Full text of 1992 : Text File, USDL: 93-348
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TEXT
Table 1. Output per hour in manufacturing, 12 countries, 1950-1992
Table 2. Output per employed person in manufacturing, 12 countries, 1950-1992
Table 3. Output in manufacturing, 12 countries, 1950-1992
Table 4. Total hours in manufacturing, 12 countries, 1950-1992
Table 5. Employment in manufacturing, 12 countries, 1950-1992
Table 6. Average annual hours in manufacturing, 12 countries, 1950-1992
Table 7. Hourly compensation in manufacturing, national currency basis, 12 countries, 1950-1992
Table 8. Hourly compensation in manufacturing, U.S. dollar basis, 12 countries, 1950-1992
Table 9. Unit labor costs in manufacturing, national currency basis, 12 countries, 1950-1992
Table 10. Unit labor costs in manufacturing, U.S. dollar basis, 12 countries, 1950-1992
Table 11. Exchange rates, 12 countries, 1950-1992.
Table 12. Average annual compensation in manufacturing, national currency basis, 12 countries, 1950-1992
Table 13. Real hourly compensation in manufacturing, CPI basis, 12 countries, 1950-1992
Table 14. Real average annual compensation in manufacturing, CPI basis, 12 countries, 1950-1992
Table 15. Korea: Output and unit labor costs, all employees in manufacturing, 1970-1992
Table 16. Taiwan: Output and unit labor costs, all employees in manufacturing, 1970-1992
Historical, technical USDL: 93-348
information: (202) 606-5654 For Release: 10:00 A.M. EDT
Current data: (202) 606-7828 Wednesday, August 25, 1993
Media contact: (202) 606-5902
INTERNATIONAL COMPARISONS OF MANUFACTURING PRODUCTIVITY
AND UNIT LABOR COST TRENDS, 1992
The Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor today
reported on 1992 developments in manufacturing labor productivity (output
per hour) and unit labor costs in the United States and other industrial
economies.
The U.S. manufacturing productivity gain of 4.6 percent in 1992 was
below the gain recorded by the United Kingdom, was about the same as
Sweden's increase, and exceeded the increases found in Canada and the six
other European economies covered by the BLS comparative measures. The only
decline in manufacturing productivity occurred in Japan. (See table A.)
The United States, with a 1.5 percent decrease, was the only economy
studied in which manufacturing unit labor costs, measured on a national
currency basis, declined in 1992. Canadian unit labor costs were unchanged
in Canadian dollars, but fell 5 percent when measured in U.S. dollars.
Adjusted for changes in foreign currency values relative to the U.S. dollar,
the remaining economies experienced increases from 1/2 of 1 percent in Korea
to 18 percent in Japan.
The 1992 measures of percent changes in manufacturing productivity,
unit labor costs, and related variables for the United States, Canada,
Japan, and the eight European countries for which data are available are
summarized in table A.1 Table A also shows percent changes in unit labor
costs for Korea and Taiwan, but comparable productivity figures are not
available because adequate labor input measures have not been developed.
Table B shows annual average percent changes for selected periods from 1979
for 14 economies. Indexes of the measures for the United States, Canada,
Japan, and the European countries are in tables 1-14; output and unit labor
cost indexes for Korea and Taiwan are in tables 15 and 16. U.S. indexes for
most of the measures are not currently available prior to 1977; see box on
page 11.
__________
1 Data for Germany relate to the former West Germany.
- 2 -
Productivity, output, and labor input
The U.S. increase in manufacturing labor productivity of 4.6 percent in
1992 resulted from a 3.1 percent increase in output and a 1.4 percent
decline in labor hours. The productivity increases recorded by both the
United Kingdom and Sweden resulted from substantially larger reductions in
labor input than in manufacturing output. Japan's 6 percent decline in
productivity was largely attributable to a decline in output; labor hours
were reduced by only about 1 percent.
Only Korea and Taiwan had larger manufacturing output increases than
the U.S. Manufacturing output fell in Germany, Italy, and the Netherlands,
as well as in Sweden, the United Kingdom, and Japan.
Labor input (as measured by hours worked) decreased in all of the
countries except Norway, where hours worked remained unchanged. The U.S.
decrease of 1.4 percent was greater than the declines of about 1 percent in
Japan, Denmark, and the Netherlands, but less than those occurring in
Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Sweden, and the United Kingdom. The
greatest decreases were in Sweden--about 7-1/2 percent--and the United
Kingdom--about 5-1/2 percent.
Hourly compensation and unit labor costs
Hourly compensation costs in manufacturing--which include wages and
salaries, supplements, and employer payments for social security and other
employer-financed benefit plans--rose 3 percent in the U.S. in 1992.
Denmark and Norway had hourly compensation growth rates slightly lower than
the U.S. rate. The remaining countries experienced increases ranging from
3-1/2 to nearly 7 percent for the year, with Italy and the United Kingdom
recording the largest increases.
Manufacturing unit labor costs, which reflect changes in labor
productivity and hourly compensation costs, dropped 1-1/2 percent in the
United States from 1991 to 1992. While the United States was the only
economy studied which experienced declining unit labor costs over the year,
several other countries also had very favorable unit labor cost
performances. Unit labor costs were flat in Canada and Denmark and rose
only between 1/2 of 1 percent and 1-1/2 percent in France, Norway, Sweden,
and the United Kingdom. Korea, Taiwan, and the remaining European countries
(Germany, Italy, and the Netherlands) posted unit labor cost growth ranging
from 3 to 7 percent. Japanese unit labor costs, reflecting declining
productivity and a substantial hourly compensation cost increase, rose
11-1/2 percent.
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Table A. Manufacturing productivity* and labor costs in 13 countries or areas
Percent change, 1991-92
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Output Hourly UNIT LABOR COSTS
per Employ- Average compen- National U.S. Exchange
Country hour Output Hours ment hours sation currency dollars rate (1)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
United States 4.6 3.1 -1.4 -2.1 0.7 3.0 -1.5 -1.5 ---
Canada 4.2 0.5 -3.6 -4.3 0.8 4.1 -0.0 -5.2 -5.2
Japan -6.2 -7.3 -1.2 1.8 -3.0 4.6 11.5 18.3 6.2
Korea (2) NA 4.8 NA NA NA NA 7.0 0.5 -6.1
Taiwan (2) NA 3.7 NA NA NA NA 5.7 12.4 6.4
Denmark 2.6 1.6 -1.0 -1.3 0.3 2.8 0.2 6.2 6.1
France 2.9 0.5 -2.4 -2.6 0.2 3.4 0.5 7.2 6.7
Germany (3) 0.6 -1.3 -1.8 -1.7 -0.1 5.9 5.3 12.0 6.4
Italy 3.7 -0.5 -4.0 -3.9 -0.1 6.8 3.0 3.8 0.7
Netherlands 0.8 -0.4 -1.2 -1.0 -0.2 5.4 4.6 11.3 6.4
Norway 1.8 1.8 0.0 -1.0 1.0 2.8 1.0 5.5 4.5
Sweden 4.7 -3.1 -7.4 -8.4 1.1 5.5 0.8 4.7 3.9
United Kingdom 5.1 -0.7 -5.6 -5.7 0.2 6.7 1.5 1.4 -0.1
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
* Although the productivity measure relates output to the hours of persons employed in manufacturing, it
does not measure the specific contributions of labor as a single factor of production. Rather, it
reflects the joint effects of many influences, including new technology, capital investment, capacity
utilization, energy use, and managerial skills, as well as the skills and efforts of the work force.
(1) Value of foreign currency relative to the U.S. dollar.
(2) See technical note.
(3) Data relate to the former West Germany.
NA=Not Available
- 4 -
Unit labor costs in U.S. dollars
In contrast to the previous year, the currencies of most of the foreign
economies appreciated relative to the U.S. dollar in 1992. Except for the
United Kingdom, with essentially no change in its relative currency value,
and Italy, with a lira appreciation of less than 1 percent relative to the
dollar, the currencies of the European countries appreciated from about 4 to
6-1/2 percent. The Japanese yen continued to appreciate strongly for the
second consecutive year, rising 6 percent relative to the dollar. Only
Canada and Korea had substantial declines in relative currency values over
the year, 5 percent and 6 percent, respectively. The currencies of Italy,
Sweden, and the United Kingdom, however, were down substantially by the end
of the year compared with the annual average values used in this release.
In evaluating competitive changes in unit labor costs, changes in
relative currency values need to be taken into account. Measured in U.S.
dollars, Canadian unit labor costs fell 5 percent. Korea had the smallest
increase, just 1/2 of 1 percent; British unit labor costs rose 1-1/2
percent; the other European countries, except Germany and the Netherlands,
had increases ranging from about 4 to 7 percent; Germany, the Netherlands,
and Taiwan recorded increases of 11 to 12 percent; and Japan's unit labor
costs measured in U.S. dollars rose 18 percent.
Trade-weighted unit labor costs
The countries covered by the BLS comparative measures differ greatly in
their relative importance to U.S. trade in manufactured goods. Therefore,
BLS constructs two summary measures: A "competitors" index, which is the
trade-weighted geometric average of the unit labor cost indexes for the
other economies; and a relative index, which is the ratio of the U.S. index
to the "competitors" index. The chart shows U.S. relative unit labor cost
indexes on both a national currency and U.S. dollar basis over the 1979-92
period. Because 1992 data are not available for Belgium, it has been
excluded from this analysis; however, Belgium accounts for only about 3
percent of the total for the 13 foreign economies.
As the chart shows, U.S. relative unit labor costs, expressed on a national
currency basis (i.e., unadjusted for exchange rate changes), fell between
1979 and 1992, for an overall decline of 13 percentage points. Adjusted for
relative changes in currency exchange rates, however, the pattern was quite
different. The U.S. dollar appreciated by 42 percent on a trade-weighted
basis between 1979 and 1985, and U.S. relative unit labor costs rose 42
percentage points. The value of the U.S. dollar fell between 1985 and 1988,
rose in 1989, and subsequently fell between 1989 and 1992, for an overall
decline of 36 percent. Consequently, U.S. relative unit labor costs as of
1992, measured on a U.S. dollar basis, were down 62 percentage points over
1985 and by 20 percentage points over 1979.
- 5 -
****Chart titled "U.S. manufacturing unit labor costs relative to 12
competitors, 1979-92" appears at this point in the printed news release.
Recent exchange rate changes
In the first 7 months of 1993, the currencies of Europe, Canada, Korea,
and Taiwan all depreciated against the U.S. dollar relative to their 1992
averages. The Japanese yen, however, appreciated against the dollar; as of
June and July of 1993, it was up by 18 percent relative to its 1992 average
value. As of July 1993, the Korean won was down 3 percent relative to its
1992 average; the Canadian and Taiwanese dollars were down 6 percent;
several European currencies, those of Denmark, France, Germany, and the
Netherlands, were down nearly 10 percent; the British pound and the
Norwegian krone were down 15 percent; and the currencies of Italy and Sweden
were down 22 and 27 percent, respectively.
