For release 10:00 a.m. (EDT) USDL-13-1524
Tuesday, July 30, 2013
Technical information: (202) 691-6553 * BDMInfo@bls.gov * www.bls.gov/bdm
Media contact: (202) 691-5902 * PressOffice@bls.gov
BUSINESS EMPLOYMENT DYNAMICS: FOURTH QUARTER 2012
From September 2012 to December 2012 gross job gains from opening
and expanding private sector establishments were 7.1 million, an
increase of 238,000 jobs from the previous quarter, the U.S. Bureau
of Labor Statistics reported today. Over this period, gross job losses
from closing and contracting private sector establishments were 6.4
million, a decrease of 231,000 jobs from the previous quarter.
The difference between the number of gross job gains and the number
of gross job losses yielded a net employment gain of 668,000 jobs in
the private sector during the fourth quarter of 2012. (See table 1.)
The change in the number of jobs over time is the net result of
increases and decreases in employment that occur at all businesses
in the economy. Business Employment Dynamics (BED) statistics track
these changes in employment at private business units from the third
month of one quarter to the third month of the next. Gross job gains
are the sum of increases in employment from expansions at existing
units and the addition of new jobs at opening units. Gross job losses
are the result of contractions in employment at existing units and the
loss of jobs at closing units. The difference between the number of
gross job gains and the number of gross job losses is the net change
in employment. (See the Technical Note for more information.)
The BED data series include gross job gains and gross job losses at the
establishment level by industry subsector and for the 50 states, the
District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands, as well as
gross job gains and gross job losses at the firm level by employer size
class.
Gross job gains at expanding establishments totaled 5.8 million in
fourth quarter 2012, an increase of 207,000 jobs from the previous
quarter.
Opening establishments accounted for 1.3 million jobs gained in fourth
quarter 2012, an increase of 31,000 jobs from the previous quarter.
Contracting establishments lost 5.2 million jobs in fourth quarter
2012. This is a decrease of 206,000 jobs from the prior quarter.
In the fourth quarter of 2012, closing establishments lost 1.2 million
jobs, a decrease of 25,000 jobs from the previous quarter.
(See tables 1 and 3.)
Gross job gains represented 6.4 percent of private sector employment
in fourth quarter 2012, while gross job losses represented 5.8 percent
of private sector employment. (See table 2.)
In the fourth quarter of 2012, the number of establishment births
(a subset of the openings data, see the Technical Note for more
information) decreased by 1,000 to 192,000. These new establishments
accounted for 766,000 jobs, a decrease of 23,000 from the previous
quarter. (See table 8.)
Data for establishment deaths (a subset of the closings data) are
available through first quarter 2012, when 605,000 jobs were lost at
181,000 establishments. These figures represent decreases from the
prior quarter when 750,000 jobs were lost at 191,000 establishments.
During the fourth quarter of 2012, gross job losses exceeded gross
job gains in only two industry sectors: natural resources and mining,
and manufacturing. The manufacturing sector experienced its first
negative net change since March 2010, losing 11,000 jobs. The
information sector had gross job gains of 141,000 and gross job losses
of 120,000, which resulted in a positive net change of 21,000 jobs.
This is the largest increase in the information sector since third
quarter 2000 and only the second increase in the last five years.
(See table 3.)
Gross job gains exceeded gross job losses in all three major firm size
classes during fourth quarter 2012. Firms with 250 or more employees
experienced the largest net increase of 379,000 jobs.
(See tables 4 and 5.)
Table A. Three-month private sector gross job gains and losses,
seasonally adjusted
Category 3 months ended
Dec. Mar. June Sept. Dec.
2011 2012 2012 2012 2012
Levels (in thousands)
Gross job gains................ 6,909 6,935 7,004 6,813 7,051
At expanding establishments... 5,557 5,706 5,744 5,545 5,752
At opening establishments..... 1,352 1,229 1,260 1,268 1,299
Gross job losses............... 6,520 6,121 6,422 6,614 6,383
At contracting establishments. 5,238 4,935 5,213 5,386 5,180
At closing establishments..... 1,282 1,186 1,209 1,228 1,203
Net employment change(1)....... 389 814 582 199 668
Rates (percent)
Gross job gains................ 6.3 6.3 6.3 6.2 6.4
At expanding establishments... 5.1 5.2 5.2 5.0 5.2
At opening establishments..... 1.2 1.1 1.1 1.2 1.2
Gross job losses............... 6.0 5.6 5.8 6.0 5.8
At contracting establishments. 4.8 4.5 4.7 4.9 4.7
At closing establishments..... 1.2 1.1 1.1 1.1 1.1
Net employment change(1)....... .3 .7 .5 .2 .6
(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.
In the fourth quarter of 2012, gross job gains exceeded gross job
losses in 47 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the
Virgin Islands. California had the largest net employment gain of
134,544 jobs. Two states, Alaska and Wyoming, tied for the highest
rate of gross job gains as a percent of employment at 9.5 percent,
above the U.S. national rate of 6.4 percent. Hawaii had the lowest
rate of gross job losses as a percent of employment at 4.4 percent,
below the national rate of 5.8 percent. (See tables 6 and 7.)
More Information
Additional information on gross job gains and gross job losses are
available online at www.bls.gov/bdm. This information includes data
on the levels and rates of gross job gains and gross job losses by
firm size, not seasonally adjusted data and other seasonally adjusted
time series not presented in this release, charts of gross job gains
and gross job losses by industry and firm size, and frequently asked
questions on firm size data. Additional information about the Business
Employment Dynamics data can be found in the Technical Note of this
release or may be obtained by e-mailing BDMinfo@bls.gov.
The Business Employment Dynamics for First Quarter 2013 are scheduled
to be released on Tuesday, November 19, 2013 at 10:00 a.m. (EST).
------------------------------------------------------------------------
| Changes to Business Employment Dynamics (BED) Data |
|Data in the next release, published on Tuesday, November 19, 2013, will |
|incorporate annual revisions to the BED series. Annual revisions are |
|published each year with the release of first quarter data. These |
|revisions will cover the last four quarters of not seasonally adjusted |
|data and five years of seasonally adjusted data. |
------------------------------------------------------------------------
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). The BED data are compiled by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
(BLS) from existing QCEW records. Most employers in the U.S. are required
to file quarterly reports on the employment and wages of workers covered by
unemployment insurance (UI) laws, and to pay quarterly UI taxes. The QCEW
is based largely on quarterly UI reports which are sent by businesses to
the State Employment Security Agencies (SESAs). These UI reports are
supplemented by two additional BLS data collections to render administrative
data into economic statistics. Together these data comprise the QCEW and
form the basis of the Bureau’s establishment universe sampling frame.
These reports are used to produce the quarterly QCEW data on total
employment and wages and the longitudinal BED data on gross job gains and
losses. The QCEW is also the employment benchmark for the Current
Employment Statistics (CES), Occupational Employment Statistics (OES), and
Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) programs and is a major input
to the Bureau of Economic Analysis’s Personal Income Accounts.
In the BED program, the quarterly QCEW 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 units and jobs lost at closing and contracting units.
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 below.
