Once again the boogies, her unnamed "labor analysts," see rising wages as a BAD. Dave Richardson ---------------------- DAILY REPORT, MONDAY, MAY 20, 1996 Labor markets in nearly all regions of the United States are expected to experience steady but slower job growth and modest wage pressures over the rest of 1996 and into 1997, according to analysts across the country who were interviewed in early and mid-May (Daily Labor Report, Special Supplement). Labor shortages appear in many areas, at both the high- and low-end of the pay scale, but analysts typically say they are not worried about undue wage pressures. Despite brisk job growth in the first quarter of the year, analysts predict slower expansion of payrolls over the rest of this year ....Compensation and income trends show intriguing shifts in the recent quarter. The mix of total compensation costs paid by employers is changing as increases in costs are coming down on the benefit side and turning up on the wage side. Even as wage hikes move above 3 percent in some areas, benefit cost increases are subsiding as health care costs decelerate ....BLS figures on the regional ECIs, state unemployment rates, and state and regional payroll employment are used in the supplement, and Wayne Shelly, BLS economist, is quoted on benefit costs in the national ECI. There will be increasing pressure on employer-sponsored retirement savings and health plans to do more as federal health and retirement programs provide diminished benefits in the 21st century, former Assistant Labor Secretary David Walker told a conference (Daily Labor Report, page A-7). Walker is now a managing partner of Arthur Andersen LLP's Atlanta-based global compensation and benefits practice ....Walker said individuals increasingly are relying on private pension plans for their retirement income. Whereas in 1970, the average individual received 16 percent of retirement income from private pension plans, in 1992 the percentage increased to 31 percent "and that number is going up," he said. The percentage of retirement income that Social Security accounts for is decreasing steadily, he added .... DUE OUT TOMORROW: Youth Labor Force Expected This Summer
