Wholesale Trade: NAICS 42
About the Wholesale Trade sector
The wholesale trade sector is part of the trade, transportation, and utilities supersector.
The Wholesale Trade sector comprises establishments engaged in wholesaling merchandise, generally without transformation, and rendering services incidental to the sale of merchandise. The merchandise described in this sector includes the outputs of agriculture, mining, manufacturing, and certain information industries, such as publishing.
The wholesaling process is an intermediate step in the distribution of merchandise. Wholesalers are organized to sell or arrange the purchase or sale of (a) goods for resale (i.e., goods sold to other wholesalers or retailers), (b) capital or durable nonconsumer goods, and (c) raw and intermediate materials and supplies used in production.
Wholesalers sell merchandise to other businesses and normally operate from a warehouse or office. These warehouses and offices are characterized by having little or no display of merchandise. In addition, neither the design nor the location of the premises is intended to solicit walk-in traffic. Wholesalers do not normally use advertising directed to the general public. Customers are generally reached initially via telephone, in-person marketing, or by specialized advertising that may include Internet and other electronic means. Follow-up orders are either vendor-initiated or client-initiated, generally based on previous sales, and typically exhibit strong ties between sellers and buyers. In fact, transactions are often conducted between wholesalers and clients that have long-standing business relationships.
North American Industry Classification System
The wholesale trade sector consists of these subsectors:
Workforce Statistics
This section provides information relating to employment and unemployment in wholesale trade.
While most data are obtained from employer or establishment surveys, information on industry unemployment comes from a national survey of households.
The following tables present an overview of the industry including
the number of jobs,
the unemployment rate of those previously employed in the industry,
job openings and labor turnover,
union membership and representation,
gross job gains and losses,
mass layoffs,
data for occupations common to the industry,
and projections of occupational employment change.
Employment, Unemployment, Layoffs, and Openings, Hires, and Separations
| Data series |
Back
data |
Jan.
2013 |
Feb.
2013 |
Mar.
2013 |
Apr.
2013 |
Employment (in thousands) |
|
Employment, all employees (seasonally adjusted) |
|
5,729.0 |
5,733.7 |
5,736.6 |
5,740.7 |
Employment, production and nonsupervisory employees (seasonally adjusted) |
|
4,613.8 |
4,617.6 |
4,618.7 |
4,618.7 |
Unemployment |
|
Unemployment rate |
|
5.9% |
6.3% |
5.5% |
6.3% |
Layoffs |
|
Mass layoff events |
|
28 |
12 |
12 |
19 |
Initial claimants for unemployment benefits |
|
2,334 |
854 |
1,098 |
1,364 |
Job openings, hires, and separations (in thousands) |
|
Job openings |
|
150 |
108 |
150 |
|
Hires |
|
142 |
115 |
106 |
|
Separations |
|
138 |
103 |
101 |
|
(Source: Current Employment Statistics, Current Population Survey, Mass Layoff Statistics, Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey)
Union Membership and Representation
| Data series |
Back
data |
2009 |
2010 |
2011 |
2012 |
Union membership and representation |
|
Members of unions (percent of wage and salary workers) |
|
4.9% |
5.2% |
4.4% |
5.1% |
Represented by unions (percent of wage and salary workers) |
|
5.5% |
5.6% |
4.8% |
5.6% |
(Source: Current Population Survey)
Dynamic Changes in Employment
| Data series |
Back
data |
4th quarter
2011 |
1st quarter
2012 |
2nd quarter
2012 |
3rd quarter
2012 |
Dynamic changes in employment (in thousands) |
|
Gross job gains |
|
276 |
282 |
288 |
266 |
Gross job losses |
|
250 |
244 |
254 |
263 |
(Source: Business Employment Dynamics)
Extended Mass Layoffs
(Source: Mass Layoff Statistics)
Employment by Occupation
| Data series |
Employment,
2012 |
Laborers and freight, stock, and material movers, hand |
372,220 |
Sales representatives, wholesale and manufacturing, except technical and scientific products |
948,100 |
Sales representatives, wholesale and manufacturing, technical and scientific products |
213,680 |
Truck drivers, heavy and tractor-trailer |
195,250 |
Wholesale and retail buyers, except farm products |
43,660 |
(Source: Occupational Employment Statistics)
Projections
For projected (future) employment estimates, see the National Employment Matrix, which includes employment estimates by industry and occupation for wholesale trade.
