Important
Important

This document is not an official Census Bureau publication. It is compiled from publicly accessible information by Lars Vilhuber (Labor Dynamics Institute, Cornell University). Feedback is welcome. Please write us at lars.vilhuber@cornell.edu.

1. Purpose

The public-use data from the Longitudinal Employer-Household Dynamics Program, including the Quarterly Workforce Indicators (QWI) and Job-to-Job Flows (J2J), are available for download with the following data schema. These data are available through the LEHD website’s Data page at http://lehd.ces.census.gov/data/ and through the LED Extraction Tool at http://ledextract.ces.census.gov/.

This document describes the data schema for LEHD files. LEHD-provided SHP files are separately described in lehd_shapefiles.html. For each variable, a set of allowable values is defined. Definitions are provided as CSV files, with header variable definitions. Changes relative to the original v4.0 version are listed at the end.

2. File naming

The naming conventions of the data files is documented in lehd_csv_naming.html.

3. Extends

This version reimplements some features from V4.0. Many files compliant with LEHD or QWI Schema v4.0 will also be compliant with this schema, but compatibility is not guaranteed.

4. Supersedes

This version supersedes V4.1.0, for files released as of R2017Q1.

5. Basic Schema

Each data file is structured as a CSV file. The first columns contain [identifiers], subsequent columns contain [indicators], followed by status flags. In some cases, visually formatted Excel (XLSX) files are also available, containing the same information together with header lines on each sheet.

5.1. Generic structure

Column name

[ Identifier1 ]

[ Identifier2 ]

[ Identifier3 ]

[ … ]

[ Indicator 1 ]

[ Indicator 2 ]

[ Indicator 3 ]

[ … ]

[ Status Flag 1 ]

[ Status Flag 2 ]

[ Status Flag 3 ]

[ … ]

Note: A full list of indicators for each type of file are shown below in the Indicators section. While all indicators are included in the CSV files, only the requested indicators will be included in data outputs from the LED Extraction Tool.

5.2. Identifiers

Records, unless otherwise noted, are parts of time-series data. Unique record identifiers are noted below, by file type. Identifiers without the year and quarter component can be considered a series identifier.

5.2.1. Mapping for Identifiers

Each of the released files has a set of variables uniquely identifying records (Identifiers). The table below relates the set of identifier specifications to the released files. The actual CSV files containing the identifiers for each set are listed after this table. Each identifier can take on a specified list of values, documented in the section on Categorical Variables.

identifiers QWI NQWI J2J J2JR J2JOD LODES

lehd_identifiers_qwi

1

1

lehd_identifiers_j2j

1

1

lehd_identifiers_j2jod

1

5.2.2. Identifiers for j2j

Variable Type label

periodicity

Char(1)

Periodicity of report

seasonadj

Char(1)

Seasonal Adjustment Indicator

geo_level

Char(1)

Group: Geographic level of aggregation

geography

Char(8)

Group: Geography code

ind_level

Char(1)

Group: Industry level of aggregation

industry

Char(5)

Group: Industry code

ownercode

Char(3)

Group: Ownership group code

sex

Char(1)

Group: Gender code

agegrp

Char(3)

Group: Age group code (WIA)

race

Char(2)

Group: race

ethnicity

Char(2)

Group: ethnicity

education

Char(2)

Group: education

firmage

Char(1)

Group: Firm Age group

firmsize

Char(1)

Group: Firm Size group

year

Num

Time: Year

quarter

Num

Time: Quarter

agg_level

Num

Aggregation Level Indicator

5.2.3. Identifiers for j2jod

Variable Type label

periodicity

Char(1)

Periodicity of report

seasonadj

Char(1)

Seasonal Adjustment Indicator

geo_level

Char(1)

Group: Geographic level of aggregation of destination job

geography

Char(8)

Group: Geography code of destination job

ind_level

Char(1)

Group: Industry level of aggregation of destination job

industry

Char(5)

Group: Industry code of destination job

ownercode

Char(3)

Group: Ownership group code of destination job

sex

Char(1)

Group: Gender code

agegrp

Char(3)

Group: Age group code (WIA)

race

Char(2)

Group: race

ethnicity

Char(2)

Group: ethnicity

education

Char(2)

Group: education

firmage

Char(1)

Group: Firm Age group

firmsize

Char(1)

Group: Firm Size group

year

Num

Time: Year

quarter

Num

Time: Quarter

agg_level

Num

Aggregation Level Indicator

geo_level_orig

Char(1)

Group: Geographic level of aggregation of origin job

geography_orig

Char(8)

Group: Geography code of origin job

ind_level_orig

Char(1)

Group: Industry level of aggregation of origin job

industry_orig

Char(5)

Group: Industry code of origin job

ownercode_orig

Char(3)

Group: Ownership group code of origin job

firmage_orig

Char(1)

Group: Firm Age group of origin job

firmsize_orig

Char(1)

Group: Firm Size group of origin job

5.2.4. Identifiers for qwi

Variable Type label

periodicity

Char(1)

Periodicity of report

seasonadj

Char(1)

Seasonal Adjustment Indicator

geo_level

Char(1)

Group: Geographic level of aggregation

geography

Char(8)

Group: Geography code

ind_level

Char(1)

Group: Industry level of aggregation

industry

Char(5)

Group: Industry code

ownercode

Char(3)

Group: Ownership group code

sex

Char(1)

Group: Gender code

agegrp

Char(3)

Group: Age group code (WIA)

race

Char(2)

Group: race

ethnicity

Char(2)

Group: ethnicity

education

Char(2)

Group: education

firmage

Char(1)

Group: Firm Age group

firmsize

Char(1)

Group: Firm Size group

year

Num

Time: Year

quarter

Num

Time: Quarter

5.3. Indicators

The following tables and associated mapping files list the indicators available on each file. The descriptor files themselves are structured as follows:

  • The 'Indicator Variable' is the short name of the variable on the CSV files, suitable for machine processing in a wide variety of statistical applications.

