# BLS QCEW

The Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages: annual-average private-sector employment, establishments and location quotients by county and NAICS industry, for a curated list of manufacturing, logistics and related industries, so a question like "does this market have an aerospace base?" can be screened.

## Source

| Fact | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publisher | U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics |
| Product | Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (annual averages by county and industry) |
| Source | [https://www.bls.gov/cew/](https://www.bls.gov/cew/) |
| Category | Labor |
| Period | 2025 annual averages, private ownership |
| Refresh cadence | Quarterly |
| Geographies | County. A metro is assembled from its counties: counts are summed over the counties that disclose them, and the location quotient is rebuilt from the counties' jobs rather than averaged. |
| Availability | Available |
| Cadastre key | `bls-qcew` |

## Licence and attribution

| Fact | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Licence | Public domain (U.S. federal government work) |
| Terms | [https://www.bls.gov/opub/copyright-information.htm](https://www.bls.gov/opub/copyright-information.htm) |
| Register status | Production approved; licence open |
| Allowed uses | `evaluation`, `internal`, `public_display`, `derived_analytics`, `redistribution`, `bulk_export`, `public_geometry`, `api` |

This source requires no credit line beyond naming the publisher. Cite it as **U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (annual averages by county and industry)**.

## Measures

The key is the measure's identifier in Cadastre. A measure stored for the metro itself is read as stored; **Rule from counties** is how a metro is assembled from its counties where it is not (see [Methodology](https://getcadastre.com/docs/methodology)).

