Internet: www.bls.gov/ro2 For Release: August 12, 2009 Media Contact: Michael L. Dolfman (212) 337-2500 Information: Martin Kohli, (646) 264-3620
CHANGING COMPENSATION COSTS IN THE NEW YORK METROPOLITAN AREA: JUNE
2009
Total compensation costs for private industry workers increased
1.2 percent in the New York-Newark-Bridgeport, N.Y.-N.J.-Conn.-Pa.
metropolitan area for the year ended in June 2009, according to the
Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor. Michael L.
Dolfman, the Bureau’s regional commissioner, noted that one year ago,
New York experienced an annual gain of 3.0 percent in total
compensation costs. Locally, wages and salaries, the largest component
of total compensation costs, advanced at a 1.3-percent pace for the 12-
month period ended June 2009. Nationwide, total compensation costs
rose 1.5 percent and wages and salaries, 1.6 percent over the same
period. (See chart A and table 1.)
Chart A. Twelve-month percent changes in the Employment Cost Index
for total compensation and for wages and salaries, private industry
workers, United States and the New York area, not seasonally adjusted,
June 2007 to June 2009
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| The "Employment Cost Index for the Regions" news releases have been |
| discontinued. However, the estimates that appeared in those releases are |
| available in table 6 (www.bls.gov/news.release/eci.t06.htm) and table 10 |
| (www.bls.gov/news.release/eci.t10.htm) of the "Employment Cost Index" news |
| release issued by the BLS National Office. Historical estimates for these |
| series can be found at www.bls.gov/ncs/ect/regionaleci.htm. |
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New York is 1 of 14 metropolitan areas in the United States,
and 1 of 3 areas in the Northeast region of the country, for which
locality compensation cost data are now available. Among these 14
largest areas, Boston registered the highest percent change in both
total compensation costs and wages and salaries from June 2008 to June
2009. Over-the-year growth rates in the cost of total compensation
ranged from 3.5 percent in Boston to 0.4 percent in Minneapolis and
Phoenix in June 2009; for wages and salaries, annual advances ranged
from 3.6 percent in Boston to 0.2 percent in Chicago. (See chart B.)
The annual increase in total compensation costs in New York in
June 2009, at 1.2 percent, compared to gains of 3.5 percent in Boston
and 2.6 percent in Philadelphia, the two other metropolitan areas in
the Northeast. Similarly, New York’s 1.3-percent gain in wages and
salaries over this 12-month period compared to advances of 3.6 percent
in Boston and 2.5 percent in Philadelphia. (See table 2.)
Locality compensation costs are part of the national Employment
Cost Index (ECI) which measures quarterly changes in total compensation
costs, which include wages, salaries and employer costs for employee
benefits. In addition to the 14 locality estimates provided in this
release, ECI data for the nation, 4 geographical regions, and 9
geographical divisions are available. (Geographical definitions for
the metropolitan areas mentioned in this release are included in the
Technical Note.)
Chart B. Percent change in the Employment Cost Index
for total compensation and for wages and salaries,
private industry workers, United States and localities,
not seasonally adjusted, June 2008 to June 2009
In addition to the geographic data, a comprehensive national
report is available that provides data by industry, occupational group,
and union status, as well as for both private, and state and local
government employees. The report on the Employment Cost Index and
further technical information may be obtained from the U.S. Bureau of
Labor Statistics, New York-New Jersey Regional Office by calling
646-264-3600. The report is also available on the Internet at
http://www.bls.gov/news.release/eci.toc.htm. Current and historical
information from other Bureau programs may be accessed via our regional
homepage at www.bls.gov/ro2/. The ECI for September 2009 will be
released on Friday, October 30, 2009 at 8:30 a.m. (ET). Information
from the Employment Cost Index program is available to sensory impaired
individuals upon request. Voice phone: 202-691-5200, Federal Relay
Services: 1-800-877-8339.
Technical Note
The Employment Cost Index (ECI) is a measure of the change in the
cost of labor, free from the influence of employment shifts among
occupations and industries. The total compensation series includes
changes in wages and salaries and employer costs for employee benefits.