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- | 486,000 establish-
| submitted by 9.2 | ministrative records| ments
| million employers | submitted by 6.8 |
| | 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;
| | | including: railroads,
| | | religious organiza-
| | | tions, and other non-
| | | UI-covered jobs
| | |
-----------|---------------------|----------------------|------------------------
Publication|--Quarterly |--Quarterly |--Monthly
frequency | -7 months after the| -8 months after the | -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 super- |
| industry | sectors,3-digit |
| | NAICS, and by size |
| | of firm, and at the |
| | state private-sector|
| | total level |
| |--Future expansions |
| | will include |
| | data at the county |
| | and MSA level |
-----------|---------------------|----------------------|------------------------
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 | -Analysis of employ-| cators
| surveys | ment expansion and |
| | contraction by size|
| | of firm |
| | |
-----------|---------------------|----------------------|------------------------
Program |--www.bls.gov/cew/ |--www.bls.gov/bdm/ |--www.bls.gov/ces/
Web sites | | |
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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 SESAs 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 6.8 million private sector employer reports out
of 9.2 million total reports of employment and wages submitted by states to
BLS in the first quarter of 2012. 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 in both previous and current quarters. Data from Puerto Rico and the
Virgin Islands (49,972 units rounded to 0.0 million) 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 national gross
job gains and gross job losses data in the first quarter 2012:
Number of active establishments included in
Business Employment Dynamics data at the
national level
Millions
Total establishments QCEW program....................................9.2
Excluded: Public sector.........................................0.3
Private households....................................0.8
Zero employment.......................................1.3
Establishments in Puerto Rico
and the Virgin Islands..............................0.0
Total establishments included in Business
Employment Dynamics data.............................................6.8
Unit of analysis
Establishments are used in the tabulation of the BED statistics by in-
dustry and firms are used in the tabulation of the BED size class sta-
tistics. An establishment is defined as an economic unit that produces
goods or services, usually at a single physical location, and engages in
one or predominantly one activity. A firm is a legal business, either
corporate or otherwise, and may consist of several establishments. Firm-
level data are compiled based on an aggregation of establishments under
common ownership by a corporate parent using employer tax identification
numbers. The firm level aggregation which is consistent with the role of
corporations as the economic decision makers are used for the measurement
of the BED data elements by size class.
Because of the difference in the unit of analysis, total gross job gains
and gross job losses by size class are lower than total gross job gains and
gross job losses by industry, as some establishment gains and losses within
a firm are offset during the aggregation process. However, the total net
changes in employment are the same for not seasonally adjusted data and are
similar for seasonally adjusted data.
Concepts and methodology
The Business Employment Dynamics data measure the net change in employ-
ment at the establishment or firm level. These changes come about in one
of four ways. A net increase in employment can come from either opening
units or expanding units. A net decrease in employment can come from either
closing units or contracting units. Gross job gains include the sum of all
jobs added at either opening or expanding units. Gross job losses include
the sum of all jobs lost in either closing or contracting units. The net
change in employment is the difference between gross job gains and gross
job losses.
The formal definitions of employment changes are as follows:
Openings. These are either units with positive third month employment 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 em-
ployment in the previous quarter.
Expansions. These are units with positive employment in the third month
in both the previous and current quarters, with a net increase in employment
over this period.
Closings. These are either units with positive third month employment in
the previous quarter, with no employment or zero employment reported in the
current quarter.
Contractions. These are units with positive employment in the third month
in both the previous and current quarters, with a net decrease in employment
over this period.
Births. These are units with positive third month employment for the
first time in the current quarter with no links to the prior quarter, or
units with positive third month employment in the current quarter and zero
employment in the third month of the previous four quarters. Births are a
subset of openings not including re-openings of seasonal businesses.
Deaths. These are units with no employment or zero employment reported in
the third month of four consecutive quarters following the last quarter with
positive employment. Deaths are a subset of closings not including temporary
shutdowns of seasonal businesses. A unit that closes during the quarter may
be a death, but we wait three quarters to determine whether it is a permanent
closing or a temporary shutdown. Therefore, there is always a lag of three
quarters for the publication of death statistics.
All employment changes are measured from the third month of the previous
quarter to the third month of the current quarter. Not all establishments and
firms change their employment levels. Units with no change in employment
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 quar-
ters. This provides a symmetric growth rate. The rates are calculated for
the components 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.
Establishment Births and Deaths
For the purpose of BED statistics, births are defined as establishments
that appear in the longitudinal database for the first time with positive
employment in the third month of a quarter, or showed four consecutive
quarters of zero employment in the third month followed by a quarter in
which it shows positive employment in the third month. Similarly, deaths
are defined as establishments that either drop out of the longitudinal
database or an establishment that had positive employment in the third
month of a given quarter followed by four consecutive quarters of showing
zero employment in the third month. Although the data for establishment
births and deaths are tabulated independently from the data for openings
and closings, the concepts are not mutually exclusive. An establishment
that is defined as a birth in a given quarter is necessarily an opening
as well, and an establishment defined as a death in a quarter must also be
a closing. Since openings include seasonal and other re-openings and
closings include temporary shutdowns, the not seasonally adjusted values
for births and deaths must be less than those for openings and closings.
However, because some BED series do not have many re-openings or temporary
shutdowns, as well as the fact that births and deaths are independently
seasonally adjusted from openings and closings, there may be instances in
which the seasonally adjusted value of the former is greater than the latter.
Linkage methodology
Prior to the measurement of gross job gains and gross job losses, QCEW
records are linked across two quarters. The linkage process matches estab-
lishments' 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 restructuring, 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 re-
cords 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 4-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.
Sizing methodology
The method of dynamic sizing is used in calculations for the BED size
class data series. Dynamic sizing allocates each firm’s employment gain or
loss during a quarter to each respective size class in which the change
occurred. For example, if a firm grew from 2 employees in quarter 1 to 38
employees in quarter 2, then, of the 36-employee increase, 2 would be al-
located to the first size class, 5 to the size class 5 to 9, 10 to size
class 10 to 19, and 19 to size class 20 to 49.
Dynamic sizing provides symmetrical firm size estimates and eliminates
any systematic effects which may be caused by the transitory and reverting
changes in firms’ sizes over time. Additionally, it allocates each job
gain or loss to the actual size class where it occurred.
Annual Data
The annual gross job gains and gross job losses measure the net change
in employment at the establishment level from the third month of a quarter
in the previous year to the third month of the same quarter in the current
year. The BLS publishes annual BED data based on March-to-March changes
once a year with the release of the first quarter BED data. The annual
data based on over-the-year changes for other quarters of the year are
available upon request. The definitions and methodology in measuring
annual gross job gains and gross job losses are similar to the quarterly
measures. The linkage method considers all predecessor and successor
relations that may come about due to changes in ownership and corporate
restructuring over the entire year. At the establishment level, some of
the quarterly job gains and job losses are offset during the estimation
over the year. Therefore, the sum of four quarters of gross job gains
and gross job losses are not equal to annual gross job gains and gross
job losses. The net change in employment over the year, however, is
equal to the sum of four quarterly net changes on a not seasonally
adjusted basis.
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 vari-
ation 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 ana-
lyze changes in economic activity.
The employment data series for opening, expanding, closing, and contrac-
ting units are independently seasonally adjusted; net changes are calculated
based on the difference between gross job gains and gross job losses. Simi-
larly, for industry data, 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 opening and closing establishments. Additionally establishment and em-
ployment levels are independently seasonally adjusted to calculate the sea-
sonally adjusted rates. Concurrent seasonal adjustment is run using X-12
ARIMA. Seasonally adjusted data series for total private are the sum of
seasonally adjusted data of all sectors including the unclassified sector,
which is not separately published.
