2011 Third Quarter (Preliminary) Productivity and Costs — 2011-11-03

Nonfarm business sector labor productivity increased at a 3.1 percent annual rate during the third quarter of 2011, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today, with output and hours worked rising 3.8 percent and 0.6 percent, respectively. (All quarterly percent changes in this release are seasonally adjusted annual rates.) From the third quarter of 2010 to the third quarter of 2011, output increased 2.5 percent as hours rose 1.4 percent, resulting in a 1.1 percent increase in productivity. (See tables A and 2.) Labor productivity, or output per hour, is calculated by dividing an index of real output by an index of hours worked of all persons, including employees, proprietors, and unpaid family workers. Unit labor costs in nonfarm businesses fell 2.4 percent in the third quarter of 2011 as the 3.1 percent increase in output per hour outpaced a 0.6 percent rise in hourly compensation.