  • When given, the 'Alternate name' may appear in related documentation and articles.

  • The 'Status Flag' is used to indicate publication or data quality status (see Status Flags).

  • The 'Indicator Name' is a non-abbreviated version of the 'Indicator Variable'.

  • The 'Description' provides more verbose description of the variable.

  • 'Units' identify the type of variable according to a very simplified taxonomoy (not formalized yet): counts, rates, monetary amounts.

  • 'Concept' classifies the variables into higher-level concepts. The taxonomy for these concepts has not been finalized yet, see label_concept.csv for a draft version.

  • The 'Base' indicates the denominator used to compute the statistic, and may be 1.

5.3.1. National QWI and state-level QWI (QWIPU)

Indicator Variable Alternate Name Status Flag Indicator Name Description Units Concept Base

Emp

B

sEmp

Beginning-of-Quarter Employment

Estimate of the total number of jobs on the first day of the reference quarter

Count

Employment

1

EmpEnd

E

sEmpEnd

End-of-Quarter Employment

Estimate of the number of jobs on the last day of the quarter

Count

Employment

1

EmpS

F

sEmpS

Full-Quarter Employment (Stable)

Estimate of stable jobs - the number of jobs that are held on both the first and last day of the quarter with the same employer

Count

Employment

1

EmpSpv

Fpv

sEmpSpv

Full-Quarter Employment in the Previous Quarter

Estimate of stable jobs in the quarter before the reference quarter

Count

Employment

1

EmpTotal

M

sEmpTotal

Employment - Reference Quarter

Estimated count of people employed in a firm at any time during the quarter

Count

Employment

1

HirA

A

sHirA

Hires (All Accessions)

Estimated number of workers who started a new job in the specified quarter

Count

Hire

1

HirN

H

sHirN

New Hires

Estimated number of workers who started a new job excluding recall hires

Count

Hire

1

HirR

R

sHirR

Recall Hires

Estimated number of workers who returned to the same employer where they had worked within the previous year

Count

Hire

1

Sep

S

sSep

Separations (All)

Estimated number of workers whose job with a given employer ended in the specified quarter

Count

Separation

1

HirAEnd

CA

sHirAEnd

End-of-Quarter Hires

Estimated number of workers who started a new job in the specified quarter, which continued into next quarter

Count

Hire

1

HirAEndR

CAR

sHirAEndR

End-of-Quarter Hiring Rate

Hires as a percent of average employment

Rate

Hire

(Emp + EmpEnd)/2

SepBeg

CS

sSepBeg

Beginning-of-Quarter Separations

Estimated number of workers whose job in the previous quarter continued and ended in the given quarter

Count

Separation

1

SepBegR

CSR

sSepBegR

Beginning-of-Quarter Separation Rate

Separations as a percent of average employment

Rate

Separation

(Emp + EmpEnd)/2

HirAS

FA

sHirAS

Hires (All Hires into Full-Quarter Employment)

Estimated number of workers that started a job that lasted at least one full quarter with a given employer

Count

Hire

1

HirNS

FH

sHirNS

New Hires (New Hires into Full-Quarter Employment)

Estimated number of workers who started a job that they had not held within the past year and the job turned into a job that lasted at least a full quarter with a given employer

Count

Hire

1

SepS

FS

sSepS

Separations (Flows out of Full-Quarter Employment)

Estimated number of workers who had a job for at least a full quarter and then the job ended

Count

Separation

1

SepSnx

FSnx

sSepSnx

Separations in the Next Quarter (Flows out of Full-Quarter Employment)

Estimated number of workers in the next quarter who had a job for at least a full quarter and then the job ended

Count

Separation

1

TurnOvrS

FT

sTurnOvrS

Turnover (Stable)

The rate at which stable jobs begin and end

Rate

Turnover

2*EmpS

FrmJbGn

JC

sFrmJbGn

Firm Job Gains (Job Creation)

Estimated number of jobs gained at firms throughout the quarter

Count

Hire

1

FrmJbLs

JD

sFrmJbLs

Firm Job Loss (Job Destruction)

Estimated number of jobs lost at firms throughout the quarter

Count

Separation

1

FrmJbC

JF

sFrmJbC

Firm Job Change (Net Change)

Difference between firm job gain and firm job loss

Count

Employment

1

HirAEndRepl

EI

sHirAEndRepl

Replacement Hires

Hires into continuous quarter employment in excess of job creation

Count

Hire

1

HirAEndReplr

EIR

sHirAEndReplr

Replacement Hiring Rate

Replacement hires as a percent of the average of beginning- and end-of-quarter employment

Rate

Hire

(Emp + EmpEnd)/2

FrmJbGnS

FJC

sFrmJbGnS

Firm Job Gains (Stable)

Estimated number of full-quarter jobs gained at firms

Count

Hire

1

FrmJbLsS

FJD

sFrmJbLsS

Firm Job Loss (Stable)

Estimated number of full-quarter jobs lost at firms

Count

Separation

1

FrmJbCS

FJF

sFrmJbCS

Firm Job Change (Stable; Net Change)

Net growth in jobs that last a full quarter

Count

Employment

1

EarnS

ZW3

sEarnS

Average Monthly Earnings (Full-Quarter Employment)

Average monthly earnings of employees with stable jobs

Dollars

Earnings

EmpS

EarnBeg

ZW1

sEarnBeg

Average Monthly Earnings (Beginning-of-Quarter Employment)

Average monthly earnings of employees who worked on the first day of the reference quarter

Dollars

Earnings

Emp

EarnHirAS

ZWFA

sEarnHirAS

Average Monthly Earnings (All Hires into Full-Quarter Employment)

Average monthly earnings for workers who started a job that turned into a job lasting a full quarter

Dollars

Earnings

HirAS

EarnHirNS

ZWFH

sEarnHirNS

Average Monthly Earnings (New Hires into Full-Quarter Employment)

Average monthly earnings of newly stable employees

Dollars

Earnings

HirNS

EarnSepS

ZWFS

sEarnSepS

Average Monthly Earnings (Flows out of Full-Quarter Employment)

Average monthly earnings of separations from full-quarter status at an establishment

Dollars

Earnings

SepSnx

Payroll

W1

sPayroll

Total Quarterly Payroll

Total quarterly payroll for all jobs

Dollars

Earnings

1

5.3.2. National QWI and state-level QWI rates (QWIPUR)

Rates are computed from published data, and are provided as a convenience.