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.
Annual revisions are published each year with the release of the first qua-
rter data. These revisions cover the last four quarters of not seasonally adj-
usted data and 5 years of seasonally adjusted data.
Additional statistics and other information
Several other programs within BLS produce closely related information.
The QCEW program provides both quarterly and annual estimates of employment
by state, county, and detailed industry. News releases on quarterly county e
mployment and wages and an annual bulletin: Employment and Wages Annual
Averages, 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: QCEWInfo@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
Total private
(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
2002 March -10 8,071 6,298 1,773 8,081 6,434 1,647
June -30 7,868 6,145 1,723 7,898 6,274 1,624
September -151 7,630 6,039 1,591 7,781 6,248 1,533
December -241 7,483 5,938 1,545 7,724 6,185 1,539
2003 March -393 7,467 5,928 1,539 7,860 6,307 1,553
June -90 7,398 5,929 1,469 7,488 6,030 1,458
September 204 7,392 5,923 1,469 7,188 5,828 1,360
December 297 7,521 6,005 1,516 7,224 5,800 1,424
2004 March 470 7,715 6,204 1,511 7,245 5,795 1,450
June 644 7,754 6,235 1,519 7,110 5,639 1,471
September 206 7,633 6,060 1,573 7,427 5,888 1,539
December 757 7,844 6,243 1,601 7,087 5,663 1,424
2005 March 384 7,620 6,131 1,489 7,236 5,801 1,435
June 593 7,774 6,231 1,543 7,181 5,776 1,405
September 677 7,965 6,387 1,578 7,288 5,844 1,444
December 494 7,807 6,252 1,555 7,313 5,948 1,365
2006 March 874 7,797 6,354 1,443 6,923 5,636 1,287
June 371 7,758 6,246 1,512 7,387 6,015 1,372
September 52 7,499 6,061 1,438 7,447 6,097 1,350
December 455 7,740 6,223 1,517 7,285 5,941 1,344
2007 March 549 7,727 6,297 1,430 7,178 5,881 1,297
June 149 7,632 6,222 1,410 7,483 6,079 1,404
September -252 7,318 5,847 1,471 7,570 6,215 1,355
December 299 7,658 6,196 1,462 7,359 6,012 1,347
2008 March -227 7,233 5,826 1,407 7,460 6,095 1,365
June -575 7,257 5,851 1,406 7,832 6,354 1,478
September -968 6,879 5,515 1,364 7,847 6,462 1,385
December -1,793 6,712 5,360 1,352 8,505 7,022 1,483
2009 March -2,706 5,834 4,648 1,186 8,540 7,122 1,418
June -1,656 6,395 5,093 1,302 8,051 6,669 1,382
September -899 6,335 5,119 1,216 7,234 5,874 1,360
December -217 6,651 5,325 1,326 6,868 5,583 1,285
2010 March -266 6,245 5,078 1,167 6,511 5,308 1,203
June 722 6,972 5,690 1,282 6,250 5,087 1,163
September 187 6,669 5,416 1,253 6,482 5,253 1,229
December 609 7,027 5,651 1,376 6,418 5,193 1,225
2011 March 292 6,437 5,272 1,165 6,145 5,010 1,135
June 603 6,942 5,646 1,296 6,339 5,111 1,228
September 794 7,136 5,776 1,360 6,342 5,194 1,148
December 389 6,909 5,557 1,352 6,520 5,238 1,282
2012 March 814 6,935 5,706 1,229 6,121 4,935 1,186
June 582 7,004 5,744 1,260 6,422 5,213 1,209
September 199 6,813 5,545 1,268 6,614 5,386 1,228
December 668 7,051 5,752 1,299 6,383 5,180 1,203
(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
Total private
(Percent)
Gross job gains Gross job losses
Year 3 months ended Net change(2) Total Expanding Opening Total Contracting Closing
establishments establishments establishments establishments
2002 March .0 7.5 5.9 1.6 7.5 6.0 1.5
June .0 7.3 5.7 1.6 7.3 5.8 1.5
September -.1 7.1 5.6 1.5 7.2 5.8 1.4
December -.3 6.9 5.5 1.4 7.2 5.8 1.4
2003 March -.5 6.9 5.5 1.4 7.4 5.9 1.5
June .0 7.0 5.6 1.4 7.0 5.6 1.4
September .1 6.9 5.5 1.4 6.8 5.5 1.3
December .3 7.0 5.6 1.4 6.7 5.4 1.3
2004 March .5 7.2 5.8 1.4 6.7 5.4 1.3
June .6 7.2 5.8 1.4 6.6 5.2 1.4
September .3 7.1 5.6 1.5 6.8 5.4 1.4
December .7 7.2 5.7 1.5 6.5 5.2 1.3
2005 March .4 7.0 5.6 1.4 6.6 5.3 1.3
June .6 7.1 5.7 1.4 6.5 5.2 1.3
September .6 7.2 5.8 1.4 6.6 5.3 1.3
December .4 7.0 5.6 1.4 6.6 5.4 1.2
2006 March .9 7.0 5.7 1.3 6.1 5.0 1.1
June .3 6.8 5.5 1.3 6.5 5.3 1.2
September .1 6.7 5.4 1.3 6.6 5.4 1.2
December .3 6.8 5.5 1.3 6.5 5.3 1.2
2007 March .5 6.8 5.5 1.3 6.3 5.2 1.1
June .2 6.7 5.5 1.2 6.5 5.3 1.2
September -.3 6.4 5.1 1.3 6.7 5.5 1.2
December .2 6.7 5.4 1.3 6.5 5.3 1.2
2008 March -.2 6.3 5.1 1.2 6.5 5.3 1.2
June -.6 6.3 5.1 1.2 6.9 5.6 1.3
September -.8 6.1 4.9 1.2 6.9 5.7 1.2
December -1.6 6.0 4.8 1.2 7.6 6.3 1.3
2009 March -2.4 5.4 4.3 1.1 7.8 6.5 1.3
June -1.5 6.0 4.8 1.2 7.5 6.2 1.3
September -.9 5.9 4.8 1.1 6.8 5.5 1.3
December -.1 6.4 5.1 1.3 6.5 5.3 1.2
2010 March -.2 5.9 4.8 1.1 6.1 5.0 1.1
June .7 6.6 5.4 1.2 5.9 4.8 1.1
September .1 6.3 5.1 1.2 6.2 5.0 1.2
December .5 6.6 5.3 1.3 6.1 4.9 1.2
2011 March .2 6.0 4.9 1.1 5.8 4.7 1.1
June .6 6.5 5.3 1.2 5.9 4.8 1.1
September .8 6.7 5.4 1.3 5.9 4.8 1.1
December .3 6.3 5.1 1.2 6.0 4.8 1.2
2012 March .7 6.3 5.2 1.1 5.6 4.5 1.1
June .5 6.3 5.2 1.1 5.8 4.7 1.1
September .2 6.2 5.0 1.2 6.0 4.9 1.1
December .6 6.4 5.2 1.2 5.8 4.7 1.1
(1) The rates measure gross job gains and gross job losses as a percentage
of the previous and current quarter employment levels.
(2) Net change is the difference between total gross job gains and total gross job losses.