| Key | Label | Unit | Rule from counties | Basis |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| `qcew_total_employment` | Private-sector employment | jobs | sum over member counties that disclose it, a lower bound (unavailable where suppression hides much of the industry) | coverage: Private-sector establishments |
| `qcew_total_establishments` | Private-sector establishments | establishments | sum over member counties | — |
| `qcew_31_33_employment` | Manufacturing employment | jobs | sum over member counties that disclose it, a lower bound (unavailable where suppression hides much of the industry) | coverage: Manufacturing establishments |
| `qcew_31_33_establishments` | Manufacturing establishments | establishments | sum over member counties | — |
| `qcew_31_33_location_quotient` | Manufacturing location quotient | ratio to the U.S. share of jobs (1 = U.S. average) | member counties' combined job share against the U.S. share (unavailable where suppression hides much of the industry) | weight: Private-sector employment; coverage: Manufacturing establishments |
| `qcew_311_employment` | Food manufacturing employment | jobs | sum over member counties that disclose it, a lower bound (unavailable where suppression hides much of the industry) | coverage: Food manufacturing establishments |
| `qcew_311_establishments` | Food manufacturing establishments | establishments | sum over member counties | — |
| `qcew_311_location_quotient` | Food manufacturing location quotient | ratio to the U.S. share of jobs (1 = U.S. average) | member counties' combined job share against the U.S. share (unavailable where suppression hides much of the industry) | weight: Private-sector employment; coverage: Food manufacturing establishments |
| `qcew_325_employment` | Chemical manufacturing employment | jobs | sum over member counties that disclose it, a lower bound (unavailable where suppression hides much of the industry) | coverage: Chemical manufacturing establishments |
| `qcew_325_establishments` | Chemical manufacturing establishments | establishments | sum over member counties | — |
| `qcew_325_location_quotient` | Chemical manufacturing location quotient | ratio to the U.S. share of jobs (1 = U.S. average) | member counties' combined job share against the U.S. share (unavailable where suppression hides much of the industry) | weight: Private-sector employment; coverage: Chemical manufacturing establishments |
| `qcew_3254_employment` | Pharmaceutical and medicine manufacturing employment | jobs | sum over member counties that disclose it, a lower bound (unavailable where suppression hides much of the industry) | coverage: Pharmaceutical and medicine manufacturing establishments |
| `qcew_3254_establishments` | Pharmaceutical and medicine manufacturing establishments | establishments | sum over member counties | — |
| `qcew_3254_location_quotient` | Pharmaceutical and medicine manufacturing location quotient | ratio to the U.S. share of jobs (1 = U.S. average) | member counties' combined job share against the U.S. share (unavailable where suppression hides much of the industry) | weight: Private-sector employment; coverage: Pharmaceutical and medicine manufacturing establishments |
| `qcew_332_employment` | Fabricated metal product manufacturing employment | jobs | sum over member counties that disclose it, a lower bound (unavailable where suppression hides much of the industry) | coverage: Fabricated metal product manufacturing establishments |
| `qcew_332_establishments` | Fabricated metal product manufacturing establishments | establishments | sum over member counties | — |
| `qcew_332_location_quotient` | Fabricated metal product manufacturing location quotient | ratio to the U.S. share of jobs (1 = U.S. average) | member counties' combined job share against the U.S. share (unavailable where suppression hides much of the industry) | weight: Private-sector employment; coverage: Fabricated metal product manufacturing establishments |
| `qcew_332710_employment` | Machine shop employment | jobs | sum over member counties that disclose it, a lower bound (unavailable where suppression hides much of the industry) | coverage: Machine shop establishments |
| `qcew_332710_establishments` | Machine shop establishments | establishments | sum over member counties | — |
| `qcew_332710_location_quotient` | Machine shop location quotient | ratio to the U.S. share of jobs (1 = U.S. average) | member counties' combined job share against the U.S. share (unavailable where suppression hides much of the industry) | weight: Private-sector employment; coverage: Machine shop establishments |
| `qcew_333_employment` | Machinery manufacturing employment | jobs | sum over member counties that disclose it, a lower bound (unavailable where suppression hides much of the industry) | coverage: Machinery manufacturing establishments |
| `qcew_333_establishments` | Machinery manufacturing establishments | establishments | sum over member counties | — |
| `qcew_333_location_quotient` | Machinery manufacturing location quotient | ratio to the U.S. share of jobs (1 = U.S. average) | member counties' combined job share against the U.S. share (unavailable where suppression hides much of the industry) | weight: Private-sector employment; coverage: Machinery manufacturing establishments |
| `qcew_334_employment` | Computer and electronic product manufacturing employment | jobs | sum over member counties that disclose it, a lower bound (unavailable where suppression hides much of the industry) | coverage: Computer and electronic product manufacturing establishments |
| `qcew_334_establishments` | Computer and electronic product manufacturing establishments | establishments | sum over member counties | — |
| `qcew_334_location_quotient` | Computer and electronic product manufacturing location quotient | ratio to the U.S. share of jobs (1 = U.S. average) | member counties' combined job share against the U.S. share (unavailable where suppression hides much of the industry) | weight: Private-sector employment; coverage: Computer and electronic product manufacturing establishments |
| `qcew_335_employment` | Electrical equipment and appliance manufacturing employment | jobs | sum over member counties that disclose it, a lower bound (unavailable where suppression hides much of the industry) | coverage: Electrical equipment and appliance manufacturing establishments |
| `qcew_335_establishments` | Electrical equipment and appliance manufacturing establishments | establishments | sum over member counties | — |
| `qcew_335_location_quotient` | Electrical equipment and appliance manufacturing location quotient | ratio to the U.S. share of jobs (1 = U.S. average) | member counties' combined job share against the U.S. share (unavailable where suppression hides much of the industry) | weight: Private-sector employment; coverage: Electrical equipment and appliance manufacturing establishments |
| `qcew_336_employment` | Transportation equipment manufacturing employment | jobs | sum over member counties that disclose it, a lower bound (unavailable where suppression hides much of the industry) | coverage: Transportation equipment manufacturing establishments |
| `qcew_336_establishments` | Transportation equipment manufacturing establishments | establishments | sum over member counties | — |
| `qcew_336_location_quotient` | Transportation equipment manufacturing location quotient | ratio to the U.S. share of jobs (1 = U.S. average) | member counties' combined job share against the U.S. share (unavailable where suppression hides much of the industry) | weight: Private-sector employment; coverage: Transportation equipment manufacturing establishments |
