The Official Web Site of the State of South Carolina

DEW and SC Works offices will be closed Thursday, November 28 and Friday, November 29 in observance of Thanksgiving. All offices will reopen on Monday, December 2, and we will be happy to serve you then. Please note that unemployment payments may be delayed depending on your financial institution's holiday schedule.

Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW) Data for Third Quarter of 2022 Released

Wed, 03/22/2023

Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW) Data for Third Quarter of 2022 Released

Number of jobs across the state are up 99,299 from last year

Columbia, S.C. – The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics has released the Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW) for the third quarter of 2022, which provides data on firms, payroll, and wages at the county level as well as for detailed industry categories. This information is released quarterly five to six months after the end of the period in question and is derived from data in the State Unemployment Insurance Tax System (SUITS) housed at the S.C. Department of Employment and Workforce (DEW).

Overall, there were 2,192,058 jobs statewide in Quarter 3 of 2022, up 4.7 percent from last year’s figure of 2,092,759 in Quarter 3 of 2021. Average weekly wage for all workers increased by 13.7 percent, from $989 to $1,124. The number of establishments statewide also rose by over 8.8 percent over the year, from 153,081 to 166,566.

Among the 20 economic sectors reported, 19 saw jobs increase and only one (Administrative and Support and Waste Management) saw jobs decrease since the same period a year ago. The strongest sectors for growth were Accommodation and Food Services (+13,918) and Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services (+13,801). Every sector experienced a wage increase and all sectors saw their total number of businesses increase.

Among our state’s 46 counties, 38 have more jobs than they did a year ago. The counties with the largest increases in employment over the year were Greenville (+17,861) and Charleston (+16,313). Forty-five of 46 counties experienced wage increases, with Marlboro as the only exception, and 40 saw the total number of businesses increase.

“These numbers continue to show that South Carolina businesses continue to grow at a rapid clip, and that growth is broad-based across both industries and geographies,” said Dr. Bryan Grady, Assistant Executive Director for Labor Market Information (LMI) at DEW.

“With nearly 100,000 more people employed in the third quarter of 2022 than in 2021, our state’s workforce continues expanding in response to South Carolina’s growing needs,” said DEW Acting Executive Director William Floyd. “For all communities, including those experiencing temporary setbacks, SC Works Centers offer excellent help, such as in Marlboro County where DEW is partnering with the local technical college’s manufacturing training program for high school seniors. Due to South Carolina’s growing economy, this is a terrific time for employers and jobseekers to connect with one another by visiting an SC Works Center.” 

The full QCEW data set is available to review at https://jobs.scworks.org/qcew. For more information, interested parties can review the attached tables and contact communications@dew.sc.gov with any press inquiries or interview requests for the LMI Division.

 

Establishments, Employment, and Average Weekly Wage (AWW) by Industry

Economic Sector

3rd Quarter 2022

3rd Quarter 2021

Firms

Jobs

AWW

Firms

Jobs

AWW

Total, All Industries

 166,566

 2,192,058

$1,124

 153,081

 2,092,759

$989

Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing and Hunting

 1,317

 10,517

$891

 1,264

 10,445

$816

Mining, Quarrying, and Oil and Gas Extraction

 172

 2,070

$1,558

 152

 1,975

$1,383

Utilities

 650

 15,975

$1,779

 610

 15,839

$1,658

Construction

 13,919

 109,621

$1,272

 13,450

 105,139

$1,151

Manufacturing

 7,813

 262,845

$1,674

 7,158

 249,614

$1,207

Wholesale Trade

 9,494

 80,387

$1,633

 9,144

 74,419

$1,483

Retail Trade

 19,353

 259,696

$707

 18,770

 251,522

$662

Transportation and Warehousing

 4,916

 89,899

$1,068

 4,458

 85,248

$953

Information

 4,948

 33,041

$1,600

 4,049

 29,817

$1,468

Finance and Insurance

 10,113

 79,666

$1,583

 9,197

 74,630

$1,499

Real Estate and Rental and Leasing

 7,774

 34,572

$1,176

 7,104

 32,645

$1,056

Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services

 26,898

 120,977

$1,688

 22,935

 107,176

$1,527

Management of Companies and Enterprises

 1,429

 25,491

$1,713

 1,199

 24,017

$1,564

Administrative and Support and Waste Services

 10,232

 165,274

$866

 9,480

 165,623

$774

Private Educational Services

 3,423

 160,996

$988

 3,145

 156,109

$970

Health Care and Social Assistance

 15,621

 289,498

$1,215

 14,748

 279,920

$1,106

Arts, Entertainment, and Recreation

 2,465

 37,592

$511

 2,314

 35,170

$449

Accommodation and Food Services

 12,208

 239,804

$481

 11,639

 225,886

$444

Other Services, Except Public Administration

 11,032

 56,481

$871

 10,433

 51,873

$777

Public Administration

 1,887

 115,799

$1,080

 1,831

 115,671

$99

Source: Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, S.C. Department of Employment and Workforce / U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

