BLS U S Bureau of Labor Statistics : Quarterly Data Series on Business Employment Dynamics

For release 10:00 a.m. (ET), Wednesday, January 27, 2021	USDL-21-0125
Technical Information:	[phone]	•	[e-mail] • www.bls.gov/bdm
Media Contact:	[phone]	•	[e-mail]

BUSINESS EMPLOYMENT DYNAMICS - SECOND QUARTER 2020

From March 2020 to June 2020, gross job losses from closing and contracting private-sector establishments were 20.4 million, an increase of 12.6 million jobs from the previous quarter, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Over this period, gross job gains from opening and expanding private-sector establishments were 5.7 million, a decrease of 1.2 million jobs from the previous quarter. The difference between the number of gross job gains and the number of gross job losses yielded a net employment loss of 14.6 million jobs in the private-sector during the second quarter of 2020. (See chart 1, and tables A and 1.)

Chart 1. Total private-sector gross job gains and gross job losses, seasonally adjusted

March 2010 - June 2020

Thousands 25,000

20,000

15,000

10,000

Gross job gains

5,000	Gross job losses

0

2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 NOTE: Shaded area represents National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) defined recession period.

Coronavirus (COVID-19) Effect on Second Quarter 2020 Business Employment Dynamics

Data collection and processing methods have been impacted because of the COVID-19 pandemic. More detail can be found at www.bls.gov/covid19/effects-of-covid-19-pandemic-on-business-employment- dynamics.htm.

The change in the number of jobs over time is the net result of increases and decreases in employment that occur at all private businesses in the economy. Business Employment Dynamics (BED) statistics track these changes in employment at private-sector establishments from the third month of one quarter to the third month of the next. The difference between the number of gross job gains and the number of gross job losses is the net change in employment. (See Technical Note.) The BED data series include gross job gains and gross job losses by industry subsector, for the 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands, as well as gross job gains and gross job losses at the firm level by employer size class.

Gross Job Gains

In the second quarter of 2020, gross job gains represented 4.8 percent of private-sector employment. Gross job gains are the sum of increases in employment due to expansions at existing establishments and the addition of new jobs at opening establishments. Gross job gains at expanding establishments totaled

4.5 million in the second quarter of 2020, a decrease of 1.2 million jobs compared to the previous

quarter. Opening establishments accounted for 1.3 million of the jobs gained in the second quarter of 2020, a decrease of 8,000 jobs from the previous quarter. (See charts 2 and 3, and tables A, 1, 2, and 3.)

Gross Job Losses

In the second quarter of 2020, gross job losses represented 17.0 percent of private-sector employment. Gross job losses are the result of contractions in employment at existing establishments and the loss of jobs at closing establishments. Contracting establishments lost 17.5 million jobs in the second quarter of 2020, an increase of 11.2 million jobs from the prior quarter. In the second quarter of 2020, closing establishments lost 2.9 million jobs, an increase of 1.4 million jobs from the previous quarter. (See charts 2 and 3, and tables A, 1, 2, and 3.)

Chart 2. Private-sector gross job gains at expanding establishments and gross job losses at contracting establishments, seasonally adjusted: March 2010 - June 2020

Thousands 20,000 18,000 16,000 14,000 12,000 10,000

8,000	Expansions
6,000
Contractions
4,000

2,000

0 '10 '11 '12 '13 '14 '15 '16 '17 '18 '19 '20

NOTE: Shaded area represents NBER defined recession period.

Chart 3. Private-sector gross job gains at opening establishments and gross job losses at closing establishments, seasonally adjusted: March 2010 - June 2020

Thousands 3,500 3,000 2,500

2,000
1,500	Openings
1,000	Closings

500

0 '10 '11 '12 '13 '14 '15 '16 '17 '18 '19 '20

NOTE: Shaded area represents NBER defined recession period.

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Establishment Births and Deaths

In the second quarter of 2020, the number of establishment births (a subset of the openings data) decreased by 55,000, to a total of 225,000 establishments. These new establishments accounted for 659,000 jobs, a decrease of 141,000 jobs from the previous quarter. Data for establishment deaths (a subset of the closings data) are available through the third quarter of 2019, when 769,000 jobs were lost at 233,000 establishments, a decrease of 41,000 jobs from the second quarter of 2019. (See Technical Note and table 8.)

Table A. Three-monthprivate-sector gross job gains and losses, seasonally adjusted

			3 months ended
Category	June	Sept.		Dec.		Mar.	June
	2019	2019		2019		2020	2020
			Levels (in thousands)
Gross job gains.............................	7,637	7,404		7,864		6,963	5,749
At expanding establishments…	6,253	6,022		6,364		5,675	4,469
At opening establishments....	1,384	1,382		1,500		1,288	1,280
Gross job losses............................	7,466	7,351		7,051		7,736	20,366
At contracting establishments	6,105	6,077		5,725		6,288	17,470
At closing establishments......	1,361	1,274		1,326		1,448	2,896
Net employment change1.............	171	53		813		-773	-14,617
			Rates (percent)
Gross job gains.............................	6.1	5.9	6.2		5.5	4.8
At expanding establishments…	5.0	4.8	5.0		4.5	3.7
At opening establishments....	1.1	1.1	1.2		1.0	1.1
Gross job losses............................	5.9	5.8	5.5		6.1	17.0
At contracting establishments	4.8	4.8	4.5		5.0	14.6
At closing establishments......	1.1	1.0	1.0		1.1	2.4
Net employment change1.............	0.2	0.1	0.7		-0.6	-12.2

1 The net employment change is the difference between total gross job gains and total gross job losses. See the Technical Note for further information.

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Industries

Gross job losses exceeded gross job gains in all 13 industries in the second quarter of 2020. The service- providing industries experienced a net job decline of 13.1 million in the second quarter of 2020. Within the service-providing industries, the leisure and hospitality sector had the largest over-the-quarter net job decrease, losing 5.6 million jobs. This was the result of 651,000 gross job gains and 6,300,000 gross job losses. The education and health services sector experienced a net employment decrease in the second quarter of 2020, with 1.8 million net jobs lost. The goods-producing industries realized a net job decrease of 1.5 million in the second quarter of 2020. Of the goods-producing industries, the manufacturing sector had a net decrease of 888,000 jobs, the construction sector lost 501,000 jobs, and the natural resources and mining sector showed a net loss of 151,000 jobs. (See table 3.)

Firm Size

In the second quarter of 2020, firms with 1-49 employees had a net employment decline of 4.7 million. Firms with 50-249 employees had a net employment loss of 2.8 million. Firms with 250 or more employees had a net employment decline of 7.7 million. (See tables 4 and 5.)

States

Gross job losses exceeded gross job gains in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands in the second quarter of 2020. (See tables 6 and 7.)

For More Information

Additional information on gross job gains and gross job losses is available online at www.bls.gov/bdm. This information includes data on the levels and rates of gross job gains and gross job losses by firm size, not seasonally adjusted data and other seasonally adjusted time series not presented in this release, charts of gross job gains and gross job losses by industry and firm size, and answers to frequently asked questions. Additional information about the Business Employment Dynamics data can be found in the Technical Note of this release or can be obtained by emailing [e-mail].

The Business Employment Dynamics for Third Quarter 2020 are scheduled to be released on Wednesday, April 28, 2021 at 10:00 a.m. (ET).

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