Dorchester County vs. Maryland
Comparative Trends Analysis:
Total Employment Growth and Change, 1969-2022
Introduction
Dorchester County vs. Maryland
Dorchester County:
2022 Jobs = 18,182
2022 Percent of State = 0.47%
Maryland:
2022 Jobs = 3,886,891
2022 Percent of U.S. = 1.83%
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 Dorchester County to work are included in the employment count for Dorchester 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 Dorchester County's annual total employment for the period 1969-2022 to illustrate total employment patterns over time. During this 54-year period, Dorchester County's total employment rose from 13,780 in 1969 to 18,182 in 2022, for a net gain of 4,402, or 31.94%.
Total Employment, 1969-2022
Total Employment, 1969-2022
Figure 2.
Figure 2 traces Maryland's annual total employment for the period 1969-2022 to illustrate total employment patterns over time. During this 54-year period, Maryland's total employment rose from 1,679,355 in 1969 to 3,886,891 in 2022, for a net gain of 2,207,536, or 131.45%.
Total Employment Indices (1969=100): 1969-2022
Total Employment Indices (1969=100): 1969-2022
Figure 3.
Figure 3 portrays Dorchester County's total employment growth in a broader context by offering direct comparisons across time with Maryland, 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.
Dorchester County's overall total employment growth was 31.94% over 1969-2022 trailed Maryland's increase of 131.45%, and fell below the United States' increase of 133.32%.
Total Employment as a Percent of the Maryland Total: 1969-2022
Total Employment as a Percent of the Maryland Total: 1969-2022
Figure 4.
Another interesting and insightful way of highlighting the total employment growth of Dorchester County is to compare its individual percentage contributions to Maryland'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 Maryland's total employment, while a declining share shows it grew more slowly.
In 1969, Dorchester County's total employment totaled 0.82% of Maryland's total employment, while in 2022 it totaled 0.47% thereby yielding a -0.35% share-shift.
   
 
Total Employment Share-Shift
2022 vs. 1969
 
Share-
Shift*
 
2022
vs.
1969
-0.35%
=
0.47%
-
0.82%
 
   
Dorchester County Total Employment:
Annual Percent Change, 1970-2022
Dorchester County Total Employment:
Annual Percent Change, 1970-2022
Figure 5.
Figure 5 highlights the short-run pattern of Dorchester 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, Dorchester County's total employment grew at an annual rate of 0.56% over 1970-2022. The county posted its highest growth in 1984 (10.40%) and posted its lowest growth in 1982 (-5.28%). In 2022, Dorchester County's total employment grew by 2.16%
Dorchester County Total Employment:
Annual Percent Change and Decade Averages Over 1970-2022
Dorchester 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 traces the annual percent change in Dorchester County's total employment since 1970, but this time they are displayed with average growth rates for the decade of the 1970s, 1980s, 1990s, 2000s, 2010s, and 2020-2022.
During the 1970s, Dorchester County's annual total employment growth rate averaged 0.66%. It averaged 1.13% during the 1980s, -0.21% in the 1990s, 0.17% in the 2000s, 0.26% throughout the 2010s, 3.14% 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 Dorchester County noted in the previous graph with the corresponding decade averages for Maryland and the nation. As the chart reveals, Dorchester County's average annual total employment growth recorded under Maryland's average throughout the 1970s (0.66% vs. 2.07%), amounted to less than Maryland's average in the 1980s (1.13% vs. 2.78%), amounted to less than Maryland's average throughout the 1990s (-0.21% vs. 1.08%), trailed Maryland's average in the 2000s (0.17% vs. 1.12%), amounted to less than Maryland's average in the 2010s (0.26% vs. 1.09%), and outperformed Maryland's average over the 3 year period of the current decade, 2020-2022 (3.14% vs. 1.30%).
Finally, relative to nationwide total employment growth trends, Dorchester County lagged the nation in the 1970s (0.66% vs. 2.21%), lagged the nation in the 1980s (1.13% vs. 1.88%), fell under the nation throughout the 1990s (-0.21% vs. 1.73%), lagged the nation in the 2000s (0.17% vs. 0.74%), posted below the nation in the 2010s (0.26% vs. 1.51%), and outgained the nation over 2020-2022 (3.14% vs. 1.82%).
   
 
Total Employment Growth:
Average Annual Percent Change
 
 
 
0.56
0.66
1.13
-0.21
0.17
0.26
3.14
2.16
 
1.61
2.07
2.78
1.08
1.12
1.09
1.30
3.65
 
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 Dorchester County, Maryland 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. Dorchester County's job ratio registered 0.47 in 1969, and 0.56 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 Dorchester County's, Maryland'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.

