Seward County vs. Nebraska
Comparative Trends Analysis:
Total Employment Growth and Change, 1969-2022
Introduction
Seward County vs. Nebraska
Seward County:
2022 Jobs = 10,132
2022 Percent of State = 0.74%
Nebraska:
2022 Jobs = 1,372,111
2022 Percent of U.S. = 0.65%
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 Seward County to work are included in the employment count for Seward 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 tracks Seward County's annual total employment for the period 1969-2022 to illustrate total employment patterns over time. During this 54-year period, Seward County's total employment rose from 5,667 in 1969 to 10,132 in 2022, for a net gain of 4,465, or 78.79%.
Total Employment, 1969-2022
Total Employment, 1969-2022
Figure 2.
Figure 2 traces Nebraska's annual total employment for the period 1969-2022 to illustrate total employment patterns over time. During this 54-year period, Nebraska's total employment rose from 703,747 in 1969 to 1,372,111 in 2022, for a net gain of 668,364, or 94.97%.
Total Employment Indices (1969=100): 1969-2022
Total Employment Indices (1969=100): 1969-2022
Figure 3.
Figure 3 portrays Seward County's total employment growth in a broader context by offering direct comparisons across time with Nebraska, 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.
Seward County's overall total employment growth was 78.79% over 1969-2022 trailed Nebraska's increase of 94.97%, and fell below the United States' increase of 133.32%.
Total Employment as a Percent of the Nebraska Total: 1969-2022
Total Employment as a Percent of the Nebraska Total: 1969-2022
Figure 4.
Another interesting and insightful way of highlighting the total employment growth of Seward County is to trace its individual percentage contributions to Nebraska'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 Nebraska's total employment, while a declining share shows it grew more slowly.
In 1969, Seward County's total employment comprised 0.81% of Nebraska's total employment, while in 2022 it equated to 0.74% thereby yielding a -0.07% share-shift.
   
 
Total Employment Share-Shift
2022 vs. 1969
 
Share-
Shift*
 
2022
vs.
1969
-0.07%
=
0.74%
-
0.81%
 
   
Seward County Total Employment:
Annual Percent Change, 1970-2022
Seward County Total Employment:
Annual Percent Change, 1970-2022
Figure 5.
Figure 5 shows the short-run pattern of Seward 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, Seward County's total employment grew at an annual rate of 1.13% over 1970-2022. The county posted its highest growth in 1973 (7.12%) and posted its lowest growth in 2001 (-3.56%). In 2022, Seward County's total employment grew by 2.79%
Seward County Total Employment:
Annual Percent Change and Decade Averages Over 1970-2022
Seward 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 depicts the annual percent change in Seward 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, Seward County's annual total employment growth rate averaged 2.62%. It averaged 1.32% during the 1980s, 1.09% in the 1990s, 0.03% throughout the 2000s, 0.74% throughout the 2010s, 0.56% 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 Seward County noted in the previous graph with the corresponding decade averages for Nebraska and the nation. As the chart reveals, Seward County's average annual total employment growth exceeded Nebraska's average throughout the 1970s (2.62% vs. 2.21%), recorded above Nebraska's average during the 1980s (1.32% vs. 0.98%), lagged Nebraska's average during the 1990s (1.09% vs. 1.84%), recorded under Nebraska's average during the 2000s (0.03% vs. 0.56%), posted below Nebraska's average throughout the 2010s (0.74% vs. 0.83%), and amounted to less than Nebraska's average over the 3 year period of the current decade, 2020-2022 (0.56% vs. 1.11%).
Finally, relative to nationwide total employment growth trends, Seward County outpaced the nation throughout the 1970s (2.62% vs. 2.21%), recorded underneath the nation in the 1980s (1.32% vs. 1.88%), lagged the nation during the 1990s (1.09% vs. 1.73%), recorded underneath the nation in the 2000s (0.03% vs. 0.74%), fell under the nation over the 2010s (0.74% vs. 1.51%), and posted below the nation over 2020-2022 (0.56% vs. 1.82%).
   
 
Total Employment Growth:
Average Annual Percent Change
 
 
 
1.13
2.62
1.32
1.09
0.03
0.74
0.56
2.79
 
1.28
2.21
0.98
1.84
0.56
0.83
1.11
2.82
 
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 Seward County, Nebraska 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. Seward County's job ratio registered 0.40 in 1969, and 0.57 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 Seward County's, Nebraska'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.

