Employment Cost Index-December 2003 — 2004-01-29

Total compensation costs for civilian workers rose 0.7 percent from September to December 2003, seasonally adjusted, moderating from the 1.0 percent gain from June to September, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported today. Benefit costs increased 1.2 percent and continued to strongly outpace the gain in wages and salaries for civilian workers, 0.5 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 contributing only 30 percent of total compensation costs, about half of the increase in compensation costs was attributable to rises in benefit costs during the September to December 2003 period.