U n ited S tates

Depa rtmen t

o f Labo r

B u reau o f Labor Statistics Wash ington, D.C. 2021 2

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http://www.bls.gov/ncs/ect/home.htm THURSDAY, OCTOBER 31, 2002

EMPLOYMENT COST INDEX— SEPTEMBER 2002

The Employment Cost Index for total compensation increased 3.7 percent for the year ended September

2002, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. The Employment Cost Index

(ECI), a component of the National Compensation Survey, measures changes in compensation costs, which

include wages, salaries, and employer costs for employee benefits, for nonfarm private and State and local

government workers.

Quarterly changes, seasonally adjusted

Seasonally adjusted, the 3-month increase in compensation costs for civilian workers (nonfarm private

industry and State and local government) rose 0.8 percent from June to September 2002, following a gain of

1.0 percent in March-June 2002. Wages and salaries increased 0.5 percent during the September quarter, after

a 1.0 percent gain in the June quarter. Benefit costs rose 1.4 percent during the June-September period,

following a 1.3 percent increase in the March-June quarter.

Table A. 3-month percent changes in Employment Cost Index, seasonally adjusted

Dec. Mar. June Sep. Dec. Mar. June Sep.

Compensation Component 2000 2001 2001 2001 2001 2002 2002 2002

 Civilian workers

Compensation costs 0.9 1.1 1.0 1.0 1.0 0.8 1.0 0.8

 Wages and salaries 0.8 1.0 1.0 0.8 0.9 0.8 1.0 0.5

 Benefit costs 1.1 1.2 1.1 1.5 1.2 1.0 1.3 1.4

 Private industry

Compensation costs 0.9 1.1 1.0 0.9 1.0 0.9 1.1 0.6

 Wages and salaries 0.8 1.0 1.0 0.7 0.9 0.9 1.0 0.4

 Benefit costs 1.1 1.3 1.1 1.4 1.3 1.1 1.4 1.0

 State and local government

Compensation costs 1.0 1.0 1.1 1.4 0.6 0.7 0.8 1.5

 Wages and salaries 0.9 0.9 1.0 1.0 0.7 0.7 0.8 0.9

 Benefit costs 0.9 1.1 1.2 2.2 0.8 0.7 0.8 3.0

The increase in compensation costs for private industry workers was 0.6 percent during the JuneSeptember 2002 period, a smaller gain than the increase of 1.1 percent during the previous 3-month period.

The gain in wages and salaries slowed to 0.4 percent in the quarter ended in September; in June, it was 1.0

percent. Benefit costs showed a rise of 1.0 percent during the September quarter, compared with a 1.4 percent

gain during the June quarter. (See tables A and 1.)
2

Compensation costs for State and local government workers increased 1.5 percent during the JuneSeptember period, about twice the 0.8 percent gain during the June quarter. Wages and salaries rose 0.9

percent in the quarter ended in September, following a 0.8 percent increase the previous quarter. Benefit costs

rose 3.0 percent during the September quarter, significantly higher than the 0.8 percent gain of the prior

quarter. The increase in benefit costs was due largely to increases in employer costs for health insurance.

Over-the-year changes, not seasonally adjusted

Compensation costs for civilian workers (not seasonally adjusted) increased 3.7 percent for the 12

months ended in September 2002 to 161.3 (June 1989=100). This compares with over-the-year increases of

4.1 percent in September 2001 and 4.3 percent in September 2000. Compensation costs in private industry

rose 3.7 percent in the year ended September 2002, compared with increases of 4.0 percent in September 2001

and 4.6 percent in September 2000. In State and local government, compensation costs increased 3.8 percent

for the year ended September 2002; over-the-year increases were 4.4 percent in September 2001 and 3.3

percent in September 2000. (See tables B, 2, and 3.)

Nonfarm private industry

In private industry, wages and salaries rose 3.2 percent for the year ended September 2002, after

increasing 3.6 percent in the year ended September 2001. (See tables B and 6.) Benefit costs for private

industry workers increased 4.8 percent for the year ended in September 2002, compared with an increase of 4.9

percent in September 2001. (See tables B and 8.)

In private industry, over-the-year compensation cost increases were 3.7 percent for white-collar

occupations, 3.5 percent for blue-collar occupations, and 4.2 percent for service occupations. Among the

occupational groups, increases in compensation costs ranged from 2.8 percent for professional specialty and

technical employees to 4.3 percent for sales workers. (See table 3.)

Table B. 12-month percent changes in Employment Cost Index, not seasonally adjusted

Sep. Sep. Sep. Sep. Sep. Sep.

Compensation Component 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002

 Civilian workers

Compensation costs 3.0 3.7 3.1 4.3 4.1 3.7

 Wages and salaries 3.5 4.0 3.3 4.0 3.6 3.2

 Benefit costs 1.9 2.6 2.7 5.3 5.1 4.9

 Private industry

Compensation costs 3.2 3.8 3.1 4.6 4.0 3.7

 Wages and salaries 3.6 4.3 3.2 4.1 3.6 3.2

 Benefit costs 2.0 2.6 2.8 6.0 4.9 4.8

 State and local government

Compensation costs 2.4 3.0 2.9 3.3 4.4 3.8

 Wages and salaries 2.7 3.0 3.3 3.5 3.9 3.1

 Benefit costs 1.5 2.8 2.0 2.8 5.6 5.4

For the year ended September 2002, the compensation cost increase was 3.6 percent for goodsproducing industries, compared with 3.5 percent for the year ended September 2001. The over-the-year

increase in compensation for service-producing industries was 3.7 percent, compared with a 4.2 percent

increase for the year ended September 2001. Among service-producing industries, the 12-month increases for

the year ending September 2002 ranged from 1.2 percent for business services to 5.8 percent for electric, gas,

and sanitary services. (See table 3.)

Compensation costs for union workers rose 4.7 percent over the year, compared with a 3.5 percent

increase for nonunion workers. In service-producing industries, compensation increased 5.8 percent for union

workers and 3.4 percent for nonunion workers. In goods-producing industries, the increase for union workers

was 3.7 percent, compared with a 3.6 percent increase for nonunion workers. Among the four geographic
3

regions, increases in compensation costs ranged from 3.4 percent in the Northeast to 3.9 percent in the Midwest

and West. (See table 4.)

State and local government

In State and local government, the September 2002 over-the-year increase in wages and salaries was 3.1

percent, lower than the gain of 3.9 percent for September 2001. The 12-month gain in benefit costs for

September 2002 was 5.4 percent; in September 2001, the gain was 5.6 percent. (See tables B, 5, and 8.)

________________________________________________________________________________________

NOTES:

The ECI for December 2002 is scheduled to be released Thursday, January 30, 2003, at 8:30 a.m. (EST).

The costs per hour worked of compensation components, based on data from the ECI, were published on

September 17 in a news release titled “Employer Costs for Employee Compensation–June 2002.” Employer

Costs for Employee Compensation was changed from an annual to a quarterly publication beginning with the

June 2002 data. Future publications will be issued approximately three months after the month of reference for

the survey months of March, June, September, and December.

ECI data are available on the Compensation Cost Trends page at http://www.bls.gov/ncs/ect/home.htm.

To access data using Anonymous FTP, use the Internet address ftp://ftp.bls.gov.

For technical assistance in using the BLS Internet site, send e-mail to webmaster@bls.gov. For ECI data

requests, send e-mail to ocltinfo@bls.gov.