Table 3. Private sector gross job gains and losses by industry, seasonally adjusted
Gross job gains and job losses Gross job gains and job losses
(in thousands) as a percent of employment
Category 3 months ended 3 months ended
Dec. Mar. June Sept Dec. Dec. Mar. June Sept Dec.
2011 2012 2012 2012 2012 2011 2012 2012 2012 2012
Total private(1)
Gross job gains 6,909 6,935 7,004 6,813 7,051 6.3 6.3 6.3 6.2 6.4
At expanding establishments 5,557 5,706 5,744 5,545 5,752 5.1 5.2 5.2 5.0 5.2
At opening establishments 1,352 1,229 1,260 1,268 1,299 1.2 1.1 1.1 1.2 1.2
Gross job losses 6,520 6,121 6,422 6,614 6,383 6.0 5.6 5.8 6.0 5.8
At contracting establishments 5,238 4,935 5,213 5,386 5,180 4.8 4.5 4.7 4.9 4.7
At closing establishments 1,282 1,186 1,209 1,228 1,203 1.2 1.1 1.1 1.1 1.1
Net employment change 389 814 582 199 668 .3 .7 .5 .2 .6
Goods-producing
Gross job gains 1,363 1,386 1,388 1,326 1,344 7.0 7.1 7.1 6.8 6.8
At expanding establishments 1,144 1,184 1,186 1,127 1,142 5.9 6.1 6.1 5.8 5.8
At opening establishments 219 202 202 199 202 1.1 1.0 1.0 1.0 1.0
Gross job losses 1,356 1,241 1,304 1,299 1,312 7.0 6.4 6.7 6.6 6.7
At contracting establishments 1,121 1,027 1,078 1,080 1,095 5.8 5.3 5.5 5.5 5.6
At closing establishments 235 214 226 219 217 1.2 1.1 1.2 1.1 1.1
Net employment change 7 145 84 27 32 .0 .7 .4 .2 .1
Natural resources and mining
Gross job gains 298 288 298 274 272 15.4 14.5 15.0 13.8 13.6
At expanding establishments 253 250 259 236 234 13.1 12.6 13.0 11.9 11.7
At opening establishments 45 38 39 38 38 2.3 1.9 2.0 1.9 1.9
Gross job losses 270 258 296 275 287 13.9 13.0 14.9 13.8 14.5
At contracting establishments 235 221 250 237 250 12.1 11.1 12.6 11.9 12.6
At closing establishments 35 37 46 38 37 1.8 1.9 2.3 1.9 1.9
Net employment change 28 30 2 -1 -15 1.5 1.5 .1 .0 -.9
Construction
Gross job gains 632 662 631 638 659 11.4 11.9 11.3 11.4 11.7
At expanding establishments 498 538 508 513 532 9.0 9.7 9.1 9.2 9.4
At opening establishments 134 124 123 125 127 2.4 2.2 2.2 2.2 2.3
Gross job losses 659 616 634 610 601 11.9 11.1 11.4 10.9 10.6
At contracting establishments 513 487 507 480 471 9.3 8.8 9.1 8.6 8.3
At closing establishments 146 129 127 130 130 2.6 2.3 2.3 2.3 2.3
Net employment change -27 46 -3 28 58 -.5 .8 -.1 .5 1.1
Manufacturing
Gross job gains 433 436 459 414 413 3.6 3.6 3.8 3.5 3.4
At expanding establishments 393 396 419 378 376 3.3 3.3 3.5 3.2 3.1
At opening establishments 40 40 40 36 37 .3 .3 .3 .3 .3
Gross job losses 427 367 374 414 424 3.7 3.1 3.1 3.4 3.5
At contracting establishments 373 319 321 363 374 3.2 2.7 2.7 3.0 3.1
At closing establishments 54 48 53 51 50 .5 .4 .4 .4 .4
Net employment change 6 69 85 0 -11 -.1 .5 .7 .1 -.1
Service-providing(1)
Gross job gains 5,546 5,549 5,616 5,487 5,707 6.2 6.1 6.2 6.1 6.3
At expanding establishments 4,413 4,522 4,558 4,418 4,610 4.9 5.0 5.0 4.9 5.1
At opening establishments 1,133 1,027 1,058 1,069 1,097 1.3 1.1 1.2 1.2 1.2
Gross job losses 5,164 4,880 5,118 5,315 5,071 5.8 5.4 5.7 5.8 5.6
At contracting establishments 4,117 3,908 4,135 4,306 4,085 4.6 4.3 4.6 4.7 4.5
At closing establishments 1,047 972 983 1,009 986 1.2 1.1 1.1 1.1 1.1
Net employment change 382 669 498 172 636 .4 .7 .5 .3 .7
Wholesale trade
Gross job gains 276 282 288 266 277 4.9 5.1 5.0 4.6 4.9
At expanding establishments 223 234 240 218 226 4.0 4.2 4.2 3.8 4.0
At opening establishments 53 48 48 48 51 .9 .9 .8 .8 .9
Gross job losses 250 244 254 263 256 4.5 4.3 4.5 4.7 4.5
At contracting establishments 191 186 192 207 199 3.4 3.3 3.4 3.7 3.5
At closing establishments 59 58 62 56 57 1.1 1.0 1.1 1.0 1.0
Net employment change 26 38 34 3 21 .4 .8 .5 -.1 .4
Retail trade
Gross job gains 898 883 891 836 917 6.1 5.9 6.0 5.6 6.2
At expanding establishments 776 761 760 701 789 5.3 5.1 5.1 4.7 5.3
At opening establishments 122 122 131 135 128 .8 .8 .9 .9 .9
Gross job losses 821 845 813 871 823 5.6 5.7 5.5 5.8 5.5
At contracting establishments 695 738 710 760 703 4.7 5.0 4.8 5.1 4.7
At closing establishments 126 107 103 111 120 .9 .7 .7 .7 .8
Net employment change 77 38 78 -35 94 .5 .2 .5 -.2 .7
Transportation and warehousing
Gross job gains 244 213 218 221 263 5.9 5.2 5.3 5.2 6.3
At expanding establishments 210 181 186 190 231 5.1 4.4 4.5 4.5 5.5
At opening establishments 34 32 32 31 32 .8 .8 .8 .7 .8
Gross job losses 203 219 202 204 211 4.9 5.2 4.8 4.8 5.0
At contracting establishments 166 185 167 169 173 4.0 4.4 4.0 4.0 4.1
At closing establishments 37 34 35 35 38 .9 .8 .8 .8 .9
Net employment change 41 -6 16 17 52 1.0 .0 .5 .4 1.3
Utilities
Gross job gains 12 11 11 12 14 2.2 2.0 2.0 2.2 2.6
At expanding establishments 10 10 10 10 12 1.8 1.8 1.8 1.8 2.2
At opening establishments 2 1 1 2 2 .4 .2 .2 .4 .4
Gross job losses 12 10 12 14 13 2.2 1.8 2.2 2.6 2.4
At contracting establishments 11 8 10 12 11 2.0 1.4 1.8 2.2 2.0
At closing establishments 1 2 2 2 2 .2 .4 .4 .4 .4
Net employment change 0 1 -1 -2 1 .0 .2 -.2 -.4 .2
Information
Gross job gains 124 114 123 132 141 4.6 4.2 4.6 4.9 5.3
At expanding establishments 99 95 106 112 117 3.7 3.5 4.0 4.2 4.4
At opening establishments 25 19 17 20 24 .9 .7 .6 .7 .9
Gross job losses 136 115 124 141 120 5.1 4.3 4.7 5.2 4.5
At contracting establishments 102 93 101 116 95 3.8 3.5 3.8 4.3 3.6
At closing establishments 34 22 23 25 25 1.3 .8 .9 .9 .9
Net employment change -12 -1 -1 -9 21 -.5 -.1 -.1 -.3 .8
Financial activities
Gross job gains 361 349 362 355 375 4.9 4.7 4.8 4.7 5.0
At expanding establishments 281 282 295 286 293 3.8 3.8 3.9 3.8 3.9
At opening establishments 80 67 67 69 82 1.1 .9 .9 .9 1.1
Gross job losses 353 330 334 339 326 4.7 4.5 4.5 4.5 4.3
At contracting establishments 268 243 253 261 251 3.6 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.3
At closing establishments 85 87 81 78 75 1.1 1.2 1.1 1.0 1.0