Wages and salaries are defined as straight-time average hourly
earnings or, for workers not paid on an hourly basis, straight-time
earnings divided by the corresponding hours. Straight-time wage and
salary rates are total earnings before payroll deductions, excluding
premium pay for overtime, work on weekends and holidays, and shift
differentials. Production bonuses, incentive earnings, commission
payments, and cost-of-living adjustments are included in straight-time
earnings, whereas nonproduction bonuses (such as Christmas or year-end
bonuses) are excluded. Also excluded are such items as payments-in-
kind, free room and board, and tips.
Selection of areas
Based on available resources and the existing ECI sample, it was
determined that estimates would be published for 14 metropolitan areas.
Since the ECI sample sizes by area are directly related to area
employment, the areas with the largest private industry employment as
of the year 2000 were selected. For each of these areas, 12-month
percent changes and associated standard areas were computed for the
periods since December 2006.
The metropolitan area definitions of the 14 published localities are
listed below.
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Gainesville, Ga.-Ala. Combined Statistical Area
(CSA) includes Barrow, Bartow, Butts, Carroll, Cherokee, Clayton,
Cobb, Coweta, Dawson, DeKalb, Douglas, Fayette, Forsyth, Fulton,
Gwinnett, Hall, Haralson, Heard, Henry, Jasper, Lamar, Meriwether,
Newton, Paulding, Pickens, Pike, Polk, Rockdale, Spalding, Troup,
Upson, and Walton Counties in Georgia; and Chambers County in
Alabama.
Boston-Worcester-Manchester, Mass.-N.H. CSA includes Essex, Middlesex,
Norfolk, Plymouth, Suffolk, and Worcester Counties in Massachusetts
and Belknap, Hillsborough, Merrimack, Rockingham, and Strafford
Counties in New Hampshire.
Chicago-Naperville-Michigan City, Ill.-Ind.-Wis. CSA includes Cook,
DeKalb, DuPage, Grundy, Kane, Kankakee, Kendall, Lake, McHenry, and
Will Counties in Illinois; Jasper, Lake, LaPorte, Newton, and Porter
Counties in Indiana; and Kenosha County in Wisconsin.
Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas CSA includes Collin, Cooke, Dallas, Delta,
Denton, Ellis, Henderson, Hood, Hunt, Johnson, Kaufman, Palo Pinto,
Parker, Rockwall, Somervell, Tarrant, and Wise Counties in Texas.
Detroit-Warren-Flint, Mich. CSA includes Genesee, Lapeer, Livingston,
Macomb, Monroe, Oakland, St. Clair, Washtenaw, and Wayne Counties in
Michigan.
Houston-Baytown-Huntsville, Texas CSA includes Austin, Brazoria,
Chambers, Fort Bend, Galveston, Harris, Liberty, Matagorda,
Montgomery, San Jacinto, Walker, and Waller Counties in Texas.
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Riverside, Calif. CSA includes Los Angeles,
Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, and Ventura Counties in
California.
Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Pompano Beach, Fla. Metropolitan Statistical Area
(MSA) includes Broward, Miami-Dade, and Palm Beach Counties in
Florida.
Minneapolis-St. Paul-St. Cloud, Minn.-Wis. CSA includes Anoka, Benton,
Carver, Chisago, Dakota, Goodhue, Hennepin, Isanti, McLeod, Ramsey,
Rice, Scott, Sherburne, Stearns, Washington, and Wright Counties in
Minnesota; and Pierce and St. Croix Counties in Wisconsin.
New York-Newark-Bridgeport, N.Y.-N.J.-Conn.-Pa. CSA includes Bronx,
Dutchess, Kings, Nassau, New York, Orange, Putnam, Queens, Richmond,
Rockland, Suffolk, Ulster, and Westchester Counties in New York;
Bergen, Essex, Hudson, Hunterdon, Mercer, Middlesex, Monmouth,
Morris, Ocean, Passaic, Somerset, Sussex, and Union Counties in New
Jersey; Fairfield, Litchfield, and New Haven Counties in
Connecticut; and Pike County in Pennsylvania.
Philadelphia-Camden-Vineland, Pa.-N.J.-Del.-Md. CSA includes Bucks,
Chester, Delaware, Montgomery, and Philadelphia Counties in
Pennsylvania; Burlington, Camden, Cumberland, Gloucester, and Salem
Counties in New Jersey; New Castle County in Delaware; and Cecil
County in Maryland.
Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, Ariz. MSA includes Maricopa and Pinal Counties
in Arizona.
San Jose-San Francisco-Oakland, Calif. CSA includes Alameda, Contra
Costa, Marin, Napa, San Benito, San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa
Clara, Santa Cruz, Sonoma, and Solano Counties in California.