- 6 -
Table B. Output per hour, hourly compensation, unit labor costs, and related measures
Manufacturing, 14 countries or areas, 1979-92
Average annual rates of change (1)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Country 1979-92 1979-85 1985-92 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992
or area
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Output per hour
United States 2.4 2.0 2.8 2.3 0.5 1.2 1.7 4.6
Canada 1.5 2.4 0.8 0.4 -0.4 1.3 0.6 4.2
Japan 3.6 3.9 3.4 5.8 6.9 6.9 4.3 -6.2
Korea NA NA NA NA NA NA NA NA
Taiwan NA NA NA NA NA NA NA NA
Belgium NA 6.1 NA 4.2 4.8 2.1 2.3 NA
Denmark 1.4 2.1 0.9 3.8 3.4 1.8 1.3 2.6
France 2.9 3.1 2.7 6.8 5.0 1.2 -0.1 2.9
Germany (2) 1.8 2.0 1.6 3.6 3.0 3.3 2.0 0.6
Italy 4.0 5.0 3.1 2.6 3.6 4.4 3.3 3.7
Netherlands 2.8 4.2 1.6 3.1 3.3 1.3 0.9 0.8
Norway 2.4 2.9 1.9 -0.5 5.2 2.5 0.7 1.8
Sweden 2.7 3.2 2.3 1.2 3.2 1.7 1.6 4.7
United Kingdom 4.5 4.6 4.5 5.5 4.5 2.4 4.0 5.1
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Continued on next page
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Table B. Output per hour, hourly compensation, unit labor costs, and related measures
Manufacturing, 14 countries or areas, 1979-92--continued
Average annual rates of change (1)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Country 1979-92 1979-85 1985-92 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992
or area
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Output
United States 1.4 0.7 2.0 5.3 0.8 -1.0 -2.5 3.1
Canada 0.6 1.5 -0.1 5.1 0.2 -5.1 -6.6 0.5
Japan 4.7 5.8 3.8 9.2 8.0 7.6 5.8 -7.3
Korea 10.0 9.1 10.9 13.4 3.7 9.1 8.9 4.8
Taiwan 7.3 8.3 6.5 3.6 3.7 -0.2 6.6 3.7
Belgium NA 2.6 NA 5.1 6.4 3.6 -0.4 NA
Denmark 1.4 2.9 0.1 1.6 1.2 1.2 -0.8 1.6
France 0.7 -0.4 1.6 5.7 5.5 1.9 -1.9 0.5
Germany (2) 1.0 0.2 1.6 3.2 3.1 4.5 2.6 -1.3
Italy 2.3 1.8 2.7 7.5 3.8 2.0 -0.6 -0.5
Netherlands 1.9 1.6 2.1 3.7 4.6 3.3 0.0 -0.4
Norway 0.1 1.0 -0.6 -4.8 -1.6 0.7 -2.1 1.8
Sweden 1.0 2.3 -0.1 3.1 1.2 -0.7 -4.7 -3.1
United Kingdom 0.4 -1.0 1.6 7.0 4.3 -0.5 -5.2 -0.7
Total hours
United States -1.0 -1.2 -0.8 2.9 0.3 -2.2 -4.1 -1.4
Canada -0.9 -0.9 -0.9 4.6 0.6 -6.3 -7.2 -3.6
Japan 1.0 1.8 0.4 3.2 1.1 0.6 1.5 -1.2
Korea NA NA NA NA NA NA NA NA
Taiwan NA NA NA NA NA NA NA NA
Belgium NA -3.3 NA 0.9 1.6 1.5 -2.6 NA
Denmark -0.1 0.8 -0.8 -2.1 -2.2 -0.6 -2.0 -1.0
France -2.1 -3.4 -1.1 -1.0 0.5 0.7 -1.8 -2.4
Germany (2) -0.8 -1.8 0.0 -0.4 0.1 1.2 0.7 -1.8
Italy -1.6 -3.1 -0.4 4.8 0.2 -2.3 -3.8 -4.0
Netherlands -0.8 -2.5 0.6 0.7 1.3 2.0 -0.9 -1.2
Norway -2.2 -1.9 -2.5 -4.3 -6.5 -1.8 -2.8 0.0
Sweden -1.7 -0.9 -2.4 1.8 -2.0 -2.3 -6.2 -7.4
United Kingdom -4.0 -5.3 -2.8 1.5 -0.2 -2.8 -8.9 -5.6
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Continued on next page
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Table B. Output per hour, hourly compensation, unit labor costs, and related measures
Manufacturing, 14 countries or areas, 1979-92--continued
Average annual rates of change (1)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Country 1979-92 1979-85 1985-92 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992
or area
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Employment
United States -1.1 -1.4 -0.9 1.8 0.4 -1.5 -3.5 -2.1
Canada -0.8 -0.8 -0.9 4.4 1.2 -5.2 -7.1 -4.3
Japan 1.6 1.7 1.5 2.2 2.2 2.2 3.9 1.8
Korea NA NA NA NA NA NA NA NA
Taiwan NA NA NA NA NA NA NA NA
Belgium NA -2.7 NA -0.7 2.1 0.3 -0.9 NA
Denmark 0.2 1.0 -0.6 -2.2 -1.0 0.6 -2.3 -1.3
France -1.7 -2.3 -1.2 -1.4 0.7 0.8 -1.5 -2.6
Germany (2) 0.0 -1.1 0.8 -0.2 1.4 2.9 1.7 -1.7
Italy -1.9 -2.9 -0.9 1.2 0.4 0.1 -2.7 -3.9
Netherlands -0.6 -2.1 0.7 0.8 1.5 2.0 -0.7 -1.0
Norway -2.1 -1.8 -2.4 -4.6 -7.1 -1.8 -3.3 -1.0
Sweden -2.1 -1.2 -2.9 2.0 -1.6 -3.4 -7.3 -8.4
United Kingdom -3.7 -4.9 -2.6 0.9 -0.1 -2.1 -7.2 -5.7
Average hours
United States 0.2 0.2 0.1 1.1 -0.1 -0.7 -0.6 0.7
Canada 0.0 -0.1 0.0 0.2 -0.6 -1.2 -0.1 0.8
Japan -0.5 0.1 -1.0 1.1 -1.1 -1.6 -2.3 -3.0
Korea NA NA NA NA NA NA NA NA
Taiwan NA NA NA NA NA NA NA NA
Belgium NA -0.6 NA 1.6 -0.5 1.2 -1.7 NA
Denmark -0.3 -0.3 -0.3 0.1 -1.2 -1.2 0.3 0.3
France -0.5 -1.1 0.1 0.4 -0.3 -0.1 -0.3 0.2
Germany (2) -0.8 -0.7 -0.8 -0.2 -1.2 -1.7 -1.0 -0.1
Italy 0.2 -0.1 0.6 3.5 -0.2 -2.4 -1.1 -0.1
Netherlands -0.3 -0.4 -0.2 -0.1 -0.2 0.0 -0.2 -0.2
Norway -0.1 -0.1 -0.1 0.3 0.7 -0.1 0.5 1.0
Sweden 0.5 0.4 0.5 -0.2 -0.3 1.2 1.2 1.1
United Kingdom -0.3 -0.5 -0.2 0.5 -0.1 -0.8 -1.8 0.2
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Continued on next page
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Table B. Output per hour, hourly compensation, unit labor costs, and related measures
Manufacturing, 14 countries or areas, 1979-92--continued
Average annual rates of change (1)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Country 1979-92 1979-85 1985-92 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992
or area
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Hourly compensation(3): National currency basis
United States 5.3 6.9 3.9 3.9 3.9 5.1 5.1 3.0
Canada 6.6 8.7 4.8 4.4 5.3 7.0 6.0 4.1
Japan 4.8 4.7 4.8 1.7 6.3 7.9 5.8 4.6
Korea NA NA NA NA NA NA NA NA
Taiwan NA NA NA NA NA NA NA NA
Belgium NA 7.7 NA 1.8 5.3 5.9 5.7 NA
Denmark 6.3 8.1 4.7 3.6 5.7 5.3 4.4 2.8
France 8.0 12.8 4.1 3.8 5.4 3.9 4.2 3.4
Germany (2) 5.6 5.9 5.4 3.8 4.8 7.1 7.0 5.9
Italy 11.7 16.7 7.6 4.2 10.4 11.6 10.7 6.8
Netherlands 3.8 4.8 3.0 0.6 0.5 2.6 5.2 5.4
Norway 8.2 10.0 6.7 6.1 4.4 5.6 4.7 2.8
Sweden 8.7 9.6 8.0 6.6 10.6 10.3 8.5 5.5
United Kingdom 9.6 11.2 8.1 5.5 8.8 11.9 10.5 6.7
Unit labor costs: National currency basis
United States 2.8 4.9 1.1 1.5 3.4 3.9 3.4 -1.5
Canada 5.0 6.1 4.0 4.0 5.7 5.6 5.3 0.0
Japan 1.1 0.7 1.4 -3.8 -0.5 0.9 1.5 11.5
Korea 8.2 8.2 8.2 11.2 21.2 9.8 5.7 7.0
Taiwan 5.2 7.1 3.5 3.2 4.4 7.0 1.6 5.7
Belgium NA 1.5 NA -2.3 0.5 3.7 3.3 NA
Denmark 4.8 5.9 3.8 -0.2 2.2 3.3 3.1 0.2
France 5.0 9.4 1.3 -2.8 0.4 2.7 4.4 0.5
Germany (2) 3.8 3.8 3.7 0.3 1.7 3.7 4.9 5.3
Italy 7.4 11.1 4.4 1.6 6.6 6.9 7.1 3.0
Netherlands 1.0 0.6 1.4 -2.4 -2.7 1.3 4.3 4.6
Norway 5.7 6.9 4.7 6.6 -0.8 3.0 3.9 1.0
Sweden 5.9 6.2 5.6 5.3 7.2 8.5 6.7 0.8
United Kingdom 4.8 6.3 3.5 0.0 4.1 9.3 6.2 1.5
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Continued on next page
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Table B. Output per hour, hourly compensation, unit labor costs, and related measures
Manufacturing, 14 countries or areas, 1979-92--continued
Average annual rates of change (1)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Country 1979-92 1979-85 1985-92 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992
or area
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Unit labor costs: U.S. dollar basis
United States 2.8 4.9 1.1 1.5 3.4 3.9 3.4 -1.5
Canada 4.7 3.4 5.8 12.0 9.8 7.2 7.3 -5.2
Japan 5.4 -0.8 11.0 8.5 -7.7 -3.9 9.3 18.3
Korea 4.3 -1.9 9.9 25.0 32.1 4.2 2.0 0.5
Taiwan 8.1 5.3 10.6 14.5 13.1 5.0 2.2 12.4
Belgium NA -9.7 NA -0.7 -6.2 22.3 1.0 NA
Denmark 3.7 -5.8 12.5 1.4 -5.9 22.2 -0.3 6.2
France 3.2 -3.4 9.3 -2.0 -6.2 20.2 0.7 7.2
Germany (2) 5.1 -4.0 13.5 2.6 -5.0 20.6 2.1 12.0
Italy 4.2 -3.3 11.1 1.2 1.2 22.4 3.4 3.8
Netherlands 2.1 -7.5 11.0 0.0 -9.3 18.1 1.5 11.3
Norway 4.1 -2.1 9.7 10.2 -6.4 13.9 0.1 5.5
Sweden 3.4 -5.4 11.6 8.9 1.9 18.2 4.4 4.7
United Kingdom 3.3 -2.0 8.1 8.6 -4.3 19.0 5.2 1.4
Exchange rates (4)
United States 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0
Canada -0.2 -2.5 1.8 7.7 3.9 1.5 1.8 -5.2
Japan 4.3 -1.5 9.4 12.8 -7.2 -4.8 7.7 6.2
Korea -3.6 -9.3 1.6 12.5 8.9 -5.1 -3.5 -6.1
Taiwan 2.8 -1.7 6.8 11.0 8.3 -1.9 0.6 6.4
Belgium -0.7 -11.1 9.2 1.6 -6.7 17.9 -2.3 6.4
Denmark -1.1 -11.0 8.4 1.6 -7.9 18.3 -3.3 6.1
France -1.7 -11.7 7.8 0.9 -6.6 17.1 -3.5 6.7
Germany (2) 1.2 -7.6 9.5 2.3 -6.6 16.3 -2.7 6.4
Italy -3.0 -12.9 6.5 -0.4 -5.1 14.5 -3.5 0.7
Netherlands 1.0 -8.0 9.5 2.5 -6.8 16.5 -2.7 6.4
Norway -1.6 -8.4 4.7 3.3 -5.6 10.5 -3.7 4.5
Sweden -2.3 -11.0 5.7 3.4 -4.9 9.0 -2.1 3.9
United Kingdom -1.4 -7.9 4.5 8.6 -8.0 8.9 -0.9 -0.1
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
(1) Rates of change based on the compound (3) Adjusted to include employment taxes
rate method. that are not compensation to employees
but are labor costs to employers.
(2) Data relate to the former West Germany.
(4) Value of foreign currency relative to
NA = Not available. the U.S. dollar.
- 11 -
****(The following section appears as a box in the printed news release.)****
NOTE ON THE U.S. OUTPUT MEASURES
The historical data for the United States reflect revised
manufacturing output measures prepared by the Bureau of Economic Analysis
(BEA) of the U.S. Department of Commerce for 1977 through 1989 and new
estimates for 1990. The revised output measures were released by BEA on
June 10 and were used by BLS in its June 17 news release on productivity
and costs in the U.S. economy. The 1990-91 and 1991-92 percent changes in
manufacturing output are based on the trend shown by the industrial
production indexes published by the Federal Reserve Board. Comparable
manufacturing output data are not currently available prior to 1977.
