Somerset County vs. New Jersey
Comparative Trends Analysis:
Total Employment Growth and Change, 1969-2022
Introduction
Somerset County vs. New Jersey
Somerset County:
2022 Jobs = 280,436
2022 Percent of State = 4.75%
New Jersey:
2022 Jobs = 5,905,843
2022 Percent of U.S. = 2.78%
Employment numbers remain the most popular and frequently cited statistics used for tracking local area economic conditions and trends. The Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) employment estimates reported measure the number of full- and part-time wage and salary employees, plus the number of proprietors of unincorporated businesses. People holding more than one job are counted in the employment estimates for each job they hold. This means BEA employment estimates represent a job count, not a people count. Also, BEA employment is by place-of-work, rather than by place-of-residence. Jobs held by neighboring county residents who commute to Somerset County to work are included in the employment count for Somerset County.
Data Definition:
The BEA employment series for states and local areas comprises estimates of the number of jobs, full-time plus part-time, by place of work. Full-time and part-time jobs are counted at equal weight. Employees, sole proprietors, and active partners are included, but unpaid family workers and volunteers are not included. Proprietors employment consists of the number of sole proprietorships and the number of partners in partnerships. The description "by place of work" applies to the wage and salary portion of the series and, with relatively little error, to the entire series. The proprietors employment portion of the series, however, is more nearly by place of residence because, for nonfarm sole proprietorships, the estimates are based on IRS tax data that reflect the address from which the proprietor's individual tax return is filed, which is usually the proprietor's residence. The nonfarm partnership portion of the proprietors employment series reflects the tax-filing address of the partnership, which may be either the residence of one of the partners or the business address of the partnership. The employment estimates are designed to be consistent with the estimates of wages and salaries and proprietors' income that are part of the personal income series. The employment estimates are based on the same sets of source data as the corresponding earnings estimates and are prepared with parallel methodologies. Two forms of proprietors' income-the income of limited partnerships and the income of tax-exempt cooperatives-have no corresponding employment estimates.
Total Employment, 1969-2022
Total Employment, 1969-2022
Figure 1.
Figure 1 traces Somerset County's annual total employment for the period 1969-2022 to illustrate total employment patterns over time. During this 54-year period, Somerset County's total employment rose from 73,524 in 1969 to 280,436 in 2022, for a net gain of 206,912, or 281.42%.
Total Employment, 1969-2022
Total Employment, 1969-2022
Figure 2.
Figure 2 traces New Jersey's annual total employment for the period 1969-2022 to illustrate total employment patterns over time. During this 54-year period, New Jersey's total employment rose from 3,061,493 in 1969 to 5,905,843 in 2022, for a net gain of 2,844,350, or 92.91%.
Total Employment Indices (1969=100): 1969-2022
Total Employment Indices (1969=100): 1969-2022
Figure 3.
Figure 3 portrays Somerset County's total employment growth in a broader context by offering direct comparisons across time with New Jersey, the United States. The growth indices shown here express each region's total employment in 1969 as a base figure of 100, and the total employments in later years as a percentage of the 1969 base figure. This method allows for more direct comparison of differences in total employment growth between regions that may differ vastly in size.
Somerset County's overall total employment growth was 281.42% over 1969-2022 outpaced New Jersey's increase of 92.91%, and topped the United States' increase of 133.32%.
Total Employment as a Percent of the New Jersey Total: 1969-2022
Total Employment as a Percent of the New Jersey Total: 1969-2022
Figure 4.
Another interesting and insightful way of highlighting the total employment growth of Somerset County is to trace its individual percentage contributions to New Jersey's statewide total employment over time, as shown in Figure 4. A rising share means a region's total employment grew faster, or declined less, than New Jersey's total employment, while a declining share shows it grew more slowly.
In 1969, Somerset County's total employment comprised 2.40% of New Jersey's total employment, while in 2022 it totaled 4.75% thereby yielding a +2.35% share-shift.
   
