Employer costs for retirement and savings plans, June 2006

In June 2006, average costs to employers in private industry for retirement and savings benefits were 91 cents per hour worked.

[Chart data—TXT]

Retirement and savings costs were higher, both in amount and as a proportion of total compensation for union workers ($2.42 and 7.0 percent of total compensation) than for nonunion workers (73 cents and 3.1 percent of total compensation).

Retirement and savings costs were higher per hour worked in goods-producing industries ($1.51 and 5.1 percent of total compensation) than in service-providing industries (76 cents and 3.2 percent of total compensation).

The cost of all employee benefits—including paid leave, supplemental pay, insurance, legally required benefits, as well as retirement and savings plans—averaged $7.39 per hour worked in private industry in June 2006. Wages and salaries averaged $17.77 per hour.

These data are from the BLS National Compensation Survey - Compensation Cost Trends program. Learn more about employer costs for wages, salaries, and benefits in "Employer Costs for Employee Compensation - June 2006" (PDF) (TXT), news release USDL 06-1640.