The U.S. real output measures constructed by BEA are based on fixed
price weights of a single year. Fixed-weighted real output series have
several advantages, but, if there are major changes in relative prices
over the period covered, the change in real output becomes sensitive to
the choice of price weights. This issue is discussed by BEA in the April
1992 issue of the Survey of Current Business in which alternative measures
of real output growth are shown using "chain-type annual weighted quantity
index" numbers (for total gross domestic product--GDP) and "benchmark-
years-weighted quantity index" numbers (for total GDP and for
manufacturing). In manufacturing, preliminary estimates presented in the
Survey article indicated that the differences in the trends since 1977
based on "benchmark-years-weighted" and "fixed-weighted" indexes can
average one percentage point or more over some time periods. BLS is
studying these new BEA alternative measures and will consider introducing
them in future computations of manufacturing productivity.
Most of the foreign economies link fixed-weighted measures covering
various time periods, but some also produce annual chain-weighted indexes.
The output measures used in this release are fixed weighted, with the
following exception: The measures for Norway for each year from 1987
forward are based on relative prices of the preceding year.
- 12 -
TECHNICAL NOTE
The Bureau of Labor Statistics constructs trend indexes of manufacturing
labor productivity (output per hour), hourly compensation costs, and unit
labor costs from three basic aggregative measures---output, total labor
hours, and total compensation. The hours and compensation measures refer to
all employed persons, including self-employed persons and unpaid family
workers, in the United States and Canada and to all employees (wage and
salary earners) in the other economies. Hours refer to hours worked in all
countries. (The figures for Canada in this release are the official
measures prepared by Statistics Canada.)
In general, the measures relate to total manufacturing as defined by the
International Standard Industrial Classification (ISIC). However, the
measures for France, Italy (beginning 1970), and the United Kingdom
(beginning 1971) refer to mining and manufacturing less energy-related
products; the measures for Denmark include mining and exclude manufacturing
handicrafts from 1960 to 1966; and the measures for the Netherlands exclude
petroleum refining and include coal mining from 1969 to 1976.
Output: In general, the output measures are value added in manufacturing
(gross product originating) in constant prices from the national accounts of
each country. However, output for Japan prior to 1970 and the Netherlands
from 1969 to 1977 are indexes of industrial production. The national
accounts measures for the United Kingdom are essentially identical to their
indexes of industrial production. While methods of deriving national
accounts measures differ substantially from country to country, the use of
different procedures does not, in itself, connote lack of comparability--
rather, it reflects differences among countries in the availability and
reliability of underlying data series.
Labor Input: The total hours measures are developed from statistics of
manufacturing employment and average hours. The series used for France
(from 1970 forward), Norway, and Sweden are official series published with
the national accounts. Where official total hours series are not available,
the measures are developed by BLS using employment figures published with
the national accounts, or other comprehensive employment series, and
estimates of annual hours worked.
For the Republic of Korea and Taiwan, the Bureau publishes only measures of
unit labor costs and its components--output and total compensation. Total
hours, and consequently productivity, are not computed for Korea and Taiwan
because BLS has not yet developed adequate labor input series.
- 13 -
Compensation (labor cost): The compensation measures are from the national
accounts except those for Belgium, which are developed by the Bureau using
statistics on employment, average hours, and hourly compensation.
Compensation includes all payments in cash or kind made directly to
employees plus employer expenditures for legally required insurance programs
and contractual and private benefit plans. In addition, for some countries,
compensation is increased to account for other significant taxes on payroll
or employment (or reduced to reflect subsidies). Self-employed workers are
included in the U.S. and Canadian figures by assuming that their hourly
compensation is equal to the average for wage and salary employees.
Current Indicators: For most countries, the measures for recent years may
be based on current indicators of manufacturing output (such as industrial
production indexes), employment, average hours, and hourly compensation
until national accounts and other statistics used for the long-term measures
become available.
Level Comparisons: The BLS measures are limited to trend comparisons. BLS
does not prepare level comparisons of manufacturing productivity and unit
labor costs because of data limitations and technical problems in comparing
the levels of manufacturing output among countries. Each country measures
manufacturing output in its own currency units. To compare outputs among
countries, a common unit of measure--such as the U.S. dollar--is needed.
Market exchange rates are not suitable as a basis for comparing output
levels. What are needed are purchasing-power-parity (PPP) exchange rates,
that is, the number of foreign currency units required to buy goods and
services equivalent to what can be bought with one unit of U.S. currency.
PPP exchange rates are available for total gross domestic product (GDP).
However, these PPP exchange rates are derived from the expenditure side of
the national accounts (consumer, business, and government final expenditures
for goods and services) and not from the output side of the accounts (gross
product originating by industry, or value added). Therefore, they do not
provide PPP exchange rates by industry. The PPP exchange rates for total
GDP are not suitable for each component industry, such as manufacturing.
Table 1. Output per hour in manufacturing, 12 countries, 1950-1992
(Indexes: 1982=100)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
United Bel- Den Nether- United
Year States Canada Japan gium mark France Germany Italy lands Norway Sweden Kingdom
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1950 NA 35.5 7.6 NA 24.5 20.0 18.4 16.6 16.7 34.3 25.9 40.4
1955 NA 43.6 12.7 NA 26.7 24.5 26.6 23.2 20.9 38.0 28.4 43.6
1960 NA 51.6 18.6 24.2 32.4 31.2 38.6 29.1 26.5 47.8 36.3 49.4
1961 NA 54.4 21.1 24.5 34.3 33.0 40.2 31.4 27.9 49.3 38.0 49.5
1962 NA 58.2 22.0 25.8 36.0 35.0 42.9 34.8 28.8 49.3 40.8 50.6
1963 NA 60.3 23.8 26.8 37.2 36.7 44.7 35.7 29.8 51.8 43.2 53.3
1964 NA 63.2 27.0 28.5 40.2 39.4 48.4 36.1 32.4 54.7 46.8 56.8
1965 NA 66.1 28.1 29.9 42.2 42.1 51.2 40.2 34.5 58.0 50.1 58.5
1966 NA 67.6 30.9 32.0 44.3 45.4 53.4 43.7 36.7 60.4 52.2 60.4
1967 NA 68.9 35.5 33.8 47.6 48.2 56.8 45.9 39.3 62.5 56.5 63.2
1968 NA 74.0 40.0 36.8 51.9 53.3 61.3 49.5 43.9 66.4 61.7 67.7
1969 NA 77.9 46.2 40.2 54.0 56.3 65.1 51.3 48.0 72.6 66.4 69.4
1970 NA 76.9 52.0 44.3 57.2 59.6 67.0 54.6 52.9 74.5 69.2 70.9
1971 NA 82.4 54.8 47.0 61.1 62.8 69.6 55.6 55.7 77.2 72.1 74.3
1972 NA 86.4 60.5 52.3 66.0 65.5 73.9 60.3 60.6 81.4 75.7 78.5
1973 NA 91.9 66.1 57.8 72.7 69.9 78.5 65.2 67.3 86.4 81.3 84.1
1974 NA 93.3 66.9 61.1 75.1 71.3 81.2 69.8 72.9 90.0 84.7 85.5
1975 NA 90.1 69.6 63.5 82.6 73.8 84.5 67.4 71.3 88.6 85.9 83.7
1976 NA 96.4 74.6 70.0 85.7 78.1 90.5 76.5 79.3 91.4 87.2 87.3
1977 96.3 101.8 77.9 73.4 87.3 82.6 93.1 78.2 82.7 90.8 85.7 88.1
1978 96.4 102.9 82.3 77.9 88.5 86.2 96.3 83.3 88.1 92.2 88.1 89.3
1979 95.0 103.8 88.8 82.2 92.9 90.1 100.2 91.1 92.9 97.7 95.1 90.3
1980 92.9 99.9 92.1 87.5 98.0 90.5 98.4 95.5 93.9 96.3 96.6 89.9
1981 96.2 104.8 95.5 94.2 99.6 93.2 100.5 97.8 97.5 96.5 96.2 94.5
1982 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
1983 102.2 107.3 101.9 110.9 104.9 102.5 105.3 105.2 106.6 105.2 107.6 108.5
1984 103.5 116.3 106.1 115.8 104.3 104.2 108.9 115.7 115.0 112.6 113.4 114.0
1985 106.8 119.8 112.0 117.2 105.0 108.2 112.9 122.3 118.7 116.0 114.5 118.2
1986 109.6 117.9 110.3 118.2 98.9 110.0 113.4 123.7 120.1 114.6 116.5 122.9
1987 116.7 119.0 119.5 120.1 98.4 112.1 111.5 127.2 120.7 120.4 118.9 130.4
1988 119.4 119.5 126.5 125.2 102.1 119.7 115.5 130.5 124.4 119.7 120.4 137.5
1989 120.0 119.0 135.2 131.2 105.6 125.6 119.0 135.1 128.5 125.9 124.3 143.7
1990 121.4 120.6 144.5 133.9 107.5 127.2 122.9 141.1 130.1 129.1 126.4 147.2
1991 123.4 121.4 150.7 137.0 108.9 127.0 125.4 145.8 131.3 130.1 128.4 153.1
1992 129.1 126.4 141.4 NA 111.7 130.7 126.1 151.2 132.3 132.4 134.4 161.0
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
NA: Not Available
Note: The data relate to all employed persons (wage and salary earners and self-employed workers) in the United States and
Canada, and all employees (wage and salary earners) in the other countries.
Source: U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, August 1993.
Table 2. Output per employed person in manufacturing, 12 countries, 1950-1992
(Indexes: 1982=100)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
United Nether- United
Year States Canada Japan Belgium Denmark France Germany Italy lands Norway Sweden Kingdom
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1950 NA 39.6 8.1 NA 33.1 24.0 25.3 18.9 21.0 43.0 35.9 47.4
1955 NA 46.8 14.3 NA 35.4 29.2 36.5 27.0 26.3 47.9 39.1 51.7
1960 NA 55.1 21.8 30.4 40.8 37.4 47.7 34.2 33.8 57.8 47.3 57.5
1961 NA 57.8 24.3 30.7 41.9 39.7 48.9 36.6 34.1 58.8 49.1 56.8
1962 NA 62.5 24.7 32.4 44.4 42.0 50.8 39.3 34.9 58.6 52.3 57.5
1963 NA 65.0 26.5 33.6 45.1 44.1 52.0 40.5 36.0 61.3 54.7 60.4
1964 NA 68.4 29.8 35.6 49.2 47.1 56.4 40.9 38.8 65.4 58.7 65.0
1965 NA 71.6 30.5 36.8 51.5 49.8 59.5 44.1 41.1 67.4 62.4 66.0
1966 NA 72.7 33.8 39.0 53.1 54.0 61.1 48.4 43.5 70.4 65.0 66.9
1967 NA 73.8 38.8 40.8 56.3 56.7 63.3 51.5 46.4 72.3 69.3 69.5
1968 NA 79.3 43.6 44.4 60.1 60.9 69.2 55.6 50.9 74.9 74.0 75.1
1969 NA 83.2 49.6 47.9 61.7 66.0 73.8 57.2 54.9 80.0 78.3 76.9
1970 NA 81.5 55.2 51.5 63.3 68.9 75.4 59.8 59.3 81.5 79.8 77.4
1971 NA 86.8 57.1 53.7 67.3 72.1 76.5 59.2 61.9 83.7 83.0 79.2
1972 NA 91.0 62.8 58.5 71.2 74.5 80.5 63.8 66.4 87.4 84.8 82.9
1973 NA 96.4 68.1 63.1 74.2 78.3 84.9 69.8 72.3 92.6 89.4 90.0
1974 NA 97.3 65.8 64.9 78.2 78.9 86.0 72.1 75.9 95.6 92.0 88.6
1975 NA 92.9 66.7 63.9 83.3 79.2 87.4 68.4 72.9 94.4 91.5 86.4
1976 NA 99.3 73.8 71.7 86.8 84.2 96.1 77.7 80.9 95.0 91.8 90.9
1977 99.9 105.1 77.3 74.9 87.6 88.2 97.2 79.0 84.0 92.7 89.6 92.4
1978 99.9 106.5 82.2 79.3 87.8 91.3 99.2 83.9 88.6 93.2 89.7 93.3
1979 97.9 106.6 89.6 83.6 92.1 95.3 102.8 91.1 92.4 97.5 95.1 93.8
1980 94.6 102.2 92.9 87.7 97.8 95.8 99.8 95.7 93.9 96.7 95.6 90.3
1981 98.0 105.9 95.7 92.2 98.2 97.4 100.6 98.0 97.0 96.7 95.8 93.6
1982 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
1983 105.0 108.7 102.5 108.1 106.3 102.0 105.0 105.2 106.5 105.8 108.9 108.8
1984 107.9 119.1 108.1 112.3 105.4 103.8 108.5 115.7 114.1 112.5 117.0 115.3
1985 111.4 122.6 113.3 115.2 102.6 107.1 110.8 121.2 115.2 115.1 117.4 119.5
1986 114.2 120.6 110.8 116.3 98.8 109.0 110.4 125.7 116.4 113.4 118.8 124.0
1987 122.3 122.6 120.6 119.3 96.1 111.7 108.0 131.6 116.6 115.7 122.8 132.5
1988 126.5 123.5 129.0 126.3 99.8 119.8 111.7 139.7 120.0 115.5 124.0 140.5
1989 127.0 122.3 136.3 131.7 101.9 125.4 113.6 144.4 123.7 122.2 127.6 146.6
1990 127.6 122.4 143.5 136.1 102.6 126.8 115.4 147.2 125.3 125.3 131.3 149.0
1991 128.9 123.0 146.2 136.8 104.1 126.3 116.5 150.4 126.2 126.8 134.9 152.2
1992 135.8 129.1 133.0 NA 107.2 130.3 117.0 155.7 126.9 130.4 142.8 160.3
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
NA: Not Available
Note: The data relate to all employed persons (wage and salary earners and self-employed workers) in the United States and
Canada, and all employees (wage and salary earners) in the other countries.
