Average compensation $23.15 per hour in March

In March 2002, employer costs for employee compensation for civilian workers in the United States averaged $23.15 per hour worked.

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Wages and salaries, which averaged $16.76, accounted for 72.4 percent of these costs, while benefits, which averaged $6.39, accounted for the remaining 27.6 percent.

Legally required benefits were $1.80 per hour on average, representing the largest non-wage employer cost. Employer costs for insurance benefits were $1.61 per hour, paid leave benefits were $1.59 per hour, and retirement and savings benefits 80 cents per hour.

These data are a product of the BLS Employment Cost Trends program. Additional information is available from "Employer Costs for Employee Compensation, March 2002," news release USDL 02-346. Civilian workers include private industry and State and local government workers.

 

Note: The publication schedule for the "Employer Costs for Employee Compensation" news release will change this year.

Future publications will be issued on a quarterly basis, with data collected for the pay period including the 12^th day of the survey months of March, June, September, and December. Publications will be issued approximately three months after the month of reference. Data will be available on a quarterly basis beginning with June 2002 data.