Bureau of Labor Statistics

Employment and wage profile

 of the Louisiana and Texas

counties affected by 

 Hurricane Ike

Bureau of Labor Statistics

 September 26, 2008
Employment and wage profile of the Louisiana and Texas counties affected by 

Hurricane Ike 

 On Saturday, September 13, 2008, Hurricane Ike swept across much of the east 

coast of Texas and portions of coastal Louisiana. The Category 2 hurricane made landfall 

over Galveston around 2 a.m., affecting dozens of counties1

 in the region. On that day, 

the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) issued disaster declarations for 29 

counties in Texas and 14 parishes in Louisiana due to the storm’s widespread devastation. 

(See maps 1–3.)2

 

This powerful storm hit several large economic centers in the region, and of the 

29 Texas counties affected, 6 had annual average employment of 75,000 or more in 2007. 

Two of the 14 affected Louisiana parishes had annual average employment of 75,000 or 

more in 2007. These 8 large counties and parishes represent 19 percent (or nearly onefifth) of the 43 Louisiana and Texas counties declared as disaster areas by FEMA due to 

the hurricane, and the 2,846,700 employees in these 8 counties represent 85 percent of 

the 3,352,000 workers affected in all 43 counties hit by the storm. The 8 large counties 

stricken are as follows: 

 

Data availability 

 

The Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW) program publishes countylevel industry data on establishments, employment, and wages based on a virtual census 

encompassing 96.4 percent of civilian wage and salary employment in the United States. 

Although the hurricane’s economic impact on QCEW data will likely not be observable 

until data for the fourth quarter of 2008 are published in July 2009,3

 it is important to note 

that the affected areas contribute significantly to the economic activity of each of the two 

States and the region as a whole. 

County/State 

2007 Annual 

average 

employment 

Harris, Texas 2,011,100 

Jefferson, Louisiana 198,000 

Jefferson, Texas 124,200 

Fort Bend, Texas 123,900 

Montgomery, Texas 120,700 

Galveston, Texas 96,200 

Calcasieu, Louisiana 86,700 

Brazoria, Texas 85,900 
- 2 - 

Texas 

In 2007, Texas had the Nation’s second-largest employment base of all States and the 

fourth-largest establishment count. In addition, Harris County, the largest county in the 

State by employment, was the fourth largest county in the Nation by number of workers. 

Approximately 1 in every 13 jobs in the United States was located in Texas in 2007. In 

that year, the number of business establishments grew by 5.1 percent over the year, more 

than double the national average growth of 2.1 percent. During this time span, 

employment in Texas grew by 3.2 percent over the year—nearly triple the 1.1-percent 

growth rate for the Nation. Over-the-year employment growth in the State of Louisiana 

represents, to a great extent, continued recovery from the effects of Hurricane Katrina, 

which occurred in 2005. 

Business establishments 

 

As of 2007, more than a quarter (26.2 percent) of the business establishments in Texas 

and Louisiana were located in the 43 FEMA-designated disaster counties. (See table 1.) 

The 179,600 worksites operating in these counties represented 2 percent of the national 

total. More than half of these establishments were located in Harris County, which had 

97,500 worksites, whereas Jefferson Parish had the second largest number of 

establishments, with 13,800. Fort Bend County was third, with 8,100 worksites. The 

business establishments in these 3 counties represented 1.3 percent of all establishments 

in the country and accounted for 66.5 percent of the establishments in all affected 

counties. 

Employment 

 

Employment in these 43 counties in 2007 totaled 3.4 million workers, representing both 

27.7 percent of the States’ total employment and 2.5 percent of national employment. The 

2 million workers employed in Harris County alone accounted for 60 percent of the 

employment in the affected counties. 

