County Employment and Wages in Utah — First Quarter 2024

Employment rose in all five of the largest counties in Utah from March 2023 to March 2024, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. (Large counties are those with annual average employment levels of 75,000 or more in 2023.) Assistant Commissioner for Regional Operations Michael Hirniak noted that Washington County had the largest over-the-year increase in employment at 3.3 percent. (See chart 1 and table 1.)

National employment increased 1.3 percent over the year, with 300 of the 369 largest U.S. counties reporting gains. Monterey, CA, and St. Johns, FL, had the largest over-the-year increases in employment, with gains of 4.8 percent each. Elkhart, IN, had the largest over-the-year percentage decrease in employment (-4.9 percent).

Among the five largest counties in Utah, employment was highest in Salt Lake County (790,500) in March 2024. Within Salt Lake County's private industry, professional, scientific, and technical services accounted for the largest employment. Together, the five largest Utah counties accounted for 84.3 percent of total employment within the state. Nationwide, the 369 largest counties made up 73.3 percent of total U.S. employment.

Employment and wage levels (but not over-the-year changes) are also available for the 24 counties in Utah with employment below 75,000. Wage levels in all of the 24 smaller counties were below the national average of $1,527 in the first quarter of 2024. (See table 2.)

Large county wage changes

All five large Utah counties reported average weekly wage gains from the first quarter of 2023 to the first quarter of 2024. (See chart 2.) Salt Lake County had the largest gain (+5.7 percent). Over-the-year wage gains among the other four large counties in Utah ranged from 4.9 percent to 4.4 percent.

Nationwide, wages increased by 4.2 percent over the year. Among the 369 largest counties in the United States, 357 had over-the-year wage increases. Santa Clara, CA, had the largest percentage wage increase (+14.6 percent). Saginaw, MI, had the largest over-the-year percentage decrease (-3.4 percent).

Large county average weekly wages

Weekly wages in 4 of the 5 largest counties in Utah were below the national average of $1,527 in the first quarter of 2024. The average weekly wage in Salt Lake County ($1,546) ranked 82^nd among the 369 largest counties nationwide. In the four remaining large counties, average weekly wages ranged from $1,231 to $900, placing them in the bottom half of the rankings.

Among the largest U.S. counties, 85 reported average weekly wages at or above the U.S. average in the first quarter of 2024. San Mateo, CA, had the highest average weekly wage ($4,385). Average weekly wages were below the national average in the remaining 284 counties. Hidalgo, TX, had the lowest average weekly wage ($807).

Average weekly wages in Utah's smaller counties

Among the 24 smaller counties in Utah-those with employment below 75,000-all reported weekly wages below the national average of $1,527 in the first quarter of 2024. Summit County ($1,237) reported the highest average weekly wage among the small counties. Piute County reported the lowest average weekly wage in the state at $688.

When all 29 counties in Utah were considered, 7 reported average weekly wages of less than $850, 9 registered wages from $850 to $999, 8 had wages from $1,000 to $1,149, and 5 had average weekly wages of $1,150 or higher. (See map 1.)

Additional statistics and other information

QCEW data for states have been included in this release in table 3. For additional information about quarterly employment and wages data, please read the Technical Note for the County Employment and Wages News Release or visit the Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages website.

Employment and Wages Annual Averages Online features comprehensive information by detailed industry on establishments, employment, and wages for the nation and all states. This publication is typically published in September of the following year of the reference period or shortly after the QCEW first quarter full data update.

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Table 1. Covered establishments, employment, and wages in the United States and the five largest counties in Utah, first quarter 2024

Area	Establishments, first quarter (thousands)	Employment	Average weekly wage (1)
March 2024 (thousands)	Percent change, March 2023-24 (2)	National ranking by percent change (3)	First quarter 2024 ($)	National ranking by level (3)	Percent change, first quarter 2023-24 (2)	National ranking by percent change (3)
United States (4)	12,169.0	153,585.6	1.3	--	1,527	--	4.2	--
Utah	135.7	1,699.6	1.9	--	1,313	26	5.2	4
Davis	10.3	143.2	1.8	98	1,153	292	4.9	74
Salt Lake	64.8	790.5	2.0	71	1,546	82	5.7	34
Utah	22.0	292.3	1.2	173	1,231	229	4.5	104
Washington	8.1	85.0	3.3	13	900	366	4.4	117
Weber	7.3	121.1	1.8	98	1,117	313	4.5	104
(1) Average weekly wages were calculated using unrounded data. (2) Percent changes were computed from employment and pay data adjusted for noneconomic county reclassifications. (3) Ranking does not include data for Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands. (4) Totals for the United States do not include data for Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands.
Note: Data are preliminary. Covered employment and wages includes workers covered by Unemployment Insurance (UI) and Unemployment Compensation for Federal Employees (UCFE) programs.

Table 2. Covered establishments, employment, and wages in the United States and all counties in Utah, first quarter 2024

Area	Establishments	Employment March 2024	Average weekly wage ($) (1)
United States (2)	12,169,000	153,585,576	1,527
Utah	135,682	1,699,634	1,313
Beaver	254	2,744	805
Box Elder	1,613	23,094	1,189
Cache	4,461	62,524	965
Carbon	631	8,517	964
Daggett	57	329	827
Davis	10,325	143,172	1,153
Duchesne	839	8,844	1,124
Emery	268	3,745	1,060
Garfield	290	2,186	811
Grand	681	6,856	879
Iron	2,164	24,713	877
Juab	389	4,448	868
Kane	422	3,799	817
Millard	458	5,489	1,007
Morgan	447	3,081	1,047
Piute	62	293	688
Rich	156	1,013	888
Salt Lake	64,785	790,522	1,546
San Juan	375	4,450	960
Sanpete	722	9,426	808
Sevier	791	9,793	876
Summit	3,513	34,259	1,237
Tooele	1,482	20,098	1,019
Uintah	1,353	14,949	1,063
Utah	21,987	292,339	1,231
Wasatch	1,617	11,705	1,120
Washington	8,109	84,981	900
Wayne	152	1,208	770
Weber	7,279	121,057	1,117
(1) Average weekly wages were calculated using unrounded data. (2) Totals for the United States do not include data for Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands.
Note: Data are preliminary. Covered employment and wages includes workers covered by Unemployment Insurance (UI) and Unemployment Compensation for Federal Employees (UCFE) programs.