The ECI news release is available through an e-mail subscription service. See the subscription link on

http://www.bls.gov/ncs/ect/home.htm or http://www.bls.gov/bls/newsrels.htm.

News releases and other information are available from the BLS fax-on-demand service. To request a

document fax, call (202) 691-6325. To request a catalog of available documents, select option 2 at the initial

voice prompt. To request data found in this news release, enter the following codes:

Text 4110

Tables 1-4 4115

Tables 5-7 4120

Table 8 4125

Explanatory notes 4190

________________________________________________________________________________________
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80 8182 8384 8586 8788 8990 9192 9394 95 9697 9899 0001 02

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80 8182 8384 8586 8788 8990 9192 9394 95 9697 9899 0001 02

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8081 828384 85868788 899091 929394 959697 989900 0102

Chart A. Changes in wages and salaries and in benefit costs, private industry, 1980-2002

12-month percent change

Wages and salaries

Benefits

Chart B. Changes in wages and salaries, civilian workers, seasonally adjusted and not seasonally

adjusted, 1981-2002

3-month percent change

Chart C. Changes in benefits, civilian workers, seasonally adjusted and not seasonally

adjusted, 1981-2002

3-month percent change

_______ Seasonally adjusted

- - - - - Not seasonally adjusted

Employment Cost Index

_______ Seasonally adjusted

- - - - - Not seasonally adjusted
5

Table 1. Employment Cost Index for total compensation1, wages and salaries, and benefit costs by industry and

occupational group 

(Seasonally adjusted data)

Industry and occupational group

Indexes (June

1989=100) Percent changes for 3-months ended–

Jun.

2002

Sep.

2002

Dec.

2000

Mar.

2001

Jun.

2001

Sep.

2001

Dec.

2001

Mar.

2002

Jun.

2002

Sep.

2002

TOTAL COMPENSATION

Civilian workers .............................................. 159.8 161.1 0.9 1.1 1.0 1.0 1.0 0.8 1.0 0.8

State and local government .......................... 157.3 159.7 1.0 1.0 1.1 1.4 .6 .7 .8 1.5

Private industry ............................................. 160.4 161.4 .9 1.1 1.0 .9 1.0 .9 1.1 .6

Industry

Goods producing2 .................................... 157.7 158.8 .6 1.1 .9 .8 .9 .9 1.0 .7

Construction ......................................... 154.9 156.1 1.4 1.0 1.1 1.0 1.2 .7 .4 .8

Manufacturing ....................................... 157.8 159.1 .5 1.1 .9 .6 1.0 1.0 .9 .8

Durables ........................................... 158.1 158.9 .6 .9 .8 .7 1.0 .8 .8 .5

Nondurables ..................................... 157.4 159.4 .3 1.4 1.0 .5 .9 1.3 1.2 1.3

Service producing3 ................................... 161.8 162.7 1.0 1.1 1.0 1.0 1.1 .8 1.2 .6

Transportation and public utilities ......... 158.8 160.6 .8 1.3 1.2 .7 1.6 1.0 1.0 1.1

Wholesale trade .................................... 166.0 166.0 1.4 .7 1.4 .8 .4 1.8 2.3 .0

Retail trade ........................................... 155.4 155.8 .8 1.0 .6 .8 2.1 -.3 1.3 .3

Finance, insurance, and real estate4 .... 167.3 168.0 .3 1.4 1.0 .9 .2 2.4 1.3 .4

Services ................................................ 163.7 164.7 1.0 1.4 .8 1.3 .9 .9 .7 .6

Nonmanufacturing .................................... 161.0 161.9 1.0 1.1 1.0 1.0 1.1 .8 1.1 .6

Occupational group

White collar ............................................... 163.6 164.5 .9 1.1 1.0 .9 1.2 .8 1.1 .6

Blue collar ................................................. 155.0 156.1 .9 1.0 .7 1.1 .9 .9 .9 .7

Service ...................................................... 157.1 158.8 1.1 1.2 .8 1.0 1.4 1.2 .6 1.1

WAGES AND SALARIES

Civilian workers .............................................. 156.2 157.0 .8 1.0 1.0 .8 .9 .8 1.0 .5

State and local government .......................... 155.7 157.1 .9 .9 1.0 1.0 .7 .7 .8 .9

Private industry ............................................. 156.3 156.9 .8 1.0 1.0 .7 .9 .9 1.0 .4

Industry

Goods producing2,4 .................................. 153.1 153.9 .6 1.2 1.1 .6 .7 .8 .9 .5

Construction ......................................... 147.9 148.9 1.2 .9 1.0 1.0 1.1 .3 .5 .7

Manufacturing4 ..................................... 154.5 155.4 .5 1.4 1.0 .5 .7 .9 .9 .6

Durables4 ......................................... 155.3 156.0 .8 1.2 1.0 .7 .7 .9 .9 .5

Nondurables ..................................... 153.0 154.5 .3 1.2 1.1 .3 .7 .8 .9 1.0

Service producing3 ................................... 157.6 158.3 .9 .9 .9 .9 1.0 .9 1.0 .4

Transportation and public utilities ......... 152.0 153.3 .8 1.1 1.2 .7 1.8 1.0 .9 .9

Wholesale trade .................................... 160.9 160.5 1.2 .5 1.3 .1 .3 2.0 2.0 -.2

Retail trade ........................................... 152.5 152.8 .8 .8 .5 .7 1.7 -.3 1.1 .2

Finance, insurance, and real estate4 .... 162.0 162.4 .0 1.5 .5 .8 .1 2.8 1.1 .2

Services ................................................ 160.4 161.4 .9 1.2 .9 1.2 .8 .7 .6 .6

Nonmanufacturing .................................... 156.4 157.1 .9 .9 .9 .9 1.1 .8 .9 .4

See footnotes at end of table.
6

Table 1. Employment Cost Index for total compensation1, wages and salaries, and benefit costs by industry and

occupational group — Continued

(Seasonally adjusted data)

Industry and occupational group

Indexes (June

1989=100) Percent changes for 3-months ended–

Jun.

2002

Sep.

2002

Dec.

2000

Mar.

2001

Jun.

2001

Sep.

2001

Dec.

2001

Mar.

2002

Jun.

2002

Sep.

2002

WAGES AND SALARIES–Continued

Occupational group

White collar ............................................... 159.3 159.9 0.8 1.0 0.9 0.7 1.0 0.9 1.0 0.4

Blue collar4 ............................................... 150.9 151.7 .6 1.3 .9 1.1 .5 .9 .9 .5

Service4 .................................................... 152.8 153.9 1.0 1.0 .8 .8 1.3 .9 .5 .7

BENEFIT COSTS

Civilian workers .............................................. 169.0 171.3 1.1 1.2 1.1 1.5 1.2 1.0 1.3 1.4

State and local government .......................... 160.9 165.7 .9 1.1 1.2 2.2 .8 .7 .8 3.0

Private industry ............................................. 170.9 172.6 1.1 1.3 1.1 1.4 1.3 1.1 1.4 1.0

Industry

Goods producing2 .................................... 167.1 168.9 .6 .9 .8 1.0 1.4 1.4 1.0 1.1

Manufacturing ....................................... 165.2 167.0 .2 .8 .6 .7 1.4 1.4 1.2 1.1

Service producing3 ................................... 173.1 174.8 1.4 1.4 1.3 1.6 1.2 .8 1.6 1.0

Nonmanufacturing .................................... 173.3 175.0 1.4 1.5 1.3 1.5 1.3 .8 1.5 1.0

Occupational group

White collar ............................................... 175.8 177.2 1.1 1.6 1.4 1.4 1.5 .6 1.6 .8

Blue collar ................................................. 163.9 166.1 .8 .9 .3 1.3 .8 1.8 1.0 1.3

Service ...................................................... 170.2 173.5 1.3 1.9 1.0 1.4 1.7 1.6 .8 1.9

1 Includes wages, salaries, and employer costs for employee benefits. 2 Includes mining, construction, and manufacturing. 3 Includes transportation, communication, and public utilities; wholesale and

retail trade; finance, insurance, and real estate; and service industries. 4 No identifiable seasonality was found for this series.
7

Table 2. Employment Cost Index for total compensation1 for civilian and State and local government workers by

industry and occupational group 

(Not seasonally adjusted data)

Industry and occupational group

Indexes (June 1989=100) Percent changes for–

Sep.

