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      http://www.bls.gov/ncs/ect/home.htm    THURSDAY, APRIL 29, 2004


                     EMPLOYMENT COST INDEX-MARCH 2004

     Total compensation costs for civilian workers increased 1.1 percent
 from December 2003 to March 2004, seasonally adjusted, rising from the 0.8
 percent gain from September to December 2003, the Bureau of Labor
 Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported today.  Benefit costs
 jumped 2.4 percent, continuing to strongly outpace the gain for wages and
 salaries of 0.6 percent.  The Employment Cost Index (ECI), a component of
 the National Compensation Survey, measures quarterly changes in
 compensation costs, which include wages, salaries, and employer costs for
 employee benefits for nonfarm private and State and local government
 workers.

     Although benefits contribute only 30 percent to total compensation
 costs, two-thirds of the increase in compensation costs was attributable
 to rises in benefit costs during the December 2003 to March 2004 period.
 Among private industry workers, benefit costs accounted for 67 percent of
 compensation gains during the quarter, with defined benefit retirement
 costs accounting for nearly half of the rise in benefit costs.  Among
 State and local government workers, benefit costs contributed 63 percent
 of compensation gains during the December 2003 to March 2004 period, and
 health insurance contributions accounted for over one-half of the gain in
 benefit costs.

 Quarterly changes, seasonally adjusted

     Compensation costs for the private sector rose 1.1 percent from
 December 2003 to March 2004, after advancing 0.8 percent in the prior
 quarter.  March gains were led by sharp increases in manufacturing,
 particularly durable goods manufacturing, and smaller gains in retail
 trade.  For State and local government workers, compensation costs
 increased 1.0 percent from December to March, compared with a gain of 0.8
 percent for the quarter ended in December.  (See tables A and 1.)

     Benefit costs jumped 2.4 percent for civilian workers (nonfarm private
 industry and State and local government) in the March 2004 quarter,
 following a gain of 1.4 percent in the December 2003 quarter.  Private
 sector benefit costs shot up 2.6 percent for the March quarter, sharply
 higher than the 1.4 percent gain in the previous quarter.  Benefit costs
 for State and local governments increased 1.7 percent in the March
 quarter, following an increase of 1.3 percent in December 2003.

     Wages and salaries for civilian, private, and State and local
 government workers each advanced 0.6 percent during the March quarter.
 During the prior quarter, civilian and private industry wages and salaries
 rose 0.5 percent, and State and local government wages and salaries rose
 0.6 percent.

 Table A.  3-month percent changes in Employment Cost Index, seasonally
 adjusted
                          June  Sep.  Dec.  Mar.  June  Sep.   Dec.  Mar.
 Compensation Component   2002  2002  2002  2003  2003  2003   2003  2004
         Civilian workers
 Compensation costs       1.0    0.8   0.9   1.2   0.9   1.0    0.8   1.1
   Wages and salaries     0.9    0.6   0.5   1.0   0.6   0.7    0.5   0.6
   Benefit costs          1.4    1.2   1.4   2.0   1.4   1.5    1.4   2.4
         Private industry
 Compensation costs       1.1    0.6   0.8   1.4   0.8   1.1    0.8   1.1
   Wages and salaries     0.9    0.4   0.5   1.0   0.6   0.9    0.5   0.6
   Benefit costs          1.4    1.1   1.4   2.1   1.4   1.5    1.4   2.6
         State and local government
 Compensation costs       1.0    1.1   1.1   1.0   1.0   0.5    0.8   1.0
   Wages and salaries     0.8    0.9   0.8   0.6   0.8   0.1    0.6   0.6
   Benefit costs          1.3    1.9   1.8   1.6   1.5   1.6    1.3   1.7

 Over-the-year changes, not seasonally adjusted

     Annual compensation costs for civilian workers increased 3.8 percent
 for the year ended March 2004, compared with a 3.9 percent over-the-year
 increase for March 2003.  Compensation costs in private industry rose 3.9
 percent in the year ended March 2004, compared with a 3.8 percent increase
 in March 2003.  In contrast, compensation costs slowed to a 3.3 percent
 increase for State and local government for the year ended March 2004,
 compared with an over-the-year gain of 4.2 percent in March 2003.  (See
 tables B, 2, and 3.)

     The components of compensation continued to show significant
 differences.  While increases in wages and salaries continued to slow,
 benefit costs continued to rise sharply during the year ended March 2004.
 For civilian workers, wages and salaries increased 2.5 percent in the year
 ended March 2004, compared with a gain of 2.9 percent in March 2003.
 Benefit costs jumped 6.9 percent for the period ended March 2004, higher
 than the increase of 6.1 percent for the year ended March 2003.  (See
 tables B, 5, 6, and 8.)

 Table B. 12-month percent changes in Employment Cost Index, not seasonally
 adjusted
                         Mar.  Mar.  Mar.  Mar.  Mar.  Mar.
 Compensation Component  1999  2000  2001  2002  2003  2004
         Civilian workers
 Compensation costs      3.0    4.3   4.1   3.9   3.9   3.8
   Wages and salaries    3.3    4.0   3.8   3.5   2.9   2.5
   Benefit costs         2.3    5.0   4.7   4.9   6.1   6.9
         Private industry
 Compensation costs      3.0    4.6   4.2   3.9   3.8   3.9
   Wages and salaries    3.3    4.2   3.8   3.5   3.0   2.6
   Benefit costs         2.2    5.5   5.0   4.8   6.1   7.0
         State and local government
 Compensation costs      2.9    3.6   3.3   3.9   4.2   3.3
   Wages and salaries    2.9    3.8   3.5   3.4   3.1   2.1
   Benefit costs         2.8    3.2   2.8   5.0   6.6   6.2

     Nonfarm private industry

     For the year ended March 2004, compensation costs in private industry
 increased 4.5 percent for goods-producing industries, compared with a 4.4
 percent advance for the year ended March 2003.  Compensation costs for
 manufacturing advanced 4.7 percent in March 2004, identical to the
 increase of a year earlier.  Compensation costs for construction rose 3.5
 percent in March 2004, compared with a 3.2 percent rise in March 2003.
 (See table 3.)