Table 3. Covered establishments, employment, and wages by state, first quarter 2024

State	Establishments, first quarter (thousands)	Employment	Average weekly wage (1)
March 2024 (thousands)	Percent change, March 2023-24	First quarter 2024 ($)	National ranking by level	Percent change, first quarter 2023-24	National ranking by percent change
United States (2)	12,169.0	153,585.6	1.3	1,527	--	4.2	--
Alabama	160.7	2,091.9	1.6	1,201	37	3.3	44
Alaska	25.2	318.1	2.2	1,374	22	5.6	2
Arizona	229.4	3,257.0	2.9	1,372	23	3.1	46
Arkansas	104.6	1,292.8	1.4	1,171	44	4.0	24
California	1,835.8	18,053.0	1.5	1,833	5	5.5	3
Colorado	264.4	2,851.4	0.3	1,613	8	3.5	38
Connecticut	149.5	1,661.9	1.0	1,908	4	4.4	18
Delaware	43.0	469.3	1.8	1,484	15	3.7	33
District of Columbia	52.3	759.8	0.7	2,434	1	4.0	24
Florida	898.9	9,863.2	2.1	1,384	20	4.2	20
Georgia	401.4	4,843.9	1.3	1,441	17	4.7	12
Hawaii	58.6	638.8	0.6	1,278	29	4.8	10
Idaho	98.5	835.8	1.9	1,130	47	4.1	22
Illinois	410.2	5,966.9	0.3	1,608	9	2.7	50
Indiana	195.2	3,148.3	0.6	1,271	30	5.7	1
Iowa	110.8	1,543.1	0.9	1,214	36	3.2	45
Kansas	100.7	1,415.7	0.7	1,199	38	3.8	32
Kentucky	155.8	1,987.2	1.4	1,178	42	3.4	43
Louisiana	154.5	1,904.2	0.7	1,195	39	4.0	24
Maine	65.0	626.4	1.3	1,249	34	5.2	4
Maryland	198.4	2,690.0	0.8	1,591	10	4.5	16
Massachusetts	287.4	3,599.0	0.5	2,015	3	4.9	8
Michigan	338.6	4,351.0	1.0	1,352	24	3.5	38
Minnesota	210.5	2,850.4	0.2	1,519	14	4.0	24
Mississippi	89.5	1,157.2	0.2	980	51	3.6	36
Missouri	257.5	2,882.5	1.0	1,269	31	3.7	33
Montana	61.8	503.1	1.2	1,126	49	4.4	18
Nebraska	76.0	1,007.3	1.5	1,195	39	2.6	51
Nevada	112.1	1,534.4	2.4	1,304	28	4.7	12
New Hampshire	65.9	680.0	1.1	1,531	13	4.7	12
New Jersey	335.6	4,218.8	1.3	1,761	7	3.5	38
New Mexico	67.9	861.5	1.6	1,159	45	4.8	10
New York	709.5	9,537.4	1.8	2,089	2	3.5	38
North Carolina	395.7	4,871.0	1.8	1,401	18	4.0	24
North Dakota	36.1	419.9	1.6	1,261	33	3.7	33
Ohio	337.0	5,452.8	0.8	1,315	25	4.0	24
Oklahoma	132.9	1,690.0	1.7	1,152	46	4.0	24
Oregon	198.9	1,971.9	-0.3	1,377	21	3.1	46
Pennsylvania	392.0	5,967.0	1.1	1,449	16	3.0	48
Rhode Island	48.5	483.9	1.1	1,387	19	4.0	24
South Carolina	184.6	2,265.9	2.1	1,194	41	4.9	8
South Dakota	39.9	449.7	2.0	1,129	48	4.2	20
Tennessee	230.1	3,261.3	1.9	1,311	27	3.5	38
Texas	839.6	13,826.9	1.7	1,540	12	4.1	22
Utah	135.7	1,699.6	1.9	1,313	26	5.2	4
Vermont	32.8	307.3	0.6	1,232	35	3.6	36
Virginia	318.3	4,072.6	1.6	1,554	11	5.2	4
Washington	224.3	3,577.3	1.3	1,815	6	5.1	7
West Virginia	60.8	694.0	1.6	1,110	50	4.6	15
Wisconsin	206.0	2,899.1	0.6	1,263	32	4.5	16
Wyoming	30.8	274.1	1.1	1,177	43	2.8	49
Puerto Rico	54.7	952.8	1.6	677	(3)	4.8	(3)
Virgin Islands	3.9	36.5	0.9	996	(3)	1.6	(3)
(1) Average weekly wages were calculated using unrounded data. (2) Totals for the United States do not include data for Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands. (3) Data not included in the national ranking.
Note: Data are preliminary. Covered employment and wages includes workers covered by Unemployment Insurance (UI) and Unemployment Compensation for Federal Employees (UCFE) programs.

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