2001

Jun.

2002

Sep.

2002

3 months ended– 12 months ended–

Sep.

2001

Jun.

2002

Sep.

2002

Sep.

2001

Jun.

2002

Sep.

2002

Civilian workers ............................................ 155.6 159.9 161.3 1.2 0.9 0.9 4.1 4.0 3.7

Excluding sales occupations .................. 155.6 159.7 161.3 1.2 .8 1.0 4.1 3.8 3.7

Industry

Goods producing2 ...................................... 153.2 157.7 158.7 .7 .9 .6 3.5 3.6 3.6

Manufacturing ......................................... 153.3 158.1 159.1 .5 1.0 .6 3.1 3.6 3.8

Service producing3 ..................................... 156.4 160.7 162.2 1.3 1.0 .9 4.2 4.1 3.7

Services .................................................. 158.1 161.1 163.2 1.7 .6 1.3 4.6 3.7 3.2

Health services ................................... 156.7 161.8 163.1 1.4 .8 .8 5.2 4.7 4.1

Hospitals ......................................... 158.2 163.8 165.7 1.7 .9 1.2 5.8 5.3 4.7

Educational services ........................... 156.1 157.4 161.6 2.6 .2 2.7 4.3 3.4 3.5

Public administration4 ............................. 153.8 157.5 160.2 1.3 .6 1.7 4.7 3.7 4.2

Nonmanufacturing ...................................... 156.0 160.2 161.7 1.3 .9 .9 4.3 4.0 3.7

Occupational group

White collar ................................................. 157.7 162.1 163.5 1.1 1.0 .9 4.1 3.9 3.7

Excluding sales ................................... 158.1 162.1 163.7 1.2 .7 1.0 4.4 3.8 3.5

Professional specialty and technical ....... 156.7 159.3 161.4 1.6 .5 1.3 4.5 3.2 3.0

Executive, administrative, and

managerial ............................................ 159.6 165.6 166.3 .6 1.2 .4 3.8 4.4 4.2

Administrative support, including clerical 158.8 163.3 164.9 1.3 .8 1.0 4.6 4.1 3.8

Blue collar ................................................... 151.1 155.1 156.4 1.2 .9 .8 3.8 3.9 3.5

Service ........................................................ 155.0 159.4 161.3 1.1 .6 1.2 4.4 4.0 4.1

State and local government ......................... 154.3 156.7 160.1 2.1 .4 2.2 4.4 3.6 3.8

Industry

Services .................................................. 154.4 155.9 159.7 2.5 .3 2.4 4.3 3.5 3.4

Excluding schools ........................... 154.5 158.7 161.0 1.7 .5 1.4 4.7 4.5 4.2

Health services ................................... 157.1 161.4 163.5 1.7 .6 1.3 4.7 4.5 4.1

Hospitals ......................................... 157.4 161.8 164.1 1.7 .7 1.4 4.4 4.6 4.3

Educational services ........................... 154.1 155.1 159.2 2.7 .2 2.6 4.2 3.3 3.3

Schools ........................................... 154.4 155.4 159.6 2.6 .2 2.7 4.2 3.3 3.4

Elementary and secondary ......... 152.8 153.6 157.7 2.6 .1 2.7 3.7 3.1 3.2

Colleges and universities ............ 159.0 160.4 164.7 3.0 .3 2.7 5.6 4.0 3.6

Public administration4 ............................. 153.8 157.5 160.2 1.3 .6 1.7 4.7 3.7 4.2

Occupational group

White collar ................................................. 153.7 155.7 159.3 2.2 .3 2.3 4.3 3.5 3.6

Professional specialty and technical ....... 152.8 154.1 158.1 2.4 .3 2.6 4.2 3.3 3.5

Executive, administrative, and

managerial ............................................ 156.4 159.8 162.3 1.8 .2 1.6 4.8 4.0 3.8

Administrative support, including clerical 154.2 158.0 161.0 1.7 .7 1.9 4.0 4.2 4.4

Blue collar ................................................... 151.5 154.7 158.4 1.7 .5 2.4 3.8 3.8 4.6

Service ........................................................ 159.0 162.4 165.2 1.6 .6 1.7 5.0 3.8 3.9

1 Includes wages, salaries, and employer costs for employee benefits. 2 Includes mining, construction, and manufacturing. 3 Includes transportation, communication, and public utilities;

wholesale and retail trade; finance, insurance, and real estate; service

industries; and public administration. 4 Includes executive, legislative, judicial, administrative, and regulatory

activities of State and local governments, SICs 91 through 96.
8

Table 3. Employment Cost Index for total compensation1 for private industry workers, by industry and

occupational group 

(Not seasonally adjusted data)

Industry and occupational group

Indexes (June 1989=100) Percent changes for–

Sep.

2001

Jun.

2002

Sep.

2002

3 months ended– 12 months ended–

Sep.

2001

Jun.

2002

Sep.

2002

Sep.

2001

Jun.

2002

Sep.

2002

Private industry workers .............................. 155.9 160.7 161.6 0.9 1.1 0.6 4.0 4.0 3.7

Excluding sales occupations .................. 156.0 160.5 161.6 1.0 .9 .7 4.1 4.0 3.6

Industry

Goods producing2 .................................... 153.1 157.6 158.6 .7 .9 .6 3.5 3.6 3.6

Excluding sales ................................... 152.5 156.9 157.9 .7 .9 .6 3.6 3.6 3.5

White collar ............................................. 156.8 161.9 162.9 .2 1.1 .6 3.6 3.5 3.9

Excluding sales ................................... 155.3 160.2 161.1 .2 1.1 .6 3.8 3.4 3.7

Blue collar ............................................... 150.8 154.8 155.9 1.0 .8 .7 3.4 3.7 3.4

Construction ........................................... 151.7 155.2 156.3 .9 .7 .7 4.5 3.3 3.0

Manufacturing ......................................... 153.3 158.1 159.1 .5 1.0 .6 3.1 3.6 3.8

White collar ......................................... 156.0 161.1 162.2 .0 1.3 .7 3.0 3.3 4.0

Excluding sales ............................... 153.8 158.6 159.6 -.1 1.2 .6 3.0 3.0 3.8

Blue collar ........................................... 151.3 155.8 156.7 .9 .8 .6 3.1 3.9 3.6