Net employment change 8 19 28 16 49 .2 .2 .3 .2 .7
Professional and business services
Gross job gains 1,354 1,301 1,349 1,322 1,381 7.8 7.3 7.5 7.3 7.6
At expanding establishments 1,081 1,068 1,110 1,082 1,121 6.2 6.0 6.2 6.0 6.2
At opening establishments 273 233 239 240 260 1.6 1.3 1.3 1.3 1.4
Gross job losses 1,255 1,174 1,221 1,262 1,229 7.2 6.7 6.8 7.0 6.8
At contracting establishments 983 911 947 990 977 5.6 5.2 5.3 5.5 5.4
At closing establishments 272 263 274 272 252 1.6 1.5 1.5 1.5 1.4
Net employment change 99 127 128 60 152 .6 .6 .7 .3 .8
Education and health services
Gross job gains 811 812 791 834 828 4.2 4.2 4.1 4.3 4.3
At expanding establishments 676 697 677 706 700 3.5 3.6 3.5 3.6 3.6
At opening establishments 135 115 114 128 128 .7 .6 .6 .7 .7
Gross job losses 740 697 773 743 712 3.8 3.6 4.0 3.8 3.7
At contracting establishments 604 568 642 610 584 3.1 2.9 3.3 3.1 3.0
At closing establishments 136 129 131 133 128 .7 .7 .7 .7 .7
Net employment change 71 115 18 91 116 .4 .6 .1 .5 .6
Leisure and hospitality
Gross job gains 1,115 1,214 1,197 1,140 1,162 8.3 9.0 8.7 8.3 8.4
At expanding establishments 842 960 932 884 902 6.3 7.1 6.8 6.4 6.5
At opening establishments 273 254 265 256 260 2.0 1.9 1.9 1.9 1.9
Gross job losses 1,106 964 1,097 1,168 1,087 8.2 7.1 8.0 8.4 7.8
At contracting establishments 886 775 902 956 879 6.6 5.7 6.6 6.9 6.3
At closing establishments 220 189 195 212 208 1.6 1.4 1.4 1.5 1.5
Net employment change 9 250 100 -28 75 .1 1.9 .7 -.1 .6
Other services
Gross job gains 263 275 287 271 266 6.9 7.2 7.5 7.1 6.9
At expanding establishments 205 221 231 217 209 5.4 5.8 6.0 5.7 5.4
At opening establishments 58 54 56 54 57 1.5 1.4 1.5 1.4 1.5
Gross job losses 262 250 257 279 266 6.9 6.6 6.7 7.3 7.0
At contracting establishments 205 194 202 217 206 5.4 5.1 5.3 5.7 5.4
At closing establishments 57 56 55 62 60 1.5 1.5 1.4 1.6 1.6
Net employment change 1 25 30 -8 0 .0 .6 .8 -.2 -.1
(1) Includes unclassified sector, not shown separately
Table 4. Private sector gross job gains and losses by firm size, seasonally adjusted
(In thousands)
Total private by firm(1) Firm size 1 - 49 employees Firm size 50 - 249 employees Firm size 250 or more employees
Year 3 months Net Gross job Net Gross job Net Gross job Net Gross job
ended change(2,3) gains losses change gains losses change gains losses change gains losses
2002 March 70 6,602 6,532 54 3,402 3,348 -52 1,194 1,246 68 2,006 1,938
June -61 6,416 6,477 69 3,379 3,310 -7 1,191 1,198 -123 1,846 1,969
September -176 6,190 6,366 20 3,335 3,315 -46 1,144 1,190 -150 1,711 1,861
December -247 6,114 6,361 -3 3,299 3,302 -73 1,106 1,179 -171 1,709 1,880
2003 March -326 6,112 6,438 -135 3,257 3,392 -56 1,127 1,183 -135 1,728 1,863
June -137 6,108 6,245 112 3,346 3,234 -26 1,133 1,159 -223 1,629 1,852
September 193 6,162 5,969 120 3,327 3,207 21 1,127 1,106 52 1,708 1,656
December 310 6,218 5,908 146 3,340 3,194 32 1,128 1,096 132 1,750 1,618
2004 March 430 6,306 5,876 153 3,392 3,239 137 1,194 1,057 140 1,720 1,580
June 621 6,471 5,850 169 3,387 3,218 141 1,196 1,055 311 1,888 1,577
September 197 6,243 6,046 88 3,379 3,291 88 1,175 1,087 21 1,689 1,668
December 759 6,494 5,735 274 3,480 3,206 101 1,172 1,071 384 1,842 1,458
2005 March 368 6,320 5,952 66 3,416 3,350 97 1,161 1,064 205 1,743 1,538
June 570 6,435 5,865 243 3,476 3,233 146 1,198 1,052 181 1,761 1,580
September 701 6,672 5,971 218 3,510 3,292 85 1,195 1,110 398 1,967 1,569
December 506 6,406 5,900 169 3,462 3,293 45 1,140 1,095 292 1,804 1,512
2006 March 788 6,433 5,645 334 3,547 3,213 222 1,213 991 232 1,673 1,441
June 375 6,349 5,974 117 3,434 3,317 110 1,190 1,080 148 1,725 1,577
September 43 6,103 6,060 -14 3,329 3,343 27 1,127 1,100 30 1,647 1,617
December 447 6,375 5,928 117 3,393 3,276 74 1,147 1,073 256 1,835 1,579
2007 March 466 6,300 5,834 189 3,451 3,262 99 1,153 1,054 178 1,696 1,518
June 174 6,256 6,082 -31 3,337 3,368 108 1,180 1,072 97 1,739 1,642
September -269 5,891 6,160 -132 3,252 3,384 -53 1,073 1,126 -84 1,566 1,650
December 298 6,254 5,956 8 3,315 3,307 63 1,140 1,077 227 1,799 1,572
2008 March -277 5,807 6,084 -138 3,238 3,376 -11 1,073 1,084 -128 1,496 1,624
June -547 5,861 6,408 -287 3,179 3,466 -37 1,098 1,135 -223 1,584 1,807
September -1,035 5,483 6,518 -359 3,039 3,398 -160 1,013 1,173 -516 1,431 1,947
December -1,850 5,341 7,191 -693 2,907 3,600 -370 946 1,316 -787 1,488 2,275
2009 March -2,643 4,582 7,225 -967 2,724 3,691 -611 806 1,417 -1,065 1,052 2,117
June -1,766 5,174 6,940 -475 2,949 3,424 -275 956 1,231 -1,016 1,269 2,285
September -979 5,119 6,098 -388 2,814 3,202 -127 927 1,054 -464 1,378 1,842
December -277 5,408 5,685 -161 2,937 3,098 -42 963 1,005 -74 1,508 1,582
2010 March -231 5,094 5,325 -185 2,863 3,048 -1 909 910 -45 1,322 1,367
June 689 5,818 5,129 233 3,094 2,861 211 1,079 868 245 1,645 1,400
September 157 5,478 5,321 11 2,933 2,922 71 992 921 75 1,553 1,478
December 534 5,789 5,255 86 3,045 2,959 99 1,035 936 349 1,709 1,360
2011 March 329 5,339 5,010 108 2,979 2,871 122 964 842 99 1,396 1,297
June 550 5,765 5,215 195 3,078 2,883 178 1,072 894 177 1,615 1,438
September 793 5,928 5,135 247 3,116 2,869 152 1,058 906 394 1,754 1,360
December 332 5,615 5,283 39 2,967 2,928 46 985 939 247 1,663 1,416
2012 March 830 5,748 4,918 362 3,119 2,757 216 1,046 830 252 1,583 1,331
June 572 5,797 5,225 158 3,004 2,846 161 1,080 919 253 1,713 1,460
September 168 5,516 5,348 -3 2,893 2,896 38 999 961 133 1,624 1,491
December 593 5,714 5,121 130 2,967 2,837 84 1,004 920 379 1,743 1,364
(1) Total gross job gains and gross job losses by firm are lower
than total gross job gains and gross job losses by establishment,
as some establishment gains and losses within a firm are offset during the aggregation process.