Washington-Baltimore-Northern Virginia, D.C.-Md.-Va.-W.Va. CSA includes
the District of Columbia; Baltimore City and Anne Arundel,
Baltimore, Calvert, Carroll, Charles, Frederick, Harford, Howard,
Montgomery, Prince George's, Queen Anne's, and St. Mary's Counties
in Maryland; Alexandria, Fairfax, Falls Church, Fredericksburg,
Manassas, Manassas Park, and Winchester Cities and Arlington,
Clarke, Fairfax, Fauquier, Frederick, Loudoun, Prince William,
Spotsylvania, Stafford, and Warren Counties in Virginia; and
Hampshire and Jefferson Counties in West Virginia.
Definitions of the four geographic regions of the country are noted
below.
Northeast: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New
Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Vermont.
South: Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Florida,
Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina,
Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, and West
Virginia.
Midwest: Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota,
Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, and Wisconsin.
West: Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana,
Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming
NYLS - 7389 Labor - New York
08/06/09
Table 1. Employment Cost Index for compensation and for wages and salaries,
private industry workers, United States, Northeast region, and the New York area,
not seasonally adjusted
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Total compensation Wages and salaries
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12-month percent changes 12-month percent changes
Area for period ended- for period ended-
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March June September December March June September December
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United States
2006 2.6 2.8 3.0 3.2 2.4 2.8 3.0 3.2
2007 3.2 3.1 3.1 3.0 3.6 3.3 3.4 3.3
2008 3.2 3.0 2.8 2.4 3.2 3.1 2.9 2.6
2009 1.9 1.5 2.0 1.6
Northeast
2006 3.4 3.4 3.3 3.3 3.1 3.1 3.3 3.1
2007 3.1 3.2 3.6 3.4 3.2 3.2 3.5 3.4
2008 3.3 2.9 2.4 2.5 3.4 3.0 2.5 2.8
2009 2.2 1.9 2.2 1.9
New York-Newark-Bridgeport
2006 3.3 3.2
2007 3.2 3.4 3.4 3.5 3.2 3.3 3.1 3.5
2008 3.2 3.0 2.4 1.9 3.0 3.0 2.3 1.8
2009 1.7 1.2 1.8 1.3
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Table 2. Employment Cost Index for compensation and for wages and salaries,
private industry workers, United States, geographical regions, and localities,
not seasonally adjusted
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Total compensation Wages and salaries
--------------------------------------------------
12-month percent changes 12-month percent changes
Area for period ended- for period ended-
--------------------------------------------------
June Mar. June June Mar. June
2008 2009 2009 2008 2009 2009
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United States 3.0 1.9 1.5 3.1 2.0 1.6
Northeast 2.9 2.2 1.9 3.0 2.2 1.9
Boston-Worcester-Manchester 2.5 3.5 3.5 2.7 3.9 3.6
New York-Newark-Bridgeport 3.0 1.7 1.2 3.0 1.8 1.3
Philadelphia-Camden-Vineland 4.4 4.4 2.6 4.6 4.6 2.5
South 3.0 1.9 1.5 3.3 2.1 1.5
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Gainesville 1.9 0.8 1.7 2.0 0.7 1.3
Dallas-Fort Worth 2.7 1.9 2.1 2.5 2.5 3.0
Houston-Baytown-Huntsville 2.4 2.1 1.8 2.6 2.3 2.1
Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Pompano Beach 3.2 1.6 1.2 4.6 3.3 1.7
Washington-Baltimore-Northern Virginia 2.7 2.0 1.9 2.7 2.2 2.5
Midwest 2.7 1.8 1.0 3.0 2.0 1.0
Chicago-Naperville-Michigan City 3.4 1.9 0.5 3.5 1.5 0.2
Detroit-Warren-Flint 1.5 2.6 1.3 1.8 3.3 1.2
Minneapolis-St. Paul-St. Cloud 2.5 0.5 0.4 2.3 1.1 0.9
West 3.3 1.9 1.6 3.3 2.0 1.7
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Riverside 2.6 1.4 1.8 2.5 1.5 2.0
Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale 3.6 2.5 0.4 3.7 3.0 0.8
San Jose-San Francisco-Oakland 3.6 1.5 1.1 3.6 1.3 0.7
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Last Modified Date: August 12, 2009
