Divide County vs. North Dakota
Comparative Trends Analysis:
Total Employment Growth and Change, 1969-2022
Introduction
Divide County vs. North Dakota
Divide County:
2022 Jobs = 1,585
2022 Percent of State = 0.27%
North Dakota:
2022 Jobs = 587,819
2022 Percent of U.S. = 0.28%
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 Divide County to work are included in the employment count for Divide 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 Divide County's annual total employment for the period 1969-2022 to illustrate total employment patterns over time. During this 54-year period, Divide County's total employment dropped from 2,040 in 1969 to 1,585 in 2022, for a net loss of -455, or -22.30%.
Total Employment, 1969-2022
Total Employment, 1969-2022
Figure 2.
Figure 2 traces North Dakota's annual total employment for the period 1969-2022 to illustrate total employment patterns over time. During this 54-year period, North Dakota's total employment rose from 273,930 in 1969 to 587,819 in 2022, for a net gain of 313,889, or 114.59%.
Total Employment Indices (1969=100): 1969-2022
Total Employment Indices (1969=100): 1969-2022
Figure 3.
Figure 3 shows Divide County's total employment growth in a broader context by offering direct comparisons across time with North Dakota, 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.
Divide County's overall total employment growth was -22.30% over 1969-2022 trailed North Dakota's increase of 114.59%, and fell below the United States' increase of 133.32%.
Total Employment as a Percent of the North Dakota Total: 1969-2022
Total Employment as a Percent of the North Dakota Total: 1969-2022
Figure 4.
Another interesting and insightful way of comparing the total employment growth of Divide County is to trace its individual percentage contributions to North Dakota'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 Dakota's total employment, while a declining share shows it grew more slowly.
In 1969, Divide County's total employment totaled 0.74% of North Dakota's total employment, while in 2022 it totaled 0.27% thereby yielding a -0.48% share-shift.
   
 
Total Employment Share-Shift
2022 vs. 1969
 
Share-
Shift*
 
2022
vs.
1969
-0.48%
=
0.27%
-
0.74%
 
   
Divide County Total Employment:
Annual Percent Change, 1970-2022
Divide County Total Employment:
Annual Percent Change, 1970-2022
Figure 5.
Figure 5 shows the short-run pattern of Divide 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, Divide County's total employment contracted at an annual rate of -0.39% over 1970-2022. The county posted its highest growth in 2011 (22.39%) and posted its lowest growth in 2015 (-7.64%). In 2022, Divide County's total employment grew by 1.86%
Divide County Total Employment:
Annual Percent Change and Decade Averages Over 1970-2022
Divide 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 Divide 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, Divide County's annual total employment growth rate averaged -0.47%. It averaged -1.23% throughout the 1980s, 0.07% during the 1990s, -2.11% in the 2000s, 1.98% throughout the 2010s, -1.04% 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 Divide County noted in the previous graph with the corresponding decade averages for North Dakota and the nation. As the chart reveals, Divide County's average annual total employment growth recorded under North Dakota's average in the 1970s (-0.47% vs. 2.59%), recorded under North Dakota's average throughout the 1980s (-1.23% vs. 0.47%), posted below North Dakota's average in the 1990s (0.07% vs. 1.65%), fell below North Dakota's average in the 2000s (-2.11% vs. 1.24%), recorded above North Dakota's average throughout the 2010s (1.98% vs. 1.72%), and recorded under North Dakota's average over the 3 year period of the current decade, 2020-2022 (-1.04% vs. 0.41%).
Finally, relative to nationwide total employment growth trends, Divide County recorded underneath the nation throughout the 1970s (-0.47% vs. 2.21%), fell below the nation in the 1980s (-1.23% vs. 1.88%), trailed the nation throughout the 1990s (0.07% vs. 1.73%), lagged the nation during the 2000s (-2.11% vs. 0.74%), outpaced the nation in the 2010s (1.98% vs. 1.51%), and recorded underneath the nation over 2020-2022 (-1.04% vs. 1.82%).
   
 
Total Employment Growth:
Average Annual Percent Change
 
 
 
-0.39
-0.47
-1.23
0.07
-2.11
1.98
-1.04
1.86
 
1.47
2.59
0.47
1.65
1.24
1.72
0.41
3.52
 
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 Divide County, North Dakota 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. Divide County's job ratio registered 0.44 in 1969, and 0.72 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 Divide County's, North Dakota'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.

