Comparing Compensation: State-Local Versus Private Sector Workers

New Center for Excellence issue brief

WASHINGTON, Sept. 15, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- A new issue brief from the Center for State and Local Government Excellence, Comparing Compensation: State-Local Versus Private Sector Workers, examines whether benefits close the wage gap between public and private sector workers. Their analysis found that the compensation of state-local and private sector workers is similar.

Written by Alicia H. Munnell, Jean-Pierre Aubry, Josh Hurwitz, and Laura Quinby of the Center for Retirement Research at Boston College, the brief's key findings are:

• State and local workers have a wage penalty of 9.5 percent.
• Pension contributions and retiree health insurance help close the gap.
• Total compensation for public sector workers is about 4 percent less than that in the private sector.

Read the full brief at http://tinyurl.com/comparingcomp

About the Center for State and Local Government Excellence
The Center for State and Local Government Excellence helps state and local governments become knowledgeable and competitive employers so they can attract and retain a talented and committed workforce. The Center identifies best practices and conducts research on competitive employment practices, workforce development, pensions, retiree health security, and financial planning. The Center also brings state and local leaders together with respected researchers and features the latest demographic data on the aging workforce, research studies, and news on health care, recruitment, and succession planning on its website, www.slge.org.

SOURCE Center for State and Local Government Excellence