishments     127     133     133     125     120     3.8     4.0     4.1     3.9     3.8
  At opening establishments        38      41      33      28      29     1.1     1.2     1.0     0.9     0.9
Gross job losses                  243     208     201     194     185     7.3     6.3     6.2     6.1     5.8
  At contracting establishments   194     157     157     156     150     5.8     4.8     4.8     4.9     4.7
  At closing establishments        49      51      44      38      35     1.5     1.5     1.4     1.2     1.1
Net employment change             -78     -34     -35     -41     -36    -2.4    -1.1    -1.1    -1.3    -1.1

Financial activities

Gross job gains                   464     488     442     455     444     6.0     6.3     5.7     5.8     5.7
  At expanding establishments     354     365     340     361     344     4.6     4.7     4.4     4.6     4.4
  At opening establishments       110     123     102      94     100     1.4     1.6     1.3     1.2     1.3
Gross job losses                  455     451     428     418     417     5.9     5.8     5.4     5.4     5.3
  At contracting establishments   335     329     323     320     321     4.3     4.2     4.1     4.1     4.1
  At closing establishments       120     122     105      98      96     1.6     1.6     1.3     1.3     1.2
Net employment change               9      37      14      37      27     0.1     0.5     0.3     0.4     0.4

Professional and business services

Gross job gains                 1,472   1,422   1,406   1,367   1,356     9.2     8.9     8.8     8.6     8.5
  At expanding establishments   1,158   1,104   1,129   1,084   1,085     7.2     6.9     7.1     6.8     6.8
  At opening establishments       314     318     277     283     271     2.0     2.0     1.7     1.8     1.7
Gross job losses                1,486   1,450   1,469   1,416   1,287     9.3     9.0     9.2     8.9     8.1
  At contracting establishments 1,138   1,127   1,148   1,067     996     7.1     7.0     7.2     6.7     6.3
  At closing establishments       348     323     321     349     291     2.2     2.0     2.0     2.2     1.8
Net employment change             -14     -28     -63     -49      69    -0.1    -0.1    -0.4    -0.3     0.4

Education and health services

Gross job gains                   761     776     760     745     731     5.0     5.0     4.8     4.8     4.6
  At expanding establishments     630     641     630     624     607     4.1     4.1     4.0     4.0     3.8
  At opening establishments       131     135     130     121     124     0.9     0.9     0.8     0.8     0.8
Gross job losses                  676     659     680     698     670     4.4     4.2     4.3     4.4     4.3
  At contracting establishments   544     529     553     565     548     3.5     3.4     3.5     3.6     3.5
  At closing establishments       132     130     127     133     122     0.9     0.8     0.8     0.8     0.8
Net employment change              85     117      80      47      61     0.6     0.8     0.5     0.4     0.3

Leisure and hospitality

Gross job gains                 1,148   1,151   1,083   1,166   1,125     9.6     9.5     8.9     9.6     9.3
  At expanding establishments     864     862     807     885     849     7.2     7.1     6.6     7.3     7.0
  At opening establishments       284     289     276     281     276     2.4     2.4     2.3     2.3     2.3
Gross job losses                1,151   1,126   1,161   1,105   1,095     9.6     9.3     9.6     9.1     9.0
  At contracting establishments   911     904     934     881     879     7.6     7.5     7.7     7.3     7.2
  At closing establishments       240     222     227     224     216     2.0     1.8     1.9     1.8     1.8
Net employment change              -3      25     -78      61      30     0.0     0.2    -0.7     0.5     0.3

Other services

Gross job gains                   304     300     296     303     286     8.0     7.9     7.8     8.0     7.6
  At expanding establishments     237     237     229     239     227     6.2     6.2     6.0     6.3     6.0
  At opening establishments        67      63      67      64      59     1.8     1.7     1.8     1.7     1.6
Gross job losses                  315     308     305     305     309     8.3     8.1     8.0     8.0     8.2
  At contracting establishments   250     239     239     236     246     6.6     6.3     6.3     6.2     6.5
  At closing establishments        65      69      66      69      63     1.7     1.8     1.7     1.8     1.7
Net employment change             -11      -8      -9      -2     -23    -0.3    -0.2    -0.2     0.0    -0.6

(1) Includes unclassified sector, not shown separately