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The Employment Cost Index (ECI) increased 0.8 percent before seasonal adjustment in the 3 months ended in September 1995, the U.S. Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. The September 1995 ECI level of 126.6 (June 1989=100) was 2.7 percent higher than the index in September 1994. 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, the ECI rose 0.6 percent in the June-September 1995 period, compared with a 0.7 percent gain in the March-June 1995 period. This matches the December 1994-March 1995 period for the smallest compensation cost increase since the series began in 1982. Wage and salary gains, 0.7 percent in June-September 1995, have stayed within a relatively narrow range over the past 3 years. Benefit costs rose 0.4 percent in June-September 1995, down from the 0.7 percent increase for the March-June 1995 period.
Seasonally adjusted 3-months ended Unadj. Compensation ----------------------------------------------- 12-mos. component Dec. Mar. June Sep. Dec. Mar. June Sep. ended 1993 1994 1994 1994 1994 1995 1995 1995 Sep. 1995
Private industry workers showed a pattern similar to civilian workers. (See table 1.) Compensation costs rose 0.6 percent in the June-September 1995 period. Wages and salaries increased 0.7 percent, in line with gains over the past year. Benefit costs increased 0.5 percent for the June-September 1995 period, the same as for the March-June 1995 period. Benefit cost increases were held down by declining health insurance costs to employers.
Compensation cost increases for state and local government workers slowed to 0.5 percent in the June-September 1995 period, down from 1.0 percent in the preceding period. This slowdown was due primarily to smaller gains in benefits (0.1 percent in June-September 1995, down from 1.4 percent in the March-June 1995 period).
Over-the-year changes, unadjusted
Compensation costs (not seasonally adjusted) increased 2.7 percent for the year ended in September 1995, down from 3.2 percent for the 12-month period ended September 1994. This is the smallest over-the-year increase since the series began in 1981. The increase for private industry workers was also the smallest on record at 2.6 percent, compared with 3.3 percent for the year ended September 1994. State and local government increases were 3.0 percent, the same as in the period ended September 1994. Increases in state and local government have ranged between 2.8 and 3.1 percent for the last 2 years.
Private industry wages and salaries increased 2.8 percent in September 1994-95, about the same as the 2.9 percent gain for September 1993-94. Wage and salary increases have ranged between 2.7 and 3.1 percent for the last 3 years.
For the year ended September 1995, compensation cost gains in private industry were higher in service-producing industries (2.9 percent) than in goods-producing industries (2.1 percent). For the year ended September 1994, increases in the two sectors had been about the same (3.2 percent and 3.3 percent, respectively). Among the goods-producing industries, the September 1994-95 increases ranged from 1.4 percent in construction to 2.5 percent in durable goods manufacturing. In the service-producing industries, gains ranged from 1.2 percent for food stores to 4.7 percent for colleges and universities. Other service-producing industries with relatively large increases were transportation (4.2 percent) and wholesale trade (4.6 percent).
Over-the-year compensation cost increases in private industry were higher for white-collar workers (2.8 percent) than for blue-collar workers (2.3 percent) and service occupations (2.4 percent). Among occupational groups, increases ranged from 1.8 percent for machine operators, assemblers, and inspectors to 3.4 percent for sales occupations.
Compensation cost increases were slightly higher for nonunion workers (2.7 percent) than for union workers (2.4 percent). This pattern also held in the goods-producing industries (2.3 percent and 1.8 percent, respectively), but not in the service-producing industries (3.2 percent for union and 2.8 percent for nonunion).
BLS Data Now Available on the World Wide Web
ECI data, as well as other data produced by BLS, are now available on the Worldwide Web. To access ECI data use the address: http://stats.bls.gov/ecthome.htm. To access the BLS Home Page use: http://stats.bls.gov. There is no charge from BLS for using this service; however, there may be a charge from your Internet service provider. To access data using GOPHER or Anonymous FTP, use the Internet address: stats.bls.gov.
For technical assistance in using the BLS Internet site, send e-mail to: labstat.helpdesk@bls.gov. For ECI data requests, send e-mail to: dectinfo@bls.gov.
ECI data for December 1995 is scheduled for release on Tuesday, January 30, 1996, at 8:30 A.M. (EST)
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics · Original release Oct 31, 1995.
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