Benton County top US county for wage growth, Arkansas wages up 5.5%
by February 19, 2025 2:20 pm 1,645 views
At 15.5%, Benton County had the largest average weekly percentage wage growth in the third quarter of 2024 among the 369 “largest” U.S. counties, according to a report posted Wednesday (Feb. 19) by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).
The data measures county job growth between September 2023 and September 2024, and measures average weekly wage changes between the third quarter of 2023 and the third quarter of 2024.
Benton County had average weekly wages in the 2024 third quarter of $1,516, up 15.5% compared with the same period in 2023.
“Within Benton, an average weekly wage gain of $615 (+28.9 percent) in professional and business services made the largest contribution to the county’s increase in average weekly wages,” noted the BLS report.
Pulaski County had average weekly wages in the third quarter of $1,188, up 3.8% compared with the same quarter in 2023, and Washington County had average weekly wages of $1,102, up 2.2% in the quarter-over-quarter comparison. The three Arkansas counties are the only counties noted in the BLS report.
Arkansas’ average weekly wages in the third quarter were $1,094, up 5.5%, which was better than the national average weekly wage growth of 4.5%. The U.S. weekly average wage was $1,394 in the third quarter.
Following are the data for the three Arkansas counties included in the Feb. 19 BLS report.
• Benton County
Business establishments: 8,400
Estimated jobs in September 2024: 145,400, up 2.4% compared with September 2023
Average weekly wages: $1,516, up 15.5%
• Pulaski County
Business establishments: 14,200
Estimated jobs in September 2024: 263,200, up 1.7% compared with September 2023
Average weekly wages: $1,188, up 3.8%
• Washington County
Business establishments: 7,100
Estimated jobs in September 2024: 122,500, up 2.2% compared with September 2023
Average weekly wages: $1,102, up 2.2%
Among the six states contiguous with Arkansas, none had a higher percentage average weekly wage gain than Arkansas. Only Mississippi had a lower average weekly wage than Arkansas during the third quarter of 2024. Following are the third quarter 2024 average weekly wage data, with percentage increase compared to the 2023 quarter, for the six states.
Louisiana: $1,151, up 4%
Mississippi: $960, up 3.7%
Missouri: $1,197, up 4%
Oklahoma: $1,095, up 4.2%
Tennessee: $1,256, up 4.1%
Texas: $1,396, up 4.6%
JOB OPENINGS, LAYOFFS
The BLS also reported that Arkansas in December 2024 experienced a decline in job openings, a decline in new hires and an increase in layoffs compared with the same period in 2023.
The BLS Job Openings and Labor Turnover Summary, often referred to as the JOLTS report, had Arkansas with 84,000 estimated job openings in December, down 1.2% compared with 85,000 in December 2023.
New hires in the state during December were an estimated 54,000, a steep drop of 21.7% from the 69,000 in December 2023. The estimated number of layoffs in the state during December were 16,000, 14.3% more than the 14,000 in December 2023.
