October 31, 2003 (The Editor’s Desk is updated each business day.)

Employment costs up 1.0 percent from June to September

Compensation costs for private sector workers rose 1.0 percent from June to September (seasonally adjusted), compared with a gain of 0.8 percent in the prior quarter.

[Chart data—TXT]

Gains in private sector compensation costs were led by increases of over 1.0 percent for retail trade and white-collar workers. Private sector compensation gains were dampened by increases below 1.0 percent for transportation and public utilities and service workers.

Benefit costs rose by 1.4 percent for the September quarter, following a 1.3-percent gain in the previous quarter.

Wages and salaries for private industry workers rose 0.9 percent for the September quarter, following a more modest 0.6-percent gain during the prior quarter.

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. Data are subject to revision. Learn more in "Employment Cost Index – September 2003" (PDF) (TXT), news release USDL 03-619.