Productivity Is Dropping Over

Mentioned, among other places, at Ticker's site.

The 0.9-percent productivity decline is the first time the four-quarter change series has remained negative for five consecutive quarters; this series begins in the first quarter of 1948....

and

...Unit labor costs in the nonfarm business sector increased 6.3 percent in the first quarter of 2023, reflecting a 3.4-percent increase in hourly compensation and a 2.7-percent decrease in productivity. Unit labor costs increased 5.8 percent over the last four quarters....

Those of you who noticed less quality in services rendered to you, or less quality in--say--newspaper  or TeeVee "reporting" (grammar, syntax, factoids) are observing the easily-recognized part of the "productivity" problem.  It's not easy to hire good people any more.

What you see and read is analogous to what goes on in factories or construction sites:  mistakes or slow work are "productivity" problems that are a result of hiring less-than-good people.  But regardless of the quality of the people, the wages/salaries paid continue to spiral upward.

We're not as apocalyptic about this as is Ticker; it's possible that as the people gain experience, their productivity will increase.  Let's hope so.