Email
Print
FeedApr 27 Compensation costs up 0.4% December 2011-March 2012, and 1.9% over the year ending March
EMPLOYMENT COST INDEX - MARCH 2012
Compensation costs for civilian workers increased 0.4 percent, seasonally adjusted, for the 3-month
period ending March 2012, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Wages and salaries
(which make up about 70 percent of compensation costs) increased 0.5 percent, and benefits (which
make up the remaining 30 percent of compensation) also increased 0.5 percent.
Civilian Workers
Compensation costs for civilian workers increased 1.9 percent for the 12-month period ending March
2012, essentially unchanged from the 2.0 percent increase a year earlier in March 2011. Wages and
salaries increased 1.7 percent for the current 12-month period. In March 2011 the increase was
1.6 percent. Benefit costs increased 2.7 percent for the 12-month period ending March 2012. In March
2011, the increase was 3.0 percent.
Private Industry Workers
Compensation costs for private industry workers increased 2.1 percent over the year, essentially
unchanged from the 2.0 percent increase for the previous 12-month period. Wages and salaries
increased 1.9 percent for the current 12-month period. The increase for the 12-month period ending
March 2011 was 1.6 percent. The increase in the cost of benefits was 2.8 percent for the 12-month
period ending March 2012. The March 2011 increase was 3.0 percent. Employer costs for health
benefits increased 3.0 percent for the 12-month period ending March 2012. In March 2011 the increase
was 3.4 percent.
Among occupational groups, compensation cost increases for private industry workers for the
12-month period ending March 2012 ranged from 1.3 percent for service occupations to 2.6 percent for
sales and office occupations.
Among industry supersectors, compensation cost increases for private industry workers for the current
12-month period ranged from 1.0 percent for leisure and hospitality to 3.2 percent for information.
State and Local Government Workers
Compensation costs for state and local government workers increased 1.5 percent for the 12-month
period ending March 2012. In March 2011, the increase for the 12-month period was 1.8 percent. Values
for this series—which began in June 1982—have ranged from 1.3 percent to 9.6 percent. Wages and
salaries increased 1.0 percent for the 12-month period ending March 2012. A year earlier the increase
was 1.2 percent. Prior values for this series, which also began in June 1982, ranged from 1.0 percent to
8.5 percent. Benefit costs increased 2.3 percent in March 2012, down from the March 2011 increase of
3.3 percent. Prior values for this series, which began in June 1990, ranged from 1.2 percent to
8.3 percent.
________________________
The Employment Cost Index for June 2012 is scheduled to be released on
Tuesday, July 31, 2012, at 8:30 a.m. (EDT).
Information in this release will be made available to sensory impaired individuals upon request—
Voice phone: (202) 691-5200; Federal Relay Service: (800) 877-8339.
This release incorporates annual revisions in seasonally adjusted Employment Cost Index (ECI) data for
total compensation, wages and salaries, and benefit costs. Seasonally adjusted data for 2007-2011 were
revised to reflect updated seasonal factors.
BLS news releases, including the ECI, are available through an e-mail subscription service at:
www.bls.gov/bls/list.htm.
__________________________________________________________________________________________
Table A. Major series of the Employment Cost Index
(Percent change)
Category 3-month, 12-month,
seasonally adjusted not seasonally adjusted
Dec. Mar. Mar. June Sep. Dec. Mar.
2011 2012 2011 2011 2011 2011 2012
CIVILIAN
WORKERS[1]
Compensation[2] 0.5 0.4 2.0 2.2 2.0 2.0 1.9
Wages and salaries 0.3 0.5 1.6 1.6 1.6 1.4 1.7
Benefits 0.7 0.5 3.0 3.6 3.2 3.2 2.7
PRIVATE INDUSTRY
Compensation[2] 0.5 0.4 2.0 2.3 2.1 2.2 2.1
Wages and salaries 0.4 0.5 1.6 1.7 1.7 1.6 1.9
Benefits 0.8 0.3 3.0 4.0 3.3 3.6 2.8
STATE AND LOCAL
GOVERNMENT
Compensation[2] 0.3 0.7 1.8 1.7 1.5 1.3 1.5
Wages and salaries 0.3 0.4 1.2 1.2 1.0 1.0 1.0
Benefits 0.4 1.1 3.3 3.0 2.5 2.1 2.3
__________________________________________________________________________________________
[1] Includes private industry and State and local government.
[2] Includes wages and salaries and benefits.
- Employment Cost Index technical note
- Table 1. SEASONALLY ADJUSTED: Employment Cost Index for total compensation, by ownership, occupational group, and industry
- Table 2. SEASONALLY ADJUSTED: Employment Cost Index for wages and salaries, by ownership, occupational group, and industry
- Table 3. SEASONALLY ADJUSTED: Employment Cost Index for benefits, by ownership, occupational group, and industry
- Table 4. COMPENSATION (NOT SEASONALLY ADJUSTED): Employment Cost Index for total compensation, for civilian workers, by occupational group and industry
- Table 5. COMPENSATION (NOT SEASONALLY ADJUSTED): Employment Cost Index for total compensation, for private industry workers, by occupational group and industry
- Table 6. COMPENSATION (NOT SEASONALLY ADJUSTED): Employment Cost Index for total compensation, for private industry workers, by bargaining status, census region, census divisions, and area
- Table 7. COMPENSATION (NOT SEASONALLY ADJUSTED): Employment Cost Index for total compensation, for State and local government workers, by occupational group and industry
- Table 8. WAGES AND SALARIES (NOT SEASONALLY ADJUSTED): Employment Cost Index for wages and salaries, for civilian workers, by occupational group and industry
- Table 9. WAGES AND SALARIES (NOT SEASONALLY ADJUSTED): Employment Cost Index for wages and salaries, for private industry workers, by occupational group and industry
- Table 10. WAGES AND SALARIES (NOT SEASONALLY ADJUSTED): Employment Cost Index for wages and salaries, for private industry workers, by bargaining status, region, and area
- Table 11. WAGES AND SALARIES (NOT SEASONALLY ADJUSTED): Employment Cost Index for wages and salaries, for State and local government workers, by occupational group and industry
- Table 12. BENEFITS (NOT SEASONALLY ADJUSTED): Employment Cost Index for benefits, by ownership, occupational group, industry, and bargaining status
- Table 13. COMPENSATION AND WAGES AND SALARIES (NOT SEASONALLY ADJUSTED): Employment Cost Index for total compensation, and wages and salaries, for private industry workers, by area
- HTML version of the entire news release
More Banking & Finance »