   
 
Seward County:
Total Employment, 1969-2022
 
1969
 
5,667
100.0
N
0.81
0.40
88.12
1970
 
5,779
102.0
1.98
0.81
0.40
89.05
1971
 
5,807
102.5
0.48
0.80
0.39
88.84
1972
 
5,874
103.7
1.15
0.79
0.38
85.01
1973
 
6,292
111.0
7.12
0.81
0.40
86.47
1974
 
6,575
116.0
4.50
0.83
0.42
88.85
1975
 
6,610
116.6
0.53
0.84
0.43
93.17
1976
 
6,969
123.0
5.43
0.86
0.46
97.44
1977
 
7,072
124.8
1.48
0.85
0.46
96.54
1978
 
7,342
129.6
3.82
0.86
0.47
94.82
1979
 
7,320
129.2
-0.30
0.84
0.46
92.24
1980
 
7,313
129.0
-0.10
0.83
0.46
92.39
1981
 
7,249
127.9
-0.88
0.83
0.46
92.17
1982
 
7,162
126.4
-1.20
0.83
0.47
94.56
1983
 
7,146
126.1
-0.22
0.82
0.46
93.09
1984
 
7,192
126.9
0.64
0.81
0.46
90.77
1985
 
7,199
127.0
0.10
0.80
0.47
90.03
1986
 
7,190
126.9
-0.13
0.80
0.47
90.28
1987
 
7,490
132.2
4.17
0.81
0.49
91.97
1988
 
7,799
137.6
4.13
0.82
0.51
93.10
1989
 
8,322
146.9
6.71
0.86
0.54
97.97
1990
 
8,557
151.0
2.82
0.87
0.55
99.69
1991
 
8,620
152.1
0.74
0.87
0.55
101.82
1992
 
8,776
154.9
1.81
0.88
0.56
103.73
1993
 
8,834
155.9
0.66
0.87
0.56
102.51
1994
 
9,138
161.2
3.44
0.86
0.57
104.41
1995
 
9,263
163.5
1.37
0.86
0.57
102.83
1996
 
9,193
162.2
-0.76
0.84
0.56
100.61
1997
 
9,323
164.5
1.41
0.84
0.57
101.17
1998
 
9,317
164.4
-0.06
0.82
0.57
98.71
1999
 
9,264
163.5
-0.57
0.80
0.56
97.36
2000
 
9,546
168.4
3.04
0.81
0.58
98.60
2001
 
9,206
162.4
-3.56
0.78
0.55
95.44
2002
 
9,050
159.7
-1.69
0.78
0.55
95.13
2003
 
9,236
163.0
2.06
0.79
0.56
97.71
2004
 
9,184
162.1
-0.56
0.78
0.55
95.48
2005
 
9,250
163.2
0.72
0.78
0.56
95.54
2006
 
9,316
164.4
0.71
0.77
0.56
94.91
2007
 
9,397
165.8
0.87
0.76
0.57
95.61
2008
 
9,125
161.0
-2.89
0.74
0.55
92.98
2009
 
9,270
163.6
1.59
0.76
0.56
99.04
2010
 
9,382
165.6
1.21
0.77
0.56
99.86
2011
 
9,650
170.3
2.86
0.78
0.58
101.98
2012
 
9,841
173.7
1.98
0.79
0.58
101.72
2013
 
10,092
178.1
2.55
0.80
0.59
102.34
2014
 
10,114
178.5
0.22
0.79
0.59
100.86
2015
 
10,149
179.1
0.35
0.78
0.59
99.69
2016
 
10,260
181.0
1.09
0.78
0.59
99.14
2017
 
10,301
181.8
0.40
0.78
0.59
97.86
2018
 
10,163
179.3
-1.34
0.76
0.58
94.58
2019
 
9,971
175.9
-1.89
0.75
0.56
92.23
2020
 
9,733
171.7
-2.39
0.75
0.55
93.80
2021
 
9,857
173.9
1.27
0.74
0.56
91.80
2022
 
10,132
178.8
2.79
0.74
0.57
89.85
Source: Calculations by the Nebraska Regional Economic Analysis Project (NE-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.