(2) Net change is the difference between total gross job gains and total gross job losses.
(3) Net change totals for firm-level data shown differ from the establishment-level data
due to independent seasonal adjustment of the series.
NOTE: See http://www.bls.gov/bdm/bdmfirmsize.htm for additional firm size class data.
Table 5. Components of private sector gross job gains and losses by firm size, seasonally adjusted
Gross job gains and job losses Gross job gains and job losses
(in thousands) as a percent of employment
Category 3 months ended 3 months ended
Dec. Mar. June Sept Dec. Dec. Mar. June Sept Dec.
2011 2012 2012 2012 2012 2011 2012 2012 2012 2012
Total private by firm(1)
Gross job gains 5,615 5,748 5,797 5,516 5,714 5.2 5.2 5.3 5.0 5.2
At expanding firms 4,689 4,848 4,929 4,662 4,826 4.3 4.4 4.5 4.2 4.4
At opening firms 926 900 868 854 888 .9 .8 .8 .8 .8
Gross job losses 5,283 4,918 5,225 5,348 5,121 4.9 4.5 4.8 4.9 4.7
At contracting firms 4,399 4,081 4,380 4,501 4,276 4.1 3.7 4.0 4.1 3.9
At closing firms 884 837 845 847 845 .8 .8 .8 .8 .8
Net employment change 332 830 572 168 593 .3 .7 .5 .1 .5
Firm size 1 to 49 employees
Gross job gains 2,967 3,119 3,004 2,893 2,967 9.4 9.8 9.5 9.2 9.4
At expanding firms 2,085 2,253 2,176 2,085 2,112 6.6 7.1 6.9 6.6 6.7
At opening firms 882 866 828 808 855 2.8 2.7 2.6 2.6 2.7
Gross job losses 2,928 2,757 2,846 2,896 2,837 9.3 8.8 9.0 9.2 8.9
At contracting firms 2,086 1,953 2,055 2,088 2,033 6.6 6.2 6.5 6.6 6.4
At closing firms 842 804 791 808 804 2.7 2.6 2.5 2.6 2.5
Net employment change 39 362 158 -3 130 .1 1.0 .5 .0 .5
Firm size 50 to 249 employees
Gross job gains 985 1,046 1,080 999 1,004 4.9 5.1 5.4 4.9 4.9
At expanding firms 948 1,016 1,046 965 974 4.7 5.0 5.2 4.7 4.8
At opening firms 37 30 34 34 30 .2 .1 .2 .2 .1
Gross job losses 939 830 919 961 920 4.7 4.1 4.6 4.7 4.6
At contracting firms 906 803 887 931 887 4.5 4.0 4.4 4.6 4.4
At closing firms 33 27 32 30 33 .2 .1 .2 .1 .2
Net employment change 46 216 161 38 84 .2 1.0 .8 .2 .3
Firm size 250 or more employees
Gross job gains 1,663 1,583 1,713 1,624 1,743 2.9 2.7 2.9 2.8 3.0
At expanding firms 1,656 1,579 1,707 1,612 1,740 2.9 2.7 2.9 2.8 3.0
At opening firms 7 4 6 12 3 .0 .0 .0 .0 .0
Gross job losses 1,416 1,331 1,460 1,491 1,364 2.5 2.3 2.5 2.5 2.3
At contracting firms 1,407 1,325 1,438 1,482 1,356 2.5 2.3 2.5 2.5 2.3
At closing firms 9 6 22 9 8 .0 .0 .0 .0 .0
Net employment change 247 252 253 133 379 .4 .4 .4 .3 .7
(1) Total gross job gains and gross job losses by firm are lower
than total gross job gains and gross job losses by establishment,
as some establishment gains and losses within a firm are offset during the aggregation process.
Table 6. Private sector gross job gains and losses by state, seasonally adjusted
Gross job gains Gross job losses
State (3 months ended) (3 months ended)
Dec. Mar. June Sept. Dec. Dec. Mar. June Sept. Dec.
