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Manufacturing labor productivity decreased 15.5 percent in the second quarter of 2020
August 21, 2020
Manufacturing labor productivity decreased at a 15.5-percent annual rate in the second quarter of 2020, as output fell 47.0 percent and hours worked dropped 37.3 percent. These were the largest quarterly declines ever recorded (data begin in 1987). Total manufacturing productivity declined 4.1 percent over the last four quarters, as output decreased 15.8 percent and hours worked decreased 12.2 percent.
Percent change from previous quarter (annual rate) in labor productivity, output, and hours worked in manufacturing, second quarter 1987 to second quarter 2020
Quarter
Manufacturing productivity
Durable goods productivity
Nondurable goods productivity
Manufacturing output
Durable goods output
Nondurable goods output
Manufacturing hours worked
Durable goods hours worked
Nondurable goods hours worked
Q2 1987
7.4%
7.9%
6.7%
6.3%
5.7%
7.2%
-1.1%
-2.0%
0.5%
Q3 1987
3.7
3.8
3.5
6.4
6.0
7.3
2.7
2.1
3.6
Q4 1987
2.3
4.2
0.8
10.1
14.8
4.4
7.6
10.2
3.6
Q1 1988
-1.5
-1.4
-1.3
0.6
0.9
0.5
2.1
2.3
1.8
Q2 1988
0.6
0.4
1.7
3.3
5.6
0.7
2.8
5.1
-1.0
Q3 1988
-0.6
-1.2
0.3
0.5
0.2
1.0
1.2
1.5
0.7
Q4 1988
2.2
3.2
1.2
5.0
7.0
2.3
2.7
3.7
1.0
Q1 1989
1.8
1.8
1.3
3.6
3.0
4.1
1.8
1.2
2.8
Q2 1989
-1.7
-1.1
-3.5
-2.2
-3.7
-0.4
-0.5
-2.7
3.2
Q3 1989
-1.2
-1.0
-1.9
-3.2
-3.7
-2.7
-2.0
-2.8
-0.8
Q4 1989
4.7
2.7
6.6
-0.4
-3.2
3.2
-4.8
-5.8
-3.2
Q1 1990
7.5
7.8
6.3
2.6
1.8
3.3
-4.6
-5.6
-2.9
Q2 1990
1.9
4.6
-1.6
2.1
4.8
-1.4
0.2
0.3
0.2
Q3 1990
4.4
4.3
4.1
0.6
-0.2
1.4
-3.7
-4.3
-2.6
Q4 1990
-1.0
-4.8
2.8
-6.8
-12.1
0.0
-5.8
-7.6
-2.8
Q1 1991
-0.7
-1.2
-1.3
-8.5
-11.8
-4.6
-7.9
-10.8
-3.3
Q2 1991
4.2
4.3
4.1
2.4
2.5
2.4
-1.7
-1.8
-1.7
Q3 1991
6.8
10.3
2.4
7.8
10.1
5.3
0.9
-0.2
2.8
Q4 1991
1.7
4.9
-2.7
1.8
2.7
0.9
0.1
-2.1
3.6
Q1 1992
4.2
3.6
5.1
0.9
0.2
1.9
-3.2
-3.3
-3.0
Q2 1992