Source: U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, August 1993.
Table 3. Output in manufacturing, 12 countries, 1950-1992
(Indexes: 1982=100)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
United Nether- United
Year States Canada Japan Belgium Denmark France Germany Italy lands Norway Sweden Kingdom
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1950 NA 29.1 3.1 NA 29.8 20.9 17.6 12.3 22.6 37.9 34.9 60.6
1955 NA 37.7 6.9 NA 32.8 26.0 33.7 19.0 30.9 46.4 40.4 71.2
1960 NA 44.1 15.1 37.8 45.4 35.1 50.9 28.0 42.7 56.0 52.0 82.3
1961 NA 45.9 18.1 39.5 47.9 37.7 53.9 30.8 44.2 58.3 55.5 82.4
1962 NA 51.1 19.7 42.6 52.0 40.5 56.5 34.1 46.3 58.8 59.7 82.7
1963 NA 54.5 21.9 44.6 52.7 43.6 57.6 36.3 48.3 62.3 62.7 85.6
1964 NA 60.0 25.5 48.6 58.9 47.6 62.7 36.8 52.9 66.8 68.2 93.4
1965 NA 66.0 26.5 50.2 62.7 50.0 67.4 38.7 56.6 70.3 73.0 96.1
1966 NA 70.3 30.0 53.1 64.0 54.6 68.6 42.3 59.6 74.5 75.1 97.7
1967 NA 71.8 36.0 53.8 64.7 57.2 67.1 46.5 62.0 76.9 77.5 98.4
1968 NA 76.6 41.6 57.5 69.7 60.4 74.0 50.8 67.8 78.8 81.5 105.3
1969 NA 82.0 48.4 64.3 73.5 67.6 82.7 54.1 74.4 84.5 87.9 109.3
1970 NA 78.5 55.1 70.9 75.7 72.7 86.9 58.4 80.3 88.4 91.3 109.8
1971 NA 83.5 57.8 74.1 77.2 77.2 87.8 59.3 82.3 91.5 91.9 108.6
1972 NA 90.3 63.8 79.6 83.9 80.8 90.7 62.7 85.3 95.9 92.5 110.9
1973 NA 100.0 71.8 86.9 88.5 87.0 96.4 70.7 91.2 101.3 99.0 121.2
1974 NA 103.0 69.7 90.4 89.9 88.7 95.5 75.6 95.2 106.4 104.4 119.6
1975 NA 96.1 67.1 83.6 87.7 86.9 91.0 71.1 88.3 104.1 104.7 111.4
1976 NA 103.1 73.6 89.9 91.9 92.0 98.0 81.6 94.2 104.3 104.8 113.5
1977 104.3 106.9 76.4 90.2 92.3 96.2 99.8 84.6 95.2 102.2 98.8 115.7
1978 108.7 111.7 79.8 91.5 92.0 98.4 101.7 88.8 97.9 99.8 96.1 116.3
1979 109.3 115.9 86.5 93.9 97.3 101.3 106.7 97.9 101.0 102.7 102.3 116.2
1980 102.0 110.7 91.5 96.4 101.7 100.6 104.7 103.1 101.5 101.7 102.7 106.1
1981 105.0 114.8 95.7 95.8 98.4 99.0 103.6 101.1 101.5 100.7 99.6 99.8
1982 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
1983 103.2 106.5 104.3 105.6 106.7 99.9 101.3 100.8 101.9 99.3 106.5 102.9
1984 111.3 120.2 113.2 108.4 111.7 98.7 104.3 105.4 107.9 105.0 115.0 106.8
1985 114.0 127.0 121.2 109.6 115.3 99.1 107.9 108.9 111.1 108.8 117.1 109.6
1986 115.2 127.9 117.9 108.9 115.3 99.1 109.4 111.5 113.8 108.8 118.5 111.1
1987 123.5 134.1 126.5 109.0 110.6 98.9 107.3 116.3 115.4 110.8 121.4 116.9
1988 130.1 140.9 138.2 114.6 112.3 104.6 110.7 125.0 119.7 105.5 125.1 125.1
1989 131.2 141.2 149.3 121.9 113.6 110.3 114.2 129.7 125.2 103.8 126.5 130.5
1990 129.8 134.0 160.6 126.4 115.0 112.4 119.3 132.3 129.3 104.5 125.7 129.8
1991 126.7 125.1 170.0 125.9 114.0 110.2 122.5 131.5 129.4 102.3 119.8 123.0
1992 130.6 125.7 157.6 NA 115.9 110.8 120.9 130.9 128.8 104.2 116.1 122.1
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
NA: Not Available
Source: U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, August 1993.
Table 4. Total hours in manufacturing, 12 countries, 1950-1992
(Indexes: 1982=100)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
United Nether- United
Year States Canada Japan Belgium Denmark France Germany Italy lands Norway Sweden Kingdom
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1950 87.3 82.0 40.7 NA 121.8 104.4 95.4 74.0 135.2 110.6 134.9 150.0
1955 96.5 86.5 54.3 NA 122.9 106.2 126.9 81.9 147.9 122.0 142.5 163.3
1960 94.0 85.5 81.2 156.2 140.0 112.6 131.9 96.2 160.9 117.3 143.3 166.6
1961 91.5 84.3 86.0 161.0 139.7 114.4 134.1 98.2 158.0 118.3 146.0 166.7
1962 95.3 87.9 89.4 165.0 144.3 115.7 131.6 98.1 160.9 119.4 146.4 163.4
1963 96.3 90.4 92.3 166.4 141.6 118.9 128.9 101.7 162.0 120.4 145.1 160.7
1964 98.3 95.0 94.6 170.7 146.3 120.8 129.5 102.0 163.0 122.1 145.9 164.5
1965 104.0 99.8 94.3 167.6 148.6 118.6 131.7 96.3 163.9 121.3 145.6 164.3
1966 110.8 103.9 97.1 166.1 144.4 120.1 128.6 96.8 162.5 123.4 143.9 161.9
1967 110.1 104.2 101.5 158.9 136.1 118.6 118.1 101.4 157.8 122.9 137.1 155.7
1968 111.7 103.6 104.1 156.4 134.3 113.2 120.9 102.7 154.6 118.5 132.1 155.5
1969 113.1 105.3 104.8 160.0 136.1 120.0 126.9 105.5 154.9 116.4 132.4 157.6
1970 106.5 102.1 105.9 159.9 132.3 122.0 129.7 107.0 152.0 118.6 131.9 154.9
1971 102.5 101.4 105.6 157.6 126.5 123.0 126.2 106.8 147.9 118.6 127.5 146.1
1972 107.1 104.5 105.4 152.1 127.0 123.5 122.8 104.0 140.7 117.8 122.1 141.3
1973 112.6 108.8 108.6 150.3 121.8 124.5 122.9 108.3 135.6 117.3 121.8 144.0
1974 110.1 110.3 104.1 148.0 119.7 124.4 117.6 108.4 130.6 118.3 123.3 139.9
1975 99.2 106.6 96.4 131.6 106.2 117.8 107.7 105.6 123.8 117.4 121.9 133.1
1976 104.0 106.9 98.7 128.5 107.3 117.8 108.3 106.7 118.8 114.1 120.1 129.9
1977 108.3 105.0 98.2 122.9 105.8 116.5 107.2 108.2 115.1 112.6 115.2 131.3
1978 112.8 108.6 97.0 117.4 104.0 114.2 105.6 106.6 111.1 108.3 109.0 130.2
1979 115.0 111.6 97.4 114.3 104.7 112.4 106.5 107.4 108.7 105.1 107.6 128.8
1980 109.8 110.8 99.3 110.1 103.7 111.2 106.3 108.0 108.1 105.5 106.3 118.1
1981 109.2 109.6 100.2 101.7 98.8 106.2 103.1 103.4 104.1 104.3 103.5 105.6
1982 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
1983 101.0 99.2 102.4 95.2 101.7 97.4 96.2 95.8 95.6 94.3 99.0 94.8
1984 107.5 103.3 106.6 93.6 107.1 94.7 95.8 91.1 93.8 93.2 101.4 93.7
1985 106.7 106.0 108.2 93.5 109.8 91.6 95.6 89.0 93.6 93.8 102.2 92.8
1986 105.1 108.5 106.9 92.2 116.6 90.0 96.5 90.1 94.8 94.9 101.7 90.4
1987 105.9 112.7 105.8 90.7 112.4 88.3 96.2 91.4 95.6 92.1 102.1 89.7
1988 109.0 117.9 109.3 91.5 110.0 87.4 95.8 95.8 96.2 88.1 103.9 91.0
1989 109.3 118.6 110.4 93.0 107.6 87.8 95.9 96.0 97.4 82.5 101.8 90.8
1990 106.9 111.1 111.2 94.4 106.9 88.4 97.1 93.7 99.4 80.9 99.5 88.2
1991 102.6 103.1 112.8 91.9 104.7 86.8 97.7 90.2 98.5 78.6 93.3 80.4
1992 101.2 99.4 111.5 NA 103.7 84.7 95.9 86.6 97.4 78.7 86.3 75.9
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
NA: Not Available
Note: The data relate to all employed persons (wage and salary earners and self-employed workers) in the United States and
Canada, and all employees (wage and salary earners) in the other countries.
Source: U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, August 1993.
