County Employment and Wages News Release — 2019-05-22

From December 2017 to December 2018, employment increased in 296 of the 349 largest U.S. counties, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. In December 2018, national employment (as measured by the QCEW program) increased to 148.1 million, a 1.5 percent increase over the year. Midland, TX, had the largest over-the-year increase in employment with a gain of 10.0 percent. Employment data in this release are presented for December 2018, and average weekly wage data are presented for fourth quarter 2018. Among the 349 largest counties, 332 had over-the-year increases in average weekly wages. In the fourth quarter of 2018, average weekly wages for the nation increased to $1,144, a 3.2 percent increase over the year. Tippecanoe, IN, had the largest fourth quarter over-the-year wage gain at 15.1 percent. (See table 1.) Midland, TX, had the largest over-the-year percentage increase in employment (10.0 percent).