Durables ............................................. 154.0 158.3 158.9 .6 .9 .4 3.1 3.4 3.2

Aircraft manufacturing (SIC 3721) .. 160.3 168.9 168.8 -.1 .8 -.1 2.8 5.3 5.3

White collar ................................. 156.3 164.2 163.7 -.6 .6 -.3 3.0 4.4 4.7

Blue collar ................................... 165.3 174.8 175.4 1.0 1.3 .3 2.4 6.8 6.1

Nondurables ....................................... 152.0 157.5 159.2 .3 1.0 1.1 3.1 3.9 4.7

Service producing3 .................................. 156.9 161.8 162.7 1.0 1.2 .6 4.2 4.2 3.7

Excluding sales ................................... 157.8 162.4 163.5 1.2 .9 .7 4.4 4.1 3.6

White collar ............................................. 159.0 164.0 164.7 1.0 1.2 .4 4.2 4.2 3.6

Excluding sales ................................... 160.9 165.6 166.5 1.1 .9 .5 4.5 4.1 3.5

Blue collar ............................................... 150.9 155.2 156.6 1.5 1.3 .9 4.4 4.4 3.8

Service .................................................... 152.2 157.0 158.5 .9 .7 1.0 4.0 4.1 4.1

Transportation and public utilities ........... 153.5 158.9 160.8 .7 1.0 1.2 4.1 4.3 4.8

Transportation .................................... 148.2 153.9 155.4 .9 .9 1.0 3.8 4.8 4.9

Public utilities ...................................... 160.7 165.5 168.2 .6 1.0 1.6 4.7 3.6 4.7

Communications ............................. 162.8 166.1 169.0 1.1 .1 1.7 5.8 3.1 3.8

Electric, gas, and sanitary services 158.1 164.8 167.2 .0 2.2 1.5 3.4 4.2 5.8

Wholesale and retail trade ...................... 153.7 159.5 159.6 .7 1.9 .1 3.6 4.5 3.8

Excluding sales ............................... 155.4 160.0 160.3 1.0 1.6 .2 3.9 4.0 3.2

Wholesale trade .................................. 158.6 166.3 165.9 .5 2.7 -.2 4.3 5.4 4.6

Excluding sales ............................... 160.0 164.4 166.1 .9 1.3 1.0 4.8 3.7 3.8

Retail trade ......................................... 150.9 155.6 156.0 .8 1.4 .3 3.2 3.9 3.4

General merchandise stores .......... 149.7 154.2 156.1 .2 1.2 1.2 5.3 3.2 4.3

Food stores ..................................... 149.7 154.5 156.3 1.0 1.0 1.2 4.4 4.3 4.4

Finance, insurance, and real estate ....... 160.9 167.3 168.0 .9 1.3 .4 3.7 4.9 4.4

Excluding sales ............................... 164.7 171.3 172.1 1.0 .9 .5 4.6 5.0 4.5

Banking, savings and loan, and other

credit agencies ................................. 175.4 184.2 184.6 1.6 1.2 .2 5.8 6.7 5.2

Insurance ............................................ 159.9 166.1 167.1 .4 1.3 .6 3.3 4.3 4.5

Excluding sales ............................... 158.0 164.3 165.1 .3 .8 .5 3.8 4.3 4.5

Services .................................................. 160.0 163.7 164.9 1.4 .7 .7 4.6 3.7 3.1

Business services ............................... 165.2 166.6 167.2 1.3 .2 .4 4.9 2.2 1.2

Health services ................................... 156.8 162.0 163.2 1.4 .9 .7 5.2 4.7 4.1

Hospitals ......................................... 158.4 164.5 166.2 1.6 1.0 1.0 6.2 5.5 4.9

Nursing homes ............................... – – – 1.5 1.1 .7 5.6 5.0 4.1

Educational services ........................... 166.4 169.0 173.5 2.3 .3 2.7 4.8 3.9 4.3

Colleges and universities ................ 166.2 168.4 172.0 2.2 .2 2.1 4.8 3.6 3.5

See footnotes at end of table.
9

Table 3. Employment Cost Index for total compensation1 for private industry workers, by industry and

occupational group — Continued

(Not seasonally adjusted data)

Industry and occupational group

Indexes (June 1989=100) Percent changes for–

Sep.

2001

Jun.

2002

Sep.

2002

3 months ended– 12 months ended–

Sep.

2001

Jun.

2002

Sep.

2002

Sep.

2001

Jun.

2002

Sep.

2002

Industry–Continued

Nonmanufacturing industries ................. 156.3 161.1 162.0 1.0 1.1 0.6 4.2 4.1 3.6

White collar ............................................. 159.0 164.1 164.8 1.0 1.2 .4 4.2 4.2 3.6

Excluding sales ................................... 160.9 165.7 166.6 1.1 .9 .5 4.6 4.1 3.5

Blue collar ............................................... 150.2 154.0 155.4 1.4 1.2 .9 4.4 4.0 3.5

Service .................................................... 152.1 156.9 158.4 .9 .6 1.0 4.0 4.1 4.1

Occupational group

White collar ............................................... 158.7 163.8 164.6 .8 1.2 .5 4.0 4.1 3.7

Excluding sales ................................... 159.6 164.3 165.3 .9 .9 .6 4.4 3.9 3.6

Professional specialty and technical ....... 159.2 162.5 163.6 1.1 .6 .7 4.6 3.2 2.8

Executive, administrative, and

managerial ............................................ 160.2 166.6 167.0 .5 1.3 .2 3.8 4.5 4.2

Sales ....................................................... 155.0 161.6 161.6 .3 2.5 .0 2.5 4.6 4.3

Administrative support, including

clerical .................................................. 159.5 164.2 165.6 1.1 .9 .9 4.7 4.1 3.8

Blue collar ................................................. 151.0 155.1 156.3 1.1 1.0 .8 3.8 3.9 3.5

Precision production, craft, and repair .... 151.8 155.7 156.9 1.4 1.3 .8 4.1 4.0 3.4

Machine operators, assemblers, and

inspectors ............................................. 150.4 154.7 155.4 .9 .7 .5 3.0 3.8 3.3

Transportation and material moving ....... 145.6 149.6 151.0 1.2 .6 .9 4.1 4.0 3.7

Handlers, equipment cleaners, helpers,

and laborers .......................................... 154.9 159.9 161.4 1.0 .8 .9 3.7 4.2 4.2

Service ....................................................... 152.6 157.4 159.0 .9 .6 1.0 4.1 4.0 4.2

Production and nonsupervisory

occupations4 ........................................... 154.3 158.7 159.7 1.0 1.0 .6 4.0 3.9 3.5

1 Includes wages, salaries, and employer costs for employee benefits. 2 Includes mining, construction, and manufacturing. 3 Includes transportation, communication, and public utilities;

wholesale and retail trade; finance, insurance, and real estate; and service

industries.

4 This series has the same industry and occupational coverage as the

Hourly Earnings Index, which was discontinued in January 1989.

NOTE: Dashes indicate data not available.
10

Table 4. Employment Cost Index for total compensation1 for private industry workers, by bargaining status,

region, and area 

(Not seasonally adjusted data)

Bargaining status, region, and area

Indexes (June 1989=100) Percent changes for–

Sep.

2001

Jun.

2002

Sep.

2002

3 months ended– 12 months ended–

Sep.

2001

Jun.

