County Employment and Wages News Release — 2019-02-20

From September 2017 to September 2018, employment increased in 295 of the 349 largest U.S. counties, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. In September 2018, national employment (as measured by the QCEW program) increased to 146.8 million, a 1.6 percent increase over the year. Midland, TX, had the largest over-the-year increase in employment with a gain of 11.9 percent. Employment data in this release are presented for September 2018, and average weekly wage data are presented for third quarter 2018. Among the 349 largest counties, 336 had over-the-year increases in average weekly wages. In the third quarter of 2018, average weekly wages for the nation increased to $1,055, a 3.3 percent increase over the year. Chatham, GA, had the largest third quarter over-the-year wage gain at 8.5 percent. (See table 1.) Midland, TX, had the largest over-the-year percentage increase in employment (11.9 percent).