Employment Cost Index

Year-over-year change in total employer compensation costs (wages + benefits) for civilian workers. The Fed's preferred wage inflation gauge — broader than average hourly earnings because it captures benefits and controls for composition shifts. Above 4% YoY is inconsistent with 2% inflation; the Fed watches this closely in every FOMC cycle.

Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics, accessed via ALFRED (Archival FRED). ALFRED archives each data point exactly as it was first published on release day — before any revision by the reporting agency. The figures shown here are what investors, traders, and policymakers were actually looking at when the data came out. Economic releases like payrolls, GDP, and inflation are often revised significantly in subsequent months; ALFRED lets you see the real-time picture.