Brunswick County vs. North Carolina
Comparative Trends Analysis:
Total Employment Growth and Change, 1969-2022
Introduction
Brunswick County vs. North Carolina
Brunswick County:
2022 Jobs = 63,931
2022 Percent of State = 0.97%
North Carolina:
2022 Jobs = 6,602,041
2022 Percent of U.S. = 3.11%
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 Brunswick County to work are included in the employment count for Brunswick 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 Brunswick County's annual total employment for the period 1969-2022 to illustrate total employment patterns over time. During this 54-year period, Brunswick County's total employment rose from 6,977 in 1969 to 63,931 in 2022, for a net gain of 56,954, or 816.31%.
Total Employment, 1969-2022
Total Employment, 1969-2022
Figure 2.
Figure 2 tracks North Carolina's annual total employment for the period 1969-2022 to illustrate total employment patterns over time. During this 54-year period, North Carolina's total employment rose from 2,457,997 in 1969 to 6,602,041 in 2022, for a net gain of 4,144,044, or 168.59%.
Total Employment Indices (1969=100): 1969-2022
Total Employment Indices (1969=100): 1969-2022
Figure 3.
Figure 3 portrays Brunswick County's total employment growth in a broader context by offering direct comparisons across time with North Carolina, 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.
Brunswick County's overall total employment growth was 816.31% over 1969-2022 outpaced North Carolina's increase of 168.59%, and topped the United States' increase of 133.32%.
Total Employment as a Percent of the North Carolina Total: 1969-2022
Total Employment as a Percent of the North Carolina Total: 1969-2022
Figure 4.
Another interesting and insightful way of highlighting the total employment growth of Brunswick County is to trace its individual percentage contributions to North Carolina'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 North Carolina's total employment, while a declining share shows it grew more slowly.
In 1969, Brunswick County's total employment comprised 0.28% of North Carolina's total employment, while in 2022 it equated to 0.97% thereby yielding a +0.68% share-shift.
   
 
Total Employment Share-Shift
2022 vs. 1969
 
Share-
Shift*
 
2022
vs.
1969
+0.68%
=
0.97%
-
0.28%
 
   
Brunswick County Total Employment:
Annual Percent Change, 1970-2022
Brunswick County Total Employment:
Annual Percent Change, 1970-2022
Figure 5.
Figure 5 shows the short-run pattern of Brunswick 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 illustrated 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, Brunswick County's total employment grew at an annual rate of 4.35% over 1970-2022. The county recorded its highest growth in 1970 (23.89%) and recorded its lowest growth in 2009 (-2.82%). In 2022, Brunswick County's total employment grew by 5.97%
Brunswick County Total Employment:
Annual Percent Change and Decade Averages Over 1970-2022
Brunswick 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 shows the annual percent change in Brunswick 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, Brunswick County's annual total employment growth rate averaged 7.42%. It averaged 3.27% during the 1980s, 5.10% during the 1990s, 3.54% during the 2000s, 2.14% in the 2010s, 5.37% 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 Brunswick County noted in the previous graph with the corresponding decade averages for North Carolina and the nation. As the chart reveals, Brunswick County's average annual total employment growth outperformed North Carolina's average in the 1970s (7.42% vs. 2.20%), surpassed North Carolina's average in the 1980s (3.27% vs. 2.36%), led North Carolina's average in the 1990s (5.10% vs. 2.27%), outpaced North Carolina's average throughout the 2000s (3.54% vs. 0.85%), recorded above North Carolina's average throughout the 2010s (2.14% vs. 1.66%), and registered above North Carolina's average over the 3 year period of the current decade, 2020-2022 (5.37% vs. 2.44%).
Finally, relative to nationwide total employment growth trends, Brunswick County topped the nation during the 1970s (7.42% vs. 2.21%), outgained the nation in the 1980s (3.27% vs. 1.88%), led the nation in the 1990s (5.10% vs. 1.73%), recorded above the nation throughout the 2000s (3.54% vs. 0.74%), surpassed the nation throughout the 2010s (2.14% vs. 1.51%), and exceeded the nation over 2020-2022 (5.37% vs. 1.82%).
   
 
Total Employment Growth:
Average Annual Percent Change
 
 
 
4.35
7.42
3.27
5.10
3.54
2.14
5.37
5.97
 
1.90
2.20
2.36
2.27
0.85
1.66
2.44
4.49
 
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 Brunswick County, North Carolina 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. Brunswick County's job ratio registered 0.29 in 1969, and 0.42 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 Brunswick County's, North Carolina'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.