7.4
13.2
0.4
8.6
12.4
4.4
1.2
-0.7
4.0
Q3 1992
8.7
8.3
9.5
4.5
4.9
4.2
-3.9
-3.2
-4.9
Q4 1992
-0.2
2.1
-2.7
3.6
5.7
1.3
3.8
3.5
4.2
Q1 1993
3.3
4.5
1.8
4.6
5.7
3.4
1.3
1.1
1.6
Q2 1993
-0.4
0.8
-1.9
1.5
2.0
0.9
1.8
1.2
2.8
Q3 1993
-0.1
-1.8
2.5
0.8
0.5
1.4
1.0
2.3
-1.1
Q4 1993
5.3
10.3
-0.2
6.9
12.3
0.7
1.5
1.9
1.0
Q1 1994
2.6
3.2
2.5
4.4
6.5
2.1
1.7
3.2
-0.4
Q2 1994
4.8
5.9
3.7
9.2
11.2
7.0
4.3
4.9
3.2
Q3 1994
1.5
3.0
0.3
5.6
8.7
2.0
4.0
5.6
1.7
Q4 1994
4.7
6.8
2.8
9.7
13.6
5.0
4.7
6.3
2.2
Q1 1995
3.4
5.2
1.7
3.5
6.2
0.4
0.1
0.9
-1.2
Q2 1995
4.7
6.7
2.5
-0.2
1.9
-2.7
-4.7
-4.5
-5.1
Q3 1995
2.4
3.7
1.1
2.1
4.8
-1.1
-0.2
1.0
-2.2
Q4 1995
3.9
6.6
0.6
3.5
6.8
-0.6
-0.4
0.2
-1.2
Q1 1996
5.4
6.1
4.9
0.8
3.2
-2.6
-4.4
-2.7
-7.1
Q2 1996
2.6
4.9
-0.1
8.8
13.1
3.3
6.1
7.8
3.4
Q3 1996
5.2
7.3
2.3
6.7
8.8
3.9
1.4
1.4
1.5
Q4 1996
2.7
2.6
3.1
4.7
5.0
4.3
2.0
2.4
1.2
Q1 1997
5.2
5.6
5.6
8.0
10.6
4.7
2.6
4.8
-0.8
Q2 1997
5.1
7.9
1.8
5.4
8.8
1.3
0.3
0.8
-0.5
Q3 1997
7.0
7.9
6.7
8.6
11.5
5.1
1.5
3.3
-1.6
Q4 1997
5.5
11.0
-1.4
9.4
14.3
3.4
3.7
3.0
4.9
Q1 1998
3.0
3.9
2.6
4.1
6.4
1.4
1.0
2.4
-1.2
Q2 1998
1.7
2.5
0.5
0.0
-0.1
0.2
-1.7
-2.5
-0.3
Q3 1998
6.9
8.4
5.1
1.7
4.5
-2.0
-4.8
-3.6
-6.7
Q4 1998
4.9
10.0
-1.9
7.3
13.9
-1.9
2.2
3.6
0.0
Q1 1999
9.4
10.8
6.1
4.9
4.7
4.3
-4.1
-5.5
-1.6
Q2 1999
5.3
7.0
2.3
3.8
5.6
0.7
-1.5
-1.4
-1.6
Q3 1999
0.1
-0.2
1.1
1.8
4.7
-2.8
1.7
5.0
-3.8
Q4 1999
9.9
7.0
13.7
6.7
4.2
9.9
-2.9
-2.6
-3.4
Q1 2000
2.6
5.6
-1.7
2.7
5.5
-1.3
0.1
-0.1
0.4
Q2 2000
2.0
2.2
1.8
3.3
4.6
1.2
1.3
2.4
-0.6
Q3 2000
-0.1
0.8
-1.6
-1.8
-0.7
-3.6
-1.7
-1.5
-2.0
Q4 2000
3.5
1.0
7.2
-3.2
-4.1
-2.4
-6.5
-5.0
-8.9
Q1 2001
-0.5
-0.6
-1.4
-6.5
-7.6
-5.7
-6.0
-7.0
-4.3
Q2 2001
4.1
4.2
2.6
-5.9
-7.2
-5.1
-9.7
-10.9
-7.5
Q3 2001
1.6
0.1
1.0
-6.5
-10.3
-2.5
-7.9
-10.3
-3.5
Q4 2001
10.8
7.4
12.5
-3.7
-8.8
1.6
-13.1
-15.0
-9.6
Q1 2002
12.6
13.4
9.7
4.7
4.4
3.7
-7.0
-7.9
-5.5
Q2 2002
8.7
9.1
7.1
6.6
7.6
4.1
-1.9
-1.3
-2.8