 
Total Employment Share-Shift
2022 vs. 1969
 
Share-
Shift*
 
2022
vs.
1969
+2.35%
=
4.75%
-
2.40%
 
   
Somerset County Total Employment:
Annual Percent Change, 1970-2022
Somerset County Total Employment:
Annual Percent Change, 1970-2022
Figure 5.
Figure 5 highlights the short-run pattern of Somerset County's total employment growth by tracking the year-to-year percent change over 1970-2022. The average annual percent change for the entire 53-year period is also traced on this chart to provide a benchmark for gauging periods of relative high--and relative low--growth against the backdrop of the long-term average.
On average, Somerset County's total employment grew at an annual rate of 2.59% over 1970-2022. The county posted its highest growth in 1977 (9.14%) and posted its lowest growth in 2020 (-4.20%). In 2022, Somerset County's total employment grew by 5.75%
Somerset County Total Employment:
Annual Percent Change and Decade Averages Over 1970-2022
Somerset County Total Employment:
Annual Percent Change and Decade Averages Over 1970-2022
Figure 6.
Over the past five decades some counties have experienced extreme swings in growth, and often such swings have tended to coincide with the decades themselves. Figure 6 again depicts the annual percent change in Somerset County's total employment since 1970, but this time they are overlayed with average growth rates for the decade of the 1970s, 1980s, 1990s, 2000s, 2010s, and 2020-2022.
During the 1970s, Somerset County's annual total employment growth rate averaged 4.26%. It averaged 3.88% throughout the 1980s, 2.27% during the 1990s, 1.02% throughout the 2000s, 1.65% during the 2010s, 2.19% thus far this decade (2020-2022).
Total Employment Growth:
Average Annual Percent Change by Decade
Total Employment Growth:
Average Annual Percent Change by Decade
Figure 7.
Figure 7 compares the decade average growth rates for Somerset County noted in the previous graph with the corresponding decade averages for New Jersey and the nation. As the chart reveals, Somerset County's average annual total employment growth registered above New Jersey's average in the 1970s (4.26% vs. 1.52%), exceeded New Jersey's average during the 1980s (3.88% vs. 2.06%), outpaced New Jersey's average in the 1990s (2.27% vs. 0.51%), surpassed New Jersey's average throughout the 2000s (1.02% vs. 0.90%), outperformed New Jersey's average in the 2010s (1.65% vs. 1.11%), and registered above New Jersey's average over the 3 year period of the current decade, 2020-2022 (2.19% vs. 2.07%).
Finally, relative to nationwide total employment growth trends, Somerset County led the nation in the 1970s (4.26% vs. 2.21%), surpassed the nation during the 1980s (3.88% vs. 1.88%), outperformed the nation throughout the 1990s (2.27% vs. 1.73%), outgained the nation throughout the 2000s (1.02% vs. 0.74%), outperformed the nation during the 2010s (1.65% vs. 1.51%), and led the nation over 2020-2022 (2.19% vs. 1.82%).
   
 
Total Employment Growth:
Average Annual Percent Change
 
 
 
2.59
4.26
3.88
2.27
1.02
1.65
2.19
5.75
 
1.27
1.52
2.06
0.51
0.90
1.11
2.07
5.74
 
1.62
2.21
1.88
1.73
0.74
1.51
1.82
4.78
 
   
Job Ratios (Employment/Population): 1969-2022
Job Ratios (Employment/Population): 1969-2022
Figure 8.
The job ratios shown in Figure 8 for Somerset County, New Jersey and the nation not only portray a number of important trends, they also serves as a thumbnail guide to evaluating an economy's capacity to generate enough jobs fast enough to absorb the increasing number of workers attendant to a growing population. The job ratio is the number of full-time and part-time jobs by place of work, divided by population.
Nationally, the job ratio rose from 0.45 to 0.64 between 1969 and 2022. Somerset County's job ratio registered 0.38 in 1969, and 0.81 in 2022. Underlying the rising job ratio over the past several decades have been the increases in the labor force participation rates, with the number and proportion of women in the labor market playing a leading role.
An assortment of other factors can contribute to regional differences in the job ratio. They include differences in the proportion of elderly and retirees who no longer work and participate in the labor force, differences in the number and proportion of part-time vs. full-time workers, differences in industry composition, and differences in age and sex distribution and degree of urbanization. Also, a disproportionate number of workers commuting to work outside a county tends to lower its local county job ratio, while a net inflow of workers commuting to work inside the county tends to augment its local county job ratio.
Avoid interpreting the job ratio as the fraction (or percent) of the local population employed. This interpretation should only apply to the "employment-population ratio" statistic compiled by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) from the Current Population Survey (CPS).
Job Ratios (Employment/Population)
as a Percent of the U.S. Average:
1969-2022
Job Ratios (Employment/Population)
as a Percent of the U.S. Average:
1969-2022
Figure 9.
To highlight trends in a local job ratio relative to nationwide trends, Figure 9 tracks Somerset County's, New Jersey's job ratio as a percent of the national job ratio over 1969-2022.

