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Economic News Release
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Employment Cost Index News Release


Technical Contact:                                    USDL:  08-0586
     (202) 691-6199  NCSinfo@bls.gov
Media Contact:                                        TRANSMISSION OF MATERIAL
     (202) 691-5902                                   IN THIS RELEASE IS EMBARGOED
Internet address:                                     UNTIL 8:30 AM EDT,
     www.bls.gov/ect                                  WEDNESDAY, APRIL 30, 2008

                           EMPLOYMENT COST INDEX-MARCH 2008

     Total compensation costs for civilian workers increased 0.7 percent from December 2007
to March 2008, seasonally adjusted, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of
Labor reported today.  The increase for the September to December 2007 period was 0.8 percent.
Wages and salaries rose 0.8 percent and benefits rose 0.6 percent.  In the previous quarter,
both wages and salaries and benefits increased 0.8 percent.  The Employment Cost Index (ECI), a
product of the National Compensation Survey, measures quarterly changes in compensation costs
for civilian workers (nonfarm private industry and state and local government workers).

Quarterly changes, seasonally adjusted

     Compensation costs for private industry rose 0.8 percent from December 2007 to March 2008;
for the prior quarter the increase was 0.9 percent.  Wages and salaries for private industry
workers increased 0.8 percent for the December 2007 to March 2008 period, the same as in the
previous quarter.  In state and local government, the increase was 0.7 percent, compared with
0.8 percent in the prior quarter.  Benefit costs for private industry rose 0.6 percent, compared
to 0.8 percent in the previous quarter.  For state and local government, benefit costs increased
0.3 percent, compared to 1.2 percent in the previous quarter.  (See tables A, 1, 2, and 3.)


Table A.  3-month percent changes in the Employment Cost Index, seasonally adjusted
Compensation                  June   Sep.   Dec.   Mar.   June   Sep.   Dec.   Mar.
component                     2006   2006   2006   2007   2007   2007   2007   2008
Civilian workers
   Compensation costs         0.9    1.0    0.8    0.8    0.9    0.8    0.8    0.7
     Wages and salaries       0.9    0.9    0.8    1.0    0.8    0.8    0.8    0.8
     Benefit costs            0.9    1.0    1.0    0.2    1.3    0.8    0.8    0.6
  Private industry
    Compensation costs        0.8    0.9    0.8    0.7    0.8    0.8    0.9    0.8
    Wages and salaries        0.8    0.9    0.8    1.0    0.8    0.8    0.8    0.8
    Benefit costs             0.8    0.9    0.9   -0.3    1.1    0.8    0.8    0.6
  State and local government
    Compensation costs        1.0    1.3    1.1    1.2    1.0    0.9    0.9    0.6
    Wages and salaries        0.9    1.3    0.8    0.9    0.9    0.9    0.8    0.7
    Benefit costs             1.3    1.6    1.5    1.7    1.6    0.9    1.2    0.3


                                           NOTES

This release incorporates annual revisions in seasonally adjusted data.
Effective with the December 2008 release, series for metropolitan areas and nonmetropolitan
areas will be discontinued.  See page 4 for further details.


Over-the-year changes, not seasonally adjusted

     Compensation costs for civilian workers increased 3.3 percent for the year ended March 2008.
For the year ended March 2007 the increase was 3.5 percent.  In private industry, compensation
costs rose 3.2 percent in the year ended March 2008, the same as for the year ended March 2007.
For state and local government, the increase for the 12-month period ended March 2008 was
3.6 percent, less than the March 2007 increase of 4.6 percent.  Wages and salaries for civilian
workers increased 3.2 percent for the 12-month period; in March 2007, the increase was 3.6 percent.
Private industry wages and salaries increased at the same rate as the civilian sector in March 2007
and March 2008.  However, state and local government wage and salary increased 3.5 percent for
the year ended March 2008.  In March 2007, the increase was 3.8 percent.  Benefits--which increased
3.5 percent for civilian workers--differed by ownership sector.  Private industry benefit costs
increased 3.2 percent, less than the state and local government increase of 4.1 percent for the
12-month period ended March 2008.  (See table B.)


Table B.  12-month percent changes in the Employment Cost Index, not seasonally adjusted
                                               Mar.   Mar.   Mar.   Mar.   Mar.   Mar.
Compensation component                         2003   2004   2005   2006   2007   2008
Civilian workers
Compensation costs                             3.8    3.7    3.6    2.8    3.5    3.3
  Wages and salaries                           2.9    2.6    2.5    2.7    3.6    3.2
  Benefit costs                                5.9    6.7    5.9    3.4    3.1    3.5
        Private industry
Compensation costs                             3.6    3.8    3.5    2.6    3.2    3.2
  Wages and salaries                           2.9    2.6    2.7    2.4    3.6    3.2
  Benefit costs                                5.7    6.8    5.5    3.0    2.2    3.2
        State and local government government
Compensation costs                             4.3    3.4    3.6    3.7    4.6    3.6
  Wages and salaries                           3.2    2.1    2.3    2.8    3.8    3.5
  Benefit costs                                6.6    6.4    6.7    5.4    6.3    4.1


     Nonfarm private industry

     For the year ended March 2008, private industry compensation costs increased 3.1 percent
for goods-producing industries, compared to a 2.6 percent increase in March 2007.  Compensation
cost increases for manufacturing remained low, at 2.6 percent for the year ended March 2008,
compared to 1.9 percent for the year ended March 2007.  Compensation costs for the construction
industry rose 4.0 percent, the same as in the previous year.  (See table 5.)

     The over-the-year increase for March 2008 in compensation costs for service-providing
industries was 3.3 percent.  The March 2007 increase was also 3.3 percent.  Among the major
service-providing industries, compensation gains ranged from 1.7 percent in information to
4.1 percent in professional and business services.  (See table 5.)

     Among private industry occupational groups, over-the-year compensation gains ranged from
2.8 percent for sales and office to 3.5 percent for natural resources, construction, and
maintenance.  (See table 5.)

     Compensation costs for union workers advanced 3.1 percent for the year ended March 2008 while
compensation cost increases for nonunion workers increased 3.2 percent for the same 12-month
period.  Wages and salaries for union workers increased 2.6 percent for the 12-month period ended
March 2008, less than those for nonunion workers, which rose 3.3 percent.  Benefit costs for
union workers rose 4.1 percent for the 12-month period, which was more than benefit cost increases
for nonunion workers, which rose 3.0 percent.  (See tables C, 6, 10, and 12.)


Table C.  12-month percent changes in the Employment Cost Index, private industry workers, by bargaining status,
not seasonally adjusted
                                    Mar.   Mar.   Mar.   Mar.   Mar.   Mar.
Compensation component              2003   2004   2005   2006   2007   2008
            Union workers
Compensation costs                  4.4     5.6   3.6    2.7    2.2    3.1
  Wages and salaries                3.1     2.8   2.4    2.5    2.5    2.6
  Benefit costs                     6.7    10.6   5.6    2.9    1.6    4.1
        Nonunion workers
Compensation costs                  3.5     3.5   3.5    2.6    3.3    3.2
  Wages and salaries                2.8     2.7   2.6    2.5    3.7    3.3
  Benefit costs                     5.5     5.9   5.6    2.9    2.4    3.0


     State and local government

     For the year ended March 2008, wages and salaries for state and local government workers
rose 3.5 percent.  The increase for the 12-month period ended March 2007 was 3.8 percent.
Benefit costs increased 4.1 percent, less than the increase of 6.3 percent in the previous year.
Wages and salaries for health care and social assistance increased 3.3 percent, down from
5.5 percent a year earlier.  Public administration wages and salaries increased 3.5 percent.
In March 2007 the increase was 4.0 percent.  Education services wages and salaries increased
3.4 percent.  A year earlier the increase was 3.6 percent.  (See tables B, 11, and 12.)

Over-the-year changes in wages and salaries, constant dollars, not seasonally adjusted

     After adjusting for the changes in the prices of consumer goods and services, wages and
salaries for civilian workers decreased 0.7 percent for the 12-month period ended March 2008,
compared to a 0.7 percent increase for the 12-month period ended March 2007.  The decrease for
private industry was 0.8 percent compared to an increase of 0.7 percent for the year ended
March 2007.  State and local government registered a 0.5 percent decrease, compared to an increase
of 1.0 percent for the previous year.  (See table D.)


Table D.  12-month percent changes in wages and salaries, Employment Cost Index, constant dollars, not seasonally adjusted
                                             Mar.   Mar.   Mar.   Mar.   Mar.    Mar.
Compensation component                       2003   2004   2005   2006   2007    2008
Civilian workers                             -0.1   0.8    -0.6   -0.7    0.7    -0.7
Occupation
     Management, professional, and related    0.2   0.9    -0.5   -0.8    1.0    -0.6
    Sales and office                         -0.3   1.1    -0.3   -0.7    0.6    -1.1
    Natural resources, construction,
      and maintenance                         0.0   0.9    -1.0   -0.4    0.7    -0.3
    Production, transportation, and
      material moving                        -0.6   0.4    -0.7   -1.0   -0.2    -1.1
    Service                                  -0.8   0.4    -0.9   -1.0    1.2    -0.6
Industry
    Goods-producing                          -0.2   0.7    -0.7   -0.5    0.3    -0.8
    Service-providing                        -0.1   0.8    -0.5   -0.8    0.8    -0.8
    Private industry                         -0.2   0.9    -0.5   -0.9    0.7    -0.8
    State and local government                0.2   0.4    -0.8   -0.6    1.0    -0.5


________________________________________________________________________________________
                                           NOTE:

     Effective with the release of December 2008 data, series for metropolitan areas and
nonmetropolitan areas, which appear in tables 6 and 10, will be discontinued as a result
of the classification changes to metropolitan statistical areas.

     The ECI for June 2008 is scheduled to be released Thursday, July 31, 2008, at
8:30 AM EDT.

     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 2003-2007 were revised to reflect updated seasonal factors.  The new
seasonal factors and historical listings containing revised seasonally adjusted indexes
are available on the Internet site www.bls.gov/ect, by email to NCSinfo@bls.gov, or
telephone to (202) 691-6199.

