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Frequently Asked Questions: Region and Division Labor Force Data
- What are the Census regions and divisions?
- How are the labor force estimates for
census regions and divisions calculated?
- How do these estimates differ from the
prior estimates that were published in Employment and
Earnings?
- Why did you change to the sum-of-state
model-based method?
- How much of the region and division series
have been revised?
- How are the estimates seasonally adjusted?
- Why don’t the data sum to the
estimates for the United States?
Frequently Asked Questions
- What are the Census regions and
divisions?
- The United States is broken down into four regions, which
are further divided into 9 divisions. Regions, divisions,
and the States they comprise (including the District of
Columbia) are as follows:
| REGION |
DIVISION |
STATES |
| Northeast |
New England |
Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New
Hampshire, Rhode Island, Vermont |
| Middle Atlantic |
New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania |
| South |
South Atlantic |
Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida,
Georgia, Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina,
Virginia, West Virginia |
| East South Central |
Alabama, Kentucky, Mississippi,
Tennessee |
| West South Central |
Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, Texas |
| Midwest |
East North Central |
Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio,
Wisconsin |
| West North Central |
Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri,
Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota |
| West |
Mountain |
Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Montana,
Nevada, New Mexico, Utah, Wyoming |
| Pacific |
Alaska, California, Hawaii, Oregon,
Washington |
- How are the labor force estimates
for census regions and divisions calculated?
- State labor force data produced using estimating
equations based on regression techniques (model-based
estimates) are aggregated to the region and division
levels.
- How do these estimates differ from
the prior estimates that were published in Employment
and Earnings?
- The previous region and division estimates were derived
directly from the Current Population Survey (CPS), not
from state model-based estimates. As part of this change,
monthly civilian non-institutional population estimates
for regions and divisions are no longer published, since
they came from the CPS. These monthly labor force data
are now analyzed and published, both seasonally adjusted
and not seasonally adjusted, in the Regional and State
Employment and Unemployment news release.
- Why did you change to the
sum-of-state model-based method?
- The sampling errors of the monthly CPS estimates were
high, especially in the less populated divisions. Summing
the state model estimates provides better data in the
form of a smoother series.
- How much of the region and division
series have been revised?
- The new series have replaced all of the old series. The
data begin in January 1978, except for the West region
and Pacific division, where the series start in January
1980.
- How are the estimates seasonally
adjusted?
- The seasonally adjusted state model-based levels are
added to create seasonally adjusted region or division
levels.
- Why don’t the data sum to the
estimates for the United States?
- A different methodology is used to develop national
estimates--including all of the accompanying demographic
and economic details. In addition, the state estimates
are independently seasonally adjusted. The differences
between the U.S. and the sum of the states are small and
generally within sampling error of the national CPS
estimates. See the description of methodologies in the
Explanatory Notes section of Employment and Earnings.
Last modified: October 16, 2001
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