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Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS)

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Overview

The Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) program produces employment and wage estimates for over 800 occupations. These are estimates of the number of people employed in certain occupations, and estimates of the wages paid to them. These estimates are available for the nation as a whole, for individual states, and for metropolitan and nonmetropolitan areas. National occupational estimates for specific industries are also available.

Colorado employers provide wage and salary data for the State of Colorado.

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Who Benefits from OEWS Data?

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  • Employers will have a workforce trained to meet their needs, and information on the availability and prevailing wages of workers with the skills to meet their job requirements.
  • Individuals planning careers or entering the labor force are well-informed about opportunities in the labor market.
  • Educators are provided with information needed to plan programs and curricula aimed at counseling and preparing students to make wise and realistic decisions.
  • Government is able to use tax dollars more effectively by making funding decisions for education and training more beneficial to both employer and employee.
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Data Types and Uses

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Uses of OEWS Data

  • Evaluate occupational trends by industry
  • Spotlight emerging or declining occupations
  • Identify the types of skilled workers in the market
  • Establish criteria to develop new positions
  • Evaluate the impact of technology on occupations
  • Evaluate wage trends by industry and occupation
  • Compare wages between states, metropolitan areas, and intrastate regions
  • Adjust existing pay structure using reported wages
  • Determine wage rates using past wages
  • Provide wage data used in Alien Labor Certification
     

Data We Do Not Have

The OEWS survey does not:

  • gather or include employment and wage information by demographic characteristics (e.g. data by age, race, sex, education, etc.)
  • produce estimates on total establishment employment. The QCEW program can provide information on establishments in employment size class and aggregate employment.  
  • have data on farm workers, the self-employed, unpaid family workers or owners of unincorporated firms. 
  • contain data on non-wage compensation (benefits) 
     
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OEWS Data Downloads

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Looking for OEWS data in downloadable Excel files? Go to Excel Downloads

Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) System

The SOC is the occupational coding scheme used by all Federal statistical agencies. The OEWS survey began using this system with 1999 data.

Occupational Information Network (O*NET)

The O*NET Program is the nation's primary source of occupational information. The free O*NET database is continually updated from input by a broad range of workers in each occupation. It contains hundreds of standardized and occupation-specific descriptors on almost 1,000 occupations covering the entire U.S. economy.

Wage Determinations Online

View Davis-Bacon and other wage determinations. 

Do You Have Questions about a Survey Request Received?

Find more information at the Bureau of Labor Statistics' respondent website.

Submit Data to the BLS Secure Site

Questions?

Do I Have to Respond to the OEWS Survey I Received?

Yes, this report is mandatory in the State of Colorado under CRS 8-6-106 and CRS 8-6-107.

View more Frequently Asked Questions at BLS.