Institute for Compensation Studies™

ICS' Quarterly Commentary on the Employment Cost Index

For 2012

• Third Quarter 2012
  ECI aligns with "Jobs Report" in signaling steadily strengthening employment picture
• Second Quarter 2012
  12-month percent change in private sector benefit costs drops precipitously
• First Quarter 2012
  ECI essentially flat with increases reported throughout 2010 and 2011

For 2011

• Fourth Quarter 2011
  Compensation cost increases continuing in a solid “holding pattern”
• Third Quarter 2011
  Q3 employment cost index dips
  
• Second Quarter 2011
  Employment cost index highest since 2008
  
• First Quarter 2011
  Steady, slow currents in U.S. labor market waters, ICS’ Barrington
  

For 2010

• Fourth quarter 2010
  Labor costs inching up, but not enough to chill hiring: Cornell expert
  
• Third quarter 2010
  Growth rates of U.S. employment costs for the third quarter of 2010 provide further evidence of a soft, but non-recessionary private-sector labor market. The state and local public-sector labor market continues to struggle.
  
• Second quarter 2010
  Benefits Explain Why Employers’ Costs Rise, But Employees Might Feel Worse Off: Director of Cornell’s Institute for Compensation Studies™