2002

Sep.

2002

Sep.

2001

Jun.

2002

Sep.

2002

Bargaining status

Union ........................................................... 151.0 156.3 158.1 1.0 1.0 1.2 3.4 4.5 4.7

Blue-collar occupations ........................ 148.7 153.5 155.2 1.0 1.2 1.1 3.0 4.3 4.4

Goods-producing industries2 .................... 150.6 154.7 156.2 .9 .8 1.0 2.6 3.6 3.7

Service-producing industries3 .................. 151.2 157.6 159.9 1.1 1.0 1.5 4.1 5.4 5.8

Manufacturing ........................................... 149.9 154.6 155.9 .7 .8 .8 1.9 3.9 4.0

Blue-collar occupations ........................ 149.4 153.7 155.0 .9 .8 .8 2.0 3.8 3.7

Nonmanufacturing .................................... 151.1 156.6 158.8 1.1 1.0 1.4 4.2 4.8 5.1

Nonunion ..................................................... 156.7 161.4 162.2 .9 1.1 .5 4.1 3.9 3.5

Blue-collar occupations ........................ 152.2 156.0 156.9 1.3 .8 .6 4.2 3.8 3.1

Goods-producing industries2 .................... 154.0 158.6 159.5 .6 .9 .6 3.8 3.6 3.6

Service-producing industries3 .................. 157.5 162.2 162.9 1.0 1.2 .4 4.2 4.0 3.4

Manufacturing ........................................... 154.4 159.1 160.1 .5 1.0 .6 3.5 3.5 3.7

Blue-collar occupations ........................ 152.1 156.7 157.5 .9 .7 .5 3.7 3.9 3.6

Nonmanufacturing .................................... 157.0 161.7 162.4 1.0 1.1 .4 4.2 4.1 3.4

Region4

Northeast ...................................................... 155.2 159.9 160.5 1.0 1.0 .4 4.0 4.0 3.4

South ............................................................ 153.5 157.6 158.9 .8 .9 .8 4.0 3.5 3.5

Midwest ........................................................ 157.4 162.6 163.5 .9 .9 .6 3.4 4.2 3.9

West ............................................................. 157.6 162.9 163.8 1.0 1.6 .6 4.5 4.4 3.9

Area

Metropolitan .................................................. 156.0 160.9 161.8 .9 1.1 .6 3.9 4.1 3.7

Other ............................................................. 154.8 158.5 160.0 .7 .6 .9 4.0 3.1 3.4

1 Includes wages, salaries, and employer costs for employee benefits. 2 Includes mining, construction, and manufacturing. 3 Includes transportation, communication, and public utilities;

wholesale and retail trade; finance, insurance, and real estate; and service

industries.

4 The regional coverage is as follows: Northeast: Connecticut, Maine,

Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania,

Rhode Island, and Vermont; South: Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, District

of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi,

North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia,

and West Virginia; Midwest: Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan,

Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, and

Wisconsin; and West: Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii,

Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and

Wyoming.

 NOTE: The indexes for these series are not strictly comparable to those

for the aggregate, occupation, and industry series.
11

Table 5. Employment Cost Index for wages and salaries for civilian and State and local government workers, by

industry and occupational group 

(Not seasonally adjusted data)

Industry and occupational group

Indexes (June 1989=100) Percent changes for–

Sep.

2001

Jun.

2002

Sep.

2002

3 months ended– 12 months ended–

Sep.

2001

Jun.

2002

Sep.

2002

Sep.

2001

Jun.

2002

Sep.

2002

Civilian workers ............................................ 152.3 156.1 157.2 1.0 0.8 0.7 3.6 3.5 3.2

Excluding sales occupations .................. 152.3 155.9 157.1 1.1 .7 .8 3.8 3.5 3.2

Industry

Goods producing1 ...................................... 149.5 153.1 153.9 .6 .9 .5 3.6 3.0 2.9

Manufacturing ......................................... 150.7 154.5 155.4 .5 .9 .6 3.4 3.0 3.1

Service producing2 ..................................... 153.4 157.2 158.4 1.1 .8 .8 3.6 3.6 3.3

Services .................................................. 156.2 158.8 160.7 1.7 .4 1.2 4.2 3.4 2.9

Health services ................................... 153.7 158.5 159.6 1.3 .8 .7 4.8 4.4 3.8

Hospitals ......................................... 153.5 158.6 160.3 1.5 .9 1.1 5.4 4.9 4.4

Educational services ........................... 154.6 155.6 159.3 2.4 .2 2.4 3.8 3.0 3.0

Public administration3 ............................. 150.3 153.4 154.8 1.1 .6 .9 3.9 3.2 3.0

Nonmanufacturing ...................................... 152.6 156.4 157.5 1.1 .9 .7 3.7 3.6 3.2

Occupational group

White collar ................................................. 154.5 158.4 159.6 .9 .9 .8 3.6 3.5 3.3

Excluding sales ................................... 155.1 158.7 160.1 1.2 .7 .9 3.9 3.5 3.2

Professional specialty and technical ....... 154.2 156.2 158.0 1.4 .4 1.2 4.0 2.8 2.5

Executive, administrative, and

managerial ............................................ 156.7 162.6 163.5 .6 1.2 .6 3.4 4.4 4.3

Administrative support, including clerical 154.6 158.4 159.6 1.2 .7 .8 4.1 3.7 3.2

Blue collar ................................................... 147.6 151.0 151.9 1.1 .9 .6 3.9 3.4 2.9

Service ........................................................ 151.2 155.1 156.2 1.0 .6 .7 3.8 3.6 3.3

State and local government ......................... 153.0 154.9 157.7 1.9 .3 1.8 3.9 3.2 3.1

Industry

Services .................................................. 153.7 155.0 158.4 2.3 .3 2.2 3.9 3.2 3.1

Excluding schools ........................... 153.2 157.3 159.1 1.7 .4 1.1 4.4 4.4 3.9

Health services ................................... 154.2 158.8 160.5 1.5 .6 1.1 4.4 4.5 4.1

Hospitals ......................................... 154.2 158.8 160.6 1.6 .7 1.1 4.4 4.6 4.2

Educational services ........................... 153.6 154.5 158.1 2.4 .2 2.3 3.8 3.0 2.9

Schools ........................................... 153.8 154.6 158.3 2.4 .2 2.4 3.8 2.9 2.9

Elementary and secondary ......... 152.8 153.6 157.4 2.2 .1 2.5 3.3 2.7 3.0

Colleges and universities ............ 156.5 157.3 160.7 3.1 .3 2.2 5.5 3.6 2.7

Public administration3 ............................. 150.3 153.4 154.8 1.1 .6 .9 3.9 3.2 3.0

Occupational group

White collar ................................................. 152.7 154.4 157.4 1.9 .3 1.9 3.8 3.1 3.1

Professional specialty and technical ....... 153.0 154.1 157.5 2.1 .3 2.2 3.8 2.9 2.9

Executive, administrative, and

managerial ............................................ 153.9 156.8 159.0 1.6 .1 1.4 4.5 3.5 3.3

Administrative support, including clerical 149.8 152.8 155.1 1.5 .6 1.5 3.3 3.5 3.5

Blue collar ................................................... 149.1 152.1 154.5 1.8 .3 1.6 3.6 3.8 3.6

Service ........................................................ 156.1 159.2 160.6 1.6 .6 .9 4.3 3.6 2.9

1 Includes mining, construction, and manufacturing. 2 Includes transportation, communication, and public utilities;

wholesale and retail trade; finance, insurance, and real estate; service

industries; and public administration. 3 Includes executive, legislative, judicial, administrative, and regulatory

activities of State and local governments, SICs 91 through 96.
12

Table 6. Employment Cost Index for wages and salaries for private industry workers by industry and

occupational group 

(Not seasonally adjusted data)

Industry and occupational group

Indexes (June 1989=100) Percent changes for–

Sep.

