Quarterly Census of Employment and Wares
Contents
09/09/25 25Q1 QCEW Data Release
The Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW) is a program that produces a comprehensive tabulation of employment and wage data for workers in the United States. It's a key source of information on the American labor market.
Key Features of QCEW
| • | Comprehensive Coverage: QCEW data is derived from administrative records submitted by employers to state unemployment insurance (UI) programs. This means it covers over 95% of U.S. jobs, making it a near-census of employment and wages. |
| • | Detailed Geography and Industry: The data is available at a very granular level. You can find information on employment, wages, and the number of business establishments by: |
| o | National, state, and county levels |
| o | Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs) |
| o | Detailed industries, classified using the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) |
| • | Quarterly and Annual Data: As the name suggests, the program collects data on a quarterly basis. It provides monthly employment figures and quarterly wage totals. Annual averages are also calculated and published. |
What data does QCEW provide?
For each geographic area and industry, QCEW provides:
| • | Number of Establishments: The count of business units (e.g., a factory, an office, a store) |
| • | Monthly Employment: The number of covered workers on a payroll for the pay period including the 12th of each month. |
| • | Total Quarterly Wages: The total wages paid to all covered workers during the quarter, including bonuses, commissions, and other cash payments. |
| • | Average Weekly Wage: The total quarterly wages divided by the number of months in the quarter and the average employment. |
How is QCEW data used?
QCEW data is considered the "gold standard" for industry employment data and is used for a variety of purposes by government agencies, researchers, and private businesses:
| • | Benchmarking and Sample Frames: Other Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) programs, such as the Current Employment Statistics (CES) and the Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), use QCEW data as a benchmark to adjust their survey-based estimates and as a sample frame for their surveys. |
| • | Economic Analysis: The Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) uses QCEW data to help calculate the wage and salary component of personal income, a key part of Gross Domestic Product (GDP). |
| • | Economic Development: State and local governments use the data for economic planning, to evaluate labor trends, and to monitor industry developments. |
| • | Research: Researchers use the detailed data to study a wide range of topics, including minimum wage impacts, rural economies, and labor market concentration. |