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Productivity increased 1.2 percent from Q2 2016 to Q2 2017

August 11, 2017

From the second quarter of 2016 to the second quarter of 2017, productivity increased 1.2 percent, reflecting a 2.7-percent increase in output and a 1.5-percent increase in hours worked. Real hourly compensation decreased 0.9 percent over the same period.

Percent change in productivity measures from Q2 2016 to Q2 2017
Measure Nonfarm business Business Manufacturing Durable manufacturing Nondurable manufacturing

Labor Productivity

1.2% 1.1% 1.0% 1.3% 0.6%

Output

2.7 2.5 1.5 1.7 1.3

Hours worked

1.5 1.3 0.4 0.3 0.7

Hourly compensation

1.0 1.1 1.1 0.8 1.7

Real hourly compensation

-0.9 -0.8 -0.8 -1.1 -0.2

Unit labor costs

-0.2 0.0 0.1 -0.5 1.1

Labor productivity in manufacturing increased 1.0 percent from the second quarter of 2016 to the second quarter of 2017, as output increased 1.5 percent and hours worked increased 0.4 percent. Real hourly compensation in manufacturing declined 0.8 percent over that period.

These data are from the Labor Productivity and Costs program. To learn more, see “Productivity and Costs — Second Quarter 2017, Preliminary,” (HTML) (PDF). Also see Charts related to the latest "Productivity and Costs" news release. Labor productivity is calculated by dividing inflation-adjusted output by hours worked for all employees, business owners, and unpaid family workers. Unit labor costs are calculated as the ratio of hourly compensation to labor productivity.

SUGGESTED CITATION

Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, The Economics Daily, Productivity increased 1.2 percent from Q2 2016 to Q2 2017 at https://www.bls.gov/opub/ted/2017/productivity-increased-1-point-2-percent-from-q2-2016-to-q2-2017.htm (visited April 23, 2024).

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