Federal Reserve insider Nick Timiraos, citing Employment Cost Index (ECI) data, noted that U.S. employer benefit costs surged by 3.9% in the third quarter, surpassing the 3.1% growth in wages and salaries. This reversed the traditional trend where benefit cost growth was slightly lower than wage growth. The primary reason was a sharp increase in health insurance costs, leading to a smaller portion of workers' compensation being in wages and a larger portion in insurance premiums. Additionally, private sector compensation (excluding incentive-paid occupations) grew by 3.1% year-over-year in Q3, the lowest level since Q1 2021. Timiraos suggested that rising fixed costs for worker health insurance might lead companies to be more cautious in hiring or to shift towards part-time workers without benefits.