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Employee Benefits

EBS Home

Employee Benefits provides comprehensive data collected as part of the National Compensation Survey. Data include estimates on the percentage of workers with access to and participating in employer provided benefit plans, as well as details of what those plans provide.

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Latest Numbers

RSS
Civilian Workers, Compensation

Access to defined contribution retirement plans 65% in 2026 Historical Data

Access to defined benefit retirement plans 24% in 2026 Historical Data

Access to paid holiday 79% in 2026 Historical Data

Access to paid vacation 77% in 2026 Historical Data

Access to paid sick leave 83% in 2026 Historical Data

Participating in medical care plans 49% in 2026 Historical Data

Access to wellness programs 50% in 2026 Historical Data

Private industry workers

Access to defined contribution retirement plans 70% in 2026 Historical Data

Access to defined benefit retirement plans 14% in 2026 Historical Data

Access to paid holiday 81% in 2026 Historical Data

Access to paid vacation 80% in 2026 Historical Data

Access to paid sick leave 81% in 2026 Historical Data

Participating in medical care plans 46% in 2026 Historical Data

Access to wellness programs 48% in 2026 Historical Data

State and local government workers

Access to defined contribution retirement plans 39% in 2026 Historical Data

Access to defined benefit retirement plans 86% in 2026 Historical Data

Access to paid holiday 68% in 2026 Historical Data

Access to paid vacation 61% in 2026 Historical Data

Access to paid sick leave 93% in 2026 Historical Data

Participating in medical care plans 67% in 2026 Historical Data

Access to wellness programs 64% in 2026 Historical Data

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News Releases

Retirement benefits available to 72% of private industry workers in March 2026

09/25/2026

Retirement benefits were available to 72 percent of private industry workers with 52 percent of workers participating, and 92 percent of state and local government workers with 81 percent of workers participating.
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Next Release

The Employee Benefits in the United States, March 2027 is scheduled to be released in September 2027 at 10:00 A.M. Eastern Time. 

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Publications

Beyond the Numbers

Beyond the Numbers article image

How do retirement plans for private industry and state and local government workers compare?

The National Compensation Survey (NCS) produces two annual publications that provide a rich amount of information on retirement plans. How retirement plans differ between private industry workers and state and local government workers is a major point of interest. What type of plans are offered to workers? Are plan characteristics different or basically the same? read more »

Monthly Labor Review

Monthly Labor Review article image

ERISA at 50: BLS tracks the evolution of retirement benefits

This article follows the many changes to Bureau of Labor Statistics retirement income studies and shows the challenges of providing statistics on such a varied and frequently evolving topic. read more »

The Economics Daily

The Economics Daily article image

Student loan repayment was available to 7 percent of civilian workers in March 2025

Access to student loan repayment was available to 7 percent of civilian workers in 2025. When workers were classified by wage category, just 4 percent of those in the lowest 25 percent of earnings had student loan repayment benefits available. read more »

Spotlight on Statistics

Spotlight on Statistics article image

Keeping America Moving: Characteristics of the Transportation and Warehousing Industry

National Transportation Week, created in 1962 and celebrated from May 12–18 this year, recognizes those who build and operate our Nation’s transportation systems. Observance of the week sprung from National Defense Transportation Day which dates to 1957, a year after President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed the Federal-Aid Highway Act leading to the creation of the interstate highway system. read more »