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October 1995

International comparisons of manufacturing compensation

Janet Kmitch, Pedro Laboy, Sarah Van Damme

Japan and many Western European economies had higher manufacturing hourly compensation costs than the United States in 1994; the trade-weighted average for 24 foreign economies was 88 percent of the U.S. level. This article presents comparative data on manufacturing hourly compensation costs through 1994 for the United States and 24 foreign economies, as well as the most recent statistics for 4 additional countries for which 1994 data are not yet available.

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