December 1993 Employment Cost Index

Historical release narrative reproduced from the official public-domain source. Statistical tables, standard technical appendices, administrative material and attendance rosters are omitted; formatting is adapted for reading. Figures retain the release's historical context and may have been revised. Consult the linked source for the complete document.

The Employment Cost Index (ECI) increased 0.6 percent before seasonal adjustment in the 3 months ended in December 1993, the U.S. Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. The December 1993 ECI level of 120.2 (June 1989=100) was 3.5 percent higher than in December 1992. The ECI measures changes in compensation costs, including wages, salaries, and employer costs for employee benefits.

Quarterly changes, seasonally adjusted On a seasonally adjusted basis, ECI compensation costs rose 0.8 percent in the September-December 1993 period, the same as in the June- September 1993 period. (See box below.) ECI wages and salaries rose 0.7 percent in the September-December 1993 period, about the same as the 0.8 percent increase for the June-September 1993 period and in line with the quarterly increases for the last 2 years. Benefit costs rose 1.0 percent, about the same as the 0.9 percent increase for the June-September 1993 quarter, but lower than the quarterly increases over the last several years. (See tables A and 1.)

This release includes annual revisions in seasonally adjusted Employment Cost Indexes for compensation costs, wages and salaries, and benefit costs. Seasonally adjusted indexes for 1989-93 were revised to reflect updated seasonal factors and are available upon request. The seasonal factors for 1994 will be published in the March 1994 issue of the BLS periodical, Compensation and Working Conditions.

Over-the-year changes, unadjusted Compensation costs (not seasonally adjusted) increased 3.5 percent for the year ended in December 1993, the same as the gain for the year ended in December 1992. (See table 2.) This pattern held for private industry workers (3.6 percent in 1993, compared with 3.5 percent in 1992) but not for state and local government workers (2.8 percent, down from 3.7 percent). (See table 3.)

For private industry workers in the year ended in December 1993, wages and salaries rose 3.1 percent, up from 2.6 percent for the year ended in December 1992. Benefit cost increases moderated slightly to 5.0 percent, from 5.2 percent. (See chart on page 3.) This moderation in benefit cost gains reflected a continuing slowdown in the rate of gain in health and workers' compensation insurance costs (which continued to rise more rapidly than other benefit costs) and pension costs.

Increases in wages and salaries and benefit costs for state and local government workers in the year ended in December 1993 slowed from the gains in 1992. Wages rose 2.7 percent, compared with 3.0 percent in 1992. Benefit costs increased 2.9 percent, down from 5.4 percent, due primarily to a slowdown in the rate of gain in health insurance and pension costs.

For the year ended in December 1993, compensation cost increases in private industry were higher for goods-producing industries than for service-producing industries (3.9 percent compared with 3.6 percent). Compensation cost gains in goods-producing industries ranged from 2.4 percent for construction to 4.5 percent for durable goods manufacturing. Within the service-producing industries, compensation cost increases ranged from 2.3 percent for business services to 5.7 percent for banking, savings and loan, and other credit agencies.

Over the year 1993, compensation cost increases in private industry were higher for white- and blue-collar occupations (both 3.7 percent) than service occupations (3.1 percent). White-collar gains ranged from 3.3 percent for professional specialty and technical occupations to 4.1 percent for administrative support, including clerical. Blue-collar gains ranged from 3.3 percent for handlers, equipment cleaners, helpers, and laborers to 4.3 percent for machine operators, assemblers, and inspectors.

Compensation cost gains over the year ended in December 1993 were higher for union workers (4.3 percent) than for nonunion workers (3.5 percent). This pattern held for both the goods-producing and service- producing industries.