Indicator Variable Alternate name Status Flag Indicator Name Description Units Concept Base

HirAR

AR

sHirAR

Hiring Rate (All Accessions)

All accessions as a percent of average employment

Rate

Hire

(Emp + EmpEnd)/2

HirNR

HR

sHirNR

New Hiring Rate

New hires as a percent of average employment

Rate

Hire

(Emp + EmpEnd)/2

HirRR

RR

sHirRR

Recall Rate

Recall hires as a percent of average employment

Rate

Hire

(Emp + EmpEnd)/2

SepR

SR

sSepR

Separation Rate (All Separations)

All separations as a percent of average employment

Rate

Separation

(Emp + EmpEnd)/2

HirAEndR

CAR

sHirAEndR

End-of-Quarter Hiring Rate

Hires as a percent of average employment

Rate

Hire

(Emp + EmpEnd)/2

SepBegR

CSR

sSepBegR

Beginning-of-Quarter Separation Rate

Separations as a percent of average employment

Rate

Separation

(Emp + EmpEnd)/2

HirAsR

FAR

sHirAsR

Hiring Rate (Flows into Full-Quarter Employment)

Flows into stable employment as a percent of average stable employment

Rate

Hire

(EmpSpv + EmpS)/2

HirNsR

FHR

sHirNsR

New Hiring Rate (New Hires to Full-Quarter Status)

New hires into stable employment as a percent of average stable employment

Rate

Hire

(EmpSpv + EmpS)/2

SepSR

FSR

sSepSR

Separation Rate (Flows out of Full-Quarter Employment)

Flows out of stable employment as a percent of average stable employment

Rate

Separation

(EmpSpv + EmpS)/2

SepSnxR

FSnxR

sSepSnxR

Separation Rate in the Next Quarter (Flow out of Full-Quarter Employment)

Flow rate out of stable employment in the next quarter

Rate

Separation

(EmpSpv + EmpS)/2

TurnOvrSR

FTR

sTurnOvrSR

Turnover Rate (Stable)

The rate at which stable jobs begin and end

Rate

Turnover

2*EmpS

FrmJbGnR

JCR

sFrmJbGnR

Firm Job Gain Rate (Job Creation Rate)

Estimated number of jobs gained at firms throughout the quarter as a percent of average employment

Rate

Hire

(Emp + EmpEnd)/2

FrmJbLsR

JDR

sFrmJbLsR

Firm Job Loss Rate (Job Destruction Rate)

Estimated number of jobs lost at firms throughout the quarter as a percent of average employment

Rate

Separation

(Emp + EmpEnd)/2

FrmJbCR

JFR

sFrmJbCR

Firm Job Change Rate (Net Change Rate)

Difference between firm job gain and firm job loss as a percent of average employment

Rate

Flow

(Emp + EmpEnd)/2

HirAEndReplR

EIR

sHirAEndReplR

Replacement Hiring Rate

Replacement hires as a percent of average employment

Rate

Hire

(Emp + EmpEnd)/2

FrmJbGnSR

FJCR

sFrmJbGnSR

Firm Job Gain Rate (Stable)

Estimated number of full-quarter jobs gained at firms as a percent of average stable employment

Rate

Hire

(EmpSpv + EmpS)/2

FrmJbLsSR

FJDR

sFrmJbLsSR

Firm Job Loss Rate (Stable)

Estimated number of full-quarter jobs lost at firms as a percent of average stable employment

Rate

Separation

(EmpSpv + EmpS)/2

FrmJbCSR

FJFR

sFrmJbCSR

Firm Job Change Rate (Stable; Net Change Rate)

Net growth in jobs that last a full quarter as a percent of average stable employment

Rate

Flow

(EmpSpv + EmpS)/2

5.3.3. Job-to-job flow counts (J2J)

Indicator Variable Alternate Name Status Flag Indicator Name Description Units Concept Base

MHire

all_doma2

sMHire

Hires

Hires into a worker’s main job

Count

Hire

1

MSep

all_doms2

sMSep

Separations

Separations from a worker’s main job

Count

Separation

1

MJobStart

first_dome

sMJobStart

Main Job Starts

New main jobs due to hires and instances when a previously existing secondary job becomes the main source of earnings

Count

Hire

1

MJobEnd

last_domb

sMJobEnd

Main Job Ends

End of main jobs due to separations and instances when another job becomes the main source of earnings

Count

Separation

1

EEHire

ee_doma2

sEEHire

Job-to-Job Hires (Continuous Employment)

Hires following a separation with no observed nonemployment spell

Count

Hire

1

EESep

ee_doms2

sEESep

Job-to-Job Separations (Continuous Employment)

Separations followed by a hire with no observed nonemployment spell

Count

Separation

1

AQHire

aq_doma2

sAQHire

Job-to-Job Hires (Brief Nonemployment)

Hires following a separation with a short nonemployment spell

Count

Hire

1

AQSep

aq_doms2

sAQSep

Job-to-Job Separations (Brief Nonemployment)

Separations followed by a hire with a short nonemployment spell

Count

Separation

1

J2JHire

j2j_doma2

sJ2JHire

Job-to-Job Hires

Hires following a separation (short or no observed nonemployment spell)

Count

Hire

1

J2JSep

j2j_doms2

sJ2JSep

Job-to-Job Separations

Separations followed by a hire (short or no observed nonemployment spell)