Wages 

 

The $166 billion in wages disbursed in 2007 within the counties declared by FEMA to be 

disaster areas accounted for 31.4 percent of the 2 States’ total annual wages and 2.8 

percent of all wages paid in the United States. Harris County workers received 68 percent 

of these wages, and nearly a quarter of all wages disbursed in Texas. The average annual 

pay for the 43 affected counties was $49,517, which is substantially above the statewide 

average annual pay of both Texas and Louisiana, where workers earned $44,670 and 

$38,243, respectively, in 2007. The 49,517 figure is also above the national average 

annual pay of $44,450. Among the 43 counties, Harris County had the highest average 

annual pay, $56,127; Trinity County had the lowest, $23,389. 
- 3 - 

Industry 

 

Establishments. At the industry level within the private sector, the trade, transportation, 

and utilities supersector had the largest number of business establishments in the 43 

FEMA-designated counties in 2007, with 42,200 worksites. These establishments 

represented 23.5 percent of all 179,600 establishments in the affected area, 6.2 percent of 

all 685,000 worksites in Louisiana and Texas, and 0.5 percent of all 8,971,100 worksites 

in the United States, meaning about 1 of every 200 establishments in the United States in 

2007 was in the trade, transportation, and utilities industry within the affected area. The 

second-largest number of worksites within all affected counties occurred in the 

professional and business services supersector, which had 32,000 establishments in 

operation in 2007. 

Employment. The trade, transportation, and utilities supersector also led the area in 

private- industry employment, with 701,400 jobs, accounting for 20.9 percent of overall 

employment in the affected area, 5.8 percent of the total employment base of both 

Louisiana and Texas, and 0.5 percent of national total employment. The second-largest 

employment total in the area was in the professional and business services supersector, 

which employed 460,600 workers, accounting for 13.7 percent of all jobs in the affected 

area, 3.8 percent of the total employment for Louisiana and Texas, and 0.3 percent of all 

employment in the Nation. Education and health services had the third-largest 

employment count of all supersectors in the affected area, with 348,800 workers, making 

up 10.4 percent of all employment in the 43 counties, 2.9 percent of the total employment 

of the two States, and 0.3 percent of national employment. Manufacturing and leisure and 

hospitality rounded out the top five supersectors in employment levels in the affected 

area, in 2007, with 331,000 and 309,300 jobs respectively. Approximately 1.6 percent of 

national employment resided in these top 5 supersectors in the 43 affected counties in 

2007, or roughly 1 in every 63 jobs in the country. 

Wages. Within the private sector in the 43 affected counties, the trade, transportation, and 

utilities supersector had the largest total wage payments in 2007: $31.1 billion, 

representing 5.9 percent of the total wages paid in Louisiana and Texas and 0.5 percent of 

national wages. The professional and business services supersector followed closely with 

$26.9 billion in wages disbursed, which represented 5.1 percent of the 2 States’ total 

wages and 0.4 percent of total wages in the Nation. Wages in the manufacturing 

supersector in these 43 counties, which stood at $22.1 billion in 2007, accounted for 4.2 

percent of the 2 State’s wages and 0.4 percent of national total wages. The $80 billion in 

wages paid in these 3 supersectors accounted for 48.2 percent of the $166 billion paid in 

all 43 affected counties in 2007 and 1.3 percent of all national total wages. The natural 

resources and mining supersector had the highest average annual pay by far in the 

affected area, with the industry’s 116,600 workers earning an average of $124,642 in 

wages in 2007. This was 2.8 times the national average annual pay of $44,450 and was 

also 3.3 times the figure for Louisiana, 2.8 times the figure for Texas, and 2.5 times the 

figure for the total affected area. The next-highest average annual pay, $66,643, occurred 
- 4 - 

in manufacturing. The “other services” supersector had the lowest average annual pay, 

$30,247. 

Government 

The Federal, State, and local governments in the 43 affected counties employed 495,400 

workers in 4,300 worksites. These figures represented respectively 4.1 percent of all of 

workers in Louisiana and Texas and 0.6 percent of all establishments in those 2 States. 

The average annual pay that these government workers received was $41,640 in 2007, 

with the disbursement of $20.6 billion in total wages. The wages represented 12.4 percent 

of all wages paid in the affected areas, 3.9 percent of the total wages paid in Louisiana 

and Texas, and 0.3 percent of all national wages in 2007. 

Additional information 

The preceding data were obtained by the QCEW program in the U.S. Bureau of Labor 

Statistics (BLS). Data presented here are for all workers covered by State and Federal 

Unemployment Insurance programs. Preliminary annual average data for 2007 were used 

in this report and may slightly differ from final 2007 data, which will be made available 

later in October. For access to QCEW data, visit the QCEW home page at 

http://www.bls.gov/cew/home.htm. For additional information regarding the QCEW 

data presented in this report, contact Mike McCall, an economist in the Division of 

Administrative Statistics and Labor Turnover, Office of Employment and Unemployment 

Statistics. E-mail: mccall.michael@bls.gov. Telephone: (202) 691-6794. 