   
 
Brunswick County:
Total Employment, 1969-2022
 
1969
 
6,977
100.0
N
0.28
0.29
64.50
1970
 
8,644
123.9
23.89
0.35
0.35
78.84
1971
 
8,441
121.0
-2.35
0.34
0.33
73.82
1972
 
9,794
140.4
16.03
0.38
0.34
76.23
1973
 
10,435
149.6
6.54
0.38
0.33
71.30
1974
 
11,072
158.7
6.10
0.40
0.33
70.95
1975
 
11,051
158.4
-0.19
0.42
0.33
70.92
1976
 
11,690
167.6
5.78
0.42
0.34
72.66
1977
 
12,688
181.9
8.54
0.45
0.37
77.18
1978
 
13,484
193.3
6.27
0.46
0.39
78.65
1979
 
13,963
200.1
3.55
0.46
0.40
78.80
1980
 
14,016
200.9
0.38
0.46
0.39
77.45
1981
 
13,862
198.7
-1.10
0.45
0.37
74.50
1982
 
14,480
207.5
4.46
0.48
0.37
75.92
1983
 
15,680
224.7
8.29
0.50
0.39
78.22
1984
 
16,717
239.6
6.61
0.51
0.39
76.37
1985
 
17,879
256.3
6.95
0.53
0.40
76.69
1986
 
18,322
262.6
2.48
0.52
0.39
74.51
1987
 
18,601
266.6
1.52
0.52
0.38
71.84
1988
 
19,034
272.8
2.33
0.51
0.38
70.32
1989
 
19,179
274.9
0.76
0.50
0.38
69.29
1990
 
20,285
290.7
5.77
0.52
0.40
71.40
1991
 
21,422
307.0
5.61
0.55
0.41
75.15
1992
 
21,556
309.0
0.63
0.54
0.40
73.87
1993
 
22,415
321.3
3.98
0.55
0.40
73.47
1994
 
23,791
341.0
6.14
0.57
0.41
74.40
1995
 
25,013
358.5
5.14
0.57
0.41
74.27
1996
 
26,300
377.0
5.15
0.59
0.42
74.24
1997
 
28,428
407.5
8.09
0.62
0.43
75.97
1998
 
30,220
433.1
6.30
0.64
0.44
76.66
1999
 
31,502
451.5
4.24
0.66
0.44
76.25
2000
 
32,931
472.0
4.54
0.67
0.45
76.22
2001
 
33,553
480.9
1.89
0.69
0.44
76.00
2002
 
33,482
479.9
-0.21
0.69
0.43
74.50
2003
 
35,357
506.8
5.60
0.73
0.44
76.72
2004
 
37,999
544.6
7.47
0.77
0.46
79.08
2005
 
40,483
580.2
6.54
0.79
0.46
79.02
2006
 
43,175
618.8
6.65
0.82
0.46
77.98
2007
 
45,895
657.8
6.30
0.85
0.46
77.77
2008
 
45,633
654.0
-0.57
0.84
0.44
74.99
2009
 
44,346
635.6
-2.82
0.85
0.42
74.07
2010
 
43,329
621.0
-2.29
0.84
0.40
71.87
2011
 
43,361
621.5
0.07
0.82
0.40
70.33
2012
 
44,159
632.9
1.84
0.82
0.40
70.38
2013
 
45,964
658.8
4.09
0.85
0.41
71.13
2014
 
47,201
676.5
2.69
0.85
0.41
70.54
2015
 
48,304
692.3
2.34
0.85
0.41
69.42
2016
 
50,167
719.0
3.86
0.86
0.42
69.71
2017
 
51,279
735.0
2.22
0.87
0.41
68.71
2018
 
53,434
765.9
4.20
0.88
0.41
68.00
2019
 
54,690
783.9
2.35
0.89
0.41
67.12
2020
 
55,896
801.1
2.21
0.92
0.40
68.68
2021
 
60,330
864.7
7.93
0.95
0.42
68.22
2022
 
63,931
916.3
5.97
0.97
0.42
65.53
Source: Calculations by the North Carolina Regional Economic Analysis Project (NC-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.

