National Association of State Retirement Administrators


Compensation

Wages and Salaries

Wages and salaries for state and local government workers increased by 4.7 percent for the 12-month period ending June 2023, according to data published by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. This rate of growth is unchanged from the previous two quarters, which represented the highest ever reported in at least two decades, and approximately 47 percent higher than the rate of annualized growth reported for the 12-month period ending June 2022.

Wages for private sector workers increased by 4.6 percent for the 12-month period ending June 2023, which is the first quarter of annualized growth below five percent following seven consecutive quarters of growth at or above that level. 
Annualized Quarterly Change in Wage and Salary Costs
for Private and State and Local Government Employees, 2001-2023


Benefits

The cost of state and local government employee benefits increased by 5.2 percent for the 12-month period ending June 2023, according to data published by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. This is the fourth consecutive quarter of annualized increase at or above five percent, which marks the highest rate of increase in this metric since the last quarter of 2007. The rate of annualized increase in the cost of benefits for private sector workers was 3.9 percent for the same period.
Annualized Quarterly Change in Benefit Costs
for Private and State and Local Government Employees, 2001-2023
Compiled by NASRA based on data provided by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Data is sourced from the BLS Employment Cost Index program, which is a quarterly survey of establishments measuring the change in employer costs for labor, independent of employment shifts. The ECI survey reference period is the pay period that includes the 12th day of the month. 

See more: https://www.bls.gov/ect/