   
 
Dorchester County:
Total Employment, 1969-2022
 
1969
 
13,780
100.0
N
0.82
0.47
103.36
1970
 
13,941
101.2
1.17
0.82
0.47
105.49
1971
 
13,996
101.6
0.39
0.81
0.46
104.84
1972
 
14,167
102.8
1.22
0.80
0.48
106.23
1973
 
14,876
108.0
5.00
0.81
0.50
107.04
1974
 
14,662
106.4
-1.44
0.78
0.49
104.66
1975
 
14,331
104.0
-2.26
0.78
0.47
103.25
1976
 
14,322
103.9
-0.06
0.77
0.47
99.88
1977
 
14,195
103.0
-0.89
0.74
0.45
94.66
1978
 
14,483
105.1
2.03
0.72
0.46
93.70
1979
 
14,683
106.6
1.38
0.71
0.47
93.69
1980
 
14,335
104.0
-2.37
0.69
0.47
93.52
1981
 
13,895
100.8
-3.07
0.66
0.46
91.76
1982
 
13,162
95.5
-5.28
0.63
0.44
88.46
1983
 
13,387
97.1
1.71
0.62
0.45
90.69
1984
 
14,779
107.2
10.40
0.66
0.50
97.18
1985
 
14,748
107.0
-0.21
0.63
0.49
94.94
1986
 
15,066
109.3
2.16
0.62
0.50
96.01
1987
 
16,115
116.9
6.96
0.63
0.54
100.86
1988
 
16,385
118.9
1.68
0.62
0.54
99.54
1989
 
16,281
118.1
-0.63
0.60
0.54
97.47
1990
 
16,605
120.5
1.99
0.61
0.55
98.95
1991
 
16,202
117.6
-2.43
0.61
0.53
98.33
1992
 
15,866
115.1
-2.07
0.60
0.52
96.51
1993
 
15,661
113.7
-1.29
0.59
0.51
94.17
1994
 
15,726
114.1
0.42
0.58
0.51
93.42
1995
 
15,943
115.7
1.38
0.58
0.52
93.98
1996
 
15,681
113.8
-1.64
0.56
0.51
91.00
1997
 
15,774
114.5
0.59
0.55
0.51
90.31
1998
 
15,800
114.7
0.16
0.54
0.52
89.85
1999
 
15,929
115.6
0.82
0.53
0.52
89.39
2000
 
16,382
118.9
2.84
0.53
0.54
91.40
2001
 
16,156
117.2
-1.38
0.52
0.53
90.76
2002
 
15,954
115.8
-1.25
0.51
0.52
91.05
2003
 
16,350
118.7
2.48
0.51
0.53
93.34
2004
 
16,821
122.1
2.88
0.52
0.54
93.84
2005
 
16,960
123.1
0.83
0.51
0.54
92.55
2006
 
16,871
122.4
-0.52
0.50
0.53
90.36
2007
 
16,927
122.8
0.33
0.49
0.53
88.27
2008
 
16,511
119.8
-2.46
0.48
0.51
86.29
2009
 
16,178
117.4
-2.02
0.48
0.50
88.03
2010
 
15,907
115.4
-1.68
0.48
0.49
87.03
2011
 
15,819
114.8
-0.55
0.47
0.48
85.44
2012
 
15,714
114.0
-0.66
0.46
0.48
84.57
2013
 
15,837
114.9
0.78
0.45
0.48
83.92
2014
 
16,081
116.7
1.54
0.45
0.49
84.08
2015
 
15,978
116.0
-0.64
0.44
0.49
82.41
2016
 
16,202
117.6
1.40
0.44
0.50
83.12
2017
 
15,839
114.9
-2.24
0.43
0.49
80.87
2018
 
15,932
115.6
0.59
0.42
0.49
80.56
2019
 
16,571
120.3
4.01
0.44
0.51
83.58
2020
 
17,063
123.8
2.97
0.47
0.52
89.05
2021
 
17,797
129.2
4.30
0.47
0.55
89.33
2022
 
18,182
131.9
2.16
0.47
0.56
87.16
Source: Calculations by the Maryland Regional Economic Analysis Project (MD-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.