2001

Jun.

2002

Sep.

2002

3 months ended– 12 months ended–

Sep.

2001

Jun.

2002

Sep.

2002

Sep.

2001

Jun.

2002

Sep.

2002

Private industry workers .............................. 152.1 156.3 157.0 0.8 1.0 0.4 3.6 3.6 3.2

Excluding sales occupations .................. 152.2 156.1 157.0 .9 .8 .6 3.9 3.5 3.2

Industry

Goods producing1 .................................... 149.5 153.1 153.9 .6 .9 .5 3.6 3.0 2.9

Excluding sales ................................... 148.7 152.2 153.0 .6 .9 .5 3.7 3.0 2.9

White collar ............................................. 152.6 156.6 157.5 .2 1.0 .6 3.2 2.8 3.2

Excluding sales ................................... 150.8 154.5 155.4 .2 1.0 .6 3.3 2.7 3.1

Blue collar ............................................... 147.4 150.7 151.5 .9 .7 .5 3.8 3.1 2.8

Construction ........................................... 145.1 148.2 149.0 .8 .8 .5 4.1 3.0 2.7

Manufacturing ......................................... 150.7 154.5 155.4 .5 .9 .6 3.4 3.0 3.1

White collar ......................................... 152.8 156.6 157.7 .1 1.1 .7 2.8 2.6 3.2

Excluding sales ............................... 150.5 153.9 155.0 .0 1.1 .7 2.7 2.3 3.0

Blue collar ........................................... 149.1 152.8 153.5 .9 .7 .5 4.0 3.4 3.0

Durables ............................................. 151.5 155.3 156.0 .7 .9 .5 3.7 3.2 3.0

Aircraft manufacturing (SIC 3721) .. 156.6 162.5 162.5 1.0 .7 .0 4.4 4.8 3.8

White collar ................................. 150.9 156.4 155.9 .5 .3 -.3 3.4 4.2 3.3

Blue collar ................................... 164.9 171.4 172.2 1.7 1.4 .5 6.3 5.7 4.4

Nondurables ....................................... 149.3 153.1 154.4 .2 .8 .8 3.0 2.8 3.4

Service producing2 .................................. 153.2 157.7 158.4 .9 1.0 .4 3.6 3.8 3.4

Excluding sales ................................... 154.2 158.5 159.3 1.0 .8 .5 4.0 3.9 3.3

White collar ............................................. 155.2 159.9 160.5 .8 1.1 .4 3.5 3.8 3.4

Excluding sales ................................... 157.2 161.6 162.5 1.0 .7 .6 4.0 3.9 3.4

Blue collar ............................................... 147.5 151.1 151.8 1.5 1.1 .5 4.2 4.0 2.9

Service .................................................... 148.4 152.4 153.5 .8 .5 .7 3.4 3.5 3.4

Transportation and public utilities ........... 146.7 152.1 153.4 .7 1.1 .9 3.8 4.4 4.6

Transportation .................................... 142.6 148.6 149.6 .7 .8 .7 3.8 4.9 4.9

Public utilities ...................................... 152.0 156.4 158.2 .7 1.4 1.2 3.8 3.6 4.1

Communications ............................. 153.3 157.1 159.6 1.0 1.2 1.6 4.5 3.5 4.1

Electric, gas, and sanitary services 150.4 155.5 156.5 .3 1.6 .6 3.1 3.7 4.1

Wholesale and retail trade ...................... 150.6 155.7 155.5 .3 1.8 -.1 2.9 3.7 3.3

Excluding sales ............................... 153.1 157.1 157.1 .8 1.5 .0 3.3 3.4 2.6

Wholesale trade .................................. 154.1 161.3 160.4 -.3 2.6 -.6 3.0 4.4 4.1

Excluding sales ............................... 157.4 161.2 162.6 .6 1.1 .9 4.0 3.0 3.3

Retail trade ......................................... 148.8 152.7 152.9 .7 1.2 .1 2.8 3.3 2.8

General merchandise stores .......... 145.7 148.9 150.1 .1 .7 .8 4.3 2.3 3.0

Food stores ..................................... 145.7 148.9 150.1 .8 .6 .8 3.9 3.0 3.0

Finance, insurance, and real estate ....... 155.8 162.0 162.4 .8 1.1 .2 2.7 4.8 4.2

Excluding sales ............................... 159.1 165.7 166.1 1.0 .7 .2 3.8 5.1 4.4

Banking, savings and loan, and other

credit agencies ................................. 173.2 182.8 182.7 1.4 .9 -.1 5.0 7.0 5.5

Insurance ............................................ 153.6 158.6 159.6 .2 1.0 .6 1.9 3.5 3.9

Excluding sales ............................... 149.8 155.1 155.9 .1 .5 .5 2.8 3.7 4.1

Services .................................................. 157.1 160.3 161.5 1.4 .5 .7 4.3 3.4 2.8

Business services ............................... 162.8 164.0 164.6 1.2 .0 .4 4.8 2.0 1.1

Health services ................................... 153.6 158.4 159.5 1.2 .7 .7 4.8 4.3 3.8

Hospitals ......................................... 153.3 158.6 160.2 1.5 1.0 1.0 5.8 5.0 4.5

Nursing homes ............................... – – – 1.5 .9 .8 5.1 5.0 4.3

Educational services ........................... 159.6 161.2 165.2 2.2 .0 2.5 4.0 3.3 3.5

Colleges and universities ................ 158.4 159.9 163.1 2.2 .0 2.0 3.9 3.2 3.0

See footnotes at end of table.
13

Table 6. Employment Cost Index for wages and salaries for private industry workers by industry and

occupational group — Continued

(Not seasonally adjusted data)

Industry and occupational group

Indexes (June 1989=100) Percent changes for–

Sep.

2001

Jun.

2002

Sep.

2002

3 months ended– 12 months ended–

Sep.

2001

Jun.

2002

Sep.

2002

Sep.

2001

Jun.

2002

Sep.

