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U.S. productivity is up for the third quarter in a row. What does that mean?

Feb 1, 2024
Rising productivity makes possible rising living standards over time.
One way to think about productivity is the total amount of income the economy is generating per hour, says Heidi Shierholz at the Economic Policy Institute.
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How businesses can better prepare for climate change

Along with the obvious human case for looking out for employees, climate change poses a serious threat to productivity and retention.
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For the first time in a year, worker productivity is up

Aug 10, 2023
That's a good thing for the economy and for business — and could be a good thing for workers themselves.
Increased productivity often comes from the introduction of new technology, like supermarket self checkouts.
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Workers are being more productive, a good sign for low-inflation growth

Aug 3, 2023
The Labor Department says worker output is up while average hours worked is down. That could help bring down inflation going forward.
Worker output climbed in the second quarter as economic growth picked up.
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Could artificial intelligence be your next coworker?

May 5, 2023
Workplace AI is coming, and one study of a Fortune 500 company found it can be a productivity boon.
A new study of call center workers at a Fortune 500 company found that AI integration boosted productivity, especially among less skilled and less experienced workers.
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Productivity in the U.S. fell last month, but the nation's output increased. How does that work?

May 4, 2023
What matters here is how the Labor Department defines productivity.
More people are working, since a lot of sectors — like leisure and hospitality — are playing catchup on hiring.
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A more productive U.S. economy could unlock $10 trillion

Higher productivity could drive up wages, temper inflation and aid the energy transition, the McKinsey Global Institute finds.
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For public good, not for profit.

In U.K. 4-day work week trial, companies see happier employees — and higher productivity

Dec 19, 2022
70 U.K. companies have just completed a 6-month experiment with a shorter week with full pay – and early results are promising.
While some companies that partook in the U.K.'s 4-day work week experiment saw benefits, labor experts are skeptical that it could be replicated at all businesses. Above, London commuters in December 2021.
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Could this meeting be an email?

Nov 16, 2022
One worker’s experience with a meeting-free week.
As an experiment in productivity, software company Zapier canceled all meetings for a week. Above, a cat attends a Zoom session.
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Raising the curtain on "productivity theater"

Oct 4, 2022
Employees don't want be labeled "quiet quitters," so they're working to appear busy. Rani Molla of Vox explains the practice.
Nearly 90% of managers don't trust that their hybrid employees are productive, according to a Microsoft survey.
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