Information in this summary will be made available to sensory-impaired 

individuals upon request. Voice phone: (202) 691-5200. Federal Relay Service: 1 (800) 

877-8339. This report is in the public domain and may be reproduced without permission. 

 

Notes 

_____________________________ 

1 Parishes within the State of Louisiana are the equivalent of counties in other States, 

including Texas. For the purposes of this article, including its tables, references to “the 

affected counties” or “43 counties” includes the 29 Texas counties and the 14 

Louisiana parishes declared by FEMA to be disaster areas. 

2 Designated Counties for Louisiana Hurricane Ike (Federal Emergency Management 

Agency), see http://www.fema.gov/news/eventcounties.fema?id=10571; Designated 

Counties for Texas Hurricane Ike (Federal Emergency Management Agency), see 

http://www.fema.gov/news/eventcounties.fema?id=10570. 3 QCEW reported employment is based on the count of workers on establishments’ 

payroll as of the 12th of the month. Because the hurricane made landfall on September 

13, it is not expected that the storm’s impact will be apparent in QCEW data until 

October, which is the first month of the fourth quarter. 
Harris

Polk

Hill

Ellis

Leon

Tyler

Rusk

Brazoria

Liberty

Milam

Smith

Houston

Lee

Falls

Jasper

Navarro

Hardin

Lavaca

Wharton

Fayette

Newton

Shelby

Victoria

Panola

Anderson

Trinity

Harrison

Cherokee

Walker

Grimes

Matagorda

Colorado

Jefferson

Jackson

Austin

Angelina

Limestone

Montgomery

Freestone

Fort Bend

Kaufman

Henderson

Van Zandt

Robertson

Dallas

Sabine

Brazos

Waller

Burleson

McLennan Nacogdoches

Refugio

Wood

Bell

Bastrop

DeWitt

Chambers

Upshur

Washington

Madison

San Jacinto

Orange

Tarrant

Gregg

Calhoun

San Augustine

Marion

Goliad

Johnson

Galveston

Gonzales

Aransas

Williamson

Rains

Bosque

Texas

Louisiana

Gulf of Mexico

Preliminary 2007 average

annual employment

19,999 or fewer workers

20,000 to 74,999 workers

75,000 to 999,999 workers

1,000,000 or more workers

Not designated

Source: Disaster Summary For FEMA-1791-DR, Texas.

September 13, 2008.

Map 1. Preliminary 2007 average annual employment levels in Texas 

counties that were declared by FEMA as disaster areas	after Hurricane Ike 
Vernon

Winn

Cameron

Rapides

Union

Allen

Sabine

Vermilion

Caddo

Lafourche

Bossier

Grant

De Soto

Calcasieu

Terrebonne

Natchitoches

Beauregard

Bienville

Acadia

Avoyelles

Tensas

St. Landry

Iberia

Iberville

Claiborne

La Salle

St. Mary

Franklin

Catahoula

Webster

Madison

Morehouse

Ouachita

Jackson

Livingston

Lincoln

St. Tammany

Richland

Caldwell

St. Martin

Evangeline

Washington

Red River

Plaquemines

Concordia

Tangipahoa

Jefferson Davis

Pointe Coupee

St. Helena

East Carroll

Jefferson St. Bernard

St. Charles

East Feliciana

Assumption

West Carroll

Ascension

West Feliciana

Lafayette

Orleans

East Baton Rouge

St. James

St. John the Baptist

West Baton Rouge

Louisiana

Mississippi

Texas

Arkansas

Map 2. Preliminary 2007 average annual employment levels in Louisiana 

parishes that were declared by FEMA as disaster areas	after Hurricane Ike

Gulf of Mexico

Preliminary 2007 average

annual employment

19,999 or fewer workers

20,000 to 74,999 workers

75,000 to 149,999 workers

150,000 or more workers

Not designated

Source: Disaster Summary For FEMA-1792-DR,

Louisiana. September 13, 2008.
Galveston

Located in FEMA Catastrophic Damage AreaLocated in FEMA Extensive Damage AreaLocated in FEMA Moderate Damage AreaLocated in FEMA Limited Damage AreaLocated in FEMA floodwatersBusinesses not in FEMA damage areasIke storm trackIke floodwaters - September 16, 2008