     The over-the-year increase in compensation for service-producing
 industries was 3.6 percent, identical to the gain for the year ended March
 2003.  Among service-producing industries, the 12-month increase for
 transportation and public utilities was 4.0 percent for the year ended in
 March 2004, led by an increase in public utilities, particularly the
 communications industry.  Compensation costs rose modestly in wholesale
 trade, increasing 2.5 percent in the year ended March 2004.

     Over-the-year compensation cost increases were 4.5 percent for blue-
 collar occupations, 3.6 percent for white-collar occupations, and 3.2
 percent for service occupations for the year ended March 2004.  Among
 white-collar occupational groups, compensation cost changes ranged from
 2.7 percent for executive, administrative, and managerial employees to 4.2
 percent for administrative support, including clerical workers.  Among
 blue-collar workers, compensation cost increases ranged from 3.5 percent
 for transportation and material moving workers to 5.5 percent for machine
 operators, assemblers, and inspectors.  (See table 3.)

     Compensation costs for union workers advanced sharply, rising 5.7
 percent over the year ended March 2004, significantly higher than the 3.6
 percent increase for nonunion workers.  Compensation costs among blue-
 collar union workers advanced 6.2 percent, greater than the gain of 3.7
 percent for blue-collar nonunion workers.  In goods-producing industries,
 a 6.8 percent increase for union workers was greater than the 3.7 percent
 advance for nonunion workers.  (See tables C and 4.)

     Wages and salaries for union workers rose a modest 2.5 percent for the
 12 months ended in March 2004, compared with an over-the-year increase of
 2.6 percent for nonunion workers.  In contrast, benefit costs for union
 workers jumped sharply, rising 11.2 percent, compared with an increase of
 6.0 percent for nonunion workers in March 2004.  Employer contributions
 for defined benefit plans accounted for over half the rise in benefit
 costs for union workers.  (See tables C, 7, and 8.)

 Table C. 12-month percent changes in Employment Cost Index, not seasonally
 adjusted
                         Mar.  Mar.  Mar.  Mar.  Mar.  Mar.
 Compensation Component  1999  2000  2001  2002  2003  2004
         Union workers
 Compensation costs      3.0    3.6   3.4   4.7   4.7   5.7
   Wages and salaries    3.1    2.7   3.6   4.4   3.3   2.5
   Benefit costs         2.6    5.4   3.1   5.0   7.3  11.2
      Nonunion workers
 Compensation costs      3.0    4.7   4.3   3.8   3.6   3.6
   Wages and salaries    3.3    4.4   3.9   3.4   2.9   2.6
   Benefit costs         2.2    5.5   5.5   4.8   5.8   6.0

     Among the four geographic regions, increases in compensation costs
 ranged from 3.4 percent in the Midwest to 4.8 percent in the West.
 Compensation costs rose 3.9 percent in the Northeast and 3.6 percent in
 the South.  (See table 4.)

     State and local government

     Wages and salaries for State and local government workers rose 2.1
 percent in the year ended March 2004, moderating from a gain of 3.1
 percent for March 2003.  Benefit costs rose 6.2 percent for the year ended
 March 2004, compared with an increase of 6.6 percent for the year ended
 March 2003.  (See tables B, 5, and 8.)

     Compensation gains moderated for educational services, rising 2.9
 percent for the year ended March 2004, down from a 4.1 percent increase
 for the year ended March 2003.  For the year ended March 2004,
 compensation costs increased 3.5 percent for health services, compared
 with a 3.7 percent rise for the year ended March 2003.  Among occupational
 groups, compensation costs of service workers rose 3.9 percent for the
 year ended March 2004, compared with gains of 3.3 percent for blue-collar
 workers and 3.2 percent for white-collar workers.  (See table 2.)

 __________________________________________________________________________

                                   NOTE:

     This release incorporates annual revisions in seasonally adjusted
 Employment Cost Index (ECI) data for total compensation, wages and
 salaries, and benefit costs.  Seasonally adjusted data for 1999-2003 were
 revised to reflect updated seasonal factors.  The new seasonal factors and
 the historical listing containing revised seasonally adjusted indexes are
 available on the Internet site http://www.bls.gov/ect/home.htm, by e-mail
 request at ocltinfo@bls.gov, or by telephone (202) 691-6199.

     The ECI for June 2004 is scheduled to be released Thursday, July 29,
 2004, at 8:30 a.m. (EDT).

     The costs per hour worked of compensation components, based on data
 from the ECI, were published on February 26, 2004, in a news release
 titled "Employer Costs for Employee Compensation-December 2003."  The
 Employer Costs for Employee Compensation will reflect the 2002 North
 American Industry Classification and the 2000 Standard Occupational
 Classification systems with the release of the March 2004 estimates.
 Information on the transition to the new industry and occupational
 classification systems will be available prior to the June 2004
 publication date on the Internet site http://www.bls.gov/ect/home.htm or
 upon request.

     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 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

     To request a catalog of available documents, select option 2 at the
 initial voice prompt.
 __________________________________________________________________________



Table 1.  Employment Cost Index for total compensation(1), wages and salaries, and benefit costs by industry and occupational
group

(Seasonally adjusted data)


                                               Indexes (June                Percent changes for 3-months ended-
                                                 1989=100)
       Industry and occupational group

                                                Dec.    Mar.    Jun.    Sep.    Dec.    Mar.    Jun.    Sep.    Dec.    Mar.
                                                2003    2004    2002    2002    2002    2003    2003    2003    2003    2004



             TOTAL COMPENSATION

Civilian workers.............................  168.9   170.8     1.0     0.8     0.9     1.2     0.9     1.0     0.8     1.1
 State and local government..................  166.5   168.1     1.0     1.1     1.1     1.0     1.0      .5      .8     1.0
 Private industry............................  169.5   171.3     1.1      .6      .8     1.4      .8     1.1      .8     1.1

                  Industry

   Goods producing(2)........................  167.6   170.6     1.0      .8     1.1     1.6     1.0     1.0      .7     1.8
     Construction............................  163.4   164.8      .5      .8     1.2      .8     1.0      .8      .7      .9
     Manufacturing...........................  167.6   171.4      .9      .9     1.2     1.6      .8     1.0      .7     2.3
       Durables..............................  167.8   172.1      .8      .6     1.3     2.0      .5     1.0      .7     2.6
       Nondurables...........................  167.4   170.0     1.0     1.3     1.1     1.1     1.1      .9      .8     1.6