     ECI data are available on the Compensation Cost Trends page at www.bls.gov/ect.  For
ECI data requests, send e-mail to NCSinfo@bls.gov.  For technical assistance in using the
BLS Internet site, send e-mail to webmaster@bls.gov.

     BLS news releases, including the ECI, are available through an e-mail subscription
service.  See the subscription link at  www.bls.gov/ect  or  www.bls.gov/bls/newsrels.htm.

     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.
________________________________________________________________________________________




Table 1.  Employment Cost Index for total compensation(1), by ownership, occupational group, and industry


                                            Indexes (Dec.           Percent changes for 3-months ended-
                                             2005 = 100)
      Occupational group and industry

                                             Dec.   Mar.   June   Sep.   Dec.   Mar.   June   Sep.   Dec.   Mar.
                                             2007   2008   2006   2006   2006   2007   2007   2007   2007   2008


             Civilian workers

All workers(2).............................  106.8  107.6    0.9    1.0    0.8    0.8    0.9    0.8    0.8    0.7

                 Industry

  Goods-producing industries(3)(4).........  105.2  106.1    1.0     .6     .7     .3     .9     .5     .9     .9
    Manufacturing(3).......................  103.9  104.7     .9     .5     .5     .0     .9     .3     .8     .8

    Service-providing industries :
    Education and health services(3).......  107.8  108.7    1.0    1.4    1.0     .9     .9     .9     .8     .8
      Education services(3)................  107.6  108.5    1.0    1.5     .9     .9    1.0     .9     .8     .8
        Elementary and secondary schools(3)  107.5  108.4    1.0    1.6     .9    1.0    1.0     .9     .7     .8
        Junior colleges, colleges,
         universities, and professional
         schools(3)........................  107.8  108.6    1.0    1.3     .8     .8    1.1    1.1    1.0     .7
      Health care and social
       assistance(3)(5)....................  108.0  108.8    1.1    1.3    1.0     .9     .9     .8     .8     .7
        Hospitals(3).......................  107.5  108.3     .9    1.1    1.0     .9     .9     .7     .8     .7
        Nursing and residential care
         facilities(3).....................  106.4  107.2     .6    1.1    1.2     .6     .7     .5     .8     .8
    Public administration(3)...............  109.3  109.5    1.0    1.0    1.5    1.4    1.3    1.1    1.2     .2

         Private industry workers

All workers................................  106.5  107.3     .8     .9     .8     .7     .8     .8     .9     .8

            Occupational group

  Management, professional, and related....  107.1  108.0     .8    1.1     .9     .7     .9     .9     .8     .8
    Management, business, and financial....  106.7  107.8     .6     .8     .9     .6     .8    1.0     .8    1.0
    Professional and related...............  107.5  108.2     .9    1.2    1.1     .7    1.0     .8     .8     .7

  Sales and office.........................  106.2  106.8     .9     .6    1.0     .7     .7     .7    1.0     .6
    Sales and related......................  105.2  105.5     .8     .4     .9     .5     .7     .4    1.3     .3
    Office and administrative support......  106.9  107.7     .9     .9     .9     .9     .7     .9     .8     .7

  Natural resources, construction, and
   maintenance.............................  106.8  107.8    1.0     .9     .8     .4     .7    1.0     .9     .9
    Construction, extraction, farming,
     fishing, and forestry.................  107.5  108.8    1.1    1.0     .8     .8     .9     .9    1.0    1.2
    Installation, maintenance, and repair..  105.9  106.5     .9     .9     .8     .0     .4    1.1     .8     .6

  Production, transportation, and material
   moving..................................  104.5  105.5     .6     .6     .6     .2     .8     .6     .6    1.0
    Production.............................  103.9  104.8     .6     .6     .4     .1     .7     .5     .6     .9
    Transportation and material moving.....  105.4  106.6     .6     .6     .9     .5     .9     .6     .7    1.1

  Service occupations......................  107.1  107.8     .7     .8     .8    1.3     .8    1.1     .7     .7

                 Industry

  Goods-producing industries(4)............  105.2  106.1    1.0     .6     .7     .3     .9     .5     .9     .9
    Construction...........................  107.8  109.1    1.0     .9    1.1    1.1     .8     .9    1.0    1.2
    Manufacturing..........................  103.9  104.7     .9     .5     .5     .0     .9     .3     .8     .8
      Aircraft manufacturing(3)............   86.7   89.0    2.3    2.7   -1.6   -4.6    1.8   -3.1    -.8    2.7

  Service-providing industries(6)..........  106.9  107.6     .8    1.0     .8     .8     .9     .9     .8     .7
    Trade, transportation, and utilities...  105.5  106.2     .5     .9     .8     .1     .9     .6     .8     .7
      Wholesale trade......................  105.4  105.7     .4    1.7     .6     .7     .8    -.3    1.2     .3
      Retail trade.........................  106.0  106.8     .5     .7     .7     .4     .9    1.2     .9     .8
      Transportation and warehousing(3)....  104.5  105.8     .5     .4     .9     .7     .9     .4     .2    1.2
      Utilities(3).........................  106.2  106.4     .9    1.2    1.1   -7.6    1.6     .6    1.2     .2
    Information............................  106.4  106.1     .8    1.1     .6     .9     .9     .4     .7    -.3
    Financial activities...................  106.0  106.6     .6     .6     .7    1.1     .4    1.1     .5     .6
      Finance and insurance(3).............  106.5  106.8     .8     .6     .6    1.1     .3    1.1     .7     .3
        Credit intermediation and related
         activities(3).....................  105.0  105.3     .7     .7    -.2    1.4   -1.1    1.1    1.2     .3
        Insurance carriers and related
         activities(3).....................  105.8  107.3     .6     .7     .5     .9    1.3    1.1    -.2    1.4
    Professional and business services.....  107.8  108.9    1.1     .8     .8    1.0    1.1    1.0     .8    1.0
      Professional, scientific, and
       technical services(3)...............  109.5  110.8    1.2    1.2    1.0    1.1    1.3    1.1     .9    1.2
      Administrative and support and waste
       management and remediation
       services(3).........................  106.5  107.3    1.0     .4     .8    1.0     .7    1.0     .9     .8
    Education and health services..........  107.8  108.6    1.0    1.2    1.1     .8     .9     .8     .9     .7
      Education services...................  107.4  108.2    1.2     .7    1.3     .6     .8     .8    1.1     .7
        Junior colleges, colleges,
         universities, and professional
         schools(3)........................  107.5  108.3    1.1     .9    1.2     .4    1.0     .9     .9     .7
      Health care and social assistance(5)   107.8  108.7     .9    1.3    1.0     .9     .8     .9     .8     .8
        Hospitals(3).......................  107.4  108.1    1.0    1.1     .8     .8     .9     .8     .8     .7
        Nursing and residential care
         facilities(3).....................  106.3  107.0     .6     .9    1.2     .6     .6     .8     .7     .7
    Leisure and hospitality................  108.1  108.9     .8    1.1    1.3    1.5     .8    1.3     .6     .7
      Accommodation and food services(3)...  108.5  109.4    1.1    1.0    1.5    1.6     .8    1.5     .4     .8
    Other services, except public
     administration........................  107.9  108.7    1.2     .8    1.0    1.2     .3     .8     .9     .7

    State and local government workers

All workers................................  108.2  108.9    1.0    1.3    1.1    1.2    1.0     .9     .9     .6

                 Industry

    Education and health services(3).......  107.8  108.7    1.1    1.6     .9    1.0    1.0     .8     .8     .8
      Education services(3)................  107.6  108.5    1.0    1.6     .8    1.0    1.1     .9     .8     .8
        Schools(3).........................  107.6  108.5    1.0    1.6     .8    1.0    1.1     .9     .7     .8
        Elementary and secondary schools(3)  107.6  108.5    1.0    1.7     .8    1.1    1.0     .8     .7     .8
      Health care and social
       assistance(3)(5)....................  109.4  110.0    2.0    1.6    1.0    1.0     .8     .3    1.1     .5
        Hospitals(3).......................  108.2  109.2     .9    1.3    1.3    1.2    1.0     .5     .9     .9
    Public administration(3)...............  109.3  109.5    1.0    1.0    1.5    1.4    1.3    1.1    1.2     .2

  1 Includes wages, salaries, and employer costs for employee benefits.
  2 Includes workers in the private nonfarm economy except those in private households, and workers in the public
sector, except the federal government.  See "Technical note" for further explanation.
  3 Seasonally adjusted indexes and 3-month percent changes for these series are being published for the first
time with the 2008 seasonal adjustment revisions.  Historical data for these series are published beginning with
March 2003.
  4 Includes mining, construction, and manufacturing.
  5 Includes ambulatory health care services and social assistance, not shown separately.
  6 Includes the following industries:  wholesale trade; retail trade; transportation and warehousing; utilities;
information; finance and insurance; real estate and rental and leasing; professional, scientific, and technical
services; management of companies and enterprises; administrative and support and waste management and
remediation services; education services; health care and social assistance; arts, entertainment, and recreation;
accommodation and food services; and other services, except public administration.