Sourcand Wa coopof TexStatist1st QubusineinformNote: damagon Se

TexasNumbareas Numbareas Numbareas Numbareas Numb571Floodappro

0 4 8 12 16 2

Miles

Map 3. Hurricane Ike: business establishments in damage areas in Texas as 
Table 1. Establishments, employment, and wages for FEMA-designated Louisiana and Texas counties for Hurricane Ike, 2007 annual averages

Annual 

average 

establishments

Percentage 

of State(s)

Percentage 

of U.S. total

Annual 

average 

employment

Percentage 

of State(s)

Percentage 

of U.S. total

Total wages 

(in millions)

Percentage 

of State(s)

Percentage 

of U.S. total

Average 

annual pay

United States 8,971,090 – – 135,371,408 – – $6,017,254 – – $44,450

 Louisiana (Statewide) 120,313 – 1.3 1,868,208 – 1.4 71,446 – 1.2 38,243

 Acadia 1,207 1.0 0.0 15,655 0.8 0.0 478 0.7 0.0 30,519

 Beauregard 671 0.6 0.0 8,473 0.5 0.0 281 0.4 0.0 33,124

 Calcasieu 4,784 4.0 0.1 86,659 4.6 0.1 3,221 4.5 0.1 37,174

 Cameron 212 0.2 0.0 2,880 0.2 0.0 132 0.2 0.0 45,668

 Iberia 1,925 1.6 0.0 34,549 1.8 0.0 1,417 2.0 0.0 41,009

 Jefferson 13,756 11.4 0.2 198,041 10.6 0.1 8,044 11.3 0.1 40,618

 Jefferson Davis 721 0.6 0.0 8,712 0.5 0.0 247 0.3 0.0 28,397

 Lafourche 2,074 1.7 0.0 36,934 2.0 0.0 1,591 2.2 0.0 43,077

 Plaquemines 803 0.7 0.0 14,479 0.8 0.0 745 1.0 0.0 51,421

 Sabine 513 0.4 0.0 5,545 0.3 0.0 148 0.2 0.0 26,733

 St. Mary 1,593 1.3 0.0 27,786 1.5 0.0 1,179 1.7 0.0 42,446

 Terrebonne 3,167 2.6 0.0 57,706 3.1 0.0 2,344 3.3 0.0 40,617

 Vermilion 1,203 1.0 0.0 13,721 0.7 0.0 489 0.7 0.0 35,643

 Vernon 858 0.7 0.0 15,053 0.8 0.0 450 0.6 0.0 29,879

 Total affected Lousiana area 33,487 27.8 0.4 526,193 28.2 0.4 20,766 29.1 0.3 39,464