   
 
Nebraska:
Total Employment, 1969-2022
 
1969
 
703,747
100.0
N
0.77
0.48
105.55
1970
 
715,204
101.6
1.63
0.78
0.48
107.32
1971
 
728,277
103.5
1.83
0.80
0.48
109.34
1972
 
747,678
106.2
2.66
0.79
0.49
109.27
1973
 
774,584
110.1
3.60
0.79
0.51
108.81
1974
 
793,125
112.7
2.39
0.79
0.52
109.90
1975
 
789,876
112.2
-0.41
0.80
0.51
111.63
1976
 
811,421
115.3
2.73
0.80
0.52
112.18
1977
 
831,023
118.1
2.42
0.79
0.53
111.85
1978
 
854,384
121.4
2.81
0.78
0.55
110.84
1979
 
875,515
124.4
2.47
0.77
0.56
111.08
1980
 
876,861
124.6
0.15
0.77
0.56
111.18
1981
 
871,447
123.8
-0.62
0.76
0.55
110.24
1982
 
860,736
122.3
-1.23
0.75
0.54
110.42
1983
 
867,419
123.3
0.78
0.75
0.55
110.69
1984
 
885,647
125.8
2.10
0.73
0.56
109.08
1985
 
897,918
127.6
1.39
0.73
0.57
108.90
1986
 
897,767
127.6
-0.02
0.71
0.57
108.48
1987
 
924,608
131.4
2.99
0.71
0.59
110.39
1988
 
947,439
134.6
2.47
0.71
0.60
110.36
1989
 
964,656
137.1
1.82
0.71
0.61
111.02
1990
 
988,048
140.4
2.42
0.71
0.62
112.73
1991
 
992,320
141.0
0.43
0.72
0.62
114.31
1992
 
999,204
142.0
0.69
0.72
0.62
115.10
1993
 
1,020,980
145.1
2.18
0.73
0.63
115.96
1994
 
1,061,466
150.8
3.97
0.74
0.65
118.17
1995
 
1,071,231
152.2
0.92
0.72
0.65
116.38
1996
 
1,096,704
155.8
2.38
0.73
0.66
116.86
1997
 
1,111,371
157.9
1.34
0.72
0.66
116.27
1998
 
1,138,369
161.8
2.43
0.72
0.67
116.84
1999
 
1,156,816
164.4
1.62
0.72
0.68
117.22
2000
 
1,173,756
166.8
1.46
0.71
0.68
116.86
2001
 
1,175,112
167.0
0.12
0.71
0.68
117.63
2002
 
1,165,998
165.7
-0.78
0.71
0.67
117.54
2003
 
1,169,210
166.1
0.28
0.70
0.67
117.58
2004
 
1,180,188
167.7
0.94
0.70
0.67
117.00
2005
 
1,192,187
169.4
1.02
0.69
0.68
116.05
2006
 
1,208,036
171.7
1.33
0.69
0.68
115.62
2007
 
1,230,968
174.9
1.90
0.69
0.69
115.80
2008
 
1,237,394
175.8
0.52
0.69
0.69
116.88
2009
 
1,223,251
173.8
-1.14
0.70
0.67
119.22
2010
 
1,219,855
173.3
-0.28
0.71
0.67
119.26
2011
 
1,232,536
175.1
1.04
0.70
0.67
118.38
2012
 
1,251,331
177.8
1.52
0.70
0.67
118.23
2013
 
1,266,360
179.9
1.20
0.69
0.68
117.43
2014
 
1,282,738
182.3
1.29
0.69
0.68
116.35
2015
 
1,302,877
185.1
1.57
0.68
0.68
115.68
2016
 
1,310,927
186.3
0.62
0.68
0.68
114.42
2017
 
1,317,730
187.2
0.52
0.67
0.68
113.29
2018
 
1,330,415
189.0
0.96
0.66
0.68
112.18
2019
 
1,328,389
188.8
-0.15
0.66
0.68
111.29
2020
 
1,305,651
185.5
-1.71
0.67
0.67
112.93
2021
 
1,334,434
189.6
2.20
0.66
0.68
111.29
2022
 
1,372,111
195.0
2.82
0.65
0.70
109.39
Source: Calculations by the Nebraska Regional Economic Analysis Project (NE-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 Nebraska Regional Economic Analysis Project (NE-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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