Table 2.  Employment Cost Index for wages and salaries, by ownership, occupational group, and industry


                                            Indexes (Dec.           Percent changes for 3-months ended-
                                             2005 = 100)
      Occupational group and industry

                                             Dec.   Mar.   June   Sep.   Dec.   Mar.   June   Sep.   Dec.   Mar.
                                             2007   2008   2006   2006   2006   2007   2007   2007   2007   2008


             Civilian workers

All workers(1).............................  106.7  107.6    0.9    0.9    0.8    1.0    0.8    0.8    0.8    0.8

                 Industry

  Goods-producing industries(2)(3).........  106.1  107.2    1.0     .5     .8     .9     .7     .8     .7    1.0
    Manufacturing(2).......................  105.1  105.9    1.0     .2     .7     .7     .6     .6     .7     .8

    Service-providing industries :
    Education and health services(2).......  107.2  108.1    1.0    1.3     .8     .9     .8     .9     .8     .8
      Education services(2)................  106.6  107.4     .9    1.3     .7     .7     .7    1.1     .9     .8
        Elementary and secondary schools(2)  106.2  107.1     .8    1.4     .6     .8     .7     .9     .8     .8
        Junior colleges, colleges,
         universities, and professional
         schools(2)........................  107.2  108.0    1.0    1.1     .8     .5    1.0    1.1    1.0     .7
      Health care and social
       assistance(2)(4)....................  107.9  108.9    1.1    1.4     .9    1.0     .9     .9     .8     .9
        Hospitals(2).......................  107.4  108.5     .9    1.1     .9    1.0     .9     .9     .8    1.0
        Nursing and residential care
         facilities(2).....................  106.4  107.3     .5    1.0    1.1     .8     .6    1.1     .6     .8
    Public administration(2)...............  107.3  108.1     .9     .7    1.4    1.0    1.0     .9     .8     .7

         Private industry workers

All workers................................  106.7  107.6     .8     .9     .8    1.0     .8     .8     .8     .8

            Occupational group

  Management, professional, and related....  107.4  108.4     .9    1.0     .9    1.1     .8     .9     .8     .9
    Management, business, and financial....  106.9  108.1     .8     .8     .6    1.2     .7     .9     .7    1.1
    Professional and related...............  107.7  108.7     .9    1.2    1.1    1.0     .9     .8     .7     .9

  Sales and office.........................  106.2  106.9     .9     .7     .8    1.0     .7     .5    1.0     .7
    Sales and related......................  105.4  105.8     .9     .4    1.0     .7     .6     .1    1.3     .4
    Office and administrative support......  106.9  107.7     .9     .8     .9    1.0     .7     .8     .8     .7

  Natural resources, construction, and
   maintenance.............................  107.1  108.3    1.0     .9     .8     .9     .6    1.0     .9    1.1
    Construction, extraction, farming,
     fishing, and forestry.................  107.9  109.3    1.1    1.0     .9    1.0     .9     .9    1.2    1.3
    Installation, maintenance, and repair..  106.2  107.0     .6     .9     .7     .8     .2    1.2     .8     .7

  Production, transportation, and material
   moving..................................  105.0  106.0     .6     .6     .6     .8     .6     .7     .5    1.0
    Transportation and material moving.....  105.4  106.6     .7     .7     .7     .7     .8     .7     .6    1.2

                 Industry

  Goods-producing industries(3)............  106.1  107.2    1.0     .5     .8     .9     .7     .8     .7    1.0
    Construction...........................  107.9  109.2    1.2     .8    1.1    1.2     .9     .8    1.0    1.2
    Manufacturing..........................  105.1  105.9    1.0     .2     .7     .7     .6     .6     .7     .8
      Aircraft manufacturing(2)............  105.3  106.4     .8     .9     .3     .7     .4     .1     .7    1.1

  Service-providing industries(5)..........  106.9  107.7     .8    1.0     .8    1.0     .8     .9     .8     .7
    Trade, transportation, and utilities...  105.4  106.0     .4    1.1     .7     .7     .9     .2     .9     .6
      Retail trade.........................  106.0  106.6     .3     .9     .9     .5    1.0     .8    1.0     .5
      Transportation and warehousing(2)....  104.3  105.3     .4     .4     .9     .8     .8     .2     .5     .9
      Utilities(2).........................  107.0  108.1    1.0    1.0     .8     .7     .9     .7     .9    1.1
    Information............................  105.5  105.3     .5    1.0     .1    1.2     .9     .4     .4    -.2
    Financial activities...................  106.3  107.1     .8     .5     .7    1.3     .1    1.3     .3     .8
      Finance and insurance(2).............  107.1  107.7    1.0     .5     .6    1.5     .0    1.2     .6     .6
        Credit intermediation and related
         activities(2).....................  104.9  105.1     .7     .7    -.7    2.2   -1.9    1.3    1.2     .2
    Professional and business services.....  107.7  109.1    1.1     .8     .8    1.1     .9     .9     .9    1.3
      Professional, scientific, and
       technical services(2)...............  109.0  110.7    1.3    1.2     .9    1.1    1.0     .9    1.0    1.6
      Administrative and support and waste
       management and remediation
       services(2).........................  106.7  107.6     .7     .6     .9    1.0     .6    1.1     .9     .8
    Education and health services..........  107.7  108.6    1.0    1.2    1.0     .9     .9     .9     .9     .8
      Education services...................  107.2  108.0    1.1     .8    1.3     .3     .8     .8    1.2     .7
        Junior colleges, colleges,
         universities, and professional
         schools(2)........................  107.2  107.9    1.0    1.0    1.2     .0    1.0     .8    1.1     .7
      Health care and social assistance(4)   107.7  108.8    1.0    1.3     .9    1.0     .9    1.0     .7    1.0
        Hospitals(2).......................  107.2  108.2    1.0     .9     .9     .9     .9     .9     .8     .9
    Leisure and hospitality................  108.8  109.6     .9     .9    1.4    1.8     .9    1.5     .6     .7
      Accommodation and food services(2)...  109.0  109.9    1.0     .8    1.6    2.0     .7    1.7     .6     .8
    Other services, except public
     administration(2).....................  108.2  109.2    1.2     .8     .8    1.5     .3    1.0    1.0     .9

    State and local government workers

All workers................................  106.9  107.7     .9    1.3     .8     .9     .9     .9     .8     .7

                 Industry

    Education and health services(2).......  106.7  107.6    1.0    1.4     .6     .8     .8    1.0     .8     .8
      Education services(2)................  106.4  107.3     .8    1.5     .5     .8     .8    1.0     .8     .8
        Schools(2).........................  106.4  107.3     .8    1.5     .5     .8     .8    1.0     .8     .8
        Elementary and secondary schools(2)  106.2  107.1     .8    1.5     .5     .8     .7    1.0     .7     .8
      Health care and social
       assistance(2)(4)....................  109.2  110.0    2.2    1.4     .9     .9     .8     .7    1.0     .7
        Hospitals(2).......................  108.5  109.7     .9    1.3    1.3    1.2    1.1     .7     .9    1.1
    Public administration(2)...............  107.3  108.1     .9     .7    1.4    1.0    1.0     .9     .8     .7

  1 Includes workers in the private nonfarm economy except those in private households, and workers in the public
sector, except the federal government.  See "Technical note" for further explanation.
  2 Seasonally adjusted indexes and 3-month percent changes for these series are being published for the first
time with the 2008 seasonal adjustment revisions.  Historical data for these series are published beginning with
March 2003.
  3 Includes mining, construction, and manufacturing.
  4 Includes ambulatory health care services and social assistance, not shown separately.
  5 Includes the following industries:  wholesale trade; retail trade; transportation and warehousing; utilities;
information; finance and insurance; real estate and rental and leasing; professional, scientific, and technical
services; management of companies and enterprises; administrative and support and waste management and
remediation services; education services; health care and social assistance; arts, entertainment, and recreation;
accommodation and food services; and other services, except public administration.




Table 3.  Employment Cost Index for benefits, by ownership, occupational group, and industry


                                            Indexes (Dec.           Percent changes for 3-months ended-
                                             2005 = 100)
      Occupational group and industry

                                             Dec.   Mar.   June   Sep.   Dec.   Mar.   June   Sep.   Dec.   Mar.
                                             2007   2008   2006   2006   2006   2007   2007   2007   2007   2008


             Civilian workers

All workers(1).............................  106.9  107.5    0.9    1.0    1.0    0.2    1.3    0.8    0.8    0.6

         Private industry workers

All workers................................  105.8  106.4     .8     .9     .9    -.3    1.1     .8     .8     .6

            Occupational group

  Management, professional, and related....  106.5  106.9     .7    1.2    1.1    -.4    1.3     .8     .9     .4

  Sales and office.........................  106.2  106.5     .7     .7    1.0     .2     .9    1.0    1.0     .3

  Natural resources, construction, and
   maintenance.............................  106.0  106.8    1.2    1.0     .8    -.6     .9     .7     .8     .8

  Production, transportation, and material
   moving..................................  103.7  104.5     .7     .7     .6    -.9    1.1     .4    1.0     .8

  Service occupations......................  106.9  107.4     .9     .9     .9     .1    1.0    1.0     .8     .4

                 Industry

  Goods-producing industries(2)............  103.3  104.1     .9     .8     .6    -.8    1.2     .1    1.0     .8
    Manufacturing..........................  101.7  102.3     .8     .8     .4   -1.3    1.4    -.3    1.0     .6
      Aircraft manufacturing(3)............   66.8   70.5    4.3    5.5   -4.0  -11.9    4.2   -8.0   -3.2    5.5

  Service-providing industries(4)..........  106.8  107.4     .8     .9    1.0     .0    1.0    1.0     .8     .6

    State and local government workers

All workers................................  111.0  111.3    1.3    1.6    1.5    1.7    1.6     .9    1.2     .3

  1 Includes workers in the private nonfarm economy except those in private households, and workers in the public
sector, except the federal government.  See "Technical note" for further explanation.
  2 Includes mining, construction, and manufacturing.
  3 Seasonally adjusted indexes and 3-month percent changes for these series are being published for the first
time with the 2008 seasonal adjustment revisions.  Historical data for these series are published beginning with
March 2003.
  4 Includes the following industries:  wholesale trade; retail trade; transportation and warehousing; utilities;
information; finance and insurance; real estate and rental and leasing; professional, scientific, and technical
services; management of companies and enterprises; administrative and support and waste management and
remediation services; education services; health care and social assistance; arts, entertainment, and recreation;
accommodation and food services; and other services, except public administration.




