DaytonDailyNews.com

Montgomery County is third among the top four counties nationwide to have the largest decline in fourth-quarter employment levels from 2005 to 2006, according to a report Wednesday by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

The county, however, also saw a 6.4 percent increase in the average weekly wage during that same time, according to the report.

With a loss of 25,100 jobs, Wayne, Mich. tops the list of counties having the greatest jobs loss, followed by the counties of Oakland, Mich. (-19,800), Montgomery, Ohio (-5,200), and Elkhart, Ind., and Monroe, N.Y. (-4,200 each).

In December 2006, national employment was 135.9 million, up 1.6 percent compared with December 2005. However, data show the county saw an increase in wages during that same period.

The national average weekly wage in the fourth quarter of 2006 was $861. Average weekly wages were higher than the national average in 105 of the largest 325 counties in the country.

According to the BLS report, Montgomery County in fourth quarter 2006 saw a 6.4 percent increase from 2005 in the average weekly wage, when it had a 0.5 percent decrease in the average weekly wage.

Montgomery County's average weekly wage for the fourth-quarter 2006 was $828, up from $777 in the fourth quarter of 2005.

Contact this reporter at (937) 225-9338 or kmcallister@DaytonDailyNews.com.