Interactive TableTip: To augment your analysis click on the column headers in the following table to rank and/or sort the data.

   
 
Somerset County:
Total Employment, 1969-2022
 
1969
 
73,524
100.0
N
2.40
0.38
83.33
1970
 
74,529
101.4
1.37
2.39
0.37
83.68
1971
 
76,334
103.8
2.42
2.45
0.38
86.17
1972
 
81,045
110.2
6.17
2.55
0.40
89.76
1973
 
82,639
112.4
1.97
2.51
0.42
89.70
1974
 
88,243
120.0
6.78
2.67
0.45
95.12
1975
 
89,249
121.4
1.14
2.80
0.45
97.62
1976
 
91,296
124.2
2.29
2.81
0.46
97.95
1977
 
99,636
135.5
9.14
3.00
0.50
104.45
1978
 
105,275
143.2
5.66
3.04
0.52
106.15
1979
 
111,256
151.3
5.68
3.13
0.55
108.86
1980
 
111,970
152.3
0.64
3.11
0.55
109.60
1981
 
114,655
155.9
2.40
3.16
0.56
111.47
1982
 
116,231
158.1
1.37
3.19
0.56
114.00
1983
 
119,890
163.1
3.15
3.21
0.57
115.75
1984
 
129,096
175.6
7.68
3.30
0.61
119.25
1985
 
139,671
190.0
8.19
3.47
0.65
125.23
1986
 
145,481
197.9
4.16
3.53
0.66
126.02
1987
 
153,435
208.7
5.47
3.64
0.68
126.78
1988
 
159,283
216.6
3.81
3.69
0.68
125.13
1989
 
162,359
220.8
1.93
3.73
0.69
124.19
1990
 
165,242
224.7
1.78
3.83
0.68
123.49
1991
 
165,126
224.6
-0.07
3.96
0.67
123.49
1992
 
171,779
233.6
4.03
4.12
0.69
127.22
1993
 
177,753
241.8
3.48
4.24
0.69
127.78
1994
 
181,224
246.5
1.95
4.28
0.69
126.10
1995
 
182,597
248.4
0.76
4.25
0.68
123.04
1996
 
188,487
256.4
3.23
4.33
0.69
123.19
1997
 
197,687
268.9
4.88
4.48
0.71
124.47
1998
 
201,733
274.4
2.05
4.48
0.70
122.32
1999
 
202,903
276.0
0.58
4.44
0.69
119.31
2000
 
217,037
295.2
6.97
4.57
0.73
123.95
2001
 
219,843
299.0
1.29
4.60
0.73
125.46
2002
 
213,005
289.7
-3.11
4.45
0.70
121.57
2003
 
212,656
289.2
-0.16
4.41
0.69
120.76
2004
 
212,156
288.6
-0.24
4.32
0.68
118.52
2005
 
217,097
295.3
2.33
4.35
0.69
119.08
2006
 
220,918
300.5
1.76
4.37
0.70
118.99
2007
 
227,088
308.9
2.79
4.43
0.72
120.14
2008
 
228,060
310.2
0.43
4.45
0.72
121.36
2009
 
223,922
304.6
-1.81
4.49
0.70
123.03
2010
 
221,494
301.3
-1.08
4.47
0.68
122.14
2011
 
227,826
309.9
2.86
4.54
0.69
122.94
2012
 
231,869
315.4
1.77
4.59
0.70
123.06
2013
 
238,997
325.1
3.07
4.66
0.72
124.28
2014
 
244,457
332.5
2.28
4.69
0.73
124.74
2015
 
248,952
338.6
1.84
4.69
0.74
124.60
2016
 
255,817
347.9
2.76
4.75
0.75
126.27
2017
 
259,629
353.1
1.49
4.76
0.76
126.26
2018
 
262,051
356.4
0.93
4.72
0.76
125.06
2019
 
263,605
358.5
0.59
4.73
0.77
125.32
2020
 
252,539
343.5
-4.20
4.75
0.73
124.36
2021
 
265,177
360.7
5.00
4.75
0.77
125.39
2022
 
280,436
381.4
5.75
4.75
0.81
126.84
Source: Calculations by the New Jersey Regional Economic Analysis Project (NJ-REAP)
with data provided by the U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of Economic Analysis
November 2023
REAP_PI_CA1400_1000_PSN
 
   

Interactive TableTip: To augment your analysis click on the column headers in the following table to rank and/or sort the data.