2002

Industry–Continued

Nonmanufacturing industries ................. 152.2 156.5 157.2 0.9 1.0 0.4 3.6 3.7 3.3

White collar ............................................. 155.0 159.6 160.2 .8 1.0 .4 3.6 3.8 3.4

Excluding sales ................................... 156.9 161.3 162.1 1.0 .7 .5 4.1 3.9 3.3

Blue collar ............................................... 145.8 149.0 149.8 1.3 1.0 .5 3.9 3.5 2.7

Service .................................................... 148.2 152.3 153.4 .7 .6 .7 3.3 3.5 3.5

Occupational group

White collar ............................................... 154.8 159.4 160.0 .7 1.1 .4 3.4 3.6 3.4

Excluding sales ................................... 155.7 160.0 160.8 .8 .9 .5 3.9 3.6 3.3

Professional specialty and technical ....... 154.8 157.4 158.2 1.0 .4 .5 4.2 2.7 2.2

Executive, administrative, and

managerial ............................................ 157.2 163.6 164.3 .4 1.4 .4 3.2 4.5 4.5

Sales ....................................................... 151.2 157.0 156.9 -.2 2.2 -.1 1.5 3.6 3.8

Administrative support, including

clerical .................................................. 155.3 159.2 160.3 1.1 .6 .7 4.2 3.6 3.2

Blue collar ................................................. 147.5 150.9 151.7 1.1 .9 .5 3.9 3.4 2.8

Precision production, craft, and repair .... 147.7 151.0 151.8 1.4 1.2 .5 4.0 3.6 2.8

Machine operators, assemblers, and

inspectors ............................................. 148.1 151.6 152.0 .8 .7 .3 3.6 3.2 2.6

Transportation and material moving ....... 142.1 145.2 146.3 1.0 .3 .8 4.1 3.2 3.0

Handlers, equipment cleaners, helpers,

and laborers .......................................... 151.0 155.1 156.0 .8 .6 .6 4.1 3.5 3.3

Service ....................................................... 148.7 152.8 153.9 .8 .5 .7 3.6 3.6 3.5

Production and nonsupervisory

occupations3 ........................................... 150.3 154.0 154.7 .9 .9 .5 3.7 3.4 2.9

1 Includes mining, construction, and manufacturing. 2 Includes transportation, communication, and public utilities;

wholesale and retail trade; finance, insurance, and real estate; and service

industries.

3 This series has the same industry and occupational coverage as the

Hourly Earnings Index, which was discontinued in January 1989.

NOTE: Dashes indicate data not available.
14

Table 7. Employment Cost Index for wages and salaries for private industry workers by bargaining status,

region, and area 

(Not seasonally adjusted data)

Bargaining status, region, and area

Indexes (June 1989=100) Percent changes for–

Sep.

2001

Jun.

2002

Sep.

2002

3 months ended– 12 months ended–

Sep.

2001

Jun.

2002

Sep.

2002

Sep.

2001

Jun.

2002

Sep.

2002

Bargaining status

Union ........................................................... 145.1 149.8 151.3 1.0 0.9 1.0 3.6 4.2 4.3

Blue-collar occupations ........................ 143.3 147.2 148.4 1.1 1.1 .8 3.7 3.8 3.6

Goods-producing industries1 .................... 145.3 148.6 150.0 .8 1.0 .9 3.6 3.1 3.2

Service-producing industries2 .................. 145.4 151.4 152.9 1.2 .9 1.0 3.8 5.4 5.2

Manufacturing ........................................... 146.7 150.2 151.6 .8 .8 .9 3.7 3.2 3.3

Blue-collar occupations ........................ 145.8 149.0 150.3 1.0 .8 .9 3.8 3.3 3.1

Nonmanufacturing .................................... 144.3 149.6 151.1 1.1 1.0 1.0 3.7 4.8 4.7

Nonunion ..................................................... 153.4 157.5 158.1 .8 1.0 .4 3.6 3.5 3.1

Blue-collar occupations ........................ 150.0 153.1 153.7 1.2 .8 .4 4.1 3.3 2.5

Goods-producing industries1 .................... 151.1 154.8 155.5 .5 .8 .5 3.6 3.0 2.9

Service-producing industries2 .................. 154.1 158.3 158.9 .9 1.0 .4 3.6 3.7 3.1

Manufacturing ........................................... 152.2 156.1 156.8 .4 .9 .4 3.4 3.0 3.0

Blue-collar occupations ........................ 151.3 155.3 155.7 .8 .6 .3 4.1 3.5 2.9

Nonmanufacturing .................................... 153.3 157.5 158.1 .9 1.0 .4 3.6 3.6 3.1

Region3

Northeast ...................................................... 150.6 154.9 155.1 .9 .9 .1 3.6 3.8 3.0

South ............................................................ 150.2 153.6 154.7 .6 .7 .7 3.4 2.9 3.0

Midwest ........................................................ 153.6 158.5 159.2 .9 .9 .4 3.4 4.1 3.6

West ............................................................. 154.3 158.7 159.3 .9 1.5 .4 4.1 3.8 3.2

Area

Metropolitan .................................................. 152.4 156.7 157.4 .8 1.0 .4 3.6 3.6 3.3

Other ............................................................. 149.7 152.6 153.8 .6 .6 .8 3.5 2.6 2.7

1 Includes mining, construction, and manufacturing. 2 Includes transportation, communication, and public utilities;

wholesale and retail trade; finance, insurance, and real estate; and service

industries.

3 The regional coverage is as follows: Northeast: Connecticut, Maine,

Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania,

Rhode Island, and Vermont; South: Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, District

of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi,

North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia,

and West Virginia; Midwest: Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan,

Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, and

Wisconsin; and West: Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii,

Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and

Wyoming.

 NOTE: The indexes for these series are not strictly comparable to those

for the aggregate, occupation, and industry series.
15

Table 8. Employment Cost Index for benefits for civilian, State and local government, and private industry

workers by industry, occupational group, and bargaining status 

(Not seasonally adjusted data)

Industry, occupational group, and

bargaining status

Indexes (June 1989=100) Percent changes for–

Sep.

2001

Jun.

2002

Sep.

2002

3 months ended– 12 months ended–

Sep.

2001

Jun.

2002

Sep.

2002

Sep.

2001

Jun.

2002

Sep.

2002

Civilian workers .......................................... 163.7 169.4 171.7 1.5 1.1 1.4 5.1 5.0 4.9

State and local government ........................ 157.3 160.6 165.8 2.5 .4 3.2 5.6 4.6 5.4

Private industry ........................................... 165.2 171.6 173.1 1.2 1.4 .9 4.9 5.1 4.8

Industry

Goods producing1 .................................. 160.8 167.4 168.8 .8 1.0 .8 3.3 4.9 5.0

Service producing2 ................................. 167.1 173.3 174.9 1.5 1.5 .9 5.8 5.3 4.7

Manufacturing ......................................... 158.5 165.5 166.8 .4 1.1 .8 2.3 4.8 5.2

Aircraft manufacturing (SIC 3721) ...... 168.2 182.6 182.6 -2.0 1.1 .0 -.3 6.3 8.6

White collar ..................................... 168.9 182.6 182.2 -3.0 1.1 -.2 2.1 4.8 7.9

Blue collar ....................................... 166.1 181.4 181.8 -.4 1.1 .2 -4.2 8.8 9.5

Nonmanufacturing .................................. 167.4 173.5 175.2 1.5 1.4 1.0 5.9 5.2 4.7

Occupational group

White collar ............................................. 169.5 176.1 177.2 1.3 1.5 .6 5.7 5.2 4.5

Blue collar ............................................... 158.3 164.0 166.2 1.3 1.1 1.3 3.4 5.0 5.0

Service .................................................... 163.2 170.4 173.4 1.3 .9 1.8 5.7 5.8 6.3

Bargaining status

Union ...................................................... 161.9 168.1 170.8 1.1 1.0 1.6 2.9 5.0 5.5

Nonunion ................................................ 165.8 172.1 173.4 1.3 1.4 .8 5.4 5.1 4.6

1 Includes mining, construction, and manufacturing. 2 Includes transportation, communication, and public utilities; 

 

wholesale and retail trade; finance, insurance, and real estate; and service

industries. 
16

EXPLANATORY NOTES

The Employment Cost Index (ECI) is a measure of the change in the cost of labor, free from the influence

of employment shifts among occupations and industries. The compensation series includes changes in wages

and salaries and employer costs for employee benefits. The wage and salary series and the benefit cost series

provide the change for the two components of compensation.