Table 5. Employment in manufacturing, 12 countries, 1950-1992
(Indexes: 1982=100)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
United Nether- United
Year States Canada Japan Belgium Denmark France Germany Italy lands Norway Sweden Kingdom
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1950 81.3 73.5 37.9 NA 90.2 87.2 69.5 65.1 107.6 88.0 97.3 127.9
1955 89.8 80.5 48.2 NA 92.7 89.1 92.4 70.3 117.4 96.9 103.5 137.6
1960 89.3 80.1 69.2 124.3 111.3 94.0 106.6 81.7 126.4 96.9 109.9 143.2
1961 86.8 79.4 74.7 128.4 114.4 95.0 110.3 84.3 129.5 99.2 113.1 145.2
1962 89.5 81.8 79.5 131.4 117.2 96.3 111.2 86.9 132.9 100.4 114.1 143.8
1963 90.2 83.8 82.8 132.6 116.8 98.9 110.6 89.7 134.2 101.6 114.5 141.6
1964 91.5 87.7 85.5 136.4 119.7 101.1 111.0 90.0 136.3 102.1 116.2 143.7
1965 95.8 92.2 86.8 136.3 121.8 100.3 113.4 87.9 137.5 104.2 116.9 145.6
1966 101.6 96.6 88.9 136.1 120.6 101.0 112.3 87.4 137.1 105.8 115.6 146.0
1967 102.9 97.4 92.7 131.9 114.9 100.8 106.0 90.2 133.6 106.3 111.9 141.5
1968 104.6 96.6 95.4 129.7 116.0 99.2 107.0 91.4 133.3 105.1 110.1 140.2
1969 106.7 98.6 97.6 134.1 119.1 102.4 112.1 94.5 135.5 105.7 112.3 142.1
1970 102.5 96.3 99.9 137.7 119.6 105.4 115.2 97.6 135.4 108.5 114.4 141.8
1971 98.5 96.2 101.2 137.8 114.7 107.1 114.8 100.2 133.0 109.4 110.8 137.0
1972 101.2 99.2 101.6 136.0 117.7 108.6 112.7 98.3 128.4 109.7 109.0 133.8
1973 106.5 103.7 105.5 137.8 119.3 111.1 113.6 101.2 126.2 109.5 110.8 134.6
1974 106.2 105.8 105.9 139.3 115.0 112.5 111.0 104.9 125.4 111.3 113.4 135.1
1975 97.1 103.4 100.6 130.8 105.3 109.8 104.2 104.0 121.1 110.3 114.4 128.9
1976 100.6 103.9 99.8 125.5 105.9 109.2 102.0 105.1 116.4 109.8 114.2 124.8
1977 104.4 101.7 98.9 120.5 105.3 109.0 102.6 107.1 113.3 110.2 110.2 125.2
1978 108.8 105.0 97.2 115.4 104.8 107.8 102.5 105.8 110.5 107.1 107.2 124.7
1979 111.6 108.7 96.6 112.3 105.6 106.2 103.8 107.4 109.3 105.3 107.5 123.9
1980 107.8 108.4 98.5 109.9 103.9 105.0 104.9 107.8 108.1 105.2 107.4 117.5
1981 107.2 108.4 100.0 103.9 100.2 101.6 103.0 103.2 104.7 104.1 104.0 106.6
1982 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
1983 98.3 98.0 101.8 97.6 100.4 97.9 96.6 95.8 95.7 93.8 97.8 94.6
1984 103.1 100.9 104.7 96.5 106.0 95.1 96.1 91.1 94.5 93.3 98.3 92.6
1985 102.3 103.6 106.9 95.1 112.4 92.5 97.4 89.8 96.5 94.5 99.7 91.7
1986 100.9 106.1 106.4 93.7 116.6 90.8 99.1 88.7 97.8 95.9 99.7 89.6
1987 101.0 109.3 104.9 91.4 115.1 88.5 99.3 88.4 98.9 95.8 98.8 88.2
1988 102.8 114.1 107.2 90.7 112.6 87.3 99.1 89.4 99.7 91.4 100.9 89.0
1989 103.3 115.4 109.5 92.6 111.5 87.9 100.5 89.8 101.2 84.9 99.2 89.0
1990 101.8 109.5 112.0 92.9 112.1 88.6 103.4 89.9 103.2 83.4 95.8 87.1
1991 98.2 101.7 116.3 92.0 109.5 87.3 105.1 87.5 102.5 80.7 88.8 80.8
1992 96.2 97.4 118.4 NA 108.1 85.0 103.3 84.0 101.5 79.9 81.3 76.2
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
NA: Not Available
Note: The data relate to all employed persons (wage and salary earners and self-employed workers) in the United States and
Canada, and all employees (wage and salary earners) in the other countries.
Source: U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, August 1993.
Table 6. Average annual hours in manufacturing, 12 countries, 1950-1992
(Indexes: 1982=100)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
United Nether- United
Year States Canada Japan Belgium Denmark France Germany Italy lands Norway Sweden Kingdom
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1950 107.4 111.6 107.4 NA 135.1 119.8 137.3 113.6 125.7 125.7 138.7 117.3
1955 107.5 107.5 112.6 NA 132.6 119.1 137.4 116.5 126.0 126.0 137.7 118.8
1960 105.3 106.8 117.3 125.6 125.9 119.8 123.8 117.7 127.2 121.1 130.3 116.3
1961 105.5 106.2 115.2 125.3 122.2 120.4 121.6 116.5 122.0 119.2 129.1 114.8
1962 106.5 107.4 112.5 125.6 123.1 120.1 118.3 112.8 121.1 118.8 128.2 113.6
1963 106.8 107.8 111.4 125.5 121.2 120.3 116.5 113.4 120.7 118.5 126.7 113.5
1964 107.5 108.3 110.7 125.1 122.2 119.5 116.6 113.4 119.6 119.6 125.6 114.4
1965 108.6 108.3 108.6 123.0 122.0 118.3 116.2 109.6 119.2 116.3 124.5 112.8
1966 109.0 107.5 109.3 122.0 119.8 118.9 114.6 110.8 118.6 116.7 124.5 110.9
1967 107.0 107.0 109.4 120.5 118.4 117.7 111.4 112.4 118.0 115.7 122.5 110.0
1968 106.8 107.2 109.1 120.5 115.7 114.1 112.9 112.4 116.0 112.8 120.0 110.9
1969 106.0 106.7 107.4 119.3 114.3 117.2 113.2 111.6 114.3 110.2 117.9 110.9
1970 103.9 106.0 106.1 116.2 110.7 115.7 112.5 109.6 112.2 109.3 115.3 109.2
1971 104.1 105.4 104.3 114.4 110.3 114.9 110.0 106.6 111.2 108.4 115.1 106.6
1972 105.8 105.4 103.8 111.8 107.9 113.7 108.9 105.8 109.6 107.3 112.0 105.6
1973 105.7 104.9 103.0 109.1 102.1 112.1 108.2 107.1 107.5 107.2 109.9 107.1
1974 103.7 104.2 98.4 106.3 104.1 110.5 105.9 103.3 104.1 106.3 108.7 103.6
1975 102.2 103.1 95.8 100.6 100.8 107.3 103.4 101.5 102.2 106.5 106.5 103.2
1976 103.3 102.9 98.9 102.4 101.3 107.8 106.2 101.5 102.0 103.9 105.2 104.1
1977 103.7 103.2 99.2 102.0 100.4 106.9 104.5 101.0 101.6 102.1 104.5 104.8
1978 103.7 103.5 99.8 101.7 99.2 106.0 103.0 100.8 100.6 101.1 101.7 104.4
1979 103.1 102.7 100.9 101.8 99.1 105.8 102.6 100.0 99.4 99.8 100.1 104.0
1980 101.8 102.3 100.8 100.2 99.8 105.8 101.4 100.3 100.0 100.4 99.0 100.5
1981 101.9 101.1 100.2 97.9 98.6 104.5 100.1 100.3 99.5 100.1 99.5 99.0
1982 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
1983 102.7 101.3 100.6 97.5 101.4 99.5 99.7 100.0 99.9 100.5 101.2 100.3
1984 104.3 102.4 101.8 96.9 101.1 99.6 99.7 100.0 99.2 99.9 103.2 101.1
1985 104.3 102.4 101.2 98.3 97.7 99.0 98.1 99.1 97.0 99.3 102.5 101.1
1986 104.3 102.3 100.4 98.4 100.0 99.1 97.4 101.6 96.9 99.0 101.9 100.9
1987 104.8 103.1 100.9 99.3 97.7 99.7 96.9 103.5 96.6 96.1 103.2 101.6
1988 105.9 103.3 102.0 100.9 97.7 100.1 96.7 107.1 96.5 96.4 103.0 102.2
1989 105.9 102.7 100.8 100.4 96.5 99.8 95.5 106.9 96.3 97.1 102.7 102.0
1990 105.1 101.5 99.3 101.6 95.4 99.7 93.9 104.3 96.3 97.0 103.9 101.3
1991 104.4 101.4 97.0 99.9 95.6 99.4 92.9 103.1 96.1 97.5 105.1 99.4
1992 105.2 102.1 94.1 NA 96.0 99.7 92.8 103.0 95.9 98.5 106.2 99.6
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
NA: Not Available
Note: The data relate to all employed persons (wage and salary earners and self-employed workers) in the United States and
Canada, and all employees (wage and salary earners) in the other countries.
Source: U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, August 1993.
Table 7. Hourly compensation in manufacturing, national currency basis, 12 countries, 1950-1992
(Indexes: 1982=100)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
United Bel- Den- Nether- United
Year States Canada Japan gium mark France Germany Italy lands Norway Sweden Kingdom
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1950 NA 9.0 2.7 NA 4.2 2.8 5.6 2.1 4.3 4.6 4.2 3.8
1955 NA 12.7 4.8 NA 5.7 5.0 8.3 3.0 6.3 7.0 6.7 5.4
1960 NA 16.4 6.6 9.1 7.7 7.5 13.5 3.9 8.9 9.9 9.3 7.2
1961 NA 16.9 7.6 9.7 8.7 8.3 15.1 4.4 10.1 10.8 10.2 7.7
1962 NA 17.4 8.7 10.4 9.5 9.2 17.1 5.1 10.8 11.8 11.4 8.1
1963 NA 18.1 9.7 11.5 10.3 10.0 18.3 6.1 11.9 12.6 12.6 8.5
1964 NA 18.9 11.0 13.0 11.2 10.8 19.8 6.5 13.8 13.5 13.7 9.0
1965 NA 19.9 12.3 14.4 12.4 11.8 21.8 6.9 15.5 14.9 15.1 9.9
1966 NA 21.5 13.6 15.9 14.1 12.4 23.6 7.4 17.3 16.3 16.6 10.7
1967 NA 22.8 15.2 17.4 15.8 13.4 24.9 8.2 19.2 18.2 18.4 11.0
1968 NA 24.6 17.7 18.6 17.4 15.2 26.8 8.7 21.4 20.1 20.0 11.8
1969 NA 26.6 21.0 20.3 19.5 16.1 29.3 9.6 24.2 22.1 21.7 12.9
1970 NA 28.7 25.0 23.2 22.3 18.1 34.5 11.6 27.8 24.6 24.4 14.9
1971 NA 30.9 28.9 26.5 25.6 20.4 38.6 13.4 31.8 28.1 27.4 17.2
1972 NA 33.2 33.3 30.6 28.4 22.5 42.7 15.0 36.3 31.3 30.6 19.9
1973 NA 35.9 40.7 35.5 34.5 25.9 48.2 17.7 43.4 35.3 34.3 22.6
1974 NA 41.3 53.3 43.2 41.7 30.9 54.9 23.1 51.6 41.4 40.3 27.1
1975 NA 47.3 62.1 52.4 49.7 37.9 60.4 29.2 59.0 49.6 49.4 36.1
1976 NA 54.1 66.9 59.4 55.5 43.5 65.2 36.2 66.1 57.3 57.9 41.8
1977 62.8 59.9 73.8 66.3 61.4 49.4 71.2 42.9 71.8 64.2 63.2 47.2
1978 67.9 64.4 78.7 71.5 67.6 55.7 76.7 49.4 77.9 70.9 70.5 55.1
1979 74.4 71.0 83.7 77.9 75.6 63.1 82.3 59.8 84.0 74.7 76.0 65.6
1980 83.3 78.6 89.0 86.3 83.4 72.7 89.2 70.2 88.5 81.2 84.5 79.8
1981 91.5 90.4 95.3 95.9 91.9 84.2 94.9 84.8 93.5 90.3 93.4 91.4
1982 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
1983 102.7 106.1 102.7 106.0 106.9 110.3 105.0 117.0 104.5 110.3 110.1 106.9
1984 105.9 111.1 105.8 114.8 113.0 119.7 110.0 134.3 106.6 120.9 119.5 114.6
1985 111.2 116.8 110.1 121.6 120.6 129.7 116.3 150.9 111.5 132.2 131.7 124.2
1986 115.8 121.3 115.8 126.3 123.1 135.1 121.2 157.1 115.4 145.0 142.3 133.7
1987 118.4 125.0 118.6 128.8 134.6 140.2 126.9 166.0 118.8 165.6 151.8 142.0
1988 123.0 130.5 120.6 131.2 139.4 145.5 131.8 173.1 119.5 175.7 161.8 149.8
1989 127.9 137.4 128.2 138.1 147.3 153.3 138.2 191.1 120.1 183.4 179.0 162.9
1990 134.4 146.9 138.3 146.3 155.1 159.3 148.0 213.3 123.3 193.7 197.5 182.4
1991 141.2 155.8 146.3 154.6 161.9 166.1 158.3 236.1 129.7 202.8 214.2 201.4
1992 145.5 162.2 153.0 NA 166.4 171.7 167.7 252.2 136.7 208.4 226.0 214.9
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
NA: Not Available
Note: The data relate to all employed persons (wage and salary earners and self-employed workers) in the United States and
Canada, and all employees (wage and salary earners) in the other countries.