2011 2012 2012 2012 2012 2011 2012 2012 2012 2012
United States(1)... 6,909,000 6,935,000 7,004,000 6,813,000 7,051,000 6,520,000 6,121,000 6,422,000 6,614,000 6,383,000
Alabama..... 85,633 91,147 84,920 83,127 83,772 87,650 80,326 81,715 82,206 79,513
Alaska..... 23,440 26,381 27,630 22,254 23,664 26,155 21,997 23,362 25,468 25,228
Arizona..... 139,367 128,843 128,712 134,318 142,005 123,249 121,081 124,788 117,424 118,875
Arkansas..... 60,670 53,381 50,617 51,092 55,753 50,505 52,324 52,617 55,826 49,056
California..... 870,675 842,341 887,477 827,492 905,965 785,705 760,027 779,094 783,686 771,421
Colorado..... 128,255 125,797 138,109 131,968 133,994 122,714 115,062 119,234 123,084 116,948
Connecticut..... 73,072 77,422 76,257 71,695 74,526 71,692 68,197 69,468 73,892 70,365
Delaware..... 21,735 22,107 21,752 21,771 23,355 21,334 20,468 22,610 22,138 19,561
District of Columbia 26,595 29,723 26,871 26,693 30,451 24,771 20,338 26,196 27,948 25,459
Florida..... 439,908 414,219 421,896 454,478 451,764 413,449 365,900 395,061 422,223 396,718
Georgia..... 203,099 219,814 214,145 201,804 215,168 202,265 191,090 202,986 200,269 189,181
Hawaii..... 25,587 24,551 26,632 26,273 25,794 21,986 25,568 24,763 23,911 21,529
Idaho..... 37,097 38,404 40,213 40,980 39,975 37,811 38,352 37,611 35,338 36,631
Illinois..... 267,916 263,987 263,873 270,410 257,065 258,824 235,357 241,807 265,131 252,028
Indiana..... 143,961 150,073 140,314 138,449 141,803 134,950 121,345 131,698 134,489 131,743
Iowa..... 71,492 75,925 70,865 69,857 71,066 69,343 62,833 64,030 68,098 67,402
Kansas..... 65,220 72,837 63,539 62,992 68,148 61,690 57,228 60,718 66,891 58,540
Kentucky..... 87,855 91,719 88,548 84,813 91,937 82,301 81,151 80,639 81,943 81,448
Louisiana..... 102,234 109,747 101,281 99,429 104,418 97,984 98,510 104,363 102,944 90,875
Maine..... 33,221 34,867 38,293 32,103 34,205 35,125 34,497 32,974 35,380 36,411
Maryland..... 129,484 135,839 128,787 130,769 127,775 122,326 115,922 122,287 129,010 126,560
Massachusetts..... 148,370 154,973 164,077 148,509 150,023 150,490 138,173 137,487 156,756 148,494
Michigan..... 203,971 208,109 209,535 209,360 204,175 196,273 178,757 195,190 200,789 184,944
Minnesota..... 125,820 152,204 139,597 134,849 134,938 131,726 133,973 121,250 130,627 130,787
Mississippi..... 52,282 54,928 49,378 52,243 57,396 50,544 47,226 55,417 50,729 52,142
Missouri..... 134,687 133,117 133,106 128,913 138,530 125,738 119,773 139,829 129,765 121,856
Montana..... 28,553 27,783 28,905 27,332 29,012 26,686 26,305 26,502 25,375 27,169
Nebraska..... 43,876 44,064 43,321 42,753 44,976 40,167 38,030 39,828 41,943 39,550
Nevada..... 57,485 58,879 63,846 58,103 60,082 55,150 53,065 54,370 56,807 55,939
New Hampshire..... 35,844 34,876 36,985 33,587 34,463 33,640 32,250 33,680 35,919 33,805
New Jersey..... 208,879 204,354 212,859 196,983 203,946 199,863 187,241 189,236 200,646 195,226
New Mexico..... 37,929 41,334 40,590 38,153 42,888 40,581 35,306 41,465 39,338 35,252
New York..... 438,220 467,340 468,789 461,510 464,448 427,473 403,623 434,900 446,526 440,946
North Carolina..... 205,605 210,182 201,581 197,469 207,822 192,401 179,134 192,592 192,634 191,444
North Dakota..... 32,285 34,563 26,998 29,529 29,235 19,885 20,145 22,002 26,071 23,957
Ohio..... 255,010 257,935 253,436 239,722 261,514 239,343 222,736 229,340 254,269 240,528
Oklahoma..... 76,516 75,110 73,855 72,938 79,084 70,641 68,149 67,598 75,201 67,539
Oregon..... 93,674 92,985 93,491 97,240 94,828 92,363 87,056 88,921 86,428 90,642
Pennsylvania..... 278,996 287,205 264,484 262,020 263,211 249,261 246,934 264,265 266,076 247,501
Rhode Island..... 24,067 26,209 25,198 23,568 24,421 24,900 22,040 23,293 24,966 23,582
South Carolina..... 91,266 90,984 89,452 85,659 96,330 82,761 79,437 86,675 87,619 79,404
South Dakota..... 21,563 21,765 22,642 21,022 20,893 19,365 19,933 21,199 20,613 20,457
Tennessee..... 135,832 132,991 133,201 125,916 138,481 117,380 113,095 125,811 124,788 114,847
Texas..... 523,866 537,062 546,168 526,961 551,309 457,961 446,708 457,008 473,008 451,336
Utah..... 69,692 70,120 71,955 70,156 74,427 61,984 59,307 59,459 61,749 60,812
Vermont..... 20,232 17,597 18,259 17,033 18,411 16,430 17,256 18,263 17,368 17,428
Virginia..... 179,267 175,338 169,857 188,452 175,639 177,063 161,214 167,758 181,523 164,816
Washington..... 163,991 157,863 172,704 161,011 166,428 164,123 146,884 147,566 153,641 153,295
West Virginia..... 38,129 40,657 35,411 35,529 35,569 32,964 34,872 40,026 37,266 36,191
Wisconsin..... 127,238 136,446 133,227 122,610 130,639 130,485 120,565 121,972 127,966 121,776
Wyoming..... 20,004 18,242 17,093 17,703 20,169 17,496 18,379 19,021 18,046 17,516
Puerto Rico..... 45,535 41,000 45,398 41,896 47,303 38,101 41,093 38,884 43,256 40,497
Virgin Islands..... 1,929 1,558 1,750 1,415 1,864 1,891 1,996 4,042 2,166 1,570
(1) Totals for the United States do not include data for Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands.
Table 7. Private sector gross job gains and losses as a percent of total employment by state, seasonally adjusted
Gross job gains as a percent of employment Gross job losses as a percent of employment
State (3 months ended) (3 months ended)
Dec. Mar. June Sept. Dec. Dec. Mar. June Sept. Dec.
2011 2012 2012 2012 2012 2011 2012 2012 2012 2012
United States(1)... 6.3 6.3 6.3 6.2 6.4 6.0 5.6 5.8 6.0 5.8
