Total Wages in Louisiana Were Up by 6.8% in 2008

The “Louisiana Employment and Wages – Annual Report 2008,” published by the Louisiana Workforce Commission, shows that total wages in the state of Louisiana were up by 6.8 percent over 2007.

The publication contains 2008 covered employment and total wages by North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) sectors and sub-sectors for the state and by NAICS sectors for all parishes. The information comes from quarterly tax reports submitted by all employers subject to the Louisiana Employment Security Law and from supplemental reports giving parish data submitted by many multi-parish employers.

According to the report, the average covered employment in 2008 totaled 1,890,087. This indicated an increase of 1.1 percent compared to 1,868,767 in 2007. Employment increased in 41 of the 64 parishes in 2008.

The report also shows that:

• The 2008 average weekly wage for employment continued to rise in 2008, with an average increase of $41 over 2007.
• The 2008 average weekly wage for all industries was $776.

The “Louisiana Employment and Wages – Annual Report 2008” is available on the Louisiana Workforce Commission’s Web site, http://www.laworks.net.