   Service producing(3)......................  170.4   171.7     1.1      .6      .6     1.3      .8     1.1      .8      .8
     Transportation and public utilities.....  167.4   169.9      .8     1.1      .9      .8     1.2      .6      .7     1.5
     Wholesale trade.........................  172.8   173.9     2.2      .2      .9     1.3      .5      .9      .5      .6
     Retail trade............................  161.3   162.0     1.4      .2      .3      .2      .5     1.5     1.0      .4
     Finance, insurance, and real
      estate(4)..............................  180.9   182.5     1.3      .4      .3     4.9      .9     1.1      .4      .9
     Services................................  171.7   173.5      .7      .5      .7      .8      .8     1.0      .9     1.0

   Nonmanufacturing..........................  169.4   170.8     1.1      .6      .6     1.2      .9     1.0      .8      .8

             Occupational group

   White collar..............................  172.5   174.1     1.1      .6      .7     1.4      .7     1.2      .8      .9
   Blue collar...............................  164.1   166.8      .9      .8     1.0     1.2     1.0      .9      .9     1.6
   Service...................................  165.0   166.9      .7     1.0      .6     1.1      .7      .8      .7     1.2



             WAGES AND SALARIES

Civilian workers.............................  162.3   163.3      .9      .6      .5     1.0      .6      .7      .5      .6
 State and local government..................  161.6   162.6      .8      .9      .8      .6      .8      .1      .6      .6
 Private industry............................  162.5   163.5      .9      .4      .5     1.0      .6      .9      .5      .6

                  Industry

   Goods producing(2)(4).....................  158.7   159.9      .9      .5      .7      .8      .7      .6      .3      .8
     Construction............................  154.0   155.5      .5      .6      .9      .5      .8      .8      .4     1.0
     Manufacturing(4)........................  160.1   161.3      .9      .6      .7     1.0      .6      .4      .3      .7
       Durables(4)...........................  160.9   161.9     0.9     0.5     0.8     1.0     0.6     0.6     0.2     0.6
       Nondurables...........................  159.1   160.2      .8     1.0      .8      .5      .8      .4      .5      .7

   Service producing(3)......................  164.2   165.0     1.0      .4      .4     1.1      .6     1.1      .6      .5
     Transportation and public
      utilities(4)...........................  156.5   157.6     1.1      .9      .5      .5      .5      .3      .3      .7
     Wholesale trade.........................  166.1   166.5     1.8      .2      .6     1.3     -.1      .9      .7      .2
     Retail trade............................  156.8   157.2     1.1      .1      .3      .0      .4     1.6      .4      .3
     Finance, insurance, and real
      estate(4)..............................  174.5   175.2     1.1      .2      .1     5.2      .8     1.0      .2      .4
     Services................................  166.9   168.1      .6      .5      .4      .6      .8      .9      .8      .7

   Nonmanufacturing..........................  162.9   163.7      .9      .4      .5     1.0      .6     1.0      .6      .5
WAGES AND SALARIES-Continued

             Occupational group

   White collar..............................  166.3   167.1     1.0     0.4     0.6     1.1     0.6     0.9     0.7     0.5
   Blue collar(4)............................  156.1   157.2      .9      .5      .5      .8      .7      .6      .3      .7
   Service(4)................................  157.8   158.4      .5      .7      .4      .6      .4      .6      .4      .4



                BENEFIT COSTS

Civilian workers.............................  184.8   189.2     1.4     1.2     1.4     2.0     1.4     1.5     1.4     2.4
 State and local government..................  178.1   181.1     1.3     1.9     1.8     1.6     1.5     1.6     1.3     1.7
 Private industry............................  186.3   191.2     1.4     1.1     1.4     2.1     1.4     1.5     1.4     2.6

                  Industry

   Goods producing(2)........................  185.1   192.8     1.1     1.3     1.8     3.0     1.4     1.7     1.4     4.2
     Manufacturing...........................  183.9   193.3     1.2     1.3     1.9     3.3     1.3     1.8     1.4     5.1

   Service producing(3)......................  187.0   190.2     1.6      .9     1.1     1.6     1.4     1.3     1.4     1.7

   Nonmanufacturing..........................  187.6   190.5     1.4     1.1     1.1     1.6     1.4     1.4     1.4     1.5

             Occupational group

   White collar..............................  190.2   193.8     1.6      .9     1.2     2.0     1.1     1.5     1.3     1.9
   Blue collar...............................  181.0   187.8     1.1     1.5     1.6     2.1     2.0     1.5     1.5     3.8
   Service...................................  186.9   192.7     1.2     1.9     1.0     2.4     1.4     1.2     1.4     3.1

  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.



Table 2.  Employment Cost Index for total compensation(1) for civilian and State and local government workers by industry
and occupational group

(Not seasonally adjusted data)


                                                   Indexes (June 1989=100)               Percent changes for-


         Industry and occupational group                                       3 months ended-         12 months ended-
                                                     Mar.    Dec.    Mar.
                                                     2003    2003    2004
                                                                             Mar.    Dec.    Mar.    Mar.    Dec.    Mar.
                                                                             2003    2003    2004    2003    2003    2004


Civilian workers..................................  164.5   168.4   170.7     1.4     0.5     1.4     3.9     3.8     3.8
    Excluding sales occupations...................  164.6   168.6   170.8     1.5      .5     1.3     3.9     3.9     3.8

                     Industry

  Goods producing(2)..............................  163.1   166.6   170.4     1.8      .5     2.3     4.4     4.0     4.5
    Manufacturing.................................  164.0   167.1   171.7     2.2      .4     2.8     4.7     4.1     4.7
  Service producing(3)............................  165.0   169.1   170.8     1.4      .5     1.0     3.7     3.9     3.5
    Services......................................  165.3   169.5   171.2      .9      .6     1.0     3.2     3.4     3.6
      Health services.............................  166.4   170.7   173.0     1.2      .8     1.3     3.7     3.8     4.0
        Hospitals.................................  169.9   174.8   176.8     1.4     1.0     1.1     4.7     4.3     4.1
      Educational services........................  163.6   167.6   168.5      .5      .4      .5     4.1     2.9     3.0
    Public administration(4)......................  163.4   168.1   170.1     1.1      .5     1.2     4.4     4.0     4.1