   
 
North Carolina:
Total Employment, 1969-2022
 
1969
 
2,457,997
100.0
N
2.70
0.49
108.01
1970
 
2,468,524
100.4
0.43
2.70
0.48
108.09
1971
 
2,490,307
101.3
0.88
2.72
0.48
108.13
1972
 
2,602,097
105.9
4.49
2.76
0.49
109.02
1973
 
2,719,564
110.6
4.51
2.76
0.51
108.49
1974
 
2,743,165
111.6
0.87
2.74
0.50
107.04
1975
 
2,647,462
107.7
-3.49
2.68
0.48
104.20
1976
 
2,753,858
112.0
4.02
2.71
0.49
105.43
1977
 
2,850,596
116.0
3.51
2.71
0.50
105.21
1978
 
2,945,933
119.9
3.34
2.69
0.51
103.92
1979
 
3,045,787
123.9
3.39
2.69
0.52
104.20
1980
 
3,052,458
124.2
0.22
2.68
0.52
103.15
1981
 
3,072,289
125.0
0.65
2.67
0.52
102.99
1982
 
3,041,512
123.7
-1.00
2.66
0.51
102.54
1983
 
3,128,522
127.3
2.86
2.71
0.51
104.07
1984
 
3,292,313
133.9
5.24
2.73
0.53
104.51
1985
 
3,392,276
138.0
3.04
2.74
0.54
104.25
1986
 
3,493,724
142.1
2.99
2.77
0.55
105.13
1987
 
3,610,298
146.9
3.34
2.79
0.56
105.44
1988
 
3,750,988
152.6
3.90
2.81
0.58
105.95
1989
 
3,838,492
156.2
2.33
2.82
0.58
105.97
1990
 
3,902,373
158.8
1.66
2.82
0.59
105.67
1991
 
3,865,529
157.3
-0.94
2.81
0.57
104.75
1992
 
3,963,816
161.3
2.54
2.87
0.57
106.70
1993
 
4,086,843
166.3
3.10
2.90
0.58
107.14
1994
 
4,201,049
170.9
2.79
2.91
0.58
106.66
1995
 
4,354,641
177.2
3.66
2.94
0.59
106.73
1996
 
4,458,978
181.4
2.40
2.95
0.59
106.02
1997
 
4,602,983
187.3
3.23
2.98
0.60
106.06
1998
 
4,708,195
191.5
2.29
2.97
0.60
104.94
1999
 
4,802,414
195.4
2.00
2.97
0.60
104.36
2000
 
4,891,957
199.0
1.86
2.96
0.61
103.28
2001
 
4,855,476
197.5
-0.75
2.93
0.59
101.82
2002
 
4,842,001
197.0
-0.28
2.93
0.58
101.31
2003
 
4,851,941
197.4
0.21
2.92
0.58
100.72
2004
 
4,961,645
201.9
2.26
2.94
0.58
100.60
2005
 
5,093,058
207.2
2.65
2.96
0.59
100.32
2006
 
5,251,529
213.7
3.11
2.99
0.59
99.92
2007
 
5,430,916
220.9
3.42
3.02
0.60
99.93
2008
 
5,413,522
220.2
-0.32
3.02
0.58
98.67
2009
 
5,215,727
212.2
-3.65
3.00
0.55
97.52
2010
 
5,178,397
210.7
-0.72
2.99
0.54
96.81
2011
 
5,292,804
215.3
2.21
3.01
0.55
97.20
2012
 
5,356,134
217.9
1.20
2.99
0.55
96.76
2013
 
5,436,745
221.2
1.51
2.98
0.55
96.34
2014
 
5,568,600
226.6
2.43
2.99
0.56
96.62
2015
 
5,694,917
231.7
2.27
2.99
0.57
96.63
2016
 
5,825,267
237.0
2.29
3.01
0.58
96.95
2017
 
5,919,022
240.8
1.61
3.01
0.58
96.74
2018
 
6,055,657
246.4
2.31
3.02
0.59
96.67
2019
 
6,149,071
250.2
1.54
3.05
0.59
97.11
2020
 
6,054,937
246.3
-1.53
3.10
0.58
98.37
2021
 
6,318,605
257.1
4.35
3.12
0.60
97.93
2022
 
6,602,041
268.6
4.49
3.11
0.62
96.81
Source: Calculations by the North Carolina Regional Economic Analysis Project (NC-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 North Carolina Regional Economic Analysis Project (NC-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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