Q3 2002
8.0
9.1
5.5
3.3
3.9
1.6
-4.3
-4.7
-3.7
Q4 2002
4.9
7.9
-0.2
-0.3
0.0
-1.0
-4.9
-7.3
-0.9
Q1 2003
8.3
7.1
10.2
2.0
1.3
3.1
-5.8
-5.4
-6.4
Q2 2003
4.5
5.1
3.6
-2.4
-2.3
-2.6
-6.6
-7.0
-5.9
Q3 2003
9.3
12.9
4.7
2.2
5.0
-1.4
-6.5
-6.9
-5.8
Q4 2003
-0.1
-0.2
0.3
3.4
5.0
1.1
3.5
5.3
0.8
Q1 2004
-1.3
-3.9
2.1
1.0
0.6
0.8
2.4
4.6
-1.3
Q2 2004
4.4
1.1
8.3
2.0
-0.6
4.6
-2.3
-1.7
-3.4
Q3 2004
3.2
0.7
6.8
3.2
2.4
3.5
-0.1
1.7
-3.1
Q4 2004
7.8
7.2
8.2
6.1
5.9
5.8
-1.6
-1.2
-2.3
Q1 2005
8.6
8.9
8.5
7.2
8.8
5.0
-1.2
-0.1
-3.2
Q2 2005
5.2
5.6
4.7
2.2
2.8
1.3
-2.9
-2.7
-3.3
Q3 2005
-0.5
1.0
-1.1
-1.4
1.5
-4.5
-0.9
0.5
-3.4
Q4 2005
0.6
6.3
-4.9
5.4
11.9
-1.2
4.8
5.2
3.9
Q1 2006
-0.7
-1.4
0.6
2.0
1.2
3.4
2.7
2.7
2.8
Q2 2006
-1.8
-1.8
-0.7
-0.4
1.0
-1.8
1.4
2.8
-1.1
Q3 2006
4.4
5.7
1.5
1.0
0.3
1.6
-3.2
-5.1
0.2
Q4 2006
6.3
4.8
8.1
1.7
1.0
1.9
-4.4
-3.6
-5.8
Q1 2007
5.8
7.0
2.9
4.7
5.1
3.3
-1.0
-1.8
0.4
Q2 2007
4.7
8.2
-0.1
6.4
10.0
1.5
1.7
1.6
1.6
Q3 2007
4.1
3.3
4.6
1.3
1.3
0.7
-2.7
-2.0
-3.8
Q4 2007
5.5
8.7
0.1
1.3
2.5
-0.9
-4.0
-5.7
-1.0
Q1 2008
-0.1
-0.9
0.7
-3.3
-2.6
-5.0
-3.2
-1.7
-5.7
Q2 2008
-5.9
-7.6
-4.7
-7.6
-9.3
-6.7
-1.9
-1.7
-2.1
Q3 2008
-5.0
-4.5
-8.8
-13.3
-15.8
-11.5
-8.7
-11.8
-3.1
Q4 2008
-6.1
-16.0
4.8
-20.4
-28.8
-11.1
-15.2
-15.2
-15.2
Q1 2009
-2.2
-10.6
2.8
-21.9
-31.6
-11.8
-20.1
-23.5
-14.2
Q2 2009
8.9
6.0
6.1
-8.3
-16.1
-1.3
-15.8
-20.8
-7.0
Q3 2009
14.5
21.7
5.7
10.1
15.4
3.9
-3.9
-5.2
-1.7
Q4 2009
8.3
10.0
6.4
7.6
9.4
5.5
-0.7
-0.6
-0.8
Q1 2010
5.4
8.4
2.7
7.1
10.3
4.4
1.7
1.7
1.6
Q2 2010
6.6
10.7
2.4
10.7
14.7
6.7
3.8
3.6
4.2
Q3 2010
-0.8
-1.0
0.5
4.3
6.6
1.5
5.1
7.7
1.0
Q4 2010
2.1
1.7
2.7
1.3
2.5
-0.4
-0.7
0.7
-3.1
Q1 2011
2.1
3.1
1.6
3.8
7.0
-0.3
1.6
3.7
-1.9
Q2 2011
-3.3
-5.5
0.1
-0.4
-0.7
-0.3
3.0
5.1
-0.4
Q3 2011
3.7
6.5
1.1
3.3
5.7
1.3
-0.4
-0.7
0.2
Q4 2011
-3.2
-3.0
-1.0
1.8
4.4
0.0
5.1
7.6
1.1
Q1 2012
-0.7
2.5
-2.6
2.7
6.1
0.7
3.4
3.5
3.3
Q2 2012
-2.4
-1.2
-2.2
-0.4
1.5