Table 4.  Employment Cost Index for total compensation(1), for civilian workers, by occupational group and
industry


                                              Indexes (Dec. 2005 =             Percent changes for-
                                                      100)


      Occupational group and industry                                  3-months ended-     12-months ended-
                                              Mar.    Dec.    Mar.
                                              2007    2007    2008
                                                                     Mar.   Dec.   Mar.   Mar.   Dec.   Mar.
                                                                     2007   2007   2008   2007   2007   2008


             Civilian workers

All workers(2).............................  104.2   106.7   107.6     0.9    0.6    0.8    3.5    3.3    3.3
    Excluding incentive paid occupations(3)  104.2   106.8   107.8      .8     .6     .9    3.4    3.3    3.5

            Occupational group

  Management, professional, and related....  104.7   107.2   108.3     1.0     .5    1.0    3.8    3.4    3.4
    Management, business, and financial....  104.4   106.6   108.2     1.2     .4    1.5    3.1    3.3    3.6
    Professional and related...............  104.9   107.6   108.4      .9     .6     .7    4.2    3.5    3.3

  Sales and office.........................  103.8   106.4   106.8      .8     .9     .4    3.3    3.3    2.9
    Sales and related......................  102.4   105.2   105.0      .1    1.1    -.2    2.5    2.8    2.5
    Office and administrative support......  104.7   107.1   108.0     1.2     .7     .8    3.8    3.5    3.2

  Natural resources, construction, and
   maintenance.............................  104.1   106.8   107.7      .5     .7     .8    3.3    3.1    3.5
    Construction, extraction, farming,
     fishing, and forestry.................  104.3   107.4   108.5      .6     .8    1.0    3.6    3.6    4.0
    Installation, maintenance, and repair..  103.7   106.2   106.7      .1     .6     .5    2.8    2.5    2.9

  Production, transportation, and material
   moving..................................  102.7   104.7   105.6      .3     .5     .9    2.3    2.2    2.8
    Production.............................  102.1   104.1   104.8      .1     .8     .7    1.7    2.1    2.6
    Transportation and material moving.....  103.4   105.6   106.6      .6     .3     .9    2.9    2.7    3.1

  Service occupations......................  104.8   107.7   108.4     1.3     .7     .6    4.0    4.1    3.4

                 Industry

  Goods-producing industries(4)............  102.9   105.0   106.1      .4     .6    1.0    2.6    2.4    3.1
    Manufacturing..........................  102.0   103.8   104.7      .2     .6     .9    1.9    2.0    2.6

  Service-providing industries(5)..........  104.4   107.0   107.8      .9     .6     .7    3.5    3.4    3.3
    Education and health services..........  104.9   107.9   108.6      .7     .7     .6    4.3    3.6    3.5
      Education services...................  104.5   107.9   108.3      .4     .6     .4    4.3    3.7    3.6
        Elementary and secondary schools...  104.6   107.9   108.2      .4     .5     .3    4.4    3.6    3.4
        Junior colleges, colleges,
         universities, and professional
         schools...........................  104.3   108.0   108.5      .5     .8     .5    3.9    4.0    4.0
      Health care and social assistance(6)   105.4   107.9   108.9     1.1     .7     .9    4.3    3.5    3.3
        Hospitals..........................  105.1   107.5   108.4     1.1     .7     .8    3.9    3.4    3.1
        Nursing and residential care
         facilities........................  104.5   106.3   107.3      .8     .7     .9    3.5    2.5    2.7
  Public administration....................  105.6   109.1   109.7     1.7    1.0     .5    5.0    5.1    3.9

  1 Includes wages, salaries, and employer costs for employee benefits.
  2 Includes workers in the private nonfarm economy except those in private households, and workers in the
public sector, except the federal government.  See "Technical note" for further explanation.
  3 The index for this series is not strictly comparable with other series in this table.  See "Technical
note" for further explanation.
  4 Includes mining, construction, and manufacturing.
  5 Includes the following industries:  wholesale trade; retail trade; transportation and warehousing;
utilities; information; finance and insurance; real estate and rental and leasing; professional, scientific,
and technical services; management of companies and enterprises; administrative and support and waste
management and remediation services; education services; health care and social assistance; arts,
entertainment, and recreation; accommodation and food services; other services, except public administration.
  6 Includes ambulatory health care services and social assistance, not shown separately.

  NOTE: Dashes indicate data not available.




Table 5.    Employment Cost Index for total compensation(1), for private industry workers, by occupational
group and industry


                                                Indexes (Dec. 2005 =             Percent changes for-
                                                        100)


       Occupational group and industry                                   3-months ended-     12-months ended-
                                                Mar.    Dec.    Mar.
                                                2007    2007    2008
                                                                       Mar.   Dec.   Mar.   Mar.   Dec.   Mar.
                                                                       2007   2007   2008   2007   2007   2008


          Private industry workers

All workers..................................  104.0   106.3   107.3     0.8    0.6    0.9    3.2    3.0    3.2
    Excluding incentive paid occupations(2)..  104.0   106.4   107.6      .8     .6    1.1    3.1    3.1    3.5

             Occupational group

  Management, professional, and related......  104.6   106.8   108.1     1.1     .4    1.2    3.5    3.2    3.3
        Excluding incentive paid
         occupations(2)......................  104.5   106.8   108.1     1.0     .4    1.2    3.4    3.2    3.4
    Management, business, and financial......  104.3   106.3   108.0     1.2     .3    1.6    3.0    3.1    3.5
        Excluding incentive paid
         occupations(2)......................  104.1   106.5   108.2     1.0     .4    1.6    2.9    3.3    3.9
    Professional and related.................  104.9   107.3   108.3     1.0     .6     .9    3.9    3.3    3.2

  Sales and office...........................  103.7   106.1   106.6      .8     .8     .5    3.2    3.1    2.8
        Excluding incentive paid
         occupations(2)......................  104.2   106.7   107.8     1.0     .7    1.0    3.3    3.4    3.5
    Sales and related........................  102.4   105.2   105.0      .1    1.0    -.2    2.5    2.8    2.5
        Excluding incentive paid
         occupations(2)......................  103.6   106.5   107.9      .7     .9    1.3    2.7    3.5    4.2
    Office and administrative support........  104.5   106.7   107.8     1.1     .7    1.0    3.6    3.2    3.2

  Natural resources, construction, and
   maintenance...............................  104.0   106.7   107.6      .4     .8     .8    3.2    3.0    3.5
    Construction, extraction, farming,
     fishing, and forestry...................  104.4   107.4   108.6      .7     .8    1.1    3.7    3.6    4.0
    Installation, maintenance, and repair....  103.5   105.8   106.3      .1     .6     .5    2.6    2.3    2.7

  Production, transportation, and material
   moving....................................  102.5   104.5   105.5      .2     .6    1.0    2.1    2.2    2.9
        Excluding incentive paid
         occupations(2)......................  102.4   104.5   105.4      .2     .6     .9    2.0    2.3    2.9
    Production...............................  102.1   104.0   104.8      .1     .8     .8    1.7    2.0    2.6
        Excluding incentive paid
         occupations(2)......................  102.0   103.9   104.7      .0     .7     .8    1.6    1.9    2.6
    Transportation and material moving.......  103.1   105.3   106.4      .5     .4    1.0    2.7    2.6    3.2

  Service occupations........................  104.5   107.0   107.8     1.4     .6     .7    3.7    3.8    3.2

       Industry and occupational group

  Goods-producing industries(3)..............  102.9   105.0   106.1      .4     .6    1.0    2.6    2.4    3.1
        Excluding incentive paid
         occupations(2)......................  102.9   105.2   106.3      .4     .7    1.0    2.5    2.6    3.3
      Management, professional, and related..  102.7   104.4   106.1      .7     .1    1.6    2.5    2.4    3.3
      Sales and office.......................  103.0   104.8   105.1      .2     .7     .3    3.1    1.9    2.0
      Natural resources, construction, and
       maintenance...........................  104.0   107.0   108.1      .7     .8    1.0    3.4    3.6    3.9
      Production, transportation, and
       material moving.......................  102.1   104.0   104.8      .1     .7     .8    1.8    2.0    2.6

    Construction.............................  104.7   107.6   108.9     1.1     .7    1.2    4.0    3.9    4.0

    Manufacturing............................  102.0   103.8   104.7      .2     .6     .9    1.9    2.0    2.6
        Management, professional, and related  102.0   103.5   104.9      .6     .2    1.4    2.0    2.1    2.8
        Sales and office.....................  102.4   104.3   105.0      .3     .8     .7    2.9    2.2    2.5
        Natural resources, construction, and
         maintenance.........................  101.7   103.9   104.6     -.4    1.1     .7    1.6    1.8    2.9
        Production, transportation, and
         material moving.....................  101.9   103.8   104.5      .0     .7     .7    1.7    1.9    2.6

      Aircraft manufacturing.................   89.2    87.2    89.7    -4.3     .1    2.9   -1.9   -6.4     .6

  Service-providing industries(4)............  104.3   106.7   107.7      .9     .6     .9    3.3    3.2    3.3
        Excluding incentive paid
         occupations(2)......................  104.4   106.9   108.0      .9     .6    1.0    3.3    3.3    3.4
      Management, professional, and related..  105.0   107.3   108.5     1.2     .5    1.1    3.7    3.4    3.3
      Sales and office.......................  103.7   106.3   106.8      .8     .9     .5    3.1    3.3    3.0
      Natural resources, construction, and
       maintenance...........................  104.0   106.2   106.7      .0     .5     .5    2.8    2.1    2.6
      Production, transportation, and
       material moving.......................  103.0   105.2   106.4      .4     .5    1.1    2.4    2.5    3.3
      Service occupations....................  104.5   107.1   107.9     1.4     .7     .7    3.6    3.9    3.3

    Trade, transportation, and utilities.....  103.1   105.5   106.1      .1     .8     .6    2.3    2.4    2.9
          Excluding incentive paid
           occupations(2)....................  103.4   105.9   106.9      .3     .7     .9    2.3    2.7    3.4
      Wholesale trade........................  103.7   105.3   105.7      .8    1.1     .4    3.4    2.3    1.9
          Excluding incentive paid
           occupations(2)....................  104.1   106.2   107.4      .9     .7    1.1    3.1    2.9    3.2
      Retail trade...........................  102.9   106.1   106.6      .2    1.0     .5    2.3    3.3    3.6
          Excluding incentive paid
           occupations(2)....................  103.3   106.3   107.3      .7     .8     .9    2.5    3.6    3.9
      Transportation and warehousing.........  102.8   104.5   105.6      .6     .0    1.1    2.4    2.3    2.7
      Utilities..............................  102.8   105.6   106.5    -6.9     .6     .9   -4.6   -4.3    3.6

