After worker productivity climbed to near-record levels during the first two years of the COVID-19 pandemic and the shift to hybrid and remote work, it fell hard in the first half of 2022 — leaving experts to scratch their heads as to why.
On Thursday, the US Bureau of Labor Statistics released third-quarter data showing business productivity had increased marginally — up just 0.3% from the previous quarter — and worker output had risen a paltry 2.8%. But compared to the same quarter a year ago, productivity is still down 1.4%, a drop that represents the first instance of three consecutive declines in productivity since 1982.
