Productivity Fell 0.6% in Q2

Washington, DC, September 1, 2016—Nonfarm business sector labor productivity decreased at a 0.6% annual rate during the second quarter of 2016, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics has reported, as output increased 1.1% and hours worked increased 1.7%.

From the second quarter of 2015 to the second quarter of 2016, productivity decreased 0.4%, the first four-quarter decline in the series since a 0.6% decline in the second quarter of 2013.