| `qcew_3361_employment` | Motor vehicle manufacturing employment | jobs | sum over member counties that disclose it, a lower bound (unavailable where suppression hides much of the industry) | coverage: Motor vehicle manufacturing establishments |
| `qcew_3361_establishments` | Motor vehicle manufacturing establishments | establishments | sum over member counties | — |
| `qcew_3361_location_quotient` | Motor vehicle manufacturing location quotient | ratio to the U.S. share of jobs (1 = U.S. average) | member counties' combined job share against the U.S. share (unavailable where suppression hides much of the industry) | weight: Private-sector employment; coverage: Motor vehicle manufacturing establishments |
| `qcew_3362_employment` | Motor vehicle body and trailer manufacturing employment | jobs | sum over member counties that disclose it, a lower bound (unavailable where suppression hides much of the industry) | coverage: Motor vehicle body and trailer manufacturing establishments |
| `qcew_3362_establishments` | Motor vehicle body and trailer manufacturing establishments | establishments | sum over member counties | — |
| `qcew_3362_location_quotient` | Motor vehicle body and trailer manufacturing location quotient | ratio to the U.S. share of jobs (1 = U.S. average) | member counties' combined job share against the U.S. share (unavailable where suppression hides much of the industry) | weight: Private-sector employment; coverage: Motor vehicle body and trailer manufacturing establishments |
| `qcew_3363_employment` | Motor vehicle parts manufacturing employment | jobs | sum over member counties that disclose it, a lower bound (unavailable where suppression hides much of the industry) | coverage: Motor vehicle parts manufacturing establishments |
| `qcew_3363_establishments` | Motor vehicle parts manufacturing establishments | establishments | sum over member counties | — |
| `qcew_3363_location_quotient` | Motor vehicle parts manufacturing location quotient | ratio to the U.S. share of jobs (1 = U.S. average) | member counties' combined job share against the U.S. share (unavailable where suppression hides much of the industry) | weight: Private-sector employment; coverage: Motor vehicle parts manufacturing establishments |
| `qcew_3364_employment` | Aerospace manufacturing employment | jobs | sum over member counties that disclose it, a lower bound (unavailable where suppression hides much of the industry) | coverage: Aerospace manufacturing establishments |
| `qcew_3364_establishments` | Aerospace manufacturing establishments | establishments | sum over member counties | — |
| `qcew_3364_location_quotient` | Aerospace manufacturing location quotient | ratio to the U.S. share of jobs (1 = U.S. average) | member counties' combined job share against the U.S. share (unavailable where suppression hides much of the industry) | weight: Private-sector employment; coverage: Aerospace manufacturing establishments |
| `qcew_336411_employment` | Aircraft manufacturing employment | jobs | sum over member counties that disclose it, a lower bound (unavailable where suppression hides much of the industry) | coverage: Aircraft manufacturing establishments |
| `qcew_336411_establishments` | Aircraft manufacturing establishments | establishments | sum over member counties | — |
| `qcew_336411_location_quotient` | Aircraft manufacturing location quotient | ratio to the U.S. share of jobs (1 = U.S. average) | member counties' combined job share against the U.S. share (unavailable where suppression hides much of the industry) | weight: Private-sector employment; coverage: Aircraft manufacturing establishments |
| `qcew_336412_employment` | Aircraft engine and engine parts manufacturing employment | jobs | sum over member counties that disclose it, a lower bound (unavailable where suppression hides much of the industry) | coverage: Aircraft engine and engine parts manufacturing establishments |
| `qcew_336412_establishments` | Aircraft engine and engine parts manufacturing establishments | establishments | sum over member counties | — |
| `qcew_336412_location_quotient` | Aircraft engine and engine parts manufacturing location quotient | ratio to the U.S. share of jobs (1 = U.S. average) | member counties' combined job share against the U.S. share (unavailable where suppression hides much of the industry) | weight: Private-sector employment; coverage: Aircraft engine and engine parts manufacturing establishments |
| `qcew_336413_employment` | Aircraft parts and auxiliary equipment manufacturing employment | jobs | sum over member counties that disclose it, a lower bound (unavailable where suppression hides much of the industry) | coverage: Aircraft parts and auxiliary equipment manufacturing establishments |
| `qcew_336413_establishments` | Aircraft parts and auxiliary equipment manufacturing establishments | establishments | sum over member counties | — |
| `qcew_336413_location_quotient` | Aircraft parts and auxiliary equipment manufacturing location quotient | ratio to the U.S. share of jobs (1 = U.S. average) | member counties' combined job share against the U.S. share (unavailable where suppression hides much of the industry) | weight: Private-sector employment; coverage: Aircraft parts and auxiliary equipment manufacturing establishments |
| `qcew_493_employment` | Warehousing and storage employment | jobs | sum over member counties that disclose it, a lower bound (unavailable where suppression hides much of the industry) | coverage: Warehousing and storage establishments |
| `qcew_493_establishments` | Warehousing and storage establishments | establishments | sum over member counties | — |
| `qcew_493_location_quotient` | Warehousing and storage location quotient | ratio to the U.S. share of jobs (1 = U.S. average) | member counties' combined job share against the U.S. share (unavailable where suppression hides much of the industry) | weight: Private-sector employment; coverage: Warehousing and storage establishments |
| `qcew_484_employment` | Truck transportation employment | jobs | sum over member counties that disclose it, a lower bound (unavailable where suppression hides much of the industry) | coverage: Truck transportation establishments |
| `qcew_484_establishments` | Truck transportation establishments | establishments | sum over member counties | — |
| `qcew_484_location_quotient` | Truck transportation location quotient | ratio to the U.S. share of jobs (1 = U.S. average) | member counties' combined job share against the U.S. share (unavailable where suppression hides much of the industry) | weight: Private-sector employment; coverage: Truck transportation establishments |

## Known gaps and caveats

- BLS withholds a county's employment where a few employers would be identifiable; establishment counts are never withheld. Withheld employment is unknown, never zero.
- A metro has no value where the disclosing counties hold less than 80% of its establishments in the industry, so most small metros have no value for the narrow industries. That is BLS disclosure, not a gap in the import.
- It counts an industry's own establishments, not a customer's suppliers.

## See also

- [All datasets](https://getcadastre.com/docs/datasets)
- [Rights and attribution](https://getcadastre.com/docs/rights)
- [Data freshness](https://getcadastre.com/docs/freshness)