Count

Separation

1

NEHire

ne_doma2

sNEHire

Hires from Nonemployment

Hires following any spell of nonemployment

Count

Hire

1

ENSep

en_doms2

sENSep

Separations to Nonemployment

Separations into any spell of nonemployment

Count

Separation

1

NEPersist

ne2_doma2

sNEPersist

Hires from Persistent Nonemployment

Hires following a spell of persistent nonemployment

Count

Hire

1

ENPersist

en2_doms2

sENPersist

Separations to Persistent Nonemployment

Separations into a spell of persistent nonemployment

Count

Separation

1

NEFullQ

ne2p_doma2

sNEFullQ

Hires from Full-Quarter Nonemployment

Hires following a spell of full-quarter nonemployment (does not include intermittently employed)

Count

Hire

1

ENFullQ

en2p_doms2

sENFullQ

Separations to Full-Quarter Nonemployment

Separations into a spell of full-quarter nonemployment (does not include intermittently employed)

Count

Separation

1

MainB

domB

sMainB

Employment (Beginning of Quarter)

Main jobs held on the first day of the quarter

Count

Employment

1

MainE

domE

sMainE

Employment (End of Quarter)

Main jobs held on the last day of the quarter

Count

Employment

1

EESepS

fee_doms2

sEESepS

Stable Job-to-Job Separations (Continuous Employment)

Separations from stable employment followed by a hire to stable employment with no observed nonemployment spell

Count

Separation

1

EEHireS

fee_doma2

sEEHireS

Stable Job-to-Job Hires (Continuous Employment)

Hires to stable employment following a separation from stable employment with no observed nonemployment spell

Count

Hire

1

AQSepS

faq_doms2

sAQSepS

Stable Job-to-Job Separations (Brief Nonemployment)

Separations from stable employment followed by a hire to stable employment with a short nonemployment spell

Count

Separation

1

AQHireS

faq_doma2

sAQHireS

Stable Job-to-Job Hires (Brief Nonemployment)

Hires to stable employment following a separation from stable employment with a short nonemployment spell

Count

Hire

1

NEPersistS

fne2_doma2

sNEPersistS

Stable Hires from Persistent Nonemployment

Hires to stable employment following a spell of persistent nonemployment

Count

Hire

1

ENPersistS

fen2_doms2

sENPersistS

Stable Separations to Persistent Nonemployment

Separations from stable employment into a spell of persistent nonemployment

Count

Separation

1

JobStayS

f4dombe

sJobStayS

Stable Job Stayer

Stable main jobs that did not change during the reference quarter

Count

Employment

1

MainBS

fdomb

sMainBS

Stable Employment (Beginning of Quarter)

Stable main jobs held on the first day of the quarter

Count

Employment

1

MainES

fdome

sMainES

Stable Employment (End of Quarter)

Stable main jobs held on the last day of the quarter

Count

Employment

1

NEHireSEarn_Dest

fne2_doma2_kfqearn

sNEHireSEarn_Dest

Average Earnings following Stable Hires from Persistent Nonemployment

Average quarterly earnings following hires to stable employment from a spell of persistent nonemployment

Dollars

Earnings

NEPersistS

ENSepSEarn_Orig

fen2_doms2_jfqearn

sENSepSEarn_Orig

Average Earnings prior to Stable Separations to Persistent Nonemployment

Average quarterly earnings prior to separations from stable employment into a spell of persistent nonemployment

Dollars

Earnings

ENPersistS

JobStaySEarn_Orig

f4dombe_jfqearn

sJobStaySEarn_Orig

Average Earnings prior to Stable Job Stayer

Average quarterly earnings in the previous quarter when workers stayed in a stable job

Dollars

Earnings

JobStayS

JobStaySEarn_Dest

f4dombe_kfqearn

sJobStaySEarn_Dest

Average Earnings following Stable Job Stayer

Average quarterly earnings in the quarter when workers stayed in a stable job

Dollars

Earnings

JobStayS

5.3.4. Job-to-job flow rates (J2JR)

Rates are computed from published data, and are provided as a convenience.

Indicator Variable Alternate Name Status Flag Indicator Name Description Units Concept Base

MHireR

all_doma2_rate

sMHireR

Hires

Rate of hires into a worker’s main job

Rate

Hire

((MainB+MainE)/2)

MSepR

all_doms2_rate

sMSepR

Separations

Rate of separations from a worker’s main job

Rate

Separation

((MainB+MainE)/2)

MJobStartR

first_dome_rate

sMJobStartR

Main Job Starts

Rate of new main jobs due to hires and instances when a previously existing secondary job becomes the main source of earnings

Rate

Hire

((MainB+MainE)/2)

MJobEndR

last_domb_rate

sMJobEndR

Main Job Ends

Rate of end of main jobs due to separations and instances when another job becomes the main source of earnings

Rate

Separation

((MainB+MainE)/2)

EEHireR

ee_doma2_rate

sEEHireR

Job-to-Job Hires (Continuous Employment)

Rate of hires following a separation with no observed nonemployment spell

Rate

Hire

((MainB+MainE)/2)

EESepR

ee_doms2_rate

sEESepR

Job-to-Job Separations (Continuous Employment)

Rate of separations followed by a hire with no observed nonemployment spell

Rate

Separation

((MainB+MainE)/2)

AQHireR

aq_doma2_rate

sAQHireR

Job-to-Job Hires (Brief Nonemployment)

Rate of hires following a separation with a short nonemployment spell

Rate

Hire

((MainB+MainE)/2)

AQSepR

aq_doms2_rate

sAQSepR

Job-to-Job Separations (Brief Nonemployment)

Rate of separations followed by a hire with a short nonemployment spell

Rate

Separation

((MainB+MainE)/2)

J2JHireR

j2j_doma2_rate

sJ2JHireR

Job-to-Job Hires

Rate of hires following a separation (short or no observed nonemployment spell)

Rate

Hire

((MainB+MainE)/2)

J2JSepR

j2j_doms2_rate

sJ2JSepR

Job-to-Job Separations

Rate of separations followed by a hire (short or no observed nonemployment spell)

Rate

Separation

((MainB+MainE)/2)