   
 
New Jersey:
Total Employment, 1969-2022
 
1969
 
3,061,493
100.0
N
3.36
0.43
95.39
1970
 
3,124,572
102.1
2.06
3.42
0.43
97.02
1971
 
3,119,402
101.9
-0.17
3.41
0.43
96.74
1972
 
3,184,143
104.0
2.08
3.38
0.43
96.31
1973
 
3,288,124
107.4
3.27
3.34
0.45
96.25
1974
 
3,300,540
107.8
0.38
3.30
0.45
95.88
1975
 
3,190,693
104.2
-3.33
3.23
0.43
94.68
1976
 
3,248,286
106.1
1.81
3.20
0.44
94.72
1977
 
3,325,139
108.6
2.37
3.17
0.45
94.75
1978
 
3,464,561
113.2
4.19
3.16
0.47
95.36
1979
 
3,551,507
116.0
2.51
3.14
0.48
95.60
1980
 
3,600,866
117.6
1.39
3.16
0.49
97.32
1981
 
3,630,962
118.6
0.84
3.16
0.49
97.88
1982
 
3,638,914
118.9
0.22
3.19
0.49
99.37
1983
 
3,739,129
122.1
2.75
3.23
0.50
101.22
1984
 
3,914,206
127.9
4.68
3.25
0.52
101.90
1985
 
4,025,613
131.5
2.85
3.25
0.53
102.26
1986
 
4,121,635
134.6
2.39
3.27
0.54
102.87
1987
 
4,219,864
137.8
2.38
3.26
0.55
102.89
1988
 
4,316,583
141.0
2.29
3.23
0.56
102.46
1989
 
4,351,212
142.1
0.80
3.20
0.56
102.08
1990
 
4,309,704
140.8
-0.95
3.12
0.56
100.18
1991
 
4,172,215
136.3
-3.19
3.03
0.53
98.15
1992
 
4,170,013
136.2
-0.05
3.02
0.53
98.24
1993
 
4,197,161
137.1
0.65
2.98
0.53
97.49
1994
 
4,231,628
138.2
0.82
2.93
0.53
96.35
1995
 
4,296,373
140.3
1.53
2.90
0.53
95.68
1996
 
4,351,845
142.1
1.29
2.88
0.53
95.23
1997
 
4,412,438
144.1
1.39
2.86
0.54
94.72
1998
 
4,500,635
147.0
2.00
2.84
0.54
94.53
1999
 
4,571,128
149.3
1.57
2.83
0.55
94.46
2000
 
4,748,598
155.1
3.88
2.87
0.56
96.11
2001
 
4,777,145
156.0
0.60
2.89
0.56
96.84
2002
 
4,791,997
156.5
0.31
2.90
0.56
97.61
2003
 
4,825,010
157.6
0.69
2.91
0.56
98.08
2004
 
4,909,630
160.4
1.75
2.91
0.57
98.61
2005
 
4,991,163
163.0
1.66
2.90
0.58
98.92
2006
 
5,057,231
165.2
1.32
2.88
0.58
99.06
2007
 
5,130,173
167.6
1.44
2.86
0.59
99.19
2008
 
5,123,837
167.4
-0.12
2.86
0.59
99.81
2009
 
4,992,097
163.1
-2.57
2.88
0.57
100.73
2010
 
4,960,649
162.0
-0.63
2.87
0.56
100.76
2011
 
5,018,547
163.9
1.17
2.85
0.57
100.12
2012
 
5,053,885
165.1
0.70
2.82
0.57
99.36
2013
 
5,133,106
167.7
1.57
2.82
0.57
99.25
2014
 
5,206,898
170.1
1.44
2.80
0.58
98.81
2015
 
5,303,132
173.2
1.85
2.79
0.58
98.80
2016
 
5,391,258
176.1
1.66
2.79
0.59
99.13
2017
 
5,448,785
178.0
1.07
2.77
0.59
98.77
2018
 
5,550,061
181.3
1.86
2.77
0.60
98.75
2019
 
5,571,245
182.0
0.38
2.76
0.60
98.55
2020
 
5,319,454
173.8
-4.52
2.72
0.57
97.39
2021
 
5,585,214
182.4
5.00
2.75
0.60
98.69
2022
 
5,905,843
192.9
5.74
2.78
0.64
100.04
Source: Calculations by the New Jersey Regional Economic Analysis Project (NJ-REAP)