Wages and salaries are defined as the hourly straight-time wage rate or, for workers not paid on an hourly

basis, straight-time earnings divided by the corresponding hours. Straight-time wage and salary rates are total

earnings before payroll deductions, excluding premium pay for overtime and for work on weekends and

holidays, shift differentials, and nonproduction bonuses such as lump-sum payments provided in lieu of wage

increases. Production bonuses, incentive earnings, commission payments, and cost-of-living adjustments are

included in straight-time wage and salary rates.

Benefits covered by the ECI are: Paid leave--vacations, holidays, sick leave, and other leave;

supplemental pay--premium pay for work in addition to the regular work schedule (such as overtime,

weekends, and holidays), shift differentials, and nonproduction bonuses (such as referral bonuses and lump-sum

payments provided in lieu of wage increases); insurance benefits--life, health, short-term disability, and longterm disability; retirement and savings benefits--defined benefit and defined contribution plans; legally required

benefits--social security, medicare, Federal and State unemployment insurance, and workers' compensation; and

other benefits--severance pay and supplemental unemployment plans.

The ECI provides data for the civilian economy, which includes the total private nonfarm economy

excluding households and the public sector excluding the Federal government. The private industry series and

the State and local government series provide data for the two sectors separately.

Data for this quarter were collected from a probability sample of approximately 28,800 occupational

observations within about 7,000 sample establishments in private industry and approximately 3,700 occupations

within about 800 sample establishments in State and local governments. Data are collected for the pay period

including the 12th day of the survey months of March, June, September, and December.

The sampled establishments are classified by industry categories based on the 1987 Standard Industrial

Classification (SIC), as defined by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget. Details on the sample design

are included in the bulletin, Employment Cost Indexes, 1975-99, (Bulletin 2532). Within an establishment,

specific job categories are selected and classified into about 500 occupational classifications according to the

1990 Census of Population. Individual occupations are combined into broader occupational groups. Fixed

employment weights are used each quarter to calculate the most aggregate series – civilian, private, and State

and local government. These fixed weights are also used to derive all of the industry and occupation series

indexes. Since March 1995, 1990 employment counts, primarily from the Bureau’s Occupational Employment

Statistics survey, have been used. For more information on these topics, see the articles, “Introducing New

Weights for the Employment Cost Index,” in the June 1985 issue of the Monthly Labor Review and

“Introducing 1990 Weights for the Employment Cost Index” in the June 1995 issue of Compensation and

Working Conditions.

For the series based on bargaining status, region, and area size, employment data are not available. The

employment weights are reallocated within these series each quarter based on the current ECI sample. The

indexes for these series, consequently, are not strictly comparable to those for the aggregate, industry, and

occupation series. A fuller explanation of the calculation of index numbers appears in an article, "Estimation

Procedures for the Employment Cost Index," in the May 1982 issue of the Monthly Labor Review. Beginning

with the March 1990 ECI release, indexes were rebased to June 1989=100. A description of the rebasing is

included in the article "Employment Cost Index Rebased to June 1989," in the April 1990 issue of the Monthly

Labor Review.

Beginning with the December 1990 ECI release, seasonally adjusted data are available for selected ECI

series. Seasonal adjustment removes the effects of events that follow a more or less regular pattern each year.

These adjustments make nonseasonal patterns easier to identify. For more information on the methodology

used to seasonally adjust ECI series, see the bulletin, Employment Cost Indexes, 1975-99, (Bulletin 2532). The

seasonal adjustment factors are recalculated once a year. The March release contains data reflecting the
17

newly updated seasonal adjustment factors. The historical data for the last five years are then revised based on

the newly estimated factors. The new seasonal factors for 2002 and revised seasonally adjusted indexes for the

past five years are available on the Internet site (http://www.bls.gov/ncs/ect/home.htm) or upon request.

The ECI sample is rotated over approximately five years, which makes the sample more representative

and reduces respondent burden. The sample is replaced on a cross-area, cross-industry basis.

Because the ECI is a sample survey, it is subject to sampling errors. Sampling errors are differences that

occur between the results computed from a sample of observations and those computed from all observations in

the population. The estimates derived from different samples selected using the same sample design may differ

from one other. A measure of the variation among these differing estimates is the standard error. It can be

used to measure the precision with which an estimate from a particular sample approximates the expected result

of all possible samples. The chances are about 68 out of 100 that an estimate from the survey differs from a

complete population figure by less than the standard error. The chances are about 90 out of 100 that this

difference would be less than 1.6 times the standard error. The statements of comparisons appearing in this

publication are significant at a 1.6 standard error level or better, unless otherwise indicated. This means that for

differences cited, the estimated difference is greater than 1.6 times the standard error of the difference.

Because standard errors vary from quarter to quarter, the ECI uses a five-year moving average of

standard errors to evaluate published series. To assist users in ascertaining the reliability of series, the five-year

moving average of standard errors for all estimates (excluding seasonally adjusted series) will be available on

the Internet site (http://www.bls.gov/ncs/ect/home.htm) shortly after publication of the news release.

When determining data to be used in contract negotiations, it is important to note that differences by

bargaining status may be due to factors other than union status, such as occupational and industry mix. For

example, union occupations tend to be concentrated in blue-collar occupations within manufacturing industries.

Thus, differences between blue-collar and white-collar pay or differences in manufacturing versus

nonmanufacturing industries could explain such differences. An important consideration when choosing a

series for escalation is the number of workers covered. Series with smaller numbers of workers may have

larger sampling errors or be dominated by a smaller number of employers.

More detailed information on the ECI is available from several sources. These include an historical

bulletin--Employment Cost Indexes, 1975-99, (Bulletin 2532), a chapter, “National Compensation Measures,”

in the BLS Handbook of Methods (Bulletin 2490), and several articles published in the Monthly Labor Review

and Compensation and Working Conditions. The bulletin is available from the Superintendent of Documents,

U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C. 20402, or Bureau of Labor Statistics, Publications Sales

Center, P.O. Box 2145, Chicago, Illinois 60690, (312) 353-1880. Reprints of the articles and other descriptive

pieces are available upon request by calling (202) 691-6199 or sending e-mail to (ocltinfo@bls.gov). Current

and historical data are available at the web site: (http://www.bls.gov/ncs/ect/home.htm).

The costs per hour worked of compensation components, based on data from the ECI, were recently

published in a separate news release titled "Employer Costs for Employee Compensation–June 2002."

Historical data and related articles are included in the bulletin, Employer Costs for Employee Compensation,

1986-99, (Bulletin 2526). An annual historical summary from March 1986 through March 2002 is also

available on the Internet site (http://www.bls.gov/ncs/ect/home.htm) or upon request. Data are now available

on a quarterly basis beginning with June 2002 data. The September release is expected to be published in

December. The cost levels are calculated with current employment weights, rather than the fixed 1990 weights

used in computing the ECI. Therefore, year-to-year changes in the cost levels usually differ from those in the

ECI.

Information in this release will be made available to sensory impaired individuals upon request. Voice

phone: (202) 691-5200; Federal Relay Service Number: 1-800-877-8339.