Alabama..... 5.9 6.3 5.8 5.6 5.7 6.0 5.5 5.6 5.6 5.4
Alaska..... 9.6 10.8 11.1 9.0 9.5 10.7 8.9 9.4 10.2 10.1
Arizona..... 6.9 6.3 6.3 6.5 6.8 6.2 6.0 6.1 5.8 5.8
Arkansas..... 6.5 5.6 5.3 5.4 5.9 5.4 5.5 5.6 5.9 5.2
California..... 7.2 6.9 7.2 6.7 7.2 6.5 6.2 6.3 6.3 6.2
Colorado..... 6.9 6.7 7.3 6.9 7.0 6.6 6.2 6.3 6.5 6.2
Connecticut..... 5.3 5.6 5.5 5.2 5.4 5.3 5.0 5.0 5.3 5.1
Delaware..... 6.4 6.4 6.3 6.3 6.8 6.2 5.9 6.6 6.5 5.7
District of Columbia.. 5.8 6.4 5.8 5.7 6.5 5.4 4.4 5.6 6.0 5.4
Florida..... 7.1 6.7 6.8 7.1 7.1 6.7 5.9 6.3 6.6 6.2
Georgia..... 6.5 7.0 6.7 6.4 6.7 6.4 6.0 6.4 6.3 5.9
Hawaii..... 5.4 5.2 5.5 5.4 5.3 4.6 5.3 5.2 5.0 4.4
Idaho..... 7.4 7.7 8.0 8.1 7.9 7.6 7.7 7.5 7.0 7.2
Illinois..... 5.6 5.5 5.5 5.6 5.3 5.4 4.8 5.0 5.4 5.2
Indiana..... 6.1 6.2 5.8 5.7 5.9 5.7 5.0 5.4 5.6 5.4
Iowa..... 5.9 6.2 5.8 5.6 5.7 5.7 5.1 5.2 5.6 5.4
Kansas..... 6.1 6.8 5.9 5.9 6.3 5.8 5.3 5.7 6.2 5.4
Kentucky..... 6.1 6.4 6.1 5.9 6.3 5.7 5.6 5.5 5.7 5.6
Louisiana..... 6.7 7.1 6.6 6.4 6.7 6.5 6.5 6.7 6.7 5.9
Maine..... 6.8 7.2 7.9 6.6 7.0 7.3 7.1 6.8 7.2 7.6
Maryland..... 6.5 6.7 6.3 6.5 6.3 6.1 5.8 6.1 6.4 6.2
Massachusetts..... 5.4 5.6 5.8 5.3 5.3 5.5 5.0 4.9 5.6 5.3
Michigan..... 6.1 6.2 6.2 6.2 6.0 6.0 5.4 5.8 6.0 5.4
Minnesota..... 5.5 6.8 6.2 5.9 5.9 5.8 6.0 5.3 5.8 5.8
Mississippi..... 6.3 6.5 5.8 6.2 6.7 6.1 5.6 6.6 6.0 6.1
Missouri..... 6.2 6.1 6.2 6.0 6.4 5.9 5.5 6.4 5.9 5.6
Montana..... 8.4 8.0 8.3 7.9 8.3 7.8 7.6 7.7 7.3 7.7
Nebraska..... 5.9 5.9 5.7 5.7 6.0 5.4 5.1 5.3 5.6 5.2
Nevada..... 6.0 6.0 6.5 5.9 6.0 5.7 5.5 5.5 5.7 5.7
New Hampshire..... 6.9 6.7 7.1 6.4 6.5 6.5 6.1 6.4 6.8 6.4
New Jersey..... 6.5 6.4 6.7 6.2 6.4 6.3 5.9 5.9 6.3 6.0
New Mexico..... 6.4 6.9 6.8 6.4 7.1 6.8 5.9 6.9 6.5 5.9
New York..... 6.1 6.6 6.5 6.4 6.4 6.0 5.7 6.0 6.2 6.1
North Carolina..... 6.5 6.5 6.2 6.2 6.4 6.0 5.6 6.0 6.0 5.9
North Dakota..... 10.0 10.3 7.8 8.5 8.3 6.2 6.0 6.4 7.6 6.8
Ohio..... 6.0 6.0 5.9 5.5 6.0 5.6 5.2 5.3 5.9 5.6
Oklahoma..... 6.4 6.3 6.1 6.0 6.5 5.8 5.7 5.5 6.2 5.5
Oregon..... 6.9 6.9 6.9 7.1 6.9 6.8 6.4 6.6 6.3 6.6
Pennsylvania..... 5.7 5.9 5.4 5.3 5.3 5.1 5.1 5.4 5.4 5.0
Rhode Island..... 6.2 6.7 6.4 6.0 6.2 6.4 5.6 5.9 6.3 6.0
South Carolina..... 6.2 6.2 6.1 5.9 6.5 5.6 5.4 5.9 5.9 5.4
South Dakota..... 6.6 6.6 6.8 6.4 6.3 5.9 6.1 6.4 6.2 6.1
Tennessee..... 6.1 5.9 5.9 5.6 6.2 5.3 5.1 5.7 5.5 5.1
Texas..... 6.0 6.1 6.2 5.8 6.1 5.3 5.0 5.1 5.3 5.0
Utah..... 7.2 7.1 7.2 7.0 7.3 6.3 6.0 6.0 6.1 6.0
Vermont..... 8.3 7.2 7.4 6.9 7.4 6.8 7.0 7.4 7.1 7.1
Virginia..... 6.2 6.0 5.8 6.5 6.0 6.1 5.6 5.8 6.2 5.6
Washington..... 7.2 6.8 7.4 6.9 7.1 7.1 6.3 6.4 6.5 6.5
West Virginia..... 6.8 7.2 6.3 6.2 6.3 5.8 6.1 7.0 6.6 6.5
Wisconsin..... 5.6 5.9 5.8 5.3 5.7 5.7 5.3 5.3 5.5 5.3
Wyoming..... 9.4 8.5 8.1 8.4 9.5 8.2 8.6 9.0 8.5 8.2
Puerto Rico..... 6.7 6.0 6.6 6.1 6.9 5.7 6.0 5.7 6.3 5.8
Virgin Islands..... 6.3 5.1 5.9 5.0 6.6 6.1 6.5 13.7 7.7 5.6
(1) Totals for the United States do not include data for Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands.
Table 8. Private sector establishment births and deaths, seasonally adjusted
Total private
(Levels in thousands)
Number of Establishments Employment
Births Deaths(1) Births Deaths
Year 3 months ended Level Rate(2) Level Rate Level Rate Level Rate
2002 March 204 3.2 190 3.0 1,175 1.1 1,089 1.0
June 208 3.3 187 2.9 1,189 1.1 1,080 1.0
September 199 3.1 184 2.9 1,051 1.0 1,023 1.0
December 201 3.1 191 3.0 1,023 1.0 1,021 1.0
2003 March 193 3.0 186 2.9 1,004 .9 1,011 .9
June 191 3.0 186 2.9 964 .9 951 .9
September 193 3.0 179 2.8 954 .9 884 .8
December 200 3.1 180 2.8 998 .9 910 .9
2004 March 207 3.2 180 2.8 1,000 .9 917 .9
June 203 3.1 185 2.8 980 .9 909 .8
September 209 3.2 186 2.8 1,016 .9 953 .9
December 210 3.2 180 2.7 997 .9 894 .8
2005 March 209 3.1 185 2.8 944 .9 852 .8
June 216 3.2 180 2.7 951 .9 841 .8
September 221 3.3 186 2.8 996 .9 884 .8
December 221 3.3 186 2.8 979 .9 846 .8
2006 March 220 3.2 180 2.6 924 .8 748 .7
June 221 3.2 194 2.8 973 .9 841 .7
September 210 3.1 196 2.9 927 .8 836 .7
December 221 3.2 194 2.8 959 .8 804 .7
2007 March 214 3.1 193 2.8 897 .8 771 .7
June 206 3.0 202 2.9 884 .8 850 .7
September 216 3.1 203 2.9 941 .8 836 .7
December 208 3.0 206 2.9 902 .8 825 .7
2008 March 207 3.0 211 3.0 897 .8 813 .7
June 201 2.9 228 3.3 876 .8 934 .8
September 191 2.7 223 3.2 827 .7 880 .8
December 188 2.7 240 3.5 799 .7 947 .8
2009 March 172 2.5 236 3.4 703 .6 850 .8
June 177 2.6 227 3.3 742 .7 831 .8
September 169 2.5 215 3.2 692 .7 787 .7
December 183 2.7 200 3.0 712 .7 739 .7
2010 March 175 2.6 194 2.9 685 .7 667 .6
June 179 2.7 185 2.7 713 .7 650 .6
September 188 2.8 189 2.8 741 .7 694 .7
December 200 2.9 186 2.7 790 .7 689 .6
2011 March 189 2.8 184 2.7 695 .7 610 .6
June 192 2.8 190 2.8 748 .7 677 .6
September 198 2.9 187 2.7 790 .7 674 .6
December 202 2.9 191 2.8 802 .7 750 .7
2012 March 193 2.8 181 2.6 748 .7 605 .6
June 191 2.8 N/A N/A 759 .7 N/A N/A
September 193 2.8 N/A N/A 789 .7 N/A N/A
December 192 2.8 N/A N/A 766 .7 N/A N/A
(1) Values for deaths are not available for the most recent three quarters
by definition. See the Technical Note for more information.
(2) The rates measure births and deaths as a percentage
of the average of the previous and current quarter employment levels or
total number of establishments.
United States Department of Labor
