QCEW Data for the Fourth Quarter of 2022 is Now Available

Tue, 06/27/2023

QCEW Data for the Fourth Quarter of 2022 is Now Available

The number of jobs across the state is up 76,164 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 fourth quarter of 2022, which provides data on firms, industries, payroll, and wages at the county level. This information is released quarterly, usually five to six months after the end of the period in question, and is derived from data sourced from the State Unemployment Insurance Tax System (SUITS) at the S.C. Department of Employment and Workforce (DEW).

Overall, there were 2,215,145 jobs statewide in Quarter 4 of 2022, up notably from last year’s figure of 2,138,981 in Quarter 4 of 2021. The average weekly wage for all workers increased by 1.6 percent, from $1,101 to $1,119. The number of establishments across the state also rose by nearly 9.8 percent over the year, from 155,780 to 171,043.

Among the 20 economic sectors reported, 18 saw jobs increase and only two saw jobs decrease since the same period a year ago. The strongest sectors for growth were Professional and Technical Services (+13,911) and Accommodation and Food Services (+12,683). On the other end, the weakest sector was Administrative and Waste Services (-7,926). Thirteen sectors experienced a wage increase and all sectors saw the total number of businesses increase.

Among the state’s 46 counties, 34 have more jobs than they did a year ago, and 12 have fewer. The counties with the largest increases in employment over the year were Charleston (+13,478) and Greenville (+11,760), while the largest decline was seen in Marlboro (-947). 32 counties experienced average weekly wage increases and 40 saw the total number of businesses increase.

“We are seeing an upward trend of employment statewide with over 76,000 more people employed in the fourth quarter of 2022 than in 2021,” said DEW Executive Director William Floyd. “This is a great reflection of South Carolina’s upward trajectory in the job market. We hope to continue to support this growth with our upcoming July SC@Work: Road Trips, where we bring job fairs and career services directly to our most rural and underserved areas across the state.”

The full QCEW data set is available to review at 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.

To learn more about the upcoming SC@Work: Road Trips, please visit scworks.org/roadtrips.

Establishments, Employment, and Average Weekly Wage (AWW) by Industry
Economic Sector	4th Quarter 2022			4th Quarter 2021
Economic Sector	Firms	Jobs	AWW	Firms	Jobs	AWW
Total, All Industries	171,043	2,215,145	$1,119	155,780	2,138,981	$1,101
Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing and Hunting	1,346	10,105	$1,100	1,262	10,658	$925
Mining, Quarrying, and Oil and Gas Extraction	173	2,095	$1,560	157	1,980	$1,579
Utilities	657	16,062	$1,861	612	15,775	$1,831
Construction	14,361	109,395	$1,394	13,554	105,685	$1,341
Manufacturing	8,083	262,377	$1,327	7,326	253,903	$1,338
Wholesale Trade	9,831	81,406	$1,717	9,238	76,935	$1,677
Retail Trade	19,675	266,027	$695	18,936	259,539	$700
Transportation and Warehousing	5,091	94,674	$1,032	4,565	91,321	$1,039
Information	5,173	33,383	$1,656	4,274	30,457	$1,625
Finance and Insurance	10,431	81,015	$1,618	9,380	76,326	$1,655
Real Estate and Rental and Leasing	8,120	34,339	$1,270	7,318	32,577	$1,259
Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services	28,324	124,968	$1,848	23,766	111,057	$1,826
Management of Companies and Enterprises	1,478	25,218	$1,917	1,242	25,100	$2,020
Administrative and Support and Waste Services	10,566	164,047	$1,015	9,612	171,973	$870
Private Educational Services	3,510	177,492	$1,012	3,181	173,224	$975
Health Care and Social Assistance	16,038	292,060	$1,199	14,914	281,055	$1,239
Arts, Entertainment, and Recreation	2,530	34,717	$568	2,338	32,449	$543
Accommodation and Food Services	12,446	233,676	$463	11,752	220,993	$456
Other Services, Except Public Administration	11,239	56,762	$893	10,505	52,825	$869
Public Administration	1,890	115,326	$1,109	1,848	115,148	$1,086

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	4th Quarter 2022			4th Quarter 2021
County	Firms	Jobs	AWW*	Firms	Jobs	AWW*
Abbeville	413	5,436	$899	376	5,491	$908
Aiken	3,476	62,309	$1,158	3,288	60,131	$1,152
Allendale	176	2,568	$1,154	171	2,413	$1,013
Anderson	4,225	70,734	$974	4,003	68,829	$968
Bamberg	325	3,526	$852	295	3,424	$836
Barnwell	418	5,134	$792	395	4,752	$792
Beaufort	7,256	69,105	$1,031	6,764	67,537	$1,014
Berkeley	4,507	60,356	$1,230	3,899	57,304	$1,216
Calhoun	271	4,588	$1,081	264	4,550	$1,070
Charleston	20,484	270,846	$1,234	18,854	257,368	$1,240
Cherokee	940	20,152	$856	906	20,871	$821
Chester	610	9,951	$1,062	593	9,737	$1,012
Chesterfield	768	14,812	$885	729	14,647	$865
Clarendon	622	6,741	$787	625	6,823	$731
Colleton	833	9,854	$920	796	10,189	$855
Darlington	1,188	20,838	$1,085	1,149	20,310	$1,024
Dillon	513	9,609	$757	489	9,418	$744
Dorchester	3,082	38,749	$958	2,966	35,922	$927
Edgefield	403	5,843	$979	379	5,596	$989
Fairfield	402	5,679	$1,143	391	5,514	$1,275
Florence	3,550	67,688	$965	3,465	65,580	$967
Georgetown	2,264	25,135	$966	2,074	24,526	$976
Greenville	18,647	291,413	$1,162	17,160	279,653	$1,169
Greenwood	1,509	27,705	$977	1,473	27,992	$967
Hampton	388	4,663	$931	386	4,577	$1,037
Horry	11,403	137,221	$1,048	10,631	130,998	$882
Jasper	853	10,168	$1,036	821	10,014	$1,000
Kershaw	1,469	18,243	$866	1,397	18,076	$854
Lancaster	1,949	27,460	$1,174	1,778	25,891	$1,137
Laurens	975	20,770	$995	923	20,880	$918
Lee	303	3,642	$904	317	3,749	$837
Lexington	8,262	127,910	$1,053	7,791	124,398	$1,034
Marion	481	6,830	$811	493	6,895	$787
Marlboro	340	5,606	$1,052	344	6,553	$1,213
McCormick	254	1,907	$762	188	1,670	$721
Newberry	879	15,371	$886	845	15,068	$868
Oconee	1,923	25,083	$1,036	1,831	23,665	$1,038
Orangeburg	1,752	28,585	$942	1,739	27,888	$936
Pickens	2,729	38,279	$998	2,568	36,911	$995
Richland	11,976	226,400	$1,141	11,335	220,790	$1,132
Saluda	287	4,725	$864	289	4,832	$812
Spartanburg	7,633	151,966	$1,079	7,147	149,492	$1,097
Sumter	2,250	36,535	$954	2,174	36,316	$954
Union	471	7,342	$906	463	7,669	$937
Williamsburg	626	7,518	$1,001	628	7,781	$999
York	8,075	103,740	$1,126	7,392	101,767	$1,117

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

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