(Source: Office of Occupational Statistics and Employment Projections)
Earnings and Hours
This section presents data on employee earnings and weekly hours.
The latest industry averages of hourly earnings and weekly hours, as well as weekly earnings by union membership status, are shown.
In addition, recent hourly and annual earnings are shown for occupations commonly found in wholesale trade.
This section also contains information on the average cost of benefits paid by employers, as well as recent rates of change in wages and total compensation.
Earnings and Hours of All Employees
(Source: Current Employment Statistics)
Earnings and Hours of Production and Nonsupervisory Employees
(Source: Current Employment Statistics)
Union Membership and Representation
(Source: Current Population Survey)
Earnings by Occupation
| Data series |
Wages, 2012 |
| Hourly |
Annual |
| Median |
Mean |
Median |
Mean |
Laborers and freight, stock, and material movers, hand |
$12.24 |
$13.01 |
$25,470 |
$27,050 |
Sales representatives, wholesale and manufacturing, except technical and scientific products |
$25.79 |
$30.97 |
$53,640 |
$64,410 |
Sales representatives, wholesale and manufacturing, technical and scientific products |
$35.45 |
$41.33 |
$73,740 |
$85,970 |
Truck drivers, heavy and tractor-trailer |
$18.27 |
$19.39 |
$38,010 |
$40,330 |
Wholesale and retail buyers, except farm products |
$24.87 |
$27.38 |
$51,740 |
$56,940 |
(Source: Occupational Employment Statistics)
Employer Compensation Costs
| Data series |
Back
data |
2nd quarter
2012 |
3rd quarter
2012 |
4th quarter
2012 |
1st quarter
2013 |
12-month percent change |
|
Total compensation |
|
2.7% |
2.9% |
1.9% |
0.8% |
Wages and salaries |
|
3.1% |
3.4% |
2.0% |
1.0% |
(Source: Compensation Cost Trends)
(Source: Compensation Cost Trends)
Work-related Fatalities, Injuries, and Illnesses
This section presents data for the industry on the number of workplace fatalities and the rates of workplace injuries and illnesses per 100 full-time workers in wholesale trade. An injury or illness is considered to be work-related if an event or exposure in the work environment either caused or contributed to the resulting condition or significantly aggravated a pre-existing condition.
(Source: Injuries, Illnesses, and Fatalities)
Prices
This section provides industry-specific pricing information. The producer price index measures the percentage change in prices that domestic producers receive for goods and services. The prices included in the producer price index are from the first commercial transaction.
| Data series |
Back
data |
Jan.
2013 |
Feb.
2013 |
Mar.
2013 |
Apr.
2013 |
Producer price index |
|
125.6 |
123.3 |
124.3 |
126.6 |
Percent change from previous month |
|
0.6% |
-1.8% |
0.8% |
1.9% |
(Source: Producer Price Indexes)
Workplace Trends
This section presents data on the number of establishments and the number of establishments experiencing job gains or job losses in wholesale trade. Also included in this section is information on productivity, presented as the rate of change in output per hour of workers in the industry.
Establishments
(Source: Business Employment Dynamics, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages)
Productivity
(Source: Productivity and Costs)
Other BLS Resources
The Editor's Desk
See industry studies in the subject matter index of The Editor's Desk (Current Edition).
Career Guide to Industries
See wholesale trade in the Career Guide to Industries.
Data extracted on:
May 24, 2013