  Nonmanufacturing................................  164.5   168.6   170.4     1.3      .5     1.1     3.7     3.8     3.6

                Occupational group

  White collar....................................  166.7   170.7   172.7     1.5      .5     1.2     3.9     3.9     3.6
      Excluding sales.............................  167.2   171.1   173.1     1.6      .5     1.2     3.9     3.9     3.5
    Professional specialty and technical..........  164.1   168.0   170.2     1.0      .6     1.3     3.5     3.4     3.7
    Executive, administrative, and managerial.....  171.1   174.9   175.8     2.6      .5      .5     4.5     4.9     2.7
    Administrative support, including clerical....  168.3   172.5   175.3     1.3      .5     1.6     3.9     3.9     4.2
  Blue collar.....................................  159.8   163.7   166.9     1.5      .5     2.0     4.0     3.9     4.4
  Service.........................................  164.1   167.9   169.7     1.2      .7     1.1     3.6     3.5     3.4


State and local government........................  162.6   166.8   168.0      .7      .5      .7     4.2     3.3     3.3

                     Industry

    Services......................................  161.8   165.7   166.5      .6      .5      .5     4.1     3.0     2.9
        Excluding schools.........................  164.0   168.2   169.4      .7      .8      .7     3.9     3.3     3.3
      Health services.............................  166.4   171.0   172.2      .5      .9      .7     3.7     3.3     3.5
        Hospitals.................................  167.0   171.4   172.4      .5      .6      .6     3.9     3.1     3.2
      Educational services........................  161.1   165.0   165.7      .5      .4      .4     4.1     2.9     2.9
        Schools...................................  161.4   165.3   166.0      .4      .4      .4     4.1     2.9     2.9
          Elementary and secondary................  159.4   163.7   164.4      .4      .4      .4     3.9     3.1     3.1
          Colleges and universities...............  167.0   170.0   170.7      .7      .5      .4     4.4     2.5     2.2
    Public administration(4)......................  163.4   168.1   170.1     1.1      .5     1.2     4.4     4.0     4.1

                Occupational group

  White collar....................................  161.7   165.7   166.8     0.6     0.5     0.7     4.2     3.1     3.2
    Professional specialty and technical..........  160.2   164.1   165.1      .5      .4      .6     4.3     2.9     3.1
    Executive, administrative, and managerial.....  165.3   169.1   170.1      .9      .7      .6     3.6     3.2     2.9
    Administrative support, including clerical....  163.8   168.5   170.4      .9      .4     1.1     4.4     3.8     4.0
  Blue collar.....................................  161.3   165.2   166.7      .9     1.0      .9     4.7     3.4     3.3
  Service.........................................  168.0   173.0   174.5     1.0      .6      .9     4.0     4.0     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.



Table 3.  Employment Cost Index for total compensation(1) for private industry workers, by industry and occupational group

(Not seasonally adjusted data)


                                                   Indexes (June 1989=100)               Percent changes for-


         Industry and occupational group                                       3 months ended-         12 months ended-
                                                     Mar.    Dec.    Mar.
                                                     2003    2003    2004
                                                                             Mar.    Dec.    Mar.    Mar.    Dec.    Mar.
                                                                             2003    2003    2004    2003    2003    2004


Private industry workers..........................  165.0   168.8   171.4     1.7     0.4     1.5     3.8     4.0     3.9
    Excluding sales occupations...................  165.1   169.0   171.6     1.7      .5     1.5     3.8     4.1     3.9

                     Industry

  Goods producing(2)..............................  163.0   166.5   170.3     1.8      .5     2.3     4.4     4.0     4.5
      Excluding sales.............................  162.4   165.9   169.8     2.0      .5     2.4     4.4     4.2     4.6
    White collar..................................  167.8   170.5   173.5     2.1      .2     1.8     4.8     3.8     3.4
      Excluding sales.............................  166.3   169.2   172.2     2.5      .4     1.8     5.0     4.3     3.5
    Blue collar...................................  159.9   163.9   168.1     1.7      .6     2.6     4.1     4.2     5.1

    Construction..................................  159.1   163.3   164.6      .8      .6      .8     3.2     3.4     3.5

    Manufacturing.................................  164.0   167.1   171.7     2.2      .4     2.8     4.7     4.1     4.7
      White collar................................  167.1   169.6   173.2     2.3      .1     2.1     5.0     3.9     3.7
        Excluding sales...........................  165.1   167.8   171.3     2.7      .2     2.1     5.4     4.4     3.8
      Blue collar.................................  161.6   165.1   170.4     2.1      .6     3.2     4.5     4.3     5.4
      Durables....................................  164.4   167.3   172.4     2.4      .4     3.0     4.8     4.2     4.9
        Aircraft manufacturing (SIC 3721).........  183.2   182.1   198.9     6.3    -1.2     9.2     9.4     5.7     8.6
          White collar............................  177.9   177.0   193.9     7.6     -.3     9.5     8.9     7.1     9.0
          Blue collar.............................  189.8   188.4   204.5     4.1    -2.8     8.5    10.0     3.3     7.7
      Nondurables.................................  163.1   166.6   170.4     1.7      .4     2.3     4.6     3.9     4.5


  Service producing(3)............................  165.6   169.7   171.6     1.5      .5     1.1     3.6     4.0     3.6
      Excluding sales.............................  166.6   170.6   172.5     1.6      .5     1.1     3.5     4.0     3.5
    White collar..................................  167.9   172.0   174.1     1.7      .5     1.2     3.6     4.2     3.7
      Excluding sales.............................  169.9   174.2   176.2     1.7      .6     1.1     3.5     4.3     3.7
    Blue collar...................................  158.7   162.6   164.1     1.1      .2      .9     3.6     3.6     3.4
    Service.......................................  161.1   164.3   166.1     1.1      .7     1.1     3.3     3.1     3.1

    Transportation and public utilities...........  163.2   167.0   169.8      .9      .3     1.7     3.8     3.3     4.0
      Transportation..............................  157.8   159.6   162.0     1.1      .1     1.5     3.5     2.2     2.7
      Public utilities............................  170.5   177.0   180.4      .8      .3     1.9     4.0     4.6     5.8
        Communications............................  171.3   179.0   182.2      .7      .3     1.8     3.2     5.2     6.4
        Electric, gas, and sanitary services......  169.5   174.6   178.2      .8      .5     2.1     5.1     3.9     5.1

    Wholesale and retail trade....................  161.3   165.0   166.3     1.0      .4      .8     3.1     3.3     3.1
        Excluding sales...........................  161.8   165.9   167.4      .9      .5      .9     2.7     3.4     3.5
      Wholesale trade.............................  169.5   172.0   173.8     1.7      .0     1.0     4.7     3.2     2.5
        Excluding sales...........................  168.4   171.3   173.7      .7      .1     1.4     3.8     2.5     3.1
      Retail trade................................  156.6   161.0   162.1      .5      .7      .7     2.0     3.3     3.5
        General merchandise stores................  156.4   165.6   165.8     0.8     2.7     0.1     2.6     6.8     6.0
        Food stores...............................  157.5   160.3   162.1      .8      .6     1.1     3.0     2.6     2.9

    Finance, insurance, and real estate...........  176.7   180.9   182.5     4.9      .4      .9     7.0     7.4     3.3
        Excluding sales...........................  182.0   186.1   186.6     5.1      .4      .3     7.2     7.5     2.5
      Banking, savings and loan, and other credit
       agencies...................................  204.3   209.0   207.2    10.3      .7     -.9    12.2    12.8     1.4
      Insurance...................................  172.1   176.2   177.8     2.5      .6      .9     4.9     4.9     3.3
        Excluding sales...........................  169.6   173.7   175.4     2.4      .5     1.0     4.0     4.8     3.4

    Services......................................  167.1   171.4   173.5     1.0      .6     1.2     2.8     3.6     3.8
      Business services...........................  168.5   172.6   174.8      .6      .4     1.3     1.3     3.0     3.7
      Health services.............................  166.5   170.8   173.3     1.3      .8     1.5     3.7     3.9     4.1
        Hospitals.................................  170.8   175.9   178.1     1.6     1.2     1.3     4.9     4.6     4.3
        Nursing homes.............................    -       -       -       1.2      .6     1.2     3.9     3.4     3.4
      Educational services........................  176.3   181.3   183.1      .6      .6     1.0     4.6     3.5     3.9
        Colleges and universities.................  174.5   179.4   181.2      .5      .6     1.0     3.8     3.3     3.8
Industry-Continued

  Nonmanufacturing industries.....................  164.9   169.0   170.9     1.5     0.5     1.1     3.5     4.0     3.6
    White collar..................................  168.0   172.1   174.1     1.6      .5     1.2     3.6     4.1     3.6
      Excluding sales.............................  170.0   174.2   176.2     1.7      .6     1.1     3.5     4.2     3.6
    Blue collar...................................  157.5   161.7   163.4     1.0      .4     1.1     3.5     3.7     3.7
    Service.......................................  161.1   164.2   166.0     1.2      .6     1.1     3.3     3.1     3.0

                Occupational group

  White collar....................................  168.1   172.0   174.2     1.8      .5     1.3     3.8     4.1     3.6
      Excluding sales.............................  169.1   173.0   175.3     1.9      .5     1.3     3.9     4.3     3.7
    Professional specialty and technical..........  166.5   170.5   173.4     1.3      .6     1.7     3.1     3.7     4.1
    Executive, administrative, and managerial.....  172.1   175.9   176.8     2.9      .5      .5     4.7     5.2     2.7
    Sales.........................................  163.5   167.1   169.2     1.0     -.1     1.3     3.7     3.2     3.5
    Administrative support, including
     clerical.....................................  169.0   173.1   176.1     1.4      .5     1.7     3.8     3.8     4.2

  Blue collar.....................................  159.7   163.6   166.9     1.5      .5     2.0     4.0     4.0     4.5
    Precision production, craft, and repair.......  160.0   164.2   167.1     1.4      .7     1.8     4.1     4.1     4.4
    Machine operators, assemblers, and
     inspectors...................................  159.9   163.2   168.7     2.0      .4     3.4     4.1     4.1     5.5
    Transportation and material moving............  153.2   156.9   158.5      .9      .1     1.0     3.0     3.4     3.5
    Handlers, equipment cleaners, helpers,
     and laborers.................................  164.9   169.5   171.7     1.2      .5     1.3     3.9     4.1     4.1

  Service.........................................  161.7   164.9   166.9     1.2      .7     1.2     3.4     3.2     3.2

  Production and nonsupervisory occupations(4)....  162.6   166.6   169.3     1.3      .5     1.6     3.5     3.8     4.1

  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.



Table 4.  Employment Cost Index for total compensation(1) for private industry workers, by bargaining status, region,
and area

(Not seasonally adjusted data)


                                                 Indexes (June 1989=100)               Percent changes for-


      Bargaining status, region, and area                                    3 months ended-         12 months ended-
                                                   Mar.    Dec.    Mar.
                                                   2003    2003    2004
                                                                           Mar.    Dec.    Mar.    Mar.    Dec.    Mar.
                                                                           2003    2003    2004    2003    2003    2004



               Bargaining status

Union...........................................  162.1   166.8   171.4     1.6     0.7     2.8     4.7     4.6     5.7
    Blue-collar occupations.....................  159.2   164.2   169.0     1.7      .7     2.9     4.9     4.9     6.2

  Goods-producing industries(2).................  161.4   165.9   172.3     2.3      .7     3.9     5.2     5.1     6.8
  Service-producing industries(3)...............  162.6   167.5   170.2      .9      .6     1.6     4.2     4.0     4.7

  Manufacturing.................................  162.3   166.3   175.0     2.8      .8     5.2     5.8     5.3     7.8
    Blue-collar occupations.....................  161.1   165.1   173.8     2.6      .9     5.3     5.6     5.2     7.9
  Nonmanufacturing..............................  161.4   166.5   168.8      .9      .6     1.4     4.1     4.1     4.6

Nonunion........................................  165.4   169.1   171.3     1.6      .4     1.3     3.6     3.9     3.6
    Blue-collar occupations.....................  159.8   163.2   165.7     1.3      .4     1.5     3.3     3.5     3.7

  Goods-producing industries(2).................  163.6   166.7   169.7     1.7      .4     1.8     4.1     3.7     3.7
  Service-producing industries(3)...............  165.9   169.8   171.6     1.6      .5     1.1     3.5     4.0     3.4

  Manufacturing.................................  164.5   167.3   170.6     2.0      .2     2.0     4.4     3.7     3.7
    Blue-collar occupations.....................  161.5   164.8   168.1     1.7      .4     2.0     3.8     3.8     4.1
  Nonmanufacturing..............................  165.4   169.3   171.1     1.5      .5     1.1     3.4     3.9     3.4

                   Region(4)

Northeast.......................................  163.8   167.9   170.2     1.5      .6     1.4     3.5     4.1     3.9
South...........................................  160.6   163.9   166.4     1.0      .4     1.5     2.8     3.1     3.6
Midwest.........................................  169.0   172.5   174.7     2.7      .5     1.3     4.9     4.8     3.4
West............................................  167.3   172.2   175.3     1.4      .5     1.8     4.3     4.4     4.8

                      Area

Metropolitan....................................  165.2   169.1   171.5     1.7      .5     1.4     3.8     4.1     3.8
Other...........................................  163.5   166.9   170.2     1.7      .5     2.0     3.8     3.8     4.1

  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.



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)


                                                   Indexes (June 1989=100)               Percent changes for-


         Industry and occupational group                                       3 months ended-         12 months ended-
                                                     Mar.    Dec.    Mar.
                                                     2003    2003    2004
                                                                             Mar.    Dec.    Mar.    Mar.    Dec.    Mar.
                                                                             2003    2003    2004    2003    2003    2004


Civilian workers..................................  159.3   162.3   163.3     1.0     0.3     0.6     2.9     2.9     2.5
    Excluding sales occupations...................  159.4   162.3   163.3     1.0      .4      .6     3.0     2.9     2.4

                     Industry

  Goods producing(1)..............................  156.3   158.7   159.9      .8      .3      .8     3.0     2.3     2.3
    Manufacturing.................................  158.0   160.1   161.3     1.0      .3      .7     3.2     2.3     2.1
  Service producing(2)............................  160.5   163.6   164.6     1.1      .4      .6     3.0     3.0     2.6
    Services......................................  161.9   165.4   166.5      .5      .4      .7     2.4     2.7     2.8
      Health services.............................  162.0   165.9   167.7      .7      .7     1.1     3.0     3.1     3.5
        Hospitals.................................  163.5   167.7   169.0      .8      .8      .8     4.0     3.4     3.4
      Educational services........................  160.4   163.2   163.6      .2      .3      .2     3.3     1.9     2.0
    Public administration(3)......................  157.2   160.0   161.1      .9      .4      .7     3.1     2.7     2.5

  Nonmanufacturing................................  159.6   162.7   163.7     1.0      .4      .6     3.0     3.0     2.6

                Occupational group

  White collar....................................  161.9   165.1   166.1     1.1      .4      .6     3.1     3.1     2.6
      Excluding sales.............................  162.5   165.7   166.7     1.1      .4      .6     3.1     3.1     2.6
    Professional specialty and technical..........  159.3   162.5   163.8      .4      .4      .8     2.4     2.5     2.8
    Executive, administrative, and managerial.....  167.9   171.2   171.4     2.5      .4      .1     4.5     4.5     2.1
    Administrative support, including clerical....  161.8   164.9   166.3      .7      .4      .8     2.9     2.7     2.8
  Blue collar.....................................  153.8   156.3   157.3      .8      .3      .6     2.7     2.4     2.3
  Service.........................................  158.0   160.6   161.2      .7      .5      .4     2.5     2.4     2.0


State and local government........................  159.2   161.9   162.5      .4      .4      .4     3.1     2.1     2.1

                     Industry

    Services......................................  159.5   162.1   162.6      .2      .3      .3     3.2     1.8     1.9
        Excluding schools.........................  161.4   164.5   165.1      .7      .8      .4     3.0     2.6     2.3
      Health services.............................  162.9   166.7   167.4      .4     1.0      .4     3.2     2.8     2.8
        Hospitals.................................  163.1   166.7   167.4      .4      .7      .4     3.4     2.6     2.6
      Educational services........................  159.1   161.6   162.0      .1      .2      .2     3.2     1.7     1.8
        Schools...................................  159.2   161.8   162.1      .1      .2      .2     3.2     1.8     1.8
          Elementary and secondary................  158.2   160.9   161.3      .1      .2      .2     3.1     1.8     2.0
          Colleges and universities...............  162.1   164.0   164.3      .3      .3      .2     3.4     1.5     1.4
    Public administration(3)......................  157.2   160.0   161.1      .9      .4      .7     3.1     2.7     2.5

                Occupational group

  White collar....................................  158.9   161.5   162.1     0.3     0.3     0.4     3.2     2.0     2.0
    Professional specialty and technical..........  158.8   161.4   162.1      .3      .2      .4     3.4     1.9     2.1
    Executive, administrative, and managerial.....  160.9   163.3   163.5      .5      .5      .1     2.7     2.0     1.6
    Administrative support, including clerical....  156.9   159.5   160.4      .6      .3      .6     3.3     2.2     2.2
  Blue collar.....................................  156.2   158.3   158.9      .7      .4      .4     3.0     2.1     1.7
  Service.........................................  162.7   165.8   166.7      .9      .5      .5     2.8     2.9     2.5

  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.



Table 6.  Employment Cost Index for wages and salaries for private industry workers by industry and occupational group

(Not seasonally adjusted data)


                                                   Indexes (June 1989=100)               Percent changes for-


         Industry and occupational group                                       3 months ended-         12 months ended-
                                                     Mar.    Dec.    Mar.
                                                     2003    2003    2004
                                                                             Mar.    Dec.    Mar.    Mar.    Dec.    Mar.
                                                                             2003    2003    2004    2003    2003    2004


Private industry workers..........................  159.3   162.3   163.4     1.1     0.4     0.7     3.0     3.0     2.6
    Excluding sales occupations...................  159.4   162.4   163.5     1.2      .4      .7     2.9     3.1     2.6

                     Industry

  Goods producing(1)..............................  156.3   158.7   159.9      .8      .3      .8     3.0     2.4     2.3
      Excluding sales.............................  155.4   158.0   159.2      .9      .4      .8     3.0     2.6     2.4
    White collar..................................  160.0   162.1   163.2      .9      .1      .7     3.2     2.2     2.0
      Excluding sales.............................  158.0   160.4   161.5     1.1      .3      .7     3.3     2.6     2.2
    Blue collar...................................  153.8   156.4   157.7      .8      .3      .8     2.8     2.5     2.5

    Construction..................................  150.6   154.0   155.1      .3      .3      .7     2.4     2.5     3.0

    Manufacturing.................................  158.0   160.1   161.3     1.0      .3      .7     3.2     2.3     2.1
      White collar................................  160.1   162.1   163.3      .9      .1      .7     3.4     2.2     2.0
        Excluding sales...........................  157.7   160.0   161.2     1.2      .3      .8     3.5     2.6     2.2
      Blue collar.................................  156.3   158.5   159.8     1.0      .4      .8     3.0     2.5     2.2
      Durables....................................  158.8   160.9   161.9     1.0      .2      .6     3.2     2.3     2.0
        Aircraft manufacturing (SIC 3721).........  166.0   167.7   170.6     1.8      .2     1.7     2.9     2.8     2.8
          White collar............................  160.4   160.6   164.7     2.7      .2     2.6     2.9     2.8     2.7
          Blue collar.............................  173.6   178.2   178.4      .2      .2      .1     2.7     2.9     2.8
      Nondurables.................................  156.6   158.7   160.4      .9      .3     1.1     3.1     2.3     2.4


  Service producing(2)............................  160.6   163.9   165.0     1.3      .4      .7     2.9     3.3     2.7
      Excluding sales.............................  161.7   165.0   166.0     1.3      .5      .6     2.9     3.4     2.7
    White collar..................................  163.0   166.6   167.8     1.4      .4      .7     3.0     3.7     2.9
      Excluding sales.............................  165.3   169.0   170.2     1.5      .5      .7     3.1     3.8     3.0
    Blue collar...................................  153.2   155.4   156.2      .8      .2      .5     2.5     2.2     2.0
    Service.......................................  155.1   157.4   158.0      .6      .5      .4     2.3     2.1     1.9

    Transportation and public utilities...........  154.8   156.5   157.6      .5      .3      .7     2.9     1.6     1.8
      Transportation..............................  150.5   150.8   151.7      .3      .3      .6     2.1      .5      .8
      Public utilities............................  160.4   164.1   165.3      .7      .4      .7     4.0     3.0     3.1
        Communications............................  161.9   165.9   167.0      .7      .3      .7     4.2     3.2     3.2
        Electric, gas, and sanitary services......  158.6   161.8   163.3      .8      .5      .9     3.7     2.8     3.0

    Wholesale and retail trade....................  156.7   159.5   160.3      .8      .2      .5     2.4     2.6     2.3
        Excluding sales...........................  157.9   161.3   162.3      .6      .4      .6     2.0     2.7     2.8
      Wholesale trade.............................  163.4   165.3   166.2     1.5      .3      .5     3.9     2.7     1.7
        Excluding sales...........................  163.9   166.3   167.8      .1      .4      .9     2.8     1.6     2.4
      Retail trade................................  153.1   156.5   157.3      .3      .1      .5     1.5     2.5     2.7
        General merchandise stores................  149.8   153.6   154.1     0.4     0.3     0.3     1.3     2.9     2.9
        Food stores...............................  151.0   152.8   153.8      .5      .4      .7     2.0     1.7     1.9

    Finance, insurance, and real estate...........  171.1   174.5   175.2     5.2      .2      .4     6.7     7.3     2.4
        Excluding sales...........................  176.7   179.8   179.2     5.6      .3     -.3     7.4     7.5     1.4
      Banking, savings and loan, and other credit
       agencies...................................  206.4   210.2   206.7    12.2      .5    -1.7    13.9    14.3      .1
      Insurance...................................  161.6   164.5   165.1     1.6      .4      .4     2.9     3.4     2.2
        Excluding sales...........................  157.9   160.7   161.7     1.3      .2      .6     2.3     3.1     2.4

    Services......................................  162.8   166.7   168.1      .7      .5      .8     2.1     3.1     3.3
      Business services...........................  165.6   169.8   171.0      .5      .4      .7     1.0     3.0     3.3
      Health services.............................  161.9   165.8   167.8      .7      .7     1.2     2.9     3.2     3.6
        Hospitals.................................  163.6   167.9   169.4      .9      .8      .9     4.1     3.6     3.5
        Nursing homes.............................    -       -       -        .8      .6      .8     3.5     2.8     2.7
      Educational services........................  167.1   171.0   171.9      .4      .4      .5     3.7     2.7     2.9
        Colleges and universities.................  164.4   168.4   169.5      .1      .5      .7     2.8     2.5     3.1
Industry-Continued

  Nonmanufacturing industries.....................  159.4   162.6   163.7     1.2     0.3     0.7     2.8     3.2     2.7
    White collar..................................  162.8   166.3   167.5     1.4      .4      .7     3.0     3.6     2.9
      Excluding sales.............................  164.9   168.5   169.7     1.5      .5      .7     3.0     3.7     2.9
    Blue collar...................................  151.1   153.8   154.7      .6      .3      .6     2.4     2.4     2.4
    Service.......................................  155.0   157.3   157.9      .6      .5      .4     2.4     2.1     1.9

                Occupational group

  White collar....................................  162.6   165.9   167.1     1.4      .4      .7     3.1     3.4     2.8
      Excluding sales.............................  163.6   167.0   168.1     1.4      .5      .7     3.2     3.5     2.8
    Professional specialty and technical..........  159.5   163.0   164.7      .6      .6     1.0     1.8     2.8     3.3
    Executive, administrative, and managerial.....  169.1   172.5   172.7     2.8      .4      .1     4.8     4.9     2.1
    Sales.........................................  158.1   161.1   162.6      .8     -.3      .9     2.9     2.7     2.8
    Administrative support, including
     clerical.....................................  162.6   165.7   167.2      .8      .4      .9     2.8     2.7     2.8

  Blue collar.....................................  153.6   156.1   157.2      .8      .3      .7     2.7     2.4     2.3
    Precision production, craft, and repair.......  153.4   156.2   157.1      .7      .5      .6     2.8     2.6     2.4
    Machine operators, assemblers, and
     inspectors...................................  154.7   156.9   158.6     1.0      .1     1.1     2.8     2.4     2.5
    Transportation and material moving............  147.8   149.8   150.4      .6      .0      .4     2.1     2.0     1.8
    Handlers, equipment cleaners, helpers,
     and laborers.................................  158.4   160.6   161.8      .8      .4      .7     2.7     2.2     2.1

  Service.........................................  155.5   157.8   158.4      .6      .4      .4     2.3     2.1     1.9

  Production and nonsupervisory occupations(3)....  156.4   159.4   160.7      .8      .4      .8     2.4     2.7     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 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.



Table 7.  Employment Cost Index for wages and salaries for private industry workers by bargaining status, region, and
area

(Not seasonally adjusted data)


                                                 Indexes (June 1989=100)               Percent changes for-


      Bargaining status, region, and area                                    3 months ended-         12 months ended-
                                                   Mar.    Dec.    Mar.
                                                   2003    2003    2004
                                                                           Mar.    Dec.    Mar.    Mar.    Dec.    Mar.
                                                                           2003    2003    2004    2003    2003    2004



               Bargaining status

Union...........................................  153.3   156.2   157.2     0.5     0.6     0.6     3.3     2.4     2.5
    Blue-collar occupations.....................  150.5   153.5   154.3      .6      .5      .5     3.4     2.6     2.5

  Goods-producing industries(1).................  152.4   155.4   156.3      .8      .4      .6     3.5     2.8     2.6
  Service-producing industries(2)...............  154.6   157.3   158.5      .3      .6      .8     3.1     2.1     2.5

  Manufacturing.................................  154.6   157.1   158.1     1.0      .3      .6     3.8     2.6     2.3
    Blue-collar occupations.....................  153.3   155.8   156.7     1.0      .4      .6     3.7     2.6     2.2
  Nonmanufacturing..............................  152.5   155.6   156.6      .3      .6      .6     3.0     2.3     2.7

Nonunion........................................  160.4   163.4   164.6     1.2      .2      .7     2.9     3.1     2.6
    Blue-collar occupations.....................  155.5   157.8   159.0      .8      .2      .8     2.4     2.3     2.3

  Goods-producing industries(1).................  157.8   160.1   161.4      .8      .3      .8     2.8     2.2     2.3
  Service-producing industries(2)...............  161.2   164.5   165.6     1.4      .3      .7     2.9     3.5     2.7

  Manufacturing.................................  159.3   161.3   162.6     1.0      .2      .8     3.0     2.2     2.1
    Blue-collar occupations.....................  158.3   160.4   161.9     1.0      .4      .9     2.6     2.3     2.3
  Nonmanufacturing..............................  160.4   163.7   164.7     1.3      .4      .6     2.9     3.4     2.7

                   Region(3)

Northeast.......................................  157.3   160.9   162.0     1.0      .6      .7     2.5     3.3     3.0
South...........................................  155.3   157.9   159.1      .5      .3      .8     1.8     2.1     2.4
Midwest.........................................  164.1   166.5   166.9     2.4      .2      .2     4.5     3.9     1.7
West............................................  161.3   165.2   166.8      .7      .3     1.0     3.1     3.2     3.4

                      Area

Metropolitan....................................  159.6   162.7   163.8     1.1      .3      .7     2.9     3.0     2.6
Other...........................................  156.8   159.5   160.8     1.3      .4      .8     3.4     3.0     2.6

  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.
  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.



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)


                                                 Indexes (June 1989=100)               Percent changes for-


       Industry, occupational group, and                                     3 months ended-         12 months ended-
               bargaining status                   Mar.    Dec.    Mar.
                                                   2003    2003    2004
                                                                           Mar.    Dec.    Mar.    Mar.    Dec.    Mar.
                                                                           2003    2003    2004    2003    2003    2004


Civilian workers................................  177.8   184.3   190.0     2.6     0.8     3.1     6.1     6.3     6.9
 State and local government.....................  170.5   178.5   181.1     1.4      .9     1.5     6.6     6.1     6.2
 Private industry...............................  179.6   185.8   192.2     2.9      .8     3.4     6.1     6.4     7.0

                    Industry

   Goods producing(1)...........................  178.0   183.8   193.7     4.1      .8     5.4     7.4     7.5     8.8
   Service producing(2) ........................  179.9   186.2   190.6     2.3      .8     2.4     5.4     5.9     5.9

   Manufacturing................................  176.9   182.3   194.4     4.7      .7     6.6     8.1     7.9     9.9
     Aircraft manufacturing (SIC 3721)..........  220.4   213.4   260.6    14.6    -3.6    22.1    22.0    10.9    18.2
       White collar.............................  219.7   216.3   264.0    17.5    -1.1    22.1    21.6    15.7    20.2
       Blue collar..............................  220.1   207.5   253.1    10.4    -7.4    22.0    22.6     4.1    15.0
   Nonmanufacturing.............................  180.3   186.7   190.9     2.3      .9     2.2     5.4     5.9     5.9

               Occupational group

   White collar.................................  183.6   189.2   194.4     2.9      .8     2.7     5.8     6.0     5.9
   Blue collar..................................  172.7   179.9   188.3     2.9      .8     4.7     6.5     7.2     9.0
   Service......................................  180.2   186.4   193.4     3.0     1.2     3.8     6.7     6.6     7.3

               Bargaining status

   Union........................................  178.7   187.1   198.8     3.5      .9     6.3     7.3     8.3    11.2
   Nonunion.....................................  179.5   185.1   190.2     2.7      .8     2.8     5.8     6.0     6.0

  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.


                             EXPLANATORY NOTE

     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 long-term 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 35,600 occupational observations within about 8,200 sample
 establishments in private industry and approximately 3,600 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 newly updated seasonal adjustment
 factors.  The historical data for the last five years are then revised
 based on the newly estimated factors.  The seasonal factors for 2004 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 of the economy 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.  For
 more information, see the web site:
 (http://www.bls.gov/ect/escalator.htm).

     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).

     Historical data series are available, beginning with some wage and
 salary series begun in 1975.  In addition, constant-dollar ECI series
 derived from the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) are
 available.  Supplemental data from the ECI, providing 12-month percent
 changes in employer costs for health insurance in private industry
 beginning with June 1982 are also available.  This information is
 available at the Internet site (http://www.bls.gov/ect/home.htm) or upon
 request.

     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-December 2003."  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 also available on a quarterly basis beginning with June 2002 data.
 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.