    Information..............................  104.3   106.1   106.1     1.1     .3     .0    3.4    2.8    1.7

    Financial activities.....................  104.2   105.6   106.8     1.7     .2    1.1    3.0    3.0    2.5
          Excluding incentive paid
           occupations(2)....................  104.2   105.9   107.4     1.4     .3    1.4    3.0    3.0    3.1
      Finance and insurance..................  104.6   106.1   107.0     1.7     .4     .8    3.1    3.1    2.3
        Credit intermediation and related
         activities..........................  104.0   104.5   105.5     2.0     .9    1.0    2.6    2.5    1.4
          Excluding incentive paid
           occupations(2)....................  104.4   106.3   108.2     1.2     .4    1.8    3.1    3.0    3.6
        Insurance carriers and related
         activities..........................  103.5   105.7   107.4      .9    -.3    1.6    2.6    3.0    3.8
          Excluding incentive paid
           occupations(2)....................  103.4   105.4   106.9     1.0     .5    1.4    2.6    2.9    3.4
      Real estate and rental and leasing.....  102.2   103.7   105.5     1.4    -.4    1.7    2.4    2.9    3.2
          Excluding incentive paid
           occupations(2)....................  104.4   105.9   108.1     2.3     .1    2.1    3.7    3.7    3.5

    Professional and business services.......  104.7   107.5   109.0     1.2     .6    1.4    3.6    3.9    4.1
      Professional, scientific, and technical
       services..............................  106.0   109.1   111.1     1.5     .6    1.8    4.4    4.5    4.8
      Administrative and support and waste
       management and remediation services...  103.8   106.4   107.1     1.0     .8     .7    3.3    3.5    3.2

    Education and health services............  105.1   107.7   108.6     1.0     .7     .8    4.1    3.5    3.3
      Education services.....................  104.5   107.5   108.1      .3     .7     .6    3.8    3.2    3.4
        Junior colleges, colleges,
         universities, and professional
         schools.............................  104.5   107.7   108.3      .1     .7     .6    3.6    3.2    3.6
      Health care and social assistance(5)...  105.2   107.8   108.8     1.1     .8     .9    4.1    3.6    3.4
        Hospitals............................  105.0   107.3   108.2     1.1     .8     .8    3.7    3.3    3.0
        Nursing and residential care
         facilities..........................  104.3   106.2   107.1      .8     .7     .8    3.3    2.6    2.7
          Nursing care facilities(2).........  104.2   106.2   107.2     1.1     .6     .9    3.4    3.0    2.9

    Leisure and hospitality..................  105.3   108.1   109.0     1.5     .6     .8    4.7    4.2    3.5
      Accommodation and food services........  105.8   108.6   109.5     1.7     .5     .8    5.3    4.4    3.5

    Other services, except public
     administration..........................  105.7   107.6   108.7     1.6     .5    1.0    4.2    3.5    2.8

  1 Includes wages, salaries, and employer costs for employee benefits.
  2 The index for this series is not strictly comparable with other series in this table.  See "Technical note"
for further explanation.
  3 Includes mining, construction, and manufacturing.
  4 Includes the following industries:  wholesale trade; retail trade; transportation and warehousing;
utilities; information; finance and insurance; real estate and rental and leasing; professional, scientific,
and technical services; management of companies and enterprises; administrative and support and waste
management and remediation services; education services; health care and social assistance; arts,
entertainment, and recreation; accommodation and food services; and other services, except public
administration.
  5 Includes ambulatory health care services and social assistance, not shown separately.

  NOTE: Dashes indicate data not available.




Table 6.    Employment Cost Index for total compensation(1), for private industry workers, by bargaining
status, census region, census divisions, and area


                                              Indexes (Dec. 2005 =             Percent changes for-
                                                      100)

   Bargaining status, census region and
  division, and metropolitan area status                               3-months ended-     12-months ended-
                                              Mar.    Dec.    Mar.
                                              2007    2007    2008
                                                                     Mar.   Dec.   Mar.   Mar.   Dec.   Mar.
                                                                     2007   2007   2008   2007   2007   2008


             Bargaining status

  Union....................................  102.7   105.1   105.9    -0.3    0.7    0.8    2.2    2.0    3.1
    Goods-producing industries(2)..........  101.5   104.0   104.6     -.7     .9     .6    1.6    1.8    3.1
      Manufacturing........................   99.2   101.0   101.4    -1.6    1.0     .4    -.1     .2    2.2
    Service-providing industries(3)........  103.7   106.0   107.0      .1     .6     .9    2.7    2.3    3.2

  Nonunion.................................  104.2   106.5   107.5     1.0     .6     .9    3.3    3.2    3.2
    Goods-producing industries(2)..........  103.3   105.4   106.5      .8     .6    1.0    2.8    2.8    3.1
      Manufacturing........................  102.8   104.6   105.6      .7     .5    1.0    2.5    2.4    2.7
    Service-providing industries(3)........  104.4   106.8   107.7     1.0     .6     .8    3.4    3.3    3.2

       Census region and division(4)

  Northeast................................  104.0   106.8   107.4      .7     .6     .6    3.1    3.4    3.3
    New England............................  103.6   106.1   106.7      .5     .7     .6    2.9    2.9    3.0
    Middle Atlantic........................  104.2   107.1   107.8      .9     .6     .7    3.3    3.7    3.5

  South....................................  104.3   106.7   107.8      .8     .6    1.0    3.3    3.1    3.4
    South Atlantic.........................  104.9   107.3   108.5     1.1     .5    1.1    3.7    3.4    3.4
    East South Central.....................  103.3   105.4   106.5     1.0     .6    1.0    2.6    3.0    3.1
    West South Central.....................  103.7   106.1   107.3      .3     .5    1.1    3.0    2.6    3.5

  Midwest..................................  103.3   105.3   106.0      .5     .7     .7    2.6    2.4    2.6
    East North Central.....................  103.2   105.0   105.5      .4     .6     .5    2.5    2.1    2.2
    West North Central.....................  103.5   105.9   107.3      .8     .6    1.3    2.9    3.1    3.7

  West.....................................  104.2   106.5   107.8     1.2     .8    1.2    3.6    3.4    3.5
    Mountain...............................  105.2   107.5   108.4     2.0     .8     .8    4.2    4.3    3.0
    Pacific................................  103.9   106.1   107.6      .9     .7    1.4    3.4    3.0    3.6

         Metropolitan area status

  Metropolitan areas.......................  103.9   106.3   107.2      .8     .6     .8    3.1    3.1    3.2
  Nonmetropolitan areas....................  104.1   106.5   107.5      .8     .7     .9    3.3    3.1    3.3

  1 Includes wages, salaries, and employer costs for employee benefits.
  2 Includes mining, construction, and manufacturing.
  3 Includes the following industries:  wholesale trade; retail trade; transportation and warehousing;
utilities; information; finance and insurance; real estate and rental and leasing; professional, scientific,
and technical services; management of companies and enterprises; administrative and support and waste
management and remediation services; education services; health care and social assistance; arts,
entertainment, and recreation; accommodation and food services; and other services, except public
administration.
  4 The states (including the District of Columbia) that comprise the census divisions are: New England:
Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont; Middle Atlantic: New Jersey, New
York, and Pennsylvania; South Atlantic: Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Maryland, North
Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, and West Virginia; East South Central: Alabama, Kentucky, Mississippi,
and Tennessee; West South Central: Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, and Texas; East North Central: Illinois,
Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, and Wisconsin; West North Central: Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska,
North Dakota, and South Dakota; Mountain: Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah, and
Wyoming; and Pacific: Alaska, California, Hawaii, Oregon, and Washington.

  NOTE:  The indexes for these series are not strictly comparable to those for the aggregate, occupation, and
industry series.  (See "Technical note" for further information.)   Dashes indicate data not available.




Table 7.    Employment Cost Index for total compensation(1), for State and local government workers, by
occupational group and industry


                                              Indexes (Dec. 2005 =             Percent changes for-
                                                      100)


      Occupational group and industry                                  3-months ended-     12-months ended-
                                              Mar.    Dec.    Mar.
                                              2007    2007    2008
                                                                     Mar.   Dec.   Mar.   Mar.   Dec.   Mar.
                                                                     2007   2007   2008   2007   2007   2008


    State and local government workers

All workers................................  105.1   108.4   108.9     1.0    0.7    0.5    4.6    4.1    3.6

            Occupational group

  Management, professional, and related....  104.9   108.3   108.8      .9     .7     .5    4.6    4.1    3.7
    Professional and related...............  104.8   108.2   108.6      .8     .7     .4    4.6    4.0    3.6

  Sales and office.........................  105.6   108.6   108.8     1.4     .6     .2    4.7    4.3    3.0
    Office and administrative support......  105.7   108.9   109.3     1.4     .6     .4    4.7    4.5    3.4

  Service occupations......................  105.4   109.1   109.7      .9    1.0     .5    4.8    4.4    4.1

                 Industry

  Education and health services............  104.8   108.2   108.6      .5     .7     .4    4.5    3.7    3.6
    Education services.....................  104.6   108.0   108.4      .5     .6     .4    4.4    3.7    3.6
      Schools(2)...........................  104.6   108.0   108.4      .5     .6     .4    4.4    3.7    3.6
        Elementary and secondary schools...  104.7   108.0   108.3      .5     .6     .3    4.5    3.6    3.4
    Health care and social assistance(3)...  107.1   109.3   110.1     1.3     .6     .7    5.7    3.4    2.8
      Hospitals............................  105.6   108.2   109.2     1.2     .7     .9    4.7    3.7    3.4
  Public administration....................  105.6   109.1   109.7     1.7    1.0     .5    5.0    5.1    3.9

  1 Includes wages, salaries, and employer costs for employee benefits.
  2 Includes elementary and secondary schools; junior colleges; colleges, universities, and professional
schools.
  3 Includes ambulatory health care services and social assistance, not shown separately.

  NOTE: Dashes indicate data not available.