 Texas (Statewide) 564,729 – 6.3 10,236,470 – 7.6 457,265 – 7.6 44,670

 Angelina 1,890 0.3 0.0 37,408 0.4 0.0 1,230 0.3 0.0 32,883

 Austin 850 0.2 0.0 11,682 0.1 0.0 467 0.1 0.0 39,971

 Brazoria 4,646 0.8 0.1 85,940 0.8 0.1 3,656 0.8 0.1 42,536

 Chambers 583 0.1 0.0 9,403 0.1 0.0 423 0.1 0.0 45,023

 Cherokee 896 0.2 0.0 15,462 0.2 0.0 430 0.1 0.0 27,809

 Fort Bend 8,127 1.4 0.1 123,867 1.2 0.1 5,832 1.3 0.1 47,085

 Galveston 5,328 0.9 0.1 96,191 0.9 0.1 3,961 0.9 0.1 41,180

 Grimes 447 0.1 0.0 6,727 0.1 0.0 248 0.1 0.0 36,938

 Hardin 804 0.1 0.0 12,665 0.1 0.0 407 0.1 0.0 32,133

 Harris 97,533 17.3 1.1 2,011,126 19.6 1.5 112,878 24.7 1.9 56,127

 Houston 602 0.1 0.0 6,237 0.1 0.0 218 0.0 0.0 35,005

 Jasper 728 0.1 0.0 11,091 0.1 0.0 360 0.1 0.0 32,446

 Jefferson 5,981 1.1 0.1 124,171 1.2 0.1 5,202 1.1 0.1 41,897

 Liberty 1,118 0.2 0.0 17,442 0.2 0.0 559 0.1 0.0 32,061

 Madison 258 0.0 0.0 3,978 0.0 0.0 124 0.0 0.0 31,140

 Matagorda 869 0.2 0.0 10,833 0.1 0.0 408 0.1 0.0 37,622

 Montgomery 7,995 1.4 0.1 120,698 1.2 0.1 4,875 1.1 0.1 40,387

 Nacogdoches 1,316 0.2 0.0 22,730 0.2 0.0 671 0.1 0.0 29,515

 Newton 158 0.0 0.0 1,985 0.0 0.0 57 0.0 0.0 28,929

 Orange 1,435 0.3 0.0 23,112 0.2 0.0 884 0.2 0.0 38,234

 Polk 726 0.1 0.0 10,216 0.1 0.0 309 0.1 0.0 30,215

 Sabine 183 0.0 0.0 2,219 0.0 0.0 99 0.0 0.0 44,688

 San Augustine 150 0.0 0.0 1,674 0.0 0.0 44 0.0 0.0 26,291

 San Jacinto 221 0.0 0.0 2,130 0.0 0.0 57 0.0 0.0 26,770

 Trinity 240 0.0 0.0 2,488 0.0 0.0 58 0.0 0.0 23,389

 Tyler 324 0.1 0.0 4,026 0.0 0.0 109 0.0 0.0 27,105

 Walker 1,106 0.2 0.0 22,827 0.2 0.0 702 0.2 0.0 30,771

 Waller 721 0.1 0.0 13,263 0.1 0.0 506 0.1 0.0 38,158

 Washington 895 0.2 0.0 14,261 0.1 0.0 444 0.1 0.0 31,113

 Total affected Texas area 146,130 25.9 1.6 2,825,852 27.6 2.1 145,218 31.8 2.4 51,389

 Total affected area 179,617 26.2 2.0 3,352,045 27.7 2.5 165,984 31.4 2.8 49,517

 Private Sector 175,351 25.6 2.0 2,856,597 23.6 2.1 145,354 27.5 2.4 50,884

 Natural resources and mining 3,884 0.6 0.0 116,561 1.0 0.1 14,528 2.7 0.2 124,642

 Construction 14,450 2.1 0.2 261,744 2.2 0.2 13,709 2.6 0.2 52,375

 Manufacturing 8,371 1.2 0.1 331,016 2.7 0.2 22,060 4.2 0.4 66,643

 Trade, transportation, and utilities 42,184 6.2 0.5 701,381 5.8 0.5 31,057 5.9 0.5 44,280

 Information 2,437 0.4 0.0 46,255 0.4 0.0 2,860 0.5 0.0 61,834

 Financial activities 19,463 2.8 0.2 182,688 1.5 0.1 11,648 2.2 0.2 63,759

 Professional and business services 31,988 4.7 0.4 460,566 3.8 0.3 26,940 5.1 0.4 58,493

 Education and health services 18,591 2.7 0.2 348,834 2.9 0.3 13,951 2.6 0.2 39,994

 Leisure and hospitality 14,298 2.1 0.2 309,296 2.6 0.2 5,584 1.1 0.1 18,055

 Other services 18,146 2.6 0.2 94,412 0.8 0.1 2,856 0.5 0.0 30,247

 Unclassified 1,599 0.2 0.0 2,868 0.0 0.0 98 0.0 0.0 34,266

 Government 4,269 0.6 0.0 495,449 4.1 0.4 20,631 3.9 0.3 41,640

1

 Due to data suppressions, sums of the individual supersector data may not equal the private sector total provided in this table. For the same reason, 

 sums of private sector and government may not equal the total affected area figures provided in this table.

Note: Totals may not add up due to rounding.

Source: Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. 

Wages

Area/industry1

By industry

Employment

By county

Establishments