NEHireR

ne_doma2_rate

sNEHireR

Hires from Nonemployment

Rate of hires following any spell of nonemployment

Rate

Hire

((MainB+MainE)/2)

ENSepR

en_doms2_rate

sENSepR

Separations to Nonemployment

Rate of separations into any spell of nonemployment

Rate

Separation

((MainB+MainE)/2)

NEPersistR

ne2_doma2_rate

sNEPersistR

Hires from Persistent Nonemployment

Rate of hires following a spell of persistent nonemployment

Rate

Hire

((MainB+MainE)/2)

ENPersistR

en2_doms2_rate

sENPersistR

Separations to Persistent Nonemployment

Rate of separations into a spell of persistent nonemployment

Rate

Separation

((MainB+MainE)/2)

NEFullQR

ne2p_doma2_rate

sNEFullQR

Hires from Full-Quarter Nonemployment

Rate of hires following a spell of full-quarter nonemployment (does not include intermittently employed)

Rate

Hire

((MainB+MainE)/2)

ENFullQR

en2p_doms2_rate

sENFullQR

Separations to Full-Quarter Nonemployment

Rate of separations into a spell of full-quarter nonemployment (does not include intermittently employed)

Rate

Separation

((MainB+MainE)/2)

5.3.5. Job-to-job flow Origin-Destination (J2JOD)

Indicator Variable Alternate Name Status Flag Indicator Name Description Units Concept Base

EE

ee_doma2

sEE

Job-to-Job Flows (Continuous Employment)

Job flows with no observed nonemployment spell

Count

Hire

1

AQHire

aq_doma2

sAQHire

Job-to-Job Flows (Brief Nonemployment)

Job flows with a short nonemployment spell

Count

Hire

1

EES

fee_doma2

sEES

Stable Job-to-Job Flows (Continuous Employment)

Job flows from stable employment into stable employment with no observed nonemployment spell

Count

Hire

1

AQHireS

faq_doma2

sAQHireS

Stable Job-to-Job Flows (Brief Nonemployment)

Job flows from stable employment into stable employment with a short nonemployment spell

Count

Hire

1

EESEarn_Orig

fee_doma2_jfqearn

sEESEarn_Orig

Average Earnings prior to Job-to-Job Flows (Continuous Employment)

Average quarterly earnings prior to job flows with no observed nonemployment spell

Dollars

Earnings

EES

EESEarn_Dest

fee_doma2_kfqearn

sEESEarn_Dest

Average Earnings following Job-to-Job Flows (Continuous Employment)

Average quarterly earnings following job flows with no observed nonemployment spell

Dollars

Earnings

EES

AQHireSEarn_Orig

faq_doma2_jfqearn

sAQHireSEarn_Orig

Average Earnings prior to Job-to-Job Flows (Brief Nonemployment)

Average quarterly earnings prior to job flows with a short nonemployment spell

Dollars

Earnings

AQHireS

AQHireSEarn_Dest

faq_doma2_kfqearn

sAQHireSEarn_Dest

Average Earnings following Job-to-Job Flows (Brief Nonemployment)

Average quarterly earnings following job flows with a short nonemployment spell

Dollars

Earnings

AQHireS

5.4. Variability measures

The following tables and associated mapping files list the variability measures available on each file. The 'Variability Measure' is the short name of the variable on the CSV files, suitable for machine processing in a wide variety of statistical applications. When given, the 'Alternate Name' may appear in related documentation and articles. The 'Variable Name' is a more verbose description of the variability measure.

Six variability measures are published:

  • Total variability, prefixed by vt_

  • Standard error, prefixed by st_, and computed as the square root of Total Variability

  • Between-implicate variability, prefixed by vb_

  • Average within-implicate variability, prefixed by vw_

  • Degrees of freedom, prefixed by df_

  • Missingness ratio, prefixed by mr_

A missing variability measure indicates a structural zero in the corresponding indicator. This is currently not associated with a flag.

5.4.1. Generic structure

Column name

[ Identifier1 ]

[ Identifier2 ]

[ Identifier3 ]

[ … ]

[ Standard error for Indicator 1 ]

[ Standard error for Indicator 2 ]

[ Standard error for Indicator 3 ]

[ … ]

[ Total variation for Indicator 1 ]

[ Total variation for Indicator 2 ]

[ Total variation for Indicator 3 ]

[ … ]

[ Between-implicate variability for Indicator 1 ]

[ Between-implicate variability for Indicator 2 ]

[ Between-implicate variability for Indicator 3 ]

[ … ]

[ Average within-implicate variability for Indicator 1 ]

[ Average within-implicate variability for Indicator 2 ]

[ Average within-implicate variability for Indicator 3 ]

[ … ]

[ Degrees of freedom for Indicator 1 ]

[ Degrees of freedom for Indicator 2 ]

[ Degrees of freedom for Indicator 3 ]

[ … ]

[ Missingness ratio for Indicator 1 ]

[ Missingness ratio for Indicator 2 ]

[ Missingness ratio for Indicator 3 ]

[ … ]

Note: A full list of indicators for each type of file are shown in the Indicators section. In the tables below, only a sample of variability measures are printed, but the complete list is available in the linked CSV schema files.