* Compensation adjusted to include changes in employment taxes that are not compensation to employees, but are labor
costs to employers.
Source: U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, August 1993.
Table 8. Hourly compensation in manufacturing, U.S. dollar basis, 12 countries, 1950-1992
(Indexes: 1982=100)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
United Bel- Den- Nether- United
Year States Canada Japan gium mark France Germany Italy lands Norway Sweden Kingdom
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1950 NA 10.1 1.9 NA 5.0 5.3 3.2 4.5 3.0 4.2 5.1 6.0
1955 NA 15.9 3.3 NA 6.9 9.3 4.8 6.5 4.4 6.3 8.1 8.6
1960 NA 20.9 4.5 8.4 9.3 10.1 7.9 8.6 6.3 8.9 11.3 11.6
1961 NA 20.6 5.3 8.9 10.5 11.1 9.2 9.5 7.4 9.7 12.4 12.4
1962 NA 20.1 6.0 9.6 11.5 12.3 10.4 11.2 8.0 10.7 13.9 13.0
1963 NA 20.7 6.7 10.5 12.5 13.4 11.1 13.2 8.8 11.4 15.2 13.6
1964 NA 21.6 7.5 11.9 13.5 14.5 12.1 14.1 10.2 12.2 16.7 14.4
1965 NA 22.8 8.5 13.3 14.9 15.8 13.2 15.1 11.5 13.5 18.4 15.8
1966 NA 24.7 9.3 14.6 17.0 16.7 14.3 16.0 12.8 14.7 20.2 17.1
1967 NA 26.1 10.5 16.0 18.9 17.9 15.2 17.7 14.2 16.4 22.4 17.3
1968 NA 28.2 12.2 17.0 19.4 20.2 16.3 18.9 15.8 18.1 24.3 16.2
1969 NA 30.4 14.6 18.6 21.7 20.5 18.1 20.6 17.9 20.0 26.4 17.6
1970 NA 33.9 17.4 21.3 24.8 21.6 22.9 25.1 20.6 22.2 29.6 20.4
1971 NA 37.7 20.7 25.0 28.9 24.4 27.0 29.4 24.3 25.8 33.7 24.0
1972 NA 41.3 27.3 31.8 34.1 29.4 32.5 34.9 30.2 30.7 40.4 28.4
1973 NA 44.3 37.4 41.8 47.7 38.4 44.2 41.2 41.7 39.7 49.5 31.7
1974 NA 52.2 45.6 50.9 57.2 42.1 51.6 48.1 51.4 48.5 57.2 36.3
1975 NA 57.3 52.1 65.4 72.3 58.2 59.7 60.5 62.5 61.4 75.0 45.9
1976 NA 67.7 56.2 70.5 76.6 59.9 62.9 59.0 66.8 67.7 83.5 43.1
1977 62.8 69.5 68.6 84.7 85.3 66.1 74.5 65.7 78.2 77.9 88.9 47.2
1978 67.9 69.8 94.0 104.2 102.5 81.4 92.8 78.8 96.3 87.3 98.0 60.5
1979 74.4 74.8 95.5 121.6 119.9 97.5 109.1 97.4 111.9 95.2 111.4 79.7
1980 83.3 83.0 98.3 135.4 123.7 113.3 119.3 111.1 119.1 106.2 125.6 106.1
1981 91.5 93.1 107.6 118.5 107.4 101.8 102.2 100.9 100.4 101.6 115.9 105.9
1982 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
1983 102.7 106.2 107.7 94.9 97.5 95.3 99.9 104.3 97.8 97.5 90.2 92.7
1984 105.9 105.9 111.0 91.0 91.0 90.2 93.9 103.5 88.8 95.7 90.8 87.7
1985 111.2 105.6 115.0 93.8 95.0 95.0 96.0 107.0 89.7 99.3 96.2 92.2
1986 115.8 107.8 171.2 129.4 126.9 128.4 135.6 142.7 125.9 126.5 125.5 112.2
1987 118.4 116.3 204.2 157.9 164.1 153.4 171.4 173.3 156.7 158.7 150.3 133.2
1988 123.0 130.9 234.4 163.3 172.6 160.6 182.1 179.9 161.4 173.9 165.7 152.6
1989 127.9 143.2 231.2 160.4 167.9 158.1 178.4 188.5 151.2 171.3 174.3 152.7
1990 134.4 155.5 237.5 200.4 209.0 192.4 222.2 241.0 180.8 200.0 209.5 186.1
1991 141.2 167.8 270.8 207.0 211.0 193.5 231.4 257.5 185.2 201.7 222.4 203.7
1992 145.5 165.7 300.6 NA 230.0 213.5 260.6 277.1 207.7 216.6 243.7 217.1
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
NA: Not Available
Note: The data relate to all employed persons (wage and salary earners and self-employed workers) in the United States and
Canada, and all employees (wage and salary earners) in the other countries.
* Compensation adjusted to include changes in employment taxes that are not compensation to employees, but are labor
costs to employers.
Source: U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, August 1993.
Table 9. Unit labor costs in manufacturing, national currency basis, 12 countries, 1950-1992
(Indexes: 1982=100)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
United Bel- Den- Nether- United
Year States Canada Japan gium mark France Germany Italy lands Norway Sweden Kingdom
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1950 NA 25.3 35.5 NA 17.0 14.2 30.3 12.6 25.8 13.4 16.3 9.3
1955 NA 29.2 37.5 NA 21.3 20.3 31.4 12.9 30.1 18.4 23.6 12.4
1960 NA 31.9 35.3 37.7 23.8 24.0 35.0 13.5 33.4 20.6 25.7 14.6
1961 NA 31.0 36.2 39.4 25.3 25.1 37.6 13.9 36.2 21.9 26.8 15.6
1962 NA 29.9 39.7 40.3 26.3 26.2 40.0 14.7 37.5 24.0 27.9 16.0
1963 NA 30.0 41.0 42.8 27.7 27.2 40.9 17.0 39.9 24.4 29.2 15.9
1964 NA 29.9 40.7 45.5 27.7 27.5 40.9 18.0 42.5 24.7 29.3 15.9
1965 NA 30.1 43.9 48.0 29.3 27.9 42.5 17.3 44.8 25.7 30.2 16.9
1966 NA 31.8 44.0 49.7 31.7 27.4 44.3 16.9 47.2 27.0 31.8 17.7
1967 NA 33.1 42.9 51.3 33.2 27.8 43.9 17.8 48.9 29.1 32.5 17.4
1968 NA 33.3 44.4 50.5 33.5 28.5 43.7 17.6 48.7 30.2 32.4 17.4
1969 NA 34.1 45.5 50.6 36.2 28.6 45.0 18.6 50.5 30.5 32.7 18.6
1970 NA 37.3 48.0 52.2 39.0 30.4 51.4 21.3 52.7 33.0 35.2 21.0
1971 NA 37.5 52.8 56.4 42.0 32.5 55.5 24.1 57.1 36.5 38.0 23.1
1972 NA 38.4 55.0 58.5 43.0 34.4 57.8 24.9 60.0 38.5 40.4 25.3
1973 NA 39.1 61.6 61.3 47.4 37.1 61.5 27.1 64.5 40.9 42.2 26.9
1974 NA 44.3 79.7 70.8 55.5 43.4 67.6 33.1 70.8 46.1 47.6 31.7
1975 NA 52.4 89.3 82.5 60.2 51.3 71.5 43.3 82.8 55.9 57.6 43.2
1976 NA 56.1 89.7 84.9 64.8 55.6 72.0 47.3 83.3 62.7 66.3 47.8
1977 65.2 58.8 94.7 90.3 70.3 59.8 76.6 54.8 86.8 70.8 73.7 53.6
1978 70.4 62.6 95.6 91.8 76.4 64.6 79.6 59.3 88.4 76.9 80.0 61.7
1979 78.4 68.4 94.3 94.8 81.4 70.0 82.2 65.6 90.4 76.5 79.9 72.7
1980 89.6 78.7 96.7 98.7 85.1 80.3 90.6 73.5 94.2 84.3 87.5 88.7
1981 95.1 86.3 99.8 101.7 92.2 90.3 94.4 86.8 95.9 93.6 97.1 96.8
1982 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
1983 100.4 98.9 100.8 95.6 101.9 107.6 99.7 111.2 98.1 104.8 102.3 98.6
1984 102.4 95.5 99.7 99.1 108.3 114.9 101.1 116.1 92.7 107.4 105.3 100.5
1985 104.2 97.6 98.4 103.8 114.9 119.9 103.0 123.4 93.9 114.0 115.0 105.1
1986 105.7 102.9 104.9 106.9 124.5 122.8 106.9 127.1 96.1 126.5 122.2 108.8
1987 101.5 105.0 99.2 107.3 136.8 125.1 113.8 130.5 98.4 137.6 127.7 108.9
1988 103.0 109.2 95.4 104.8 136.5 121.6 114.1 132.6 96.0 146.7 134.4 108.9
1989 106.6 115.4 94.8 105.3 139.5 122.0 116.1 141.4 93.5 145.6 144.1 113.4
1990 110.7 121.8 95.7 109.2 144.2 125.3 120.3 151.2 94.7 150.0 156.3 123.9
1991 114.4 128.4 97.1 112.9 148.7 130.7 126.3 161.9 98.8 155.8 166.8 131.6
1992 112.7 128.3 108.3 NA 148.9 131.4 133.0 166.8 103.3 157.4 168.1 133.5
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
NA: Not Available
Note: The data relate to all employed persons (wage and salary earners and self-employed workers) in the United States and
Canada, and all employees (wage and salary earners) in the other countries.
Source: U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, August 1993.
