Generating Productivity Growth: A Review of the Role of Workplace Practices and Computers.

摘要

Productivity in the United States is still the highest of any nation in the world. However average annual productivity growth since 1973, after smoothing for cyclical fluctuations, has remained at a steady 1.1 percent. This is significantly lower than the 2.9 percent average annual growth rate of productivity between 1960 and 1973. Although manufacturing productivity growth has improved recently to 4.2 percent, it remains of the utmost importance to understand the determinants of productivity growth. Investments in education and the skills development of workers are a way to ensure higher labor productivity growth without igniting wage inflation. This report summarizes new research that uses detailed establishment level data to examine the respective contributions of human capital investments, workplace practices, and computers on labor productivity.