5.4.2. National QWI and state-level QWI

Variability measure Alternate name Variable name Units Base

st_Emp

st_B

Standard error of Beginning-of-Quarter Employment

Count

1

st_EmpEnd

st_E

Standard error of End-of-Quarter Employment

Count

1

st_EmpS

st_F

Standard error of Full-Quarter Employment (Stable)

Count

1

vt_Emp

vt_B

Total variation of Beginning-of-Quarter Employment

Count

1

vt_EmpEnd

vt_E

Total variation of End-of-Quarter Employment

Count

1

vt_EmpS

vt_F

Total variation of Full-Quarter Employment (Stable)

Count

1

vb_Emp

vb_B

Between-implicate variability for Beginning-of-Quarter Employment

Count

1

vb_EmpEnd

vb_E

Between-implicate variability for End-of-Quarter Employment

Count

1

vb_EmpS

vb_F

Between-implicate variability for Full-Quarter Employment (Stable)

Count

1

df_Emp

df_B

Degrees of freedom for VT of Beginning-of-Quarter Employment

Count

1

df_EmpEnd

df_E

Degrees of freedom for VT of End-of-Quarter Employment

Count

1

df_EmpS

df_F

Degrees of freedom for VT of Full-Quarter Employment (Stable)

Count

1

mr_Emp

mr_B

Missingness ratio for Beginning-of-Quarter Employment

Count

1

mr_EmpEnd

mr_E

Missingness ratio for End-of-Quarter Employment

Count

1

mr_EmpS

mr_F

Missingness ratio for Full-Quarter Employment (Stable)

Count

1

5.4.3. National QWI and state-level QWI rates

Variability measure Alternate name Variable name Units Base

st_HirAR

st_AR

Standard error of Hiring Rate (All Accessions)

Rate

1

st_HirNR

st_HR

Standard error of New Hiring Rate

Rate

1

st_HirRR

st_RR

Standard error of Recall Rate

Rate

1

vt_HirAR

vt_AR

Total variation of Hiring Rate (All Accessions)

Rate

1

vt_HirNR

vt_HR

Total variation of New Hiring Rate

Rate

1

vt_HirRR

vt_RR

Total variation of Recall Rate

Rate

1

vb_HirAR

vb_AR

Between-implicate variability for Hiring Rate (All Accessions)

Rate

1

vb_HirNR

vb_HR

Between-implicate variability for New Hiring Rate

Rate

1

vb_HirRR

vb_RR

Between-implicate variability for Recall Rate

Rate

1

df_HirAR

df_AR

Degrees of freedom for VT of Hiring Rate (All Accessions)

Rate

1

df_HirNR

df_HR

Degrees of freedom for VT of New Hiring Rate

Rate

1

df_HirRR

df_RR

Degrees of freedom for VT of Recall Rate

Rate

1

mr_HirAR

mr_AR

Missingness ratio for Hiring Rate (All Accessions)

Rate

1

mr_HirNR

mr_HR

Missingness ratio for New Hiring Rate

Rate

1

mr_HirRR

mr_RR

Missingness ratio for Recall Rate

Rate

1

5.4.4. Job-to-job flow counts (J2J)

Soon.

5.4.5. Job-to-job flow rates (J2JR)

Soon.

5.4.6. Job-to-job flow Origin-Destination (J2JOD)

Soon.

6. Categorical Variables

Categorical variable descriptions are displayed above each table, with the variable name shown in parentheses. Unless otherwise stated, every possible value/label combination for each categorical variable is listed. Please note that not all values will be available in every table.

6.1. agegrp

agegrp label

A00

All Ages (14-99)

A01

14-18

A02

19-21

A03

22-24

A04

25-34

A05

35-44

A06

45-54

A07

55-64

A08

65-99

6.2. concept

Concept Definition

Hire

Measure derived from the the first quarter that a job is the main source of income (usually a hire)

Separation

Measure derived from the last quarter that a job is the main source of income (usually a separation)

Employment

Measure counting the stock of all jobs at a point in time

Earnings

Measure of average earnings associated with a base employment or job transition measure

6.3. education

education label

E0

All Education Categories

E1

Less than high school

E2

High school or equivalent, no college

E3

Some college or Associate degree

E4

Bachelor’s degree or advanced degree

E5

Educational attainment not available (workers aged 24 or younger)

6.4. ethnicity

ethnicity label

A0

All Ethnicities

A1

Not Hispanic or Latino

A2

Hispanic or Latino

6.5. firmage

firmage label

0

All Firm Ages

1

0-1 Years

2

2-3 Years

3

4-5 Years

4

6-10 Years

5

11+ Years

N

Firm Age Not Available For Public-Sector Firms

6.6. firmsize

firmsize label

0

All Firm Sizes

1

0-19 Employees

2

20-49 Employees

3

50-249 Employees

4

250-499 Employees

5

500+ Employees

N

Firm Size Not Available For Public-Sector Firms

6.7. ownercode

ownercode label

A00

All (1-5)

A01

Federal government

A05

All Private (5)

6.8. periodicity

periodicity label

A

Annual data

Q

Quarterly data

6.9. quarter

quarter label

1

1st Quarter of the Year (January-March)

2

2nd Quarter of the Year (April-June)

3

3rd Quarter of the Year (July-September)

4

4th Quarter of the Year (October-December)

6.10. race

race label

A0

All Races

A1

White Alone

A2

Black or African American Alone

A3

American Indian or Alaska Native Alone

A4

Asian Alone

A5

Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander Alone

A6

Some Other Race Alone (Not Used)

A7

Two or More Race Groups

6.11. seasonadj

seasonadj label

S

Seasonally adjusted

U

Not seasonally adjusted

6.12. sex

sex label

0

All Sexes

1

Male

2

Female

6.13. Industry

6.13.1. Industry levels

ind_level label

A

All Industries

S

NAICS Sectors

3

NAICS Subsectors

4

NAICS Industry Groups

6.13.2. Industry

Only a small subset of available values shown. The 2012 NAICS (North American Industry Classification System) is used for all years. QWI releases prior to R2015Q3 used the 2007 NAICS classification (see Schema v4.0.1). For a full listing of all valid 2012 NAICS codes, see http://www.census.gov/cgi-bin/sssd/naics/naicsrch?chart=2012.

industry label

00

All NAICS Sectors

000

All NAICS Subsectors

0000

All NAICS Industry Groups

11

Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing and Hunting

111

Crop Production

1111

Oilseed and Grain Farming

1112

Vegetable and Melon Farming

2382

Building Equipment Contractors

2383

Building Finishing Contractors

2389

Other Specialty Trade Contractors

31-33

Manufacturing

311

Food Manufacturing

3111

Animal Food Manufacturing

3112

Grain and Oilseed Milling

3113

Sugar and Confectionery Product Manufacturing

6.14. Geography

6.14.1. Geographic levels

Geography labels for data files are provided in separate files, by scope. Each file label_geograpy_SCOPE.csv may contain one or more types of records as flagged by geo_level. For convenience, a composite file containing all geocodes is available as label_geography.csv. The 2015 vintage of  Census TIGER/Line geography is used for all tabulations as of the R2015Q4 release.

