Regional employment costs second-highest in U.S.

Employee compensation in private industry in the Pennsylvania-New Jersey-New York area in December was $30.10 an hour, the second-highest of the nation's nine regions, the Bureau of Labor Statistics said today.

The highest hourly total, $30.18, was in New England.

In the three Middle Atlantic states, wages averaged $20.72 an hour, while the rest of the total was the cost of benefits such as vacation/holiday/sick pay, life/health/disability insurance, Social Security/Medicare, and retirement contributions.

For the nation, the December total compensation in private industry averaged $26.42, the BLS said.