The bureau also reported that hourly compensation grew at an anemic annual rate of 3.3 percent in the quarter, a bit more slowly than inflation.

Teachers who are required to work after the school day receive $22 hourly compensation.

At Ford, wages and benefits will add an estimated $4.24 over three years to the current average hourly compensation of $27.12, industry analysts said.

Over the same period, total hourly compensation, including fringes, edged up to $17.63 an hour from $15.09.

Still, even the most optimistic measure, the total hourly compensation of the average worker, rose only 3 percent between 1978 and 1994.

Unit labor costs, a ratio of hourly compensation to output, rose 2.5 percent in the first quarter.

In the manufacturing sector, total hourly compensation is, on average, 22 percent higher than the services sector.

Compared with last year, hourly compensation rose 5.8 percent (1.9 percent in inflation-adjusted terms).

Real hourly compensation, which adjusts wages and benefits for inflation, fell 1.4 percent.

Before adjusting for inflation, hourly compensation rose 3.7 percent.