with data provided by the U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of Economic Analysis
November 2023
REAP_PI_CA1400_1000_PSN
 
   

Interactive TableTip: To augment your analysis click on the column headers in the following table to rank and/or sort the data.

   
 
United States:
Total Employment, 1969-2022
 
1969
 
91,053,200
100.0
N
0.45
1970
 
91,277,600
100.2
0.25
0.45
1971
 
91,581,400
100.6
0.33
0.44
1972
 
94,312,200
103.6
2.98
0.45
1973
 
98,427,500
108.1
4.36
0.47
1974
 
100,111,800
109.9
1.71
0.47
1975
 
98,900,600
108.6
-1.21
0.46
1976
 
101,591,200
111.6
2.72
0.47
1977
 
105,042,200
115.4
3.40
0.48
1978
 
109,686,600
120.5
4.42
0.49
1979
 
113,147,100
124.3
3.15
0.50
1980
 
113,983,200
125.2
0.74
0.50
1981
 
114,914,000
126.2
0.82
0.50
1982
 
114,163,300
125.4
-0.65
0.49
1983
 
115,645,700
127.0
1.30
0.49
1984
 
120,528,100
132.4
4.22
0.51
1985
 
123,796,700
136.0
2.71
0.52
1986
 
126,232,300
138.6
1.97
0.53
1987
 
129,548,400
142.3
2.63
0.53
1988
 
133,563,900
146.7
3.10
0.55
1989
 
136,177,800
149.6
1.96
0.55
1990
 
138,330,900
151.9
1.58
0.55
1991
 
137,612,800
151.1
-0.52
0.54
1992
 
138,166,100
151.7
0.40
0.54
1993
 
140,774,400
154.6
1.89
0.54
1994
 
144,196,600
158.4
2.43
0.55
1995
 
147,915,800
162.4
2.58
0.56
1996
 
151,056,200
165.9
2.12
0.56
1997
 
154,541,200
169.7
2.31
0.57
1998
 
158,481,200
174.1
2.55
0.57
1999
 
161,531,300
177.4
1.92
0.58
2000
 
165,370,800
181.6
2.38
0.59
2001
 
165,522,200
181.8
0.09
0.58
2002
 
165,095,100
181.3
-0.26
0.57
2003
 
165,921,500
182.2
0.50
0.57
2004
 
168,839,700
185.4
1.76
0.58
2005
 
172,338,400
189.3
2.07
0.58
2006
 
175,868,600
193.1
2.05
0.59
2007
 
179,543,700
197.2
2.09
0.60
2008
 
179,213,900
196.8
-0.18
0.59
2009
 
173,636,700
190.7
-3.11
0.57
2010
 
172,901,700
189.9
-0.42
0.56
2011
 
176,091,700
193.4
1.84
0.56
2012
 
178,979,700
196.6
1.64
0.57
2013
 
182,328,100
200.2
1.87
0.58
2014
 
186,239,800
204.5
2.15
0.58
2015
 
190,325,800
209.0
2.19
0.59
2016
 
193,425,900
212.4
1.63
0.60
2017
 
196,394,100
215.7
1.53
0.60
2018
 
200,292,200
220.0
1.98
0.61
2019
 
201,635,200
221.4
0.67
0.61
2020
 
195,286,600
214.5
-3.15
0.59
2021
 
202,752,100
222.7
3.82
0.61
2022
 
212,442,000
233.3
4.78
0.64
Source: Calculations by the New Jersey Regional Economic Analysis Project (NJ-REAP)
with data provided by the U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of Economic Analysis
November 2023
REAP_PI_CA1400_1000_PN
 
   
Copyright © 2023. Pacific Northwest Regional Economic Analysis Project (PNREAP). All Rights Reserved.

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