May 10, 2000 (The Editor’s Desk is updated each business day.)

Hourly benefits $5.58 in 1999

In March 1999, employer costs for benefits for civilian workers averaged $5.58 per hour worked. Wages and salaries were $14.72 and accounted for 72.5 percent of compensation costs. Benefits accounted for the remaining 27.5 percent.

[Chart data—TXT]

Legally required benefits, such as Social Security and unemployment insurance, averaged $1.65 per hour, 8.1 percent of total compensation. Such benefits were the largest non-wage compensation cost.

Paid leave, with an average cost of $1.34 per hour worked, was the next largest and accounted for 6.6 percent of total compensation. Following leave were insurance ($1.29 or 6.4 percent), retirement and savings benefits (76 cents or 3.7 percent), and supplemental pay (51 cents or 2.5 percent).

These data are a product of the Employment Cost Trends program. Get more information on compensation costs from Employer Costs for Employee Compensation, 1986-99, BLS Bulletin 2526.