The latest BLS news release showing county employment and wages  in the first quarter of 2013 is now available at www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/cewqtr.pdf.

In King County, job growth was led by construction and three other high-paying, knowledge-based industries: Professional and Business Services (4.6%), Manufacturing (3.3%), and Financial Activities (2.7 percent).

Additional items of note:

• Employment in all major King County industries grew during the past year; King County had higher than average wages and the highest wage growth (1.6 percent) among the 10 largest counties in the U.S.
• With 1.175 million workers, King County is the 9^th largest county in the U.S.
• The Leisure and Hospitality sector, which includes tourism, hotels, and restaurants, grew at a solid 4.2 percent pace during the past year while having wages below the national average.