   
 
Divide County:
Total Employment, 1969-2022
 
1969
 
2,040
100.0
N
0.74
0.44
96.64
1970
 
2,094
102.6
2.65
0.74
0.46
102.44
1971
 
2,064
101.2
-1.43
0.73
0.46
103.33
1972
 
2,039
100.0
-1.21
0.71
0.49
109.26
1973
 
2,048
100.4
0.44
0.68
0.48
104.06
1974
 
2,045
100.2
-0.15
0.66
0.51
107.92
1975
 
2,067
101.3
1.08
0.66
0.51
112.04
1976
 
2,085
102.2
0.87
0.64
0.52
111.90
1977
 
2,031
99.6
-2.59
0.61
0.52
109.18
1978
 
2,060
101.0
1.43
0.60
0.53
107.15
1979
 
1,941
95.1
-5.78
0.55
0.52
103.81
1980
 
1,847
90.5
-4.84
0.52
0.53
106.05
1981
 
1,920
94.1
3.95
0.54
0.57
113.40
1982
 
1,893
92.8
-1.41
0.53
0.56
112.85
1983
 
1,881
92.2
-0.63
0.52
0.55
111.35
1984
 
1,848
90.6
-1.75
0.50
0.56
109.54
1985
 
1,817
89.1
-1.68
0.50
0.56
108.31
1986
 
1,741
85.3
-4.18
0.49
0.55
104.18
1987
 
1,766
86.6
1.44
0.49
0.57
106.82
1988
 
1,732
84.9
-1.93
0.47
0.57
104.64
1989
 
1,710
83.8
-1.27
0.46
0.58
104.53
1990
 
1,721
84.4
0.64
0.46
0.60
107.91
1991
 
1,717
84.2
-0.23
0.45
0.62
113.54
1992
 
1,671
81.9
-2.68
0.43
0.62
115.11
1993
 
1,724
84.5
3.17
0.43
0.65
120.85
1994
 
1,781
87.3
3.31
0.43
0.68
123.71
1995
 
1,753
85.9
-1.57
0.42
0.68
121.80
1996
 
1,719
84.3
-1.94
0.40
0.68
121.27
1997
 
1,750
85.8
1.80
0.41
0.72
126.38
1998
 
1,741
85.3
-0.51
0.40
0.73
126.69
1999
 
1,719
84.3
-1.26
0.39
0.74
127.89
2000
 
1,714
84.0
-0.29
0.39
0.76
129.23
2001
 
1,677
82.2
-2.16
0.38
0.77
132.68
2002
 
1,621
79.5
-3.34
0.37
0.74
128.84
2003
 
1,562
76.6
-3.64
0.35
0.71
124.65
2004
 
1,532
75.1
-1.92
0.34
0.70
121.98
2005
 
1,511
74.1
-1.37
0.33
0.71
122.45
2006
 
1,437
70.4
-4.90
0.31
0.69
117.04
2007
 
1,413
69.3
-1.67
0.29
0.69
116.15
2008
 
1,407
69.0
-0.42
0.29
0.70
118.07
2009
 
1,388
68.0
-1.35
0.28
0.69
121.40
2010
 
1,407
69.0
1.37
0.28
0.68
121.15
2011
 
1,722
84.4
22.39
0.33
0.81
142.90
2012
 
1,892
92.7
9.87
0.33
0.85
148.94
2013
 
1,956
95.9
3.38
0.33
0.85
147.67
2014
 
1,976
96.9
1.02
0.33
0.83
141.56
2015
 
1,825
89.5
-7.64
0.31
0.76
127.84
2016
 
1,750
85.8
-4.11
0.30
0.75
125.41
2017
 
1,672
82.0
-4.46
0.29
0.75
124.53
2018
 
1,680
82.4
0.48
0.29
0.77
125.95
2019
 
1,638
80.3
-2.50
0.28
0.75
123.28
2020
 
1,551
76.0
-5.31
0.28
0.70
119.03
2021
 
1,556
76.3
0.32
0.27
0.71
116.30
2022
 
1,585
77.7
1.86
0.27
0.72
113.70
Source: Calculations by the North Dakota Regional Economic Analysis Project (ND-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 Dakota:
Total Employment, 1969-2022
 
