Measuring Payroll Employment: A Note on the Current Employment Statistics

Ryan A. Decker

No 34924, NBER Working Papers from National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc

Abstract: The Bureau of Labor Statistics Current Employment Statistics (CES) is a high-quality, closely watched indicator of labor market health and the business cycle. Recent revisions to CES data have garnered significant attention. I provide a primer on CES methodology and analyze recent survey response and data revision patterns. CES revisions actually tend to be small, but they have increased in recent years. I discuss potential ideas for improving the CES including expanding the data sample with internal or external data, adjusting the estimates with benchmark data more often, and enhancing estimation of establishment birth and death.

JEL-codes: C82 E0 J01 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2026-03
Note: EFG
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