Productivity and Costs by Industry: Wholesale Trade, Retail Trade, and Food Services and Drinking Places, 2015 News Release — 2016-08-10

Labor productivity rose 1.6 percent in wholesale trade, 3.0 percent in retail trade, and 1.8 percent in food services and drinking places in 2015, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Unit labor costs, which reflect the total labor costs required to produce a unit of output, also rose in all three industry groups. For wholesale trade in 2015 - productivity, output, and hours worked all increased at a slower rate than in 2014. In retail trade, the growth in output was more than double the growth in hours worked leading to a bigger productivity increase in 2015 than in 2014. Productivity growth in food services and drinking places in 2015 surpassed that of 2014 as increased output exceeded an increase in hours worked.