Table 8.  Employment Cost Index for wages and salaries, for civilian workers, by occupational group and
industry


                                              Indexes (Dec. 2005 =             Percent changes for-
                                                      100)


      Occupational group and industry                                  3-months ended-     12-months ended-
                                              Mar.    Dec.    Mar.
                                              2007    2007    2008
                                                                     Mar.   Dec.   Mar.   Mar.   Dec.   Mar.
                                                                     2007   2007   2008   2007   2007   2008


             Civilian workers

All workers(1).............................  104.3   106.7   107.6     1.1    0.7    0.8    3.6    3.4    3.2
    Excluding incentive paid occupations(2)  104.2   106.8   107.8     1.0     .6     .9    3.5    3.5    3.5

            Occupational group

  Management, professional, and related....  104.7   107.1   108.2     1.1     .5    1.0    3.9    3.4    3.3
    Management, business, and financial....  104.7   106.7   108.2     1.6     .3    1.4    3.5    3.5    3.3
    Professional and related...............  104.7   107.4   108.3      .9     .7     .8    4.1    3.5    3.4

  Sales and office.........................  103.8   106.2   106.7      .8     .8     .5    3.4    3.1    2.8
    Sales and related......................  102.7   105.5   105.2      .2    1.2    -.3    2.9    2.9    2.4
    Office and administrative support......  104.5   106.8   107.8     1.2     .7     .9    3.7    3.4    3.2

  Natural resources, construction, and
   maintenance.............................  104.3   107.1   108.1      .9     .8     .9    3.6    3.6    3.6
    Construction, extraction, farming,
     fishing, and forestry.................  104.6   107.7   109.0      .9    1.0    1.2    3.9    3.9    4.2
    Installation, maintenance, and repair..  103.8   106.4   107.0      .7     .6     .6    3.2    3.2    3.1

  Production, transportation, and material
   moving..................................  103.2   105.1   106.1      .7     .4    1.0    2.6    2.5    2.8
    Production.............................  103.2   104.7   105.7      .9     .4    1.0    2.5    2.3    2.4
    Transportation and material moving.....  103.3   105.5   106.6      .6     .4    1.0    2.8    2.7    3.2

  Service occupations......................  104.6   107.3   108.0     1.4     .8     .7    4.1    4.0    3.3

                 Industry

  Goods-producing industries(3)............  103.9   106.0   107.1     1.0     .6    1.0    3.2    3.0    3.1
    Manufacturing..........................  103.3   104.9   105.9     1.0     .4    1.0    2.6    2.5    2.5

  Service-providing industries(4)..........  104.3   106.8   107.7     1.0     .6     .8    3.6    3.4    3.3
    Education and health services..........  104.4   107.4   108.0      .6     .8     .6    4.0    3.5    3.4
      Education services...................  103.7   106.9   107.3      .2     .7     .4    3.5    3.3    3.5
        Elementary and secondary schools...  103.6   106.6   107.0      .2     .6     .4    3.6    3.1    3.3
        Junior colleges, colleges,
         universities, and professional
         schools...........................  103.9   107.5   107.9      .3     .8     .4    3.4    3.8    3.8
      Health care and social assistance(5)   105.1   107.9   108.9     1.0     .7     .9    4.3    3.7    3.6
        Hospitals..........................  104.8   107.4   108.4     1.0     .7     .9    3.9    3.5    3.4
        Nursing and residential care
         facilities........................  104.1   106.4   107.4      .8     .6     .9    3.4    3.0    3.2
  Public administration....................  104.5   107.4   108.2     1.0     .9     .7    4.0    3.8    3.5

  1 Includes workers in the private nonfarm economy except those in private households, and workers in the
public sector, except the federal government.  See "Technical note" for further explanation.
  2 The index for this series is not strictly comparable with other series in this table.  See "Technical
note" for further explanation.
  3 Includes mining, construction, and manufacturing.
  4 Includes the following industries:  wholesale trade; retail trade; transportation and warehousing;
utilities; information; finance and insurance; real estate and rental and leasing; professional, scientific,
and technical services; management of companies and enterprises; administrative and support and waste
management and remediation services; education services; health care and social assistance; arts,
entertainment, and recreation; accommodation and food services; other services, except public administration.
  5 Includes ambulatory health care services and social assistance, not shown separately.

  NOTE: Dashes indicate data not available.




Table 9.  Employment Cost Index for wages and salaries, for private industry workers, by occupational group and
industry


                                                Indexes (Dec. 2005 =             Percent changes for-
                                                        100)


       Occupational group and industry                                   3-months ended-     12-months ended-
                                                Mar.    Dec.    Mar.
                                                2007    2007    2008
                                                                       Mar.   Dec.   Mar.   Mar.   Dec.   Mar.
                                                                       2007   2007   2008   2007   2007   2008


          Private industry workers

All workers..................................  104.3   106.6   107.6     1.1    0.6    0.9    3.6    3.3    3.2
    Excluding incentive paid occupations(1)..  104.3   106.7   107.9     1.1     .6    1.1    3.5    3.4    3.5

             Occupational group

  Management, professional, and related......  104.9   107.2   108.5     1.3     .5    1.2    3.8    3.5    3.4
        Excluding incentive paid
         occupations(1)......................  104.8   107.2   108.5     1.2     .5    1.2    3.8    3.5    3.5
    Management, business, and financial......  104.7   106.6   108.2     1.6     .3    1.5    3.4    3.4    3.3
        Excluding incentive paid
         occupations(1)......................  104.6   106.9   108.4     1.4     .3    1.4    3.5    3.6    3.6
    Professional and related.................  105.1   107.6   108.7     1.1     .6    1.0    4.2    3.5    3.4

  Sales and office...........................  103.8   106.2   106.7      .8     .9     .5    3.4    3.1    2.8
        Excluding incentive paid
         occupations(1)......................  104.2   106.7   108.0     1.1     .7    1.2    3.4    3.5    3.6
    Sales and related........................  102.8   105.5   105.3      .2    1.1    -.2    3.0    2.8    2.4
        Excluding incentive paid
         occupations(1)......................  103.7   106.6   108.3      .9     .9    1.6    2.8    3.7    4.4
    Office and administrative support........  104.5   106.7   107.7     1.2     .7     .9    3.6    3.3    3.1

  Natural resources, construction, and
   maintenance...............................  104.2   107.1   108.1      .8     .8     .9    3.5    3.6    3.7
    Construction, extraction, farming,
     fishing, and forestry...................  104.7   107.8   109.2     1.0    1.0    1.3    4.0    4.0    4.3
    Installation, maintenance, and repair....  103.7   106.1   106.8      .7     .5     .7    3.0    3.0    3.0

  Production, transportation, and material
   moving....................................  103.1   105.0   106.0      .7     .5    1.0    2.5    2.5    2.8
        Excluding incentive paid
         occupations(1)......................  103.1   105.0   106.0      .9     .4    1.0    2.5    2.7    2.8
    Production...............................  103.1   104.6   105.6      .9     .4    1.0    2.4    2.3    2.4
        Excluding incentive paid
         occupations(1)......................  103.0   104.6   105.5      .8     .5     .9    2.4    2.3    2.4
    Transportation and material moving.......  103.2   105.4   106.5      .6     .4    1.0    2.8    2.7    3.2

  Service occupations........................  104.6   107.1   107.9     1.7     .6     .7    4.0    4.1    3.2

       Industry and occupational group

  Goods-producing industries(2)..............  103.9   106.0   107.1     1.0     .6    1.0    3.2    3.0    3.1
        Excluding incentive paid
         occupations(1)......................  104.0   106.2   107.4     1.1     .6    1.1    3.2    3.2    3.3
      Management, professional, and related..  104.4   106.0   107.7     1.6     .1    1.6    3.3    3.1    3.2
      Sales and office.......................  103.4   105.5   105.8      .3     .8     .3    3.6    2.3    2.3
      Natural resources, construction, and
       maintenance...........................  104.4   107.6   108.8     1.0    1.0    1.1    3.7    4.1    4.2
      Production, transportation, and
       material moving.......................  103.2   104.8   105.7      .8     .4     .9    2.5    2.3    2.4

    Construction.............................  104.9   107.8   109.0     1.2     .7    1.1    4.3    4.0    3.9

    Manufacturing............................  103.3   104.9   105.9     1.0     .4    1.0    2.6    2.5    2.5
        Management, professional, and related  103.8   105.3   106.7     1.5     .3    1.3    2.7    2.9    2.8
        Sales and office.....................  102.4   104.7   105.5      .4     .8     .8    2.9    2.6    3.0
        Natural resources, construction, and
         maintenance.........................  103.8   105.9   106.8      .8     .9     .8    2.9    2.8    2.9
        Production, transportation, and
         material moving.....................  103.1   104.5   105.4      .8     .3     .9    2.4    2.2    2.2

      Aircraft manufacturing.................  104.7   104.6   107.0     1.9     .2    2.3    2.7    1.9    2.2

  Service-providing industries(3)............  104.4   106.8   107.7     1.1     .7     .8    3.6    3.4    3.2
        Excluding incentive paid
         occupations(1)......................  104.4   106.9   108.0     1.1     .6    1.0    3.5    3.5    3.4
      Management, professional, and related..  105.0   107.4   108.6     1.3     .6    1.1    3.9    3.6    3.4
      Sales and office.......................  103.8   106.3   106.8      .9     .9     .5    3.3    3.3    2.9
      Natural resources, construction, and
       maintenance...........................  103.9   106.3   106.9      .5     .6     .6    3.2    2.8    2.9
      Production, transportation, and
       material moving.......................  103.0   105.2   106.3      .6     .6    1.0    2.6    2.7    3.2
      Service occupations....................  104.6   107.2   108.0     1.7     .6     .7    4.0    4.2    3.3

