New U.S. figures show labour troubles ahead
06.11.2008 17:04
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- Source: cbc.ca
New U.S. figures released Thursday point to growing labour pains as Christmas looms. The U.S. Labor Department said American productivity, the amount of output per employee per hour, rose faster than expected in the July-to-September period, up 1.1 per cent compared to analysts' forecast of 0.3 per cent. Usually, rising productivity is sign of a strengthening economy. In this case, however, American industrial output actually fell in the period 1.9 per cent. In response, employers cut the number of hours their workers were on the job by 2.7 per cent. That meant employees were working a lot less to produce fewer goods and services. In addition, unit labour costs — a measure of potential inflation — rose by 3.6 per cent in the three months, less than what economists had predicted. But real hourly compensation, pay once inflation was subtracted, fell by 1.9 per cent in the quarter and has dropped by 0.9 per cent so far in 2008. Taken together, these measures indicated that companies are cutting back on workers' hours and what they pay for this labour. Thus, already-worried workers are bound to feel the pinch in their wallets in the coming months from constricted credit markets. Jobless claims indicate slowdownThe U.S. Labor Department also said the number of people making their first claim for unemployment insurance in the United States dropped slightly, down 4,000 to 481,000, but remained in the range indicating an economic slowdown. More troubling, however, was the 25 year-high reached in the number of men and women who are made continuing claims for government employment cash in the latest one-week period. Slightly more than 3.8 million Americans were in the long-term unemployment category for this period, up more than one million compared to the same time in 2007. That meant that the number of people who were unemployed and were having problems securing new work has risen almost 50 per cent in 12 months. Consumer HeadlinesForget herbicides, weed-whackers: get some goats, study saysMunicipalities across the country should consider swapping herbicides for goat herds to control weeds on environmentally sensitive lands, a B.C. study has concluded.Generic drug maker loses case in Canada's top courtThe Supreme Court of Canada has rejected an attempt by a Toronto-based generic drug maker to prevent brand-name pharmaceutical companies from patenting specific parts of previously patented medicines.Cape Breton distillery toasts scotch shortageNova Scotia's only distiller is hoping to cash in on a worldwide craving for fancy whisky that's leaving shelves bare across Canada.New U.S. figures show labour troubles aheadNew U.S. figures released Thursday point to growing labour pains as Christmas looms. Rise in commercial building permits offsets fall in housing sector: StatsCanMunicipalities issued $6.5 billion worth of building permits in September — an increase of 13.4 per cent over the previous month, Statistics Canada said Thursday. Consumer Life FeaturesENERGYElectric trucksVancouver's Envia aims to energize fleet vehicles CONSUMERAuto salesHow to avoid car buyers' remorseSAFETYRecalls and AdvisoriesBLOGFood BytesTightening the belt before dinnerMOBILE TECHNOLOGYNotebook computersCheap versus chic laptopsCOMM-ODDITIESAuctionOzark cave owner turns to eBay in search of a bidderPeople who read this also read …
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