Shapefiles are described in a separate document.

geo_level label description sourceurl

B

Metropolitan (complete)

Identifies 5-digit CBSA code for metropolitan areas provided by the Census Bureau’s Geography Division. Balance of state including micropolitan areas are identified by custom codes as [ST]999

http://www.census.gov/population/metro/

C

Counties

Identifies 5-digit FIPS/ANSI code for counties

https://www.census.gov/geo/reference/codes/cou.html

M

Metropolitan/Micropolitan (state part)

Identifies 7-digit code constructed from the 2-digit state FIPS code and the 5-digit CBSA code provided by the Census Bureau’s Geography Division

http://www.census.gov/population/metro/

N

National (50 States + DC)

Custom code using 00 to denote national scope

S

States

Identifies 2-digit FIPS/ANSI codes

https://www.census.gov/geo/reference/ansi_statetables.html

W

Workforce Investment Areas

2-digit state FIPS code and the 6-digit WIA identifier provided by LED State Partners

6.14.2. National and state-level values

The file label_fipsnum.csv contains values and labels for all entities of geo_level N or S, and is a summary of separately available files.

geography label geo_level

00

National (50 States + DC)

N

01

Alabama

S

02

Alaska

S

04

Arizona

S

05

Arkansas

S

06

California

S

08

Colorado

S

45

South Carolina

S

46

South Dakota

S

47

Tennessee

S

48

Texas

S

49

Utah

S

50

Vermont

S

51

Virginia

S

53

Washington

S

6.14.3. State postal codes

Some parts of the schema use (lower or upper-case) state postal codes.

geography stusps

00

US

01

AL

02

AK

04

AZ

05

AR

06

CA

08

CO

09

CT

10

DE

11

DC

12

FL

13

GA

15

HI

16

ID

17

IL

18

IN

19

IA

20

KS

21

KY

22

LA

23

ME

24

MD

25

MA

26

MI

27

MN

28

MS

29

MO

30

MT

31

NE

32

NV

33

NH

34

NJ

35

NM

36

NY

37

NC

38

ND

39

OH

40

OK

41

OR

42

PA

44

RI

45

SC

46

SD

47

TN

48

TX

49

UT

50

VT

51

VA

53

WA

54

WV

55

WI

56

WY

72

PR

78

VI

6.14.4. Detailed state and substate level values

Files of type label_geography_[ST].csv will contain identifiers and labels for geographic areas entirely comprised within a given state [ST]. State-specific parts of cross-state CBSA, in records of type geo_level = M, are present on files of type label_geography_[ST].csv. The file label_geography_metro.csv contains labels for records of type geo_level = B, for metropolitan areas only.

Scope Types Format file

US

N

label_geography_us.csv

METRO

B

label_geography_metro.csv

States

AK

S C W M

label_geography_ak.csv

AL

S C W M

label_geography_al.csv

AR

S C W M

label_geography_ar.csv

AZ

S C W M

label_geography_az.csv

CA

S C W M

label_geography_ca.csv

CO

S C W M

label_geography_co.csv

CT

S C W M

label_geography_ct.csv

DC

S C W M

label_geography_dc.csv

DE

S C W M

label_geography_de.csv

FL

S C W M

label_geography_fl.csv

GA

S C W M

label_geography_ga.csv

HI

S C W M

label_geography_hi.csv

IA

S C W M

label_geography_ia.csv

ID

S C W M

label_geography_id.csv

IL

S C W M

label_geography_il.csv

IN

S C W M

label_geography_in.csv

KS

S C W M

label_geography_ks.csv

KY

S C W M

label_geography_ky.csv

LA

S C W M

label_geography_la.csv

MA

S C W M

label_geography_ma.csv

MD

S C W M

label_geography_md.csv

ME

S C W M

label_geography_me.csv

MI

S C W M

label_geography_mi.csv

MN

S C W M

label_geography_mn.csv

MO

S C W M

label_geography_mo.csv

MS

S C W M

label_geography_ms.csv

MT

S C W M

label_geography_mt.csv

NC

S C W M

label_geography_nc.csv

ND

S C W M

label_geography_nd.csv

NE

S C W M

label_geography_ne.csv

NH

S C W M

label_geography_nh.csv

NJ

S C W M

label_geography_nj.csv

NM

S C W M

label_geography_nm.csv

NV

S C W M

label_geography_nv.csv

NY

S C W M

label_geography_ny.csv

OH

S C W M

label_geography_oh.csv

OK

S C W M

label_geography_ok.csv

OR

S C W M

label_geography_or.csv

PA

S C W M

label_geography_pa.csv

RI

S C W M

label_geography_ri.csv

SC

S C W M

label_geography_sc.csv

SD

S C W M

label_geography_sd.csv

TN

S C W M

label_geography_tn.csv

TX

S C W M

label_geography_tx.csv

UT

S C W M

label_geography_ut.csv

VA

S C W M

label_geography_va.csv

VT

S C W M

label_geography_vt.csv

WA

S C W M

label_geography_wa.csv

WI

S C W M

label_geography_wi.csv

WV

S C W M

label_geography_wv.csv

WY

S C W M

label_geography_wy.csv

6.15. Aggregation level

Measures within the J2J and QWI data products are tabulated on many different dimensions, including demographic characteristics, geography, industry, and other firm characteristics. For Origin-Destination (O-D) tables, characteristics of the origin and destination firm can be tabulated separately. Every tabulation level is assigned a unique aggregation index, represented by the agg_level variable. This index starts from 1, representing a national level grand total (all industries, workers, etc.), and progresses through different combinations of characteristics. There are gaps in the progression to leave space for aggregation levels that may be included in future data releases.

agg_level is currently reported only for J2J data products.