    Trade, transportation, and utilities.....  103.2   105.5   105.9      .5     .9     .4    2.8    2.7    2.6
          Excluding incentive paid
           occupations(1)....................  103.6   106.0   106.8      .9     .6     .8    2.9    3.2    3.1
      Wholesale trade........................  103.8   105.2   105.2      .8    1.2     .0    3.6    2.1    1.3
          Excluding incentive paid
           occupations(1)....................  104.4   106.5   107.4     1.1     .7     .8    3.3    3.1    2.9
      Retail trade...........................  103.1   106.1   106.4      .3    1.0     .3    2.6    3.2    3.2
          Excluding incentive paid
           occupations(1)....................  103.5   106.3   107.1      .9     .8     .8    2.8    3.6    3.5
      Transportation and warehousing.........  102.5   104.2   105.0      .6     .1     .8    2.4    2.3    2.4
      Utilities..............................  104.3   106.8   108.0      .8     .7    1.1    3.5    3.2    3.5

    Information..............................  103.8   105.3   105.3     1.4     .1     .0    2.8    2.8    1.4

    Financial activities.....................  104.7   105.9   107.2     1.8    -.1    1.2    3.4    3.0    2.4
          Excluding incentive paid
           occupations(1)....................  104.6   106.3   108.1     1.5     .2    1.7    3.4    3.1    3.3
      Finance and insurance..................  105.4   106.6   107.9     2.1     .1    1.2    3.7    3.3    2.4
        Credit intermediation and related
         activities..........................  104.5   104.2   105.2     2.8     .7    1.0    3.0    2.5     .7
          Excluding incentive paid
           occupations(1)....................  104.9   106.7   108.7     1.6     .4    1.9    3.6    3.4    3.6
        Insurance carriers and related
         activities..........................  104.1   106.4   107.9     1.1    -.7    1.4    3.1    3.3    3.7
          Excluding incentive paid
           occupations(1)....................  103.9   105.9   107.1     1.3     .3    1.1    3.0    3.2    3.1
      Real estate and rental and leasing.....  101.6   103.1   104.5      .2    -.5    1.4    1.8    1.7    2.9
          Excluding incentive paid
           occupations(1)....................  104.3   105.8   107.4     1.3     .0    1.5    3.4    2.7    3.0

    Professional and business services.......  104.8   107.5   109.1     1.3     .7    1.5    3.8    3.9    4.1
      Professional, scientific, and technical
       services..............................  105.9   108.7   110.8     1.5     .7    1.9    4.5    4.2    4.6
      Administrative and support and waste
       management and remediation services...  103.7   106.5   107.4     1.0     .8     .8    3.2    3.7    3.6

    Education and health services............  104.8   107.7   108.6      .8     .7     .8    4.1    3.6    3.6
      Education services.....................  104.2   107.4   107.9      .1     .9     .5    3.5    3.2    3.6
        Junior colleges, colleges,
         universities, and professional
         schools.............................  104.1   107.4   107.8     -.3     .8     .4    3.2    2.9    3.6
      Health care and social assistance(4)...  104.9   107.8   108.7     1.0     .7     .8    4.2    3.8    3.6
        Hospitals............................  104.6   107.2   108.2      .9     .7     .9    3.7    3.4    3.4
        Nursing and residential care
         facilities..........................  104.2   106.5   107.4      .8     .6     .8    3.5    3.0    3.1
          Nursing care facilities(1).........  104.2   106.4   107.4     1.1     .4     .9    3.5    3.2    3.1

    Leisure and hospitality..................  105.7   108.8   109.7     1.9     .6     .8    5.1    4.9    3.8
      Accommodation and food services........  106.0   109.0   110.0     2.1     .6     .9    5.5    5.0    3.8

    Other services, except public
     administration..........................  105.7   107.9   109.2     1.8     .6    1.2    4.3    3.9    3.3

  1 The index for this series is not strictly comparable with other series in this table.  See "Technical note"
for further explanation.
  2 Includes mining, construction, and manufacturing.
  3 Includes the following industries:  wholesale trade; retail trade; transportation and warehousing;
utilities; information; finance and insurance; real estate and rental and leasing; professional, scientific,
and technical services; management of companies and enterprises; administrative and support and waste
management and remediation services; education services; health care and social assistance; arts,
entertainment, and recreation; accommodation and food services; and other services, except public
administration.
  4 Includes ambulatory health care services and social assistance, not shown separately.

  NOTE: Dashes indicate data not available.




Table 10.  Employment Cost Index for wages and salaries, for private industry workers, by bargaining status,
region, and area


                                              Indexes (Dec. 2005 =             Percent changes for-
                                                      100)

   Bargaining status, census region and
  division, and metropolitan area status                               3-months ended-     12-months ended-
                                              Mar.    Dec.    Mar.
                                              2007    2007    2008
                                                                     Mar.   Dec.   Mar.   Mar.   Dec.   Mar.
                                                                     2007   2007   2008   2007   2007   2008


             Bargaining status

  Union....................................  102.8   104.7   105.5     0.5    0.3    0.8    2.5    2.3    2.6
    Goods-producing industries(1)..........  102.7   104.3   105.2      .4     .0     .9    2.2    2.0    2.4
      Manufacturing........................  102.0   102.6   103.4      .3    -.3     .8    1.4     .9    1.4
    Service-providing industries(2)........  102.9   104.9   105.8      .7     .3     .9    2.8    2.6    2.8

  Nonunion.................................  104.5   106.9   107.9     1.2     .7     .9    3.7    3.5    3.3
    Goods-producing industries(1)..........  104.2   106.4   107.7     1.2     .6    1.2    3.5    3.3    3.4
      Manufacturing........................  103.6   105.5   106.6     1.1     .6    1.0    2.9    2.9    2.9
    Service-providing industries(2)........  104.6   107.0   107.9     1.2     .7     .8    3.8    3.5    3.2

       Census region and division(3)

  Northeast................................  104.0   106.6   107.5      .9     .5     .8    3.2    3.4    3.4
    New England............................  103.6   106.3   107.1      .5     .6     .8    2.9    3.1    3.4
    Middle Atlantic........................  104.2   106.7   107.6     1.1     .3     .8    3.4    3.5    3.3

  South....................................  104.6   107.0   108.1     1.0     .5    1.0    3.6    3.3    3.3
    South Atlantic.........................  105.0   107.5   108.6     1.1     .6    1.0    3.7    3.5    3.4
    East South Central.....................  104.2   106.3   107.2     1.1     .7     .8    3.5    3.1    2.9
    West South Central.....................  104.1   106.6   107.8      .7     .5    1.1    3.5    3.1    3.6

  Midwest..................................  103.6   105.6   106.3     1.0     .6     .7    3.2    2.9    2.6
    East North Central.....................  103.6   105.3   105.8     1.1     .6     .5    3.3    2.7    2.1
    West North Central.....................  103.8   106.3   107.9     1.1     .7    1.5    3.2    3.5    3.9

  West.....................................  104.8   107.0   108.3     1.6     .8    1.2    4.1    3.7    3.3
    Mountain...............................  105.3   107.8   108.9     2.0    1.0    1.0    4.7    4.5    3.4
    Pacific................................  104.6   106.8   108.1     1.3     .8    1.2    3.8    3.4    3.3

         Metropolitan area status

  Metropolitan areas.......................  104.3   106.5   107.5     1.2     .6     .9    3.6    3.3    3.1
  Nonmetropolitan areas....................  104.4   107.0   108.1      .9     .8    1.0    3.5    3.4    3.5

  1 Includes mining, construction, and manufacturing.
  2 Includes the following industries:  wholesale trade; retail trade; transportation and warehousing;
utilities; information; finance and insurance; real estate and rental and leasing; professional, scientific,
and technical services; management of companies and enterprises; administrative and support and waste
management and remediation services; education services; health care and social assistance; arts,
entertainment, and recreation; accommodation and food services; and other services, except public
administration.
  3 The states (including the District of Columbia) that comprise the census divisions are: New England:
Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont; Middle Atlantic: New Jersey, New
York, and Pennsylvania; South Atlantic: Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Maryland, North
Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, and West Virginia; East South Central: Alabama, Kentucky, Mississippi,
and Tennessee; West South Central: Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, and Texas; East North Central: Illinois,
Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, and Wisconsin; West North Central: Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska,
North Dakota, and South Dakota; Mountain: Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah, and
Wyoming; and Pacific: Alaska, California, Hawaii, Oregon, and Washington.

  NOTE:  The indexes for these series are not strictly comparable to those for the aggregate, occupation, and
  industry series.  (See "Technical note" for further information.)   Dashes indicate data not available.




Table 11.  Employment Cost Index for wages and salaries, for State and local government workers, by
occupational group and industry


                                              Indexes (Dec. 2005 =             Percent changes for-
                                                      100)


      Occupational group and industry                                  3-months ended-     12-months ended-
                                              Mar.    Dec.    Mar.
                                              2007    2007    2008
                                                                     Mar.   Dec.   Mar.   Mar.   Dec.   Mar.
                                                                     2007   2007   2008   2007   2007   2008


    State and local government workers

All workers................................  104.1   107.1   107.7     0.6    0.7    0.6    3.8    3.5    3.5

            Occupational group

  Management, professional, and related....  104.0   107.0   107.6      .5     .7     .6    3.8    3.4    3.5
    Professional and related...............  103.9   107.0   107.5      .3     .7     .5    3.7    3.3    3.5

  Sales and office.........................  104.5   107.0   107.4     1.3     .7     .4    3.9    3.7    2.8
    Office and administrative support......  104.7   107.3   107.8     1.3     .8     .5    4.0    3.8    3.0

  Service occupations......................  104.5   107.7   108.3      .6    1.1     .6    4.2    3.7    3.6

                 Industry

  Education and health services............  104.0   107.1   107.5      .4     .8     .4    3.8    3.4    3.4
    Education services.....................  103.7   106.8   107.2      .3     .7     .4    3.6    3.3    3.4
      Schools(1)...........................  103.6   106.8   107.2      .2     .7     .4    3.5    3.3    3.5
        Elementary and secondary schools...  103.6   106.6   106.9      .2     .6     .3    3.6    3.1    3.2
    Health care and social assistance(2)...  106.6   109.2   110.1     1.0     .9     .8    5.5    3.5    3.3
      Hospitals............................  105.7   108.6   109.8     1.2     .9    1.1    4.8    4.0    3.9
  Public administration....................  104.5   107.4   108.2     1.0     .9     .7    4.0    3.8    3.5

  1 Includes elementary and secondary schools; junior colleges; colleges, universities, and professional
schools.
  2 Includes ambulatory health care services and social assistance, not shown separately.

