Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW) Data

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics recently released its’ Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW) for the fourth quarter of 2022. The number of jobs across South Carolina was up by 76,164 in Quarter 4 of 2022 at 2,215,145 compared to 2,138,981 in Quarter 4 of 2021. In addition to an increase in the number of jobs, the number of establishments across the state also grew by nearly 9.8 percent over the course of the year, from 155,780 to 171,043. Following suit, the average weekly wage for workers in these jobs rose by 1.6 percent, from $1,101 to $1,119.

Measurements show the two sectors that saw the strongest growth trends were Professional and Technical Services (+13,911) and Accommodation and Food Services (+12,683). On the other side of that spectrum, the weakest sector was Administrative and Waste Services (-7,926). The counties in South Carolina with the largest employment increases over the year were Charleston (+13,478) and Greenville (+11,760), while the county with the largest decline was found to be Marlboro (-947). Out of the 46 counties in the state, 32 experienced average weekly wage increases and all but 6 saw the total number of businesses increase.