Thursday, November 08, 2007
Productivity Surges by 4.9 Percent Rate
from The Associated Press
WASHINGTON November 7, 2007, 5:13 p.m. ET · Worker productivity surged in the summer at the fastest pace in four years while wage pressures eased.
The Labor Department reported that productivity - the amount of output per hour of work - jumped at an annual rate of 4.9 percent in the July-September quarter. That was more than twice the 2.2 percent rise in the second quarter and was the fastest surge in worker efficiency since 2003.
At the same time, wage pressures eased. Unit labor costs dropped at an annual rate of 0.2 percent, the best showing in more than a year.
Both outcomes were far better than expected and should relieve some concerns that a surge in productivity that began in the mid-1990s was in danger of being reversed.
The slight drop in wage pressures was especially welcome after hefty increases over the past four quarters. Rising wages are good for workers. But if higher wages are not accom...
| Posted by maricela at 10:21 AM |
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