   
 
Maryland:
Total Employment, 1969-2022
 
1969
 
1,679,355
100.0
N
1.84
0.43
95.98
1970
 
1,702,298
101.4
1.37
1.86
0.43
96.51
1971
 
1,728,598
102.9
1.54
1.89
0.43
97.05
1972
 
1,781,187
106.1
3.04
1.89
0.44
96.85
1973
 
1,846,490
110.0
3.67
1.88
0.45
96.49
1974
 
1,867,792
111.2
1.15
1.87
0.45
96.29
1975
 
1,845,601
109.9
-1.19
1.87
0.44
96.72
1976
 
1,865,565
111.1
1.08
1.84
0.45
95.76
1977
 
1,918,925
114.3
2.86
1.83
0.46
95.71
1978
 
2,003,857
119.3
4.43
1.83
0.48
96.34
1979
 
2,059,469
122.6
2.78
1.82
0.49
96.78
1980
 
2,070,441
123.3
0.53
1.82
0.49
97.63
1981
 
2,095,422
124.8
1.21
1.82
0.49
98.18
1982
 
2,083,585
124.1
-0.56
1.83
0.49
98.72
1983
 
2,151,035
128.1
3.24
1.86
0.50
100.82
1984
 
2,242,630
133.5
4.26
1.86
0.51
100.52
1985
 
2,342,002
139.5
4.43
1.89
0.53
101.99
1986
 
2,427,570
144.6
3.65
1.92
0.54
102.92
1987
 
2,553,099
152.0
5.17
1.97
0.56
104.59
1988
 
2,647,475
157.6
3.70
1.98
0.57
104.05
1989
 
2,703,904
161.0
2.13
1.99
0.57
103.67
1990
 
2,737,249
163.0
1.23
1.98
0.57
102.91
1991
 
2,662,392
158.5
-2.73
1.93
0.55
100.55
1992
 
2,635,653
156.9
-1.00
1.91
0.54
99.39
1993
 
2,658,555
158.3
0.87
1.89
0.53
98.73
1994
 
2,705,548
161.1
1.77
1.88
0.54
98.29
1995
 
2,765,393
164.7
2.21
1.87
0.55
98.19
1996
 
2,806,074
167.1
1.47
1.86
0.55
97.89
1997
 
2,870,391
170.9
2.29
1.86
0.56
98.19
1998
 
2,935,441
174.8
2.27
1.85
0.56
98.17
1999
 
3,007,654
179.1
2.46
1.86
0.57
98.88
2000
 
3,092,125
184.1
2.81
1.87
0.58
99.34
2001
 
3,119,857
185.8
0.90
1.88
0.58
99.94
2002
 
3,156,623
188.0
1.18
1.91
0.58
101.08
2003
 
3,191,282
190.0
1.10
1.92
0.58
101.52
2004
 
3,247,728
193.4
1.77
1.92
0.59
101.54
2005
 
3,310,793
197.1
1.94
1.92
0.59
101.52
2006
 
3,378,368
201.2
2.04
1.92
0.60
101.86
2007
 
3,440,590
204.9
1.84
1.92
0.61
102.11
2008
 
3,430,861
204.3
-0.28
1.91
0.60
102.40
2009
 
3,359,477
200.0
-2.08
1.93
0.59
103.58
2010
 
3,345,404
199.2
-0.42
1.93
0.58
103.36
2011
 
3,394,860
202.2
1.48
1.93
0.58
102.69
2012
 
3,438,930
204.8
1.30
1.92
0.58
102.13
2013
 
3,494,007
208.1
1.60
1.92
0.59
101.80
2014
 
3,537,737
210.7
1.25
1.90
0.59
100.93
2015
 
3,602,930
214.5
1.84
1.89
0.60
100.71
2016
 
3,659,063
217.9
1.56
1.89
0.60
100.93
2017
 
3,696,841
220.1
1.03
1.88
0.60
100.58
2018
 
3,752,933
223.5
1.52
1.87
0.61
100.28
2019
 
3,744,535
223.0
-0.22
1.86
0.61
99.50
2020
 
3,621,705
215.7
-3.28
1.85
0.59
99.59
2021
 
3,750,161
223.3
3.55
1.85
0.61
99.46
2022
 
3,886,891
231.5
3.65
1.83
0.63
98.92
Source: Calculations by the Maryland Regional Economic Analysis Project (MD-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 Maryland Regional Economic Analysis Project (MD-REAP)
with data provided by the U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of Economic Analysis
November 2023
REAP_PI_CA1400_1000_PN
 
   
Copyright © 2024. Pacific Northwest Regional Economic Analysis Project (PNREAP). All Rights Reserved.

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