Table 10. Unit labor costs in manufacturing, U.S. dollar basis, 12 countries, 1950-1992
(Indexes: 1982=100)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
United Bel- Den- Nether- United
Year States Canada Japan gium mark France Germany Italy lands Norway Sweden Kingdom
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1950 NA 28.5 24.6 NA 20.6 26.6 17.6 27.2 18.1 12.1 19.8 15.0
1955 NA 36.6 26.0 NA 25.8 38.2 18.1 27.9 21.1 16.6 28.7 19.8
1960 NA 40.6 24.4 34.6 28.8 32.2 20.4 29.5 23.7 18.7 31.2 23.4
1961 NA 37.8 25.0 36.2 30.5 33.6 22.8 30.2 26.7 19.8 32.6 25.0
1962 NA 34.6 27.4 37.0 31.8 35.1 24.3 32.2 27.8 21.7 34.0 25.7
1963 NA 34.3 28.3 39.3 33.5 36.5 24.9 37.1 29.6 22.0 35.3 25.5
1964 NA 34.2 28.0 41.9 33.4 36.9 25.0 38.9 31.5 22.3 35.8 25.4
1965 NA 34.4 30.3 44.3 35.4 37.4 25.8 37.4 33.3 23.2 36.8 27.0
1966 NA 36.5 30.2 45.6 38.3 36.7 26.9 36.7 34.8 24.4 38.6 28.3
1967 NA 37.9 29.5 47.3 39.7 37.1 26.7 38.6 36.2 26.3 39.6 27.4
1968 NA 38.1 30.7 46.3 37.3 37.8 26.6 38.2 35.9 27.3 39.3 23.8
1969 NA 39.1 31.6 46.2 40.1 36.3 27.8 40.2 37.2 27.6 39.8 25.4
1970 NA 44.1 33.4 48.2 43.4 36.2 34.2 46.0 38.9 29.8 42.7 28.7
1971 NA 45.8 37.9 53.2 47.3 38.8 38.8 52.9 43.7 33.4 46.8 32.3
1972 NA 47.9 45.2 60.8 51.6 44.9 44.0 57.8 49.9 37.7 53.4 36.2
1973 NA 48.2 56.6 72.3 65.7 55.0 56.4 63.1 62.0 46.0 60.8 37.7
1974 NA 55.9 68.1 83.3 76.2 59.1 63.6 69.0 70.5 53.9 67.5 42.5
1975 NA 63.6 74.9 102.9 87.6 78.8 70.7 89.8 87.7 69.2 87.3 54.9
1976 NA 70.2 75.4 100.7 89.5 76.7 69.5 77.2 84.2 74.1 95.7 49.4
1977 65.2 68.3 88.1 115.4 97.8 80.1 80.1 84.1 94.5 85.9 103.7 53.5
1978 70.4 67.8 114.2 133.7 115.7 94.4 96.4 94.6 109.3 94.7 111.2 67.7
1979 78.4 72.1 107.6 148.0 129.1 108.2 108.9 106.9 120.4 97.5 117.2 88.3
1980 89.6 83.1 106.7 154.7 126.2 125.2 121.2 116.3 126.8 110.2 130.0 118.1
1981 95.1 88.9 112.6 125.8 107.8 109.2 101.7 103.2 103.0 105.2 120.4 112.1
1982 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
1983 100.4 99.0 105.7 85.6 92.9 92.9 94.8 99.1 91.8 92.7 83.8 85.5
1984 102.4 91.0 104.6 78.6 87.3 86.5 86.2 89.5 77.2 85.0 80.0 76.9
1985 104.2 88.2 102.7 80.1 90.4 87.8 85.0 87.5 75.6 85.7 84.0 78.0
1986 105.7 91.4 155.2 109.5 128.3 116.7 119.5 115.4 104.8 110.4 107.7 91.3
1987 101.5 97.8 170.8 131.4 166.7 136.9 153.7 136.3 129.8 131.8 126.4 102.2
1988 103.0 109.5 185.3 130.5 169.0 134.2 157.7 137.9 129.8 145.2 137.6 111.0
1989 106.6 120.3 171.1 122.3 159.0 125.8 149.9 139.5 117.7 136.0 140.2 106.2
1990 110.7 128.9 164.4 149.6 194.4 151.3 180.8 170.8 138.9 154.9 165.8 126.5
1991 114.4 138.3 179.7 151.2 193.8 152.3 184.6 176.6 141.0 155.0 173.1 133.0
1992 112.7 131.1 212.7 NA 205.9 163.3 206.7 183.3 157.0 163.5 181.3 134.9
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
NA: Not Available
Note: The data relate to all employed persons (wage and salary earners and self-employed workers) in the United States and
Canada, and all employees (wage and salary earners) in the other countries.
Source: U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, August 1993.
Table 11. Exchange rates, 12 countries, 1950-1992.
(Value of foreign currency relative to the U.S. dollar)
(Indexes: 1982=100)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
United Bel- Den- Nether- United
Year States Canada Japan gium mark France Germany Italy lands Norway Sweden Kingdom
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1950 100.0 112.9 69.2 NA 120.9 188.0 57.9 216.8 70.1 90.5 121.5 160.2
1955 100.0 125.2 69.2 NA 120.8 187.9 57.7 216.6 70.1 90.4 121.5 159.7
1960 100.0 127.3 69.2 91.8 121.0 134.1 58.2 218.0 70.8 90.5 121.6 160.6
1961 100.0 121.9 69.0 91.8 120.8 134.1 60.5 218.0 73.6 90.4 121.6 160.3
1962 100.0 115.5 69.0 92.0 120.9 134.3 60.7 218.1 74.2 90.5 121.9 160.6
1963 100.0 114.4 68.9 91.8 120.9 134.2 60.9 217.8 74.2 90.3 121.1 160.2
1964 100.0 114.4 68.8 92.0 120.7 134.2 61.1 216.8 74.1 90.2 122.0 159.7
1965 100.0 114.5 68.9 92.2 120.7 134.2 60.8 216.7 74.2 90.3 121.8 159.9
1966 100.0 114.6 68.7 91.9 120.8 133.9 60.7 216.8 73.8 90.3 121.6 159.8
1967 100.0 114.4 68.8 92.1 119.5 133.7 60.9 216.9 74.2 90.3 121.7 157.3
1968 100.0 114.6 69.1 91.7 111.5 132.8 60.8 217.2 73.8 90.4 121.6 136.9
1969 100.0 114.6 69.5 91.3 111.0 127.0 61.9 215.8 73.7 90.4 121.5 136.7
1970 100.0 118.3 69.5 92.2 111.3 119.0 66.6 215.9 73.9 90.3 121.2 137.1
1971 100.0 122.2 71.7 94.3 112.7 119.4 69.8 219.0 76.5 91.7 123.1 139.8
1972 100.0 124.6 82.2 104.0 120.0 130.4 76.2 232.0 83.2 98.0 132.1 143.1
1973 100.0 123.4 91.9 117.9 138.5 148.3 91.7 232.8 96.1 112.4 144.3 140.2
1974 100.0 126.2 85.4 117.7 137.2 136.2 94.0 208.1 99.6 117.0 141.8 133.9
1975 100.0 121.3 83.9 124.8 145.5 153.7 98.9 207.5 105.9 123.8 151.7 127.1
1976 100.0 125.2 84.0 118.7 138.1 137.8 96.5 163.1 101.1 118.3 144.3 103.2
1977 100.0 116.2 93.0 127.8 139.0 133.9 104.6 153.4 108.9 121.3 140.6 99.8
1978 100.0 108.3 119.5 145.6 151.5 146.2 121.1 159.5 123.7 123.2 139.1 109.7
1979 100.0 105.4 114.2 156.1 158.6 154.6 132.5 162.9 133.2 127.5 146.6 121.4
1980 100.0 105.6 110.4 156.8 148.2 155.9 133.8 158.3 134.6 130.8 148.6 133.1
1981 100.0 103.0 112.9 123.6 116.9 121.0 107.7 118.9 107.4 112.4 124.0 115.8
1982 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
1983 100.0 100.2 104.8 89.5 91.2 86.3 95.1 89.1 93.6 88.4 81.9 86.7
1984 100.0 95.3 104.9 79.3 80.6 75.3 85.3 77.1 83.3 79.1 76.0 76.5
1985 100.0 90.4 104.4 77.2 78.7 73.3 82.5 70.9 80.5 75.1 73.0 74.2
1986 100.0 88.8 147.9 102.5 103.1 95.0 111.9 90.8 109.1 87.3 88.2 84.0
1987 100.0 93.1 172.2 122.5 121.9 109.4 135.0 104.4 131.9 95.8 99.0 93.8
1988 100.0 100.3 194.3 124.5 123.8 110.4 138.2 104.0 135.1 99.0 102.4 101.9
1989 100.0 104.2 180.4 116.2 114.0 103.1 129.1 98.7 125.9 93.4 97.3 93.7
1990 100.0 105.8 171.8 137.0 134.8 120.8 150.2 113.0 146.7 103.2 106.1 102.1
1991 100.0 107.7 185.1 133.9 130.3 116.5 146.2 109.1 142.7 99.5 103.8 101.1
1992 100.0 102.1 196.5 142.4 138.2 124.3 155.5 109.9 151.9 103.9 107.9 101.0
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Source: U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, August 1993.
Table 12. Average annual compensation in manufacturing, national currency basis, 12 countries, 1950-1992
(Indexes: 1982=100)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
United Bel- Den- Nether- United
Year States Canada Japan gium mark France Germany Italy lands Norway Sweden Kingdom
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1950 NA 10.0 2.9 NA 5.6 3.4 7.7 2.4 5.4 5.8 5.9 4.4
1955 NA 13.7 5.4 NA 7.6 5.9 11.5 3.5 7.9 8.8 9.2 6.4
1960 NA 17.6 7.7 11.5 9.7 9.0 16.7 4.6 11.3 11.9 12.1 8.4
1961 NA 17.9 8.8 12.1 10.6 10.0 18.4 5.1 12.3 12.9 13.2 8.8
1962 NA 18.7 9.8 13.0 11.7 11.0 20.3 5.8 13.1 14.1 14.6 9.2
1963 NA 19.5 10.9 14.4 12.5 12.0 21.3 6.9 14.4 15.0 16.0 9.6
1964 NA 20.4 12.1 16.2 13.6 12.9 23.1 7.3 16.5 16.1 17.2 10.3
1965 NA 21.6 13.4 17.7 15.1 13.9 25.3 7.6 18.4 17.3 18.9 11.1
1966 NA 23.1 14.9 19.4 16.9 14.8 27.1 8.2 20.5 19.0 20.6 11.8
1967 NA 24.4 16.7 20.9 18.7 15.8 27.7 9.2 22.7 21.0 22.5 12.1
1968 NA 26.4 19.3 22.4 20.1 17.3 30.2 9.8 24.8 22.6 23.9 13.1
1969 NA 28.4 22.6 24.3 22.3 18.9 33.2 10.7 27.7 24.4 25.6 14.3
1970 NA 30.4 26.5 26.9 24.7 21.0 38.8 12.7 31.2 26.9 28.1 16.2
1971 NA 32.5 30.2 30.3 28.3 23.4 42.4 14.3 35.4 30.5 31.5 18.3
1972 NA 35.0 34.5 34.2 30.6 25.6 46.5 15.9 39.8 33.6 34.3 21.0
1973 NA 37.7 41.9 38.7 35.2 29.0 52.2 18.9 46.6 37.9 37.7 24.2
1974 NA 43.1 52.5 45.9 43.4 34.2 58.2 23.9 53.8 44.0 43.8 28.1
1975 NA 48.7 59.5 52.7 50.1 40.6 62.5 29.6 60.3 52.8 52.7 37.3
1976 NA 55.7 66.1 60.8 56.2 46.9 69.2 36.8 67.4 59.5 60.9 43.5
1977 65.1 61.8 73.2 67.6 61.6 52.8 74.4 43.3 72.9 65.6 66.1 49.5
1978 70.4 66.7 78.5 72.8 67.1 59.0 79.0 49.7 78.3 71.7 71.7 57.5
1979 76.7 72.9 84.5 79.3 74.9 66.7 84.5 59.8 83.5 74.5 76.1 68.2
1980 84.8 80.4 89.8 86.5 83.3 76.9 90.5 70.3 88.5 81.5 83.6 80.2
1981 93.2 91.4 95.5 93.9 90.5 88.0 95.0 85.0 93.0 90.5 93.0 90.6
1982 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
1983 105.5 107.4 103.3 103.4 108.4 109.7 104.7 117.0 104.4 110.8 111.4 107.2
1984 110.5 113.7 107.7 111.3 114.2 119.2 109.7 134.3 105.8 120.8 123.3 115.9
1985 116.0 119.6 111.5 119.6 117.8 128.3 114.1 149.6 108.1 131.2 135.0 125.6
1986 120.7 124.1 116.3 124.3 123.1 133.9 118.0 159.7 111.8 143.5 145.1 134.9
1987 124.1 128.8 119.6 127.9 131.5 139.7 122.9 171.8 114.8 159.2 156.7 144.3
1988 130.4 134.8 123.0 132.4 136.2 145.6 127.4 185.3 115.3 169.4 166.7 153.0
1989 135.4 141.1 129.3 138.7 142.2 153.0 131.9 204.2 115.7 178.0 183.8 166.2
1990 141.2 149.1 137.3 148.7 147.9 158.8 138.9 222.5 118.7 187.9 205.1 184.6
1991 147.5 157.9 142.0 154.4 154.9 165.1 147.1 243.5 124.7 197.6 225.0 200.3
1992 153.0 165.6 144.0 NA 159.7 171.2 155.6 259.8 131.1 205.3 240.0 214.0
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
NA: Not Available
Note: The data relate to all employed persons (wage and salary earners and self-employed workers) in the United States and
Canada, and all employees (wage and salary earners) in the other countries.
* Compensation adjusted to include changes in employment taxes that are not compensation to employees, but are labor
costs to employers.
Source: U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, August 1993.
