2009 International Comparisons of Manufacturing Productivity and Unit Labor Cost Trends — 2010-12-21

Manufacturing labor productivity decreased in 2009 in 12 of the 19 economies compared by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The United States had the largest productivity increase, 7.7 percent, and Japan had the steepest productivity decline, -11.4 percent (see chart 1). For the first time, both output and hours in manufacturing declined in all 19 economies compared. In most economies, output declined by more than 10 percent and hours by more than 8 percent (see chart 2). The data presented for the United States differ from those in the BLS Productivity and Costs news release. (See technical notes.) PRINTED COPY CONTAINS CHART AT THIS POINT: Chart 1. Percent changes in manufacturing output per hour, 2008-2009 PRINTED COPY CONTAINS CHART AT THIS POINT: Chart 2. Percent changes in manufacturing output and hours, 2008-2009 The trends in manufacturing for 2009 stand in contrast to the trends seen over the last 30 years.