CIVILIAN COMPENSATION INCREASES 0.7% BETWEEN MARCH AND JUNE 2008
The Employment Cost Index for civilian compensation increased 0.7% between March and June. That matched the March increase and was in line with analysts expectations.
Wages for civilian workers increased 0.7% after a 0.8% increase during the December to March time period. Benefit costs rose 0.6%, this partly reflected a decline in benefits for manufacturing employees during the three-months ended in June.
Private sector wages and salaries rose 0.7% but benefits costs rose only 0.5%. Consequently, overall benefits rose only 0.6%. That was the smallest increase in the private sector compensation number since March 2006. Workers in real estate showed a 0.2% increase in compensation partly reflecting the impact of falling housing prices and fewer sales on commission-based pay in that sector.
On a year-over-year basis, compensation for civilian workers rose 3.1% and wages and salaries rose 3.2%. Private sector workers showed compensation increases of 3% from last June compared with a 3.1% increase in wages for that group.