Higher labor costs, lower labor outputs — that’s the situation business finds itself in right now:
The Labor Department said Wednesday that productivity, which is the amount of output per hour of work, fell at 1.9 percent rate in the first quarter. Productivity dropped at a 2.1 percent rate in the final three months of 2014.
Labor costs surged at a 5 percent rate in the first quarter, after having increased 4.2 percent in the fourth quarter.
Falling productivity coupled with higher labor costs are usually a negative for the economy, since it implies additional expenses without improvements in worker efficiency.
One economist quoted in the story blames the weather, but that excuse is wearing thin. I wonder if the stronger dollar isn’t behind a good chunk of the productivity losses. Overall a strong dollar is beneficial to the economy, but of course there are disruptions when it appreciates so much, so quickly.
We’ll see.
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