Average compensation in private industry: $23.90 per hour in December 2004
March 17, 2005
In December 2004, compensation costs in private industry averaged $23.90 per hour worked.
[Chart data—TXT]
Wages and salaries averaged $17.02 per hour, while benefits averaged $6.88.
Employer costs for legally required benefits such as Social Security and workers' compensation averaged $2.08 per hour worked. Insurance benefits averaged $1.70 per hour worked, paid leave averaged $1.53, retirement and savings averaged 88 cents, and supplemental pay averaged 66 cents.
These data are a product of the BLS Compensation Cost Trends program. Additional information is available from "Employer Costs for Employee Compensation, December 2004" (PDF) (TXT), news release USDL 05-432.
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