Q3 US Employment Cost Index Rise as Expected, Wages and Benefits Growth Both Slow

08:40 AM EDT, 10/30/2026 (MT Newswires) -- The quarterly US employment cost index rose by 0.8% in Q3, as expected in a survey compiled by Bloomberg and slower than the 0.9% gain in the previous quarter, the US Bureau of Labor Statistics reported on Friday. Benefits costs growth slowed to 0.9% in the quarter after a 1% gain in previous quarter, while wage growth slowed to 0.7% from 0.9% in Q2. Compensation rose by 3.4% year-over-year in Q3, the same as in Q2, but was down 0.4% from a year earlier on a constant dollar basis.