July 02, 2004 (The Editor’s Desk is updated each business day.)

Compensation by occupational group in March 2004

In private industry in March 2004, employer costs per hour worked for employee compensation ranged widely among five major occupational groups.

[Chart data—TXT]

Total compensation costs ranged from $11.66 for service workers to $40.23 for managers and professionals. Total compensation costs averaged $18.42 for sales and office workers, $20.21 for production, transportation, and material moving workers, and $26.55 for natural resources, construction, and maintenance workers.

Employer costs for total compensation were higher for union workers, averaging $31.94 per hour, than for nonunion workers, averaging $22.28.

These data are from the BLS Compensation Cost Trends program. Compensation costs (also known as employment costs) include wages, salaries, and employer costs for employee benefits. For more information, see " Employer Costs for Employee Compensation, March 2004" (PDF) (TXT), news release USDL 04-1105. This is the first Employer Costs for Employee Compensation news release to contain estimates calculated using the 2000 Standard Occupational Classification system.