County Employment and Wages News Release — 2017-03-07

From September 2015 to September 2016, employment increased in 307 of the 344 largest U.S. counties, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. York, S.C., had the largest percentage increase with a gain of 6.0 percent over the year, above the national job growth rate of 1.7 percent. Within York, the largest employment increase occurred in professional and business services, which gained 1,408 jobs over the year (15.0 percent). Midland, Texas, had the largest over-the-year percentage decrease in employment among the largest counties in the U.S., with a loss of 5.8 percent. Within Midland, trade, transportation, and utilities had the largest decrease in employment, with a loss of 1,504 jobs (-8.2 percent). County employment and wage data are from the Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW) program, which provides the only detailed quarterly and annual universe count of establishments, employment, and wages at the county, metropolitan statistical area, state, and national levels by detailed industry.