Table 13. Real hourly compensation in manufacturing, CPI basis, 12 countries, 1950-1992
(Indexes: 1982=100)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
United Bel- Den- Nether- United
Year States Canada Japan gium mark France Germany Italy lands Norway Sweden Kingdom
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1950 NA 39.4 17.9 NA 31.9 22.6 15.7 22.4 19.8 31.4 29.7 36.6
1955 NA 49.5 23.2 NA 35.5 30.5 21.3 26.0 24.5 35.1 35.9 40.0
1960 NA 58.1 29.5 29.3 43.1 34.4 31.5 29.9 30.5 43.4 41.5 46.9
1961 NA 59.1 32.6 30.7 46.5 36.8 34.5 32.2 34.4 46.2 44.6 48.5
1962 NA 60.2 34.8 32.5 47.4 38.8 38.0 36.1 35.9 48.1 47.5 48.9
1963 NA 61.6 36.2 35.2 48.9 40.4 39.3 39.8 38.3 50.1 51.0 50.1
1964 NA 63.0 39.2 38.1 51.0 42.4 41.6 40.0 41.9 50.7 53.8 51.8
1965 NA 64.9 41.0 40.7 53.2 44.9 44.2 41.1 45.2 53.7 56.5 54.0
1966 NA 67.6 43.0 43.1 56.7 46.3 46.4 42.9 47.9 56.8 58.1 56.2
1967 NA 69.3 46.3 45.8 59.1 48.5 48.3 46.3 51.3 60.8 61.8 57.6
1968 NA 71.7 51.1 47.7 60.2 52.9 51.2 48.8 55.0 64.7 65.9 59.2
1969 NA 74.1 57.6 50.3 65.5 54.2 54.9 52.1 58.1 69.2 69.2 60.9
1970 NA 77.4 63.6 55.1 70.1 58.3 62.6 60.3 63.9 69.5 72.6 65.9
1971 NA 81.1 69.3 60.5 76.2 62.0 66.7 66.3 67.9 75.0 75.3 69.5
1972 NA 83.1 76.0 66.2 79.2 64.5 70.0 70.3 71.9 77.8 79.3 74.8
1973 NA 83.7 83.2 71.8 87.9 68.9 74.1 74.9 79.5 81.7 82.0 78.0
1974 NA 86.8 88.5 77.6 92.3 72.4 78.9 82.0 86.3 87.6 87.9 80.6
1975 NA 89.6 92.3 83.4 100.4 79.2 81.9 88.3 89.5 93.8 98.3 86.7
1976 NA 95.3 90.8 86.6 102.8 82.9 84.6 94.1 92.1 99.3 103.9 86.0
1977 100.0 97.7 92.6 90.3 102.3 86.0 89.4 93.3 93.8 102.1 101.2 83.8
1978 100.4 96.5 94.8 93.3 102.5 88.7 93.8 95.6 97.8 104.2 104.5 89.8
1979 98.9 97.5 97.2 97.2 104.5 90.9 97.0 100.0 101.2 104.8 105.6 94.1
1980 97.5 97.9 96.0 101.0 102.6 92.2 99.9 96.9 100.0 102.7 103.0 97.1
1981 97.1 100.2 97.9 104.2 101.2 94.2 99.9 98.7 99.1 100.6 101.5 100.0
1982 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
1983 99.5 100.3 100.8 98.5 100.0 100.7 101.8 101.8 101.7 101.7 99.2 102.3
1984 98.4 100.6 101.6 100.3 99.4 101.7 104.1 105.6 100.4 105.0 100.1 104.3
1985 99.8 101.8 103.6 101.3 101.4 103.9 107.9 109.3 102.7 108.6 102.6 106.4
1986 102.0 101.6 108.2 103.8 99.8 105.4 112.7 107.2 106.2 111.1 106.2 110.8
1987 100.6 100.2 110.8 104.3 105.0 106.0 117.9 108.3 109.9 116.4 108.6 113.0
1988 100.4 100.5 111.9 105.0 104.0 107.3 121.1 107.6 109.7 116.1 110.6 113.6
1989 99.5 100.8 116.3 107.2 104.8 109.1 123.3 111.4 108.9 115.8 115.4 114.7
1990 99.2 102.9 121.7 109.8 107.5 109.8 128.6 117.3 109.2 117.6 114.4 117.2
1991 100.0 103.3 124.7 112.2 109.6 110.8 132.9 121.8 110.6 119.0 114.2 122.3
1992 100.1 106.0 128.2 NA 110.4 111.9 135.3 123.5 112.4 119.5 118.2 125.8
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
NA: Not Available
Note: The data relate to all employed persons (wage and salary earners and self-employed workers) in the United States and
Canada, and all employees (wage and salary earners) in the other countries.
Source: U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, August 1993.
Table 14. Real average annual compensation in manufacturing, CPI basis, 12 countries, 1950-1992
(Indexes: 1982=100)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
United Bel- Den- Nether- United
Year States Canada Japan gium mark France Germany Italy lands Norway Sweden Kingdom
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1950 NA 43.9 19.2 NA 43.0 27.1 21.6 25.4 24.9 39.5 41.2 42.9
1955 NA 53.2 26.1 NA 47.1 36.3 29.3 30.3 30.9 44.2 49.4 47.5
1960 NA 62.0 34.6 36.8 54.3 41.2 39.0 35.2 38.8 52.5 54.2 54.6
1961 NA 62.7 37.5 38.5 56.8 44.3 42.0 37.5 42.0 55.1 57.5 55.7
1962 NA 64.7 39.2 40.8 58.3 46.6 45.0 40.7 43.5 57.2 60.9 55.5
1963 NA 66.4 40.3 44.1 59.3 48.5 45.8 45.1 46.2 59.4 64.6 56.9
1964 NA 68.2 43.4 47.7 62.3 50.7 48.5 45.4 50.1 60.6 67.5 59.2
1965 NA 70.3 44.5 50.0 64.9 53.1 51.4 45.1 53.9 62.5 70.3 61.0
1966 NA 72.7 46.9 52.6 67.9 55.1 53.2 47.5 56.7 66.3 72.4 62.3
1967 NA 74.2 50.7 55.1 70.0 57.1 53.7 52.0 60.5 70.3 75.7 63.4
1968 NA 76.9 55.8 57.5 69.7 60.4 57.8 54.8 63.8 73.0 79.0 65.6
1969 NA 79.1 61.9 60.0 74.8 63.6 62.2 58.2 66.4 76.3 81.5 67.6
1970 NA 82.0 67.5 64.0 77.6 67.4 70.4 66.1 71.7 76.0 83.7 71.9
1971 NA 85.4 72.3 69.2 84.0 71.2 73.3 70.6 75.5 81.3 86.7 74.1
1972 NA 87.6 78.9 74.1 85.4 73.4 76.2 74.4 78.8 83.5 88.9 79.0
1973 NA 87.8 85.7 78.3 89.8 77.2 80.2 80.2 85.4 87.6 90.1 83.5
1974 NA 90.5 87.1 82.5 96.1 80.0 83.6 84.7 89.9 93.1 95.5 83.5
1975 NA 92.3 88.4 83.9 101.2 84.9 84.6 89.6 91.5 99.9 104.7 89.4
1976 NA 98.1 89.8 88.7 104.2 89.3 89.8 95.5 94.0 103.2 109.3 89.6
1977 103.7 100.9 91.9 92.1 102.8 91.9 93.4 94.3 95.3 104.3 105.9 87.8
1978 104.2 99.9 94.6 94.9 101.7 94.0 96.6 96.3 98.4 105.4 106.3 93.8
1979 102.0 100.1 98.1 98.9 103.6 96.1 99.5 100.0 100.6 104.6 105.7 97.8
1980 99.3 100.2 96.8 101.3 102.4 97.6 101.3 97.1 100.0 103.1 102.0 97.6
1981 98.9 101.3 98.2 102.0 99.7 98.4 100.0 98.9 98.5 100.7 101.0 99.1
1982 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
1983 102.2 101.6 101.4 96.0 101.4 100.1 101.4 101.8 101.6 102.2 100.5 102.6
1984 102.6 103.0 103.4 97.2 100.5 101.3 103.7 105.6 99.7 104.9 103.3 105.4
1985 104.1 104.2 104.9 99.6 99.0 102.8 105.9 108.3 99.7 107.8 105.1 107.6
1986 106.3 103.9 108.7 102.2 99.8 104.5 109.7 109.0 102.9 110.0 108.3 111.8
1987 105.4 103.3 111.7 103.6 102.5 105.7 114.2 112.1 106.1 111.9 112.1 114.9
1988 106.3 103.9 114.1 105.9 101.6 107.4 117.0 115.2 105.8 111.9 113.9 116.1
1989 105.3 103.5 117.3 107.6 101.2 108.9 117.7 119.1 104.9 112.4 118.4 117.0
1990 104.3 104.4 120.8 111.6 102.6 109.4 120.8 122.3 105.2 114.0 118.8 118.7
1991 104.5 104.7 121.0 112.1 104.9 110.1 123.5 125.7 106.3 116.0 120.0 121.6
1992 105.3 108.2 120.6 NA 105.9 111.5 125.6 127.2 107.8 117.6 125.6 125.3
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
NA: Not Available
Note: The data relate to all employed persons (wage and salary earners and self-employed workers) in the United States and
Canada, and all employees (wage and salary earners) in the other countries.
Source: U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, August 1993.
Table 15. Korea: Output and unit labor costs, all employees in manufacturing, 1970-1992
(Indexes: 1982=100)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
UNIT LABOR COSTS
National U.S.
currency dollar Exchange
Year Output Compensation basis basis rate*
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1970 20.2 3.1 15.2 35.7 235.4
1971 23.8 3.9 16.2 34.1 210.6
1972 27.0 4.9 18.0 33.4 186.1
1973 34.8 7.4 21.4 39.3 183.5
1974 40.4 10.7 26.5 47.9 180.8
1975 45.2 13.8 30.4 46.0 151.1
1976 55.9 21.6 38.6 58.4 151.1
1977 64.3 29.1 45.2 68.3 151.1
1978 77.8 42.1 54.1 81.8 151.1
1979 85.9 56.5 65.8 99.3 151.1
1980 85.3 70.6 82.8 99.7 120.4
1981 93.7 89.1 95.1 102.1 107.4
1982 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
1983 115.4 121.9 105.6 99.6 94.2
1984 135.4 144.0 106.3 96.4 90.7
1985 145.0 152.9 105.4 88.6 84.0
1986 171.6 178.5 104.0 86.3 82.9
1987 203.7 222.7 109.3 97.2 88.9
1988 231.1 280.9 121.5 121.5 99.9
1989 239.7 353.2 147.3 160.4 108.9
1990 261.4 422.9 161.8 167.1 103.3
1991 284.6 486.9 171.1 170.5 99.7
1992 298.4 546.3 183.1 171.5 93.7
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
*Value of foreign currency relative to U.S. dollar.
Source: U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, August 1993.
Table 16. Taiwan: Output and unit labor costs, all employees in manufacturing, 1970-1992
(Indexes: 1982=100)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
UNIT LABOR COSTS
National U.S.
currency dollar Exchange
Year Output Compensation basis basis rate*
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1970 26.9 8.1 30.0 29.3 97.8
1971 32.8 10.3 31.6 30.9 97.8
1972 39.4 12.6 32.0 31.3 97.8
1973 46.1 17.2 37.2 38.1 102.3
1974 43.6 24.5 56.3 58.0 103.0
1975 45.7 26.0 57.0 58.7 103.0
1976 55.8 33.0 59.0 60.8 103.0
1977 63.0 38.8 61.6 63.4 103.0
1978 75.7 47.1 62.3 65.8 105.6
1979 81.6 57.8 70.8 76.8 108.5
1980 90.2 73.4 81.4 88.4 108.6
1981 97.6 91.7 93.9 99.7 106.2
1982 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
1983 110.8 109.3 98.6 96.3 97.7
1984 126.8 130.5 102.9 101.7 98.8
1985 131.5 140.4 106.8 104.8 98.2
1986 152.5 167.7 109.9 113.7 103.4
1987 172.0 189.2 110.0 135.6 123.3
1988 178.2 202.3 113.5 155.3 136.9
1989 184.8 219.0 118.5 175.6 148.2
1990 184.4 233.9 126.9 184.4 145.3
1991 196.5 253.1 128.8 188.4 146.2
1992 203.8 277.5 136.2 211.8 155.5
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
*Value of foreign currency relative to U.S. dollar.
Source: U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, August 1993.