March 2011 Employment Cost Index — 2011-04-29

Compensation costs for civilian workers increased 0.6 percent, seasonally adjusted, for the 3-month period ending March 2011, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Wages and salaries (which make up about 70 percent of compensation costs) increased 0.4 percent, and benefits (which make up the remaining 30 percent of compensation) increased 1.1 percent. Compensation costs for civilian workers increased 2.0 percent for the 12-month period ending March�2011. A year earlier--in March 2010--the increase was 1.7 percent. Wages and salaries increased 1.6�percent for the current 12-month period; in March 2010 the increase was 1.5 percent. Benefit costs accelerated to 3.0 percent, up from a 2.2-percent increase for the 12-month period ending March 2010. Compensation costs for private industry workers increased 2.0 percent over the year, compared to the 1.6-percent increase for the previous 12-month period. The wage and salary series increased 1.6�percent for the current 12-month period. The change for the 12-month period ending March 2010 was 1.5 percent.