-1.6
2.0
2.7
0.6
Q3 2012
-1.3
-2.0
-0.4
-1.0
-2.2
0.9
0.3
-0.2
1.3
Q4 2012
2.0
1.9
2.3
2.1
2.3
2.0
0.2
0.4
-0.3
Q1 2013
2.9
2.1
4.1
5.1
5.5
4.3
2.2
3.4
0.2
Q2 2013
3.5
3.3
3.7
1.3
1.3
1.3
-2.1
-1.9
-2.3
Q3 2013
-1.3
-0.2
-2.3
0.3
1.3
-0.5
1.6
1.5
1.9
Q4 2013
-1.6
-0.2
-2.4
2.2
4.3
0.4
3.9
4.5
2.8
Q1 2014
0.5
1.5
0.3
-1.2
-0.1
-1.6
-1.7
-1.5
-1.8
Q2 2014
0.5
0.5
2.7
4.0
6.0
2.8
3.5
5.5
0.1
Q3 2014
-0.8
-0.7
1.1
1.3
3.1
0.4
2.1
3.8
-0.7
Q4 2014
-4.5
-2.2
-6.8
0.1
0.6
1.1
4.8
2.9
8.4
Q1 2015
-2.6
-2.9
-1.0
-3.8
-4.5
-1.3
-1.1
-1.7
-0.3
Q2 2015
-1.3
-0.9
-1.2
-1.6
-1.9
-0.3
-0.3
-1.0
0.9
Q3 2015
1.8
1.6
2.0
0.4
-0.2
1.6
-1.3
-1.9
-0.4
Q4 2015
-3.6
-6.6
-0.8
-1.7
-5.2
2.0
2.0
1.4
2.8
Q1 2016
2.1
-1.2
5.5
1.4
-1.3
3.7
-0.7
-0.1
-1.7
Q2 2016
-1.3
-0.5
-3.9
-1.7
-2.4
-1.7
-0.4
-1.9
2.2
Q3 2016
0.0
1.8
-3.0
0.9
1.8
-0.7
0.9
0.0
2.5
Q4 2016
1.0
0.4
1.4
1.1
0.6
1.2
0.1
0.2
-0.2
Q1 2017
-1.3
-1.4
-1.0
0.6
1.2
-0.3
1.9
2.6
0.6
Q2 2017
1.9
2.9
-0.6
1.7
1.0
2.3
-0.1
-1.9
2.9
Q3 2017
-5.3
-4.4
-6.9
-2.7
-2.2
-3.4
2.8
2.3
3.7
Q4 2017
3.1
3.8
1.8
5.0
5.3
4.4
1.8
1.4
2.5
Q1 2018
-0.1
1.7
-1.6
1.8
4.8
-1.6
1.9
3.1
0.0
Q2 2018
1.3
0.9
1.9
2.6
2.9
2.0
1.3
2.0
0.1
Q3 2018
0.3
2.6
-2.4
4.0
6.3
1.4
3.7
3.6
3.9
Q4 2018
0.9
1.8
1.4
1.6
5.0
-2.0
0.6
3.1
-3.3
Q1 2019
1.3
0.3
2.5
-1.7
-2.7
-0.7
-3.1
-3.0
-3.2
Q2 2019
-2.3
-0.7
-4.4
-3.1
-2.3
-4.0
-0.9
-1.6
0.5
Q3 2019
-0.5
0.4
-1.8
0.9
1.5
0.2
1.4
1.1
2.0
Q4 2019
-0.7
-1.1
-0.8
-0.2
-1.5
1.2
0.5
-0.4
2.1
Q1 2020
1.6
-2.5
5.8
-5.6
-9.7
-1.0
-7.0
-7.4
-6.4
Q2 2020
-15.5
-28.4
-4.9
-47.0
-58.1
-33.2
-37.3
-41.5
-29.8
In the second quarter of 2020, productivity decreased 28.4 percent in durable goods manufacturing, reflecting a 58.1-percent decrease in output and a 41.5-percent decrease in hours worked. Productivity decreased 4.9 percent in nondurable goods manufacturing, as output decreased 33.2 percent and hours worked decreased 29.8 percent.
United States Department of Labor
