Employer Costs For Employee Compensation-June 2003 — 2003-08-26

In June 2003, employer costs for employee compensation for civilian workers in private industry and State and local government in the United States averaged $24.19 per hour worked, the U.S. Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Wages and salaries, which averaged $17.35, accounted for 71.7 percent of these costs, while benefits, which averaged $6.84, accounted for the remaining 28.3 percent. (See table 1.) Health insurance has risen from $1.52 per hour worked and 6.6 percent of total compensation in June 2002, to $1.69 per hour and 7.0 percent in June 2003. Legally required benefits, including Social Security, Medicare, unemployment insurance, and workers' compensation, averaged $1.93 per hour (8.0 percent of total compensation), representing the largest non-wage employer cost.