Higher premiums have led to a greater-than-expected increase in employment expenses for many American businesses in the second quarter of 2011, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Costs rose 0.7 percent per employee for compensation, including worksite benefits like health insurance. In fact, much of these gains were influenced by increases in employee benefit expenditures, according to the BLS.
Salaries, which typically make up 70 percent of employment costs, rose by 0.4 percent. On the other hand, benefit costs increased by 1.3 percent, the source reports.
"Looking into the third and fourth quarters, we’re seeing total compensation, benefits expense, roughly in line with second quarter," financial expert James Squires explained to Bloomberg.
While costs have been increasing for employee benefits, the employment incentives have remained an integral part of human resource systems. The Bureau of Labor Statistics also reports that paid leave benefits are the most often offered form of employee benefits and 91 percent of all full-time workers have them. However, private industry employees had less access to paid vacations, with only 37 percent of all privately employed individuals getting the perk.