  NOTE: Dashes indicate data not available.




Table 12.  Employment Cost Index for benefits, by ownership, occupational group, industry, and bargaining
status


                                              Indexes (Dec. 2005 =             Percent changes for-
                                                      100)

     Occupational group, industry, and
             bargaining status                                         3-months ended-     12-months ended-
                                              Mar.    Dec.    Mar.
                                              2007    2007    2008
                                                                     Mar.   Dec.   Mar.   Mar.   Dec.   Mar.
                                                                     2007   2007   2008   2007   2007   2008


             Civilian workers

All workers(1).............................  104.0   106.8   107.6     0.4    0.7    0.7    3.1    3.1    3.5

         Private industry workers

All workers................................  103.2   105.6   106.5      .1     .6     .9    2.2    2.4    3.2

            Occupational group

  Management, professional, and related....  103.8   106.0   107.3      .4     .4    1.2    2.5    2.5    3.4

  Sales and office.........................  103.4   106.0   106.5      .5     .8     .5    2.6    3.0    3.0

  Natural resources, construction, and
   maintenance.............................  103.4   105.9   106.5     -.6     .6     .6    2.3    1.8    3.0

  Production, transportation, and material
   moving..................................  101.2   103.7   104.4     -.8    1.0     .7    1.1    1.7    3.2

  Service occupations......................  104.2   106.7   107.6      .6     .7     .8    2.7    3.0    3.3

                 Industry


  Goods-producing industries(2)............  100.9   103.2   104.0     -.8     .8     .8    1.3    1.5    3.1
    Manufacturing..........................   99.6   101.7   102.3    -1.2    1.0     .6     .6     .9    2.7
      Aircraft manufacturing...............   72.6    68.6    71.1   -12.7     .1    3.6   -8.2  -17.5   -2.1

  Service-providing industries(3)..........  104.1   106.6   107.6      .4     .6     .9    2.6    2.8    3.4

             Bargaining status

  Union....................................  102.4   105.8   106.6    -1.7    1.4     .8    1.6    1.5    4.1
  Nonunion.................................  103.4   105.6   106.5      .5     .5     .9    2.4    2.6    3.0

    State and local government workers

All workers................................  107.0   111.0   111.4     1.7     .6     .4    6.3    5.5    4.1

  1 Includes workers in the private nonfarm economy except those in private households, and workers in the
public sector, except the federal government.  See "Technical note" for further explanation.
  2 Includes mining, construction, and manufacturing.
  3 Includes the following industries:  wholesale trade; retail trade; transportation and warehousing;
utilities; information; finance and insurance; real estate and rental and leasing; professional, scientific,
and technical services; management of companies and enterprises; administrative and support and waste
management and remediation services; education services; health care and social assistance; arts,
entertainment, and recreation; accommodation and food services; and other services, except public
administration.

  NOTE: Dashes indicate data not available.



                                       TECHNICAL 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 changes 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 attendance bonuses); insurance benefits--life, health, short-term disability,
and long-term disability; retirement and savings benefits--defined benefit and defined contribution
plans; and legally required benefits--Social Security, Medicare, federal and state unemployment
insurance, and workers’ compensation.

     The ECI provides data for the civilian economy, which includes the total private nonfarm
economy excluding private 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.

     Sample establishments are classified by industry categories based on the 2007 North American
Industry Classification system (NAICS).  Prior to December 2007, the 2002 NAICS classification
system was used.  Differences between the two NAICS systems did not affect any of the published
ECI series.  All industries are classified into two sectors--goods-producing and service-providing,
except for public administration, which is a separate category in state and local government.
Within a sample establishment, specific job categories are selected and classified into about
800 occupational classifications according to the 2000 Standard Occupational Classification (SOC)
system.  Individual occupations are combined to represent one of ten intermediate aggregations,
such as professional and related occupations, or one of five higher-level aggregations such as
management, professional, and related occupations.  Both the NAICS and the SOC classification
systems are defined by the US Office of Management and Budget (OMB).  For more detailed information
on NAICS and SOC, including background definitions, see the BLS Web sites:  www.bls.gov/bls/naics.htm
and www.bls.gov/soc/home.htm.

     To be included in the ECI, employees in occupations must receive cash payments from the
establishment for services performed and the establishment must pay the employer’s portion
of Medicare taxes on that individual’s wages.  Major exclusions from the survey are the
self-employed, individuals who set their own pay (for example, proprietors, owners, major
stockholders, and partners in unincorporated firms), volunteers, unpaid workers, family members
being paid token wages, individuals receiving long-term disability compensation, and U.S. citizens
working overseas.

     Data for the March 2008 quarter were collected from a probability sample of approximately
57,000 occupational observations selected from a sample of about 12,200 establishments in private
industry and approximately 11,800 occupations from a sample of about 1,900 establishments in
state and local governments.  The state and local government sample, which is replaced less
frequently than the private industry sample, was replaced in its entirety in September 2007.
As a result of this replacement, the number of state and local government occupations and
establishments increased substantially.  The private industry sample is rotated over approximately
5 years, which makes the sample more representative of the economy and reduces respondent burden.
Data are collected for the pay period including the 12th day of the survey months of March, June,
September, and December.  The sample is replaced on a cross-area, cross-industry basis.

     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 occupational series indexes.  Beginning with March 2006 estimates, 2002 fixed
employment weights from the Bureau’s Occupational Employment Statistics survey were introduced.

     For the series based on bargaining status, census region and division, metropolitan area
status, and for series excluding incentive paid occupations, fixed employment data are not
available.  The employment weights are reallocated within these series each quarter based on
the current ECI sample.  The nursing care facilities indexes in private industry are estimated
using fixed-employment weights derived from staffing patterns estimated from the four-digit
industry NAICS group 6231, nursing care facilities, a sub-industry of the larger industry group,
nursing and residential care facilities (NAICS 623).  The indexes for these series, consequently,
are not strictly comparable with those for the aggregate, occupational, and industry series.
A fuller explanation of the calculation of index numbers appears in chapter 8 of the BLS Handbook
of Methods, at the web site www.bls.gov/opub/hom/pdf/homch8.pdf.

     Beginning with the release of the March 2006 data, indexes were rebased to December 2005=100
from June 1989=100.  The percentage changes shown in the current- and constant-dollar historical
tables were calculated from the rebased indexes.  Thus, changes may differ from those originally
published because of rounding.

     The ECI state and local government sample consists of 152 areas that represent the Nation's
361 metropolitan statistical areas and 573 micropolitan statistical areas as defined by OMB in
June 2003 and the remaining portions of the 50 states.  The ECI private industry sample consists
of 151 metropolitan areas and nonmetropolitan areas that represent the Nation's 326 metropolitan
statistical areas as defined by OMB in 1994 and the remaining portions of the 50 states.
Metropolitan areas are defined as Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs) or Consolidated
Metropolitan Statistical Areas (CMSAs).  Nonmetropolitan areas are counties and other geographic
designations that do not fit the metropolitan area definition.  The private industry estimates
will begin the conversion to June 2003 OMB areas definitions in December 2008.

     Seasonally adjusted data for selected ECI series began with the December 1990 ECI release.
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.  The seasonal adjustment
factors are recalculated once per 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 2008 and revised seasonally
adjusted indexes for the past 5 years are available at www.bls.gov/ect or upon request.  Several
new seasonally adjusted indexes and 3-month percent changes of occupational series were added
this quarter, with historical data available beginning with March 2003.

     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.

     The ECI uses standard errors to evaluate published series.  To assist users in ascertaining
the reliability of series, the standard errors for all estimates (excluding seasonally adjusted
series) are available on the BLS Web site at www.bls.gov/ect shortly after the 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.  An important consideration when choosing a series for escalation
is the sampling error.  For more information, see www.bls.gov/ect/escalator.htm.

     More detailed information on the ECI is available from several sources.  These include a
chapter, "National compensation measures," (www.bls.gov/opub/hom/pdf/homch8.pdf) from the BLS
Handbook of Methods, and several articles published in the Monthly Labor Review and Compensation
and Working Conditions.  The articles and other descriptive pieces are available at
www.bls.gov/ect/#publications, by calling (202) 691-6199, or sending e-mail to NCSinfo@bls.gov.

     Historical ECI data, using industry categories based on the Standard Industrial Classification
(SIC) System and classifying jobs into occupational classifications according to the Census of
Population, are available dating from the first publication of each series to December 2005 at:
www.bls.gov/web/echistry.pdf.  Data are also available for series based on the 2002 and
2007 North American Industry Classification Systems (NAICS) and the 2000 Standard Occupational
Classification (SOC) beginning in March 2001, using December 2005=100 as the base period at:
www.bls.gov/web/echistrynaics.pdf.

     In addition, constant-dollar ECI series derived from the Consumer Price Index for All Urban
Consumers (CPI-U) are available.  The constant-dollar series are calculated by converting the CPI-U
to the same base as the ECI.  The ECI for each quarter is then divided by the converted CPI-U for
the same reference period.  The CPI-U U.S. City Average All Items is used to compute all series
except for the regional estimates, which use corresponding CPI regional data.

     Supplemental data from the ECI, providing 12-month percent changes in employer costs for
health insurance in private industry, are also available at www.bls.gov/ect/sp/echealth.pdf.

     The costs per hour worked of compensation components, based on data from the ECI, are published
in a separate news release titled "Employer Costs for Employee Compensation" (ECEC).  The next
ECEC release is scheduled for 10:00 AM EDT, Wednesday, June 11, 2008.  Historical ECEC data are
also available in summary documents.  Both the release and historical data are available at
www.bls.gov/ect, by email to NCSinfo@bls.gov, or (202) 691-6199.  Since the ECEC is calculated
with current employment weights rather than the fixed weights used in computing the ECI,
year-to-year changes in the cost levels usually differ from those in the ECI.


Last Modified Date: April 30, 2008