The following variables are included in the label_agg_level.csv file:

Variable Description

agg_level

index representing level of aggregation reported on a given record

worker_char

demographic (worker) characteristics reported on record

firm_char

firm characteristics reported on record. These will be the characteristics of the destination firm in O-D tabulations

firm_orig_char

characteristics of origin firm reported on record (O-D tabulations only)

j2j

Flag: Aggregation level available on J2J counts tables

j2jr

Flag: Aggregation level available on J2J rates tables

j2jod

Flag: Aggregation level available on J2J O-D tables

qwi

Flag: Aggregation level available on QWI

The characteristics available on an aggregation level are repeated using a series of flags following the standard schema:

  • geo_level - geographic level of table

  • ind_level - industry level of table

  • by_ variables - flags indicating other dimensions reported, including ownership, demographics, firm age and size.

A shortened representation of the file is provided below, the complete file is available in the link above.

agg_level worker_char firm_char firm_orig_char j2j j2jr j2jod qwi geo_level

1

1

1

1

0

N

2

Sex

1

1

1

0

N

3

Age

1

1

1

0

N

4

Sex * Age

1

1

1

0

N

5

Race

1

1

1

0

N

9

Ethnicity

1

1

1

0

N

13

Race * Ethnicity

1

1

1

0

N

129

Firm Size

1

1

1

0

N

257

NAICS Sector

1

1

1

0

N

258

Sex

NAICS Sector

1

1

1

0

N

1029

Race

State

1

1

1

0

S

1033

Ethnicity

State

1

1

1

0

S

1037

Race * Ethnicity

State

1

1

1

0

S

7. Status flags

Each status flag in the tables above contains one of the following valid values. The values and their interpretation are listed in the table below.

Important
Important

Note: Currently, the J2J tables only contain status flags -1, 1, 5. Status flags with values 10 or above only appear in online applications, not in CSV files.

flag label

-2

no data available in this category for this quarter

-1

data not available to compute this estimate

1

OK

5

Value suppressed because it does not meet US Census Bureau publication standards.

6

Value calculated from other released measures - no significant distortion

7

Value calculated from other released measures - some of which have significantly distorted data

9

Data significantly distorted - fuzzed value released

10

Aggregate of cells - no significant distortion

11

Aggregate of cells not released because component cells do not meet U.S. Census Bureau publication standards

12

Aggregate of cells - some of which have significantly distorted data

8. Metadata

8.1. Metadata for QWI and J2J files (version.txt)

Each data release is accompanied by one or more files with metadata on geographic and temporal coverage, in a compact notation. These files follow the following naming convention:

version_[demo]_[fas].txt
version_[type].txt

where each component is described in more detail in lehd_csv_naming.html.

The contents contains the following elements:

Component Source Description

product

[type]

Type as described in lehd_csv_naming.html

demo_fas

[demo]_[fas]

(optional - concatenated with product) used for QWI to distinguish separate tabulations from the legal [demo]_[fas] combinations as described in lehd_csv_naming.html

geo

[stusps] or METRO

Covered [geography] (uppercase state postal code including entire nation or the word METRO)

geonum

[geography]

Numeric geography code

start

yyyy:q

Start year and quarter

end

yyyy:q

End year and quarter

schema

Vx.y.z

Version of the schema

release

RyyyyQq

Release quarter (identifies when the data was created)

internal

various

Internal identifier used for provenance tracking

For instance, the metadata for the R2017Q1 release of Missouri QWI Sex by Age tabulations for No firm size or age detail (obtained from here) has the following content:

QWISA_F MO 29 1995:1-2016:2 V4.1.1 R2017Q1 qwipu_mo_20170301_1230

Similarly, the metadata for the R2017Q1 release of Missouri J2J tabulations (obtained from here) has the following content:

J2J MO 29 2000:2-2016:1 V4.2a-draft R2017Q1 j2jpu_mo_20170425_1760

Some J2J metadata may contain multiple lines, as necessary.

8.2. Additional metadata for J2JOD files (avail.csv)

Because the origin-destination (J2JOD) data link two regions, we provide an auxiliary file with the time range that cells containing data for each geographic pairing may appear in a data release.

variable type label

geo_level

Char(1)

Geographic level of destination region

geography

Char(8)

Geography code of destination region

geo_level_orig

Char(1)

Geographic level of origin region

geography_orig

Char(8)

Geography code of origin region

start_year

Num

First year regional pair may be observed

start_quarter

Num

First quarter regional pair may be observed

end_year

Num

Last year regional pair may be observed

end_quarter

Num

Last quarter regional pair may be observed

The reference region will always be either the origin or the destination. National tabulations contain records where both origin and destination are geo_level=N; state tabulations contain records where geo_level in (N,S); metro tabulations contain records where geo_level in (N,S,B). Data may be suppressed for certain combinations of regions and quarters because the estimates do not meet Census Bureau publication standards.

9. Changes

For a description of how schema files are versioned, see main directory.

9.1. This version (revisions)

  • 2017-08-21: Initial release

  • 2017-09-01: Incorporates forgotten updates to j2japp descriptions. This does not affect the structure or contents of any released data files, but it affects the unreleased J2J app updates downstream.

  • 2017-09-07: clarifying the version.txt description - removed the mention of fips replacing by geonum

  • 2017-09-07: Moved stusps to the geography section, where it rightfully belongs.

  • 2017-09-07: Clarified language and usage of metropolitan area codes in label_geography_metro.csv, removed unused label_geography_cbsa.csv

  • 2017-09-07: Expanded definition of [geohi] to include CBSA codes for metropolitan areas

  • 2017-10-30: Description on J2JOD earnings measures reversed, fixed. Only affects the J2J app metadata.

  • 2017-12-18: Description on J2JOD earnings measures reversed, should have also fixed on J2JOD description.

9.2. Version 4.2b-draft from V4.2a-draft

9.3. Version 4.2a-draft from 4.1.1

This revision: Tue Dec 19 16:02:40 EST 2017