1969
 
273,930
100.0
N
0.30
0.44
97.52
1970
 
281,458
102.7
2.75
0.31
0.45
101.55
1971
 
283,811
103.6
0.84
0.31
0.45
102.28
1972
 
288,138
105.2
1.52
0.31
0.46
101.34
1973
 
300,252
109.6
4.20
0.31
0.47
101.95
1974
 
308,009
112.4
2.58
0.31
0.49
103.49
1975
 
313,546
114.5
1.80
0.32
0.49
106.98
1976
 
325,944
119.0
3.95
0.32
0.51
108.17
1977
 
330,976
120.8
1.54
0.32
0.51
106.67
1978
 
345,094
126.0
4.27
0.31
0.53
107.39
1979
 
353,425
129.0
2.41
0.31
0.54
107.56
1980
 
354,849
129.5
0.40
0.31
0.54
108.10
1981
 
358,792
131.0
1.11
0.31
0.54
108.64
1982
 
359,535
131.3
0.21
0.31
0.54
109.06
1983
 
365,143
133.3
1.56
0.32
0.54
109.09
1984
 
366,419
133.8
0.35
0.30
0.54
105.35
1985
 
363,513
132.7
-0.79
0.29
0.54
103.20
1986
 
357,386
130.5
-1.69
0.28
0.53
101.55
1987
 
362,693
132.4
1.48
0.28
0.55
102.60
1988
 
366,328
133.7
1.00
0.27
0.56
102.33
1989
 
370,190
135.1
1.05
0.27
0.57
103.81
1990
 
373,890
136.5
1.00
0.27
0.59
105.80
1991
 
382,218
139.5
2.23
0.28
0.60
110.52
1992
 
387,620
141.5
1.41
0.28
0.61
112.76
1993
 
396,886
144.9
2.39
0.28
0.62
114.28
1994
 
411,338
150.2
3.64
0.29
0.64
116.41
1995
 
418,075
152.6
1.64
0.28
0.65
116.18
1996
 
425,783
155.4
1.84
0.28
0.65
116.75
1997
 
429,892
156.9
0.97
0.28
0.66
116.73
1998
 
434,930
158.8
1.17
0.27
0.67
116.91
1999
 
435,651
159.0
0.17
0.27
0.68
116.81
2000
 
440,643
160.9
1.15
0.27
0.69
117.11
2001
 
445,433
162.6
1.09
0.27
0.70
120.00
2002
 
442,530
161.5
-0.65
0.27
0.69
120.81
2003
 
443,692
162.0
0.26
0.27
0.69
121.44
2004
 
453,079
165.4
2.12
0.27
0.70
121.88
2005
 
461,638
168.5
1.89
0.27
0.71
122.52
2006
 
471,131
172.0
2.06
0.27
0.73
123.08
2007
 
482,494
176.1
2.41
0.27
0.74
124.00
2008
 
491,887
179.6
1.95
0.27
0.75
126.93
2009
 
492,409
179.8
0.11
0.28
0.74
130.83
2010
 
503,803
183.9
2.31
0.29
0.75
133.54
2011
 
529,778
193.4
5.16
0.30
0.77
136.55
2012
 
567,381
207.1
7.10
0.32
0.80
141.33
2013
 
586,758
214.2
3.42
0.32
0.81
140.13
2014
 
607,113
221.6
3.47
0.33
0.82
139.81
2015
 
597,638
218.2
-1.56
0.31
0.78
132.50
2016
 
576,701
210.5
-3.50
0.30
0.75
126.48
2017
 
573,077
209.2
-0.63
0.29
0.75
124.31
2018
 
578,397
211.1
0.93
0.29
0.75
122.99
2019
 
581,406
212.2
0.52
0.29
0.75
122.63
2020
 
560,448
204.6
-3.60
0.29
0.72
122.05
2021
 
567,834
207.3
1.32
0.28
0.73
119.53
2022
 
587,819
214.6
3.52
0.28
0.75
118.34
Source: Calculations by the North Dakota Regional Economic Analysis Project (ND-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 Dakota Regional Economic Analysis Project (ND-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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