 

Establishments, Employment, and Average Weekly Wage (AWW) by County

County

3rd Quarter 2022

3rd Quarter 2021

Firms

Jobs

AWW*

Firms

Jobs

AWW*

Abbeville

 405

 5,361

$917

 372

 5,258

$835

Aiken

 3,412

 61,878

$1,131

 3,272

 59,736

$1,061

Allendale

 176

 2,335

$957

 173

 2,400

$893

Anderson

 4,169

 69,399

$926

 3,946

 66,199

$885

Bamberg

 317

 3,467

$774

 295

 3,357

$743

Barnwell

 417

 4,945

$792

 392

 4,638

$706

Beaufort

 7,108

 70,721

$968

 6,681

 67,865

$882

Berkeley

 4,387

 59,572

$1,137

 3,815

 56,416

$1,078

Calhoun

 268

 4,481

$1,079

 265

 4,559

$913

Charleston

 19,909

 269,759

$1,233

 18,593

 253,446

$1,116

Cherokee

 927

 19,828

$833

 908

 19,776

$775

Chester

 595

 9,850

$1,008

 590

 9,499

$908

Chesterfield

 748

 14,674

$895

 723

 14,502

$842

Clarendon

 618

 6,998

$776

 620

 6,495

$726

Colleton

 821

 9,926

$852

 800

 10,036

$764

Darlington

 1,178

 20,680

$1,012

 1,152

 19,417

$937

Dillon

 504

 9,370

$770

 499

 9,111

$689

Dorchester

 3,004

 37,735

$958

 2,895

 34,987

$874

Edgefield

 399

 6,145

$954

 373

 5,308

$875

Fairfield

 394

 5,739

$1,087

 377

 5,347

$1,104

Florence

 3,512

 66,275

$976

 3,459

 64,321

$888

Georgetown

 2,229

 25,895

$910

 2,060

 24,780

$863

Greenville

 18,205

 288,830

$1,126

 16,934

 270,969

$1,032

Greenwood

 1,496

 27,131

$939

 1,472

 26,647

$873

Hampton

 386

 4,484

$996

 385

 4,443

$762

Horry

 11,149

 142,352

$871

 10,482

 134,163

$804

 

County

3rd Quarter 2022

3rd Quarter 2021

Firms

Jobs

AWW*

Firms

Jobs

AWW*

Jasper

 833

 10,133

$997

 805

 9,917

$868

Kershaw

 1,443

 18,118

$868

 1,387

 17,568

$792

Lancaster

 1,907

 26,966

$1,148

 1,759

 25,674

$1,029

Laurens

 964

 20,757

$929

 922

 20,862

$844

Lee

 299

 3,684

$863

 311

 3,720

$795

Lexington

 8,083

 125,675

$1,003

 7,711

 121,388

$935

Marion

 247

 1,998

$754

 188

 1,660

$690

Marlboro

 477

 6,856

$787

 496

 6,730

$760

McCormick

 340

 6,105

$910

 341

 6,336

$855

Newberry

 874

 15,316

$876

 847

 14,954

$815

Oconee

 1,895

 24,207

$1,026

 1,818

 23,229

$905

Orangeburg

 1,741

 27,536

$898

 1,728

 27,412

$840

Pickens

 2,694

 36,896

$957

 2,537

 35,701

$929

Richland

 11,728

 222,162

$1,116

 11,241

 216,085

$1,037

Saluda

 285

 4,841

$822

 287

 4,789

$772

Spartanburg

 7,503

 148,591

$1,066

 7,095

 145,231

$976

Sumter

 2,211

 36,403

$946

 2,159

 35,737

$861

Union

 473

 7,177

$908

 460

 7,368

$828

Williamsburg

 617

 7,712

$946

 626

 7,831

$860

York

 7,825

 103,018

$1,102

 7,259

 100,179

$1,004

Source: Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, S.C. Department of Employment and Workforce / U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics