Employer Costs for Employee Compensation News Release - 2021 Q03 Results — 2021-12-16

Employer costs for employee compensation for civilian workers averaged $39.55 per hour worked in September 2021, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Wage and salary costs averaged $27.35 per hour worked or 69.1 percent of total compensation, while benefit costs were $12.20 or 30.9 percent of total compensation. (See table 1.) Private industry worker compensation costs for employers averaged $37.24 per hour worked in September 2021. Wage and salary costs averaged $26.36 and accounted for 70.8 percent of employer costs, while benefit costs averaged $10.88 and accounted for 29.2 percent of total compensation. (See table 1.) State and local government worker compensation costs for employers averaged $54.46 per hour worked in September 2021. Wage and salary costs averaged $33.76 and accounted for 62.0 percent of employer costs. Benefit costs averaged $20.70 and accounted for the remaining 38.0 percent of total compensation.