Notes: Information on the methods and data underlying these measures can be found in "Technical Information About the Major Sector Productivity and Costs Methods" (http://www.bls.gov/lpc//lpc/lpcmethods.pdf or http://www.bls.gov/lpc//lpc/lpcmethods.html) This document describes the labor productivity measures that BLS publishes for the major sectors of the U.S. economy, as well as the methodology used to calculate these measures. February 2008. Labor input data--hours at work by all persons engaged in a sector--is based on information on employment and average weekly hours collected in the monthly BLS surveys of establishments and households. Weekly hours are adjusted to the hours at work definition using the BLS Hours at Work survey, conducted for this purpose. Data from the National Compensation Survey are used for recent years. Output and compensation measures are prepared by the Bureau of Economic Analysis of the U.S. Department of Commerce as part of the National Income and Product Accounts. All data are seasonally adjusted at annual rates. Derivation of the business sector: Gross domestic product (GDP) Less: Output of general government Output of private households (including owner-occupied housing) Output of nonprofit institutions Equals: Business sector Less: The Farm sector Equals: Nonfarm business sector This listing contains 2 sections- 1) Business sector, all persons 2) Nonfarm business sector, all persons Each section contains four parts- 1) Quarterly percent change at compound annual rate. 4 Rate = ((V /V ) - 1) X 100 t t-1 2) Percent change from same quarter, year ago. Rate = ((V /V ) - 1) X 100 t t-4 3) Indexes, 2009 = 100 4) Aggregate data: Hourly compensation in current dollars. Real hourly compensation in December 1977 dollars per hour. Output index, 2009=100. Hours of all persons in billions of hours at work. Employment in millions. Average weekly hours at work. Nominal output in billions of current dollars. Compensation in billions of current dollars. Nonlabor payments in billions of current dollars. Labor share in percent. Consumer price series, December 1977=100. Each part contains two tables: 1) Industry analytical ratios: 2) Basic industry data: Output per hour of all persons * Employment Hourly compensation Average weekly hours Unit labor costs * Nominal output Unit nonlabor payments * Compensation Implicit price deflator * Nonlabor payments Real hourly compensation Labor share Output Output per person * Hours of all persons Consumer price series *percent changes and index only The computed values in these tables are calculated in this manner: Output per hour of all persons (productivity): output divided by hours. Hourly compensation: compensation divided by hours. Unit labor cost: hourly compensation divided by productivity (which is equivalent to compensation divided by output). Unit nonlabor payments: unit nonlabor payments include profits, consumption of fixed capital, taxes on production and imports less subsidies, net interest and miscellaneous payments, business current transfer payments, rental income of persons, and the current surplus of government enterprises. Implicit price deflator: nominal output divided by output. Real hourly compensation: hourly compensation divided by the Consumer Price Index for all urban consumers, seasonally adjusted. The Consumer Price Index research series is used for the period December 1977 through December 2016. Output: annual and quarterly indexes of real output are based on chained Fisher-Ideal quantity indexes. Quarterly indexes are adjusted for consistency to the annual indexes. Hours of all persons: employment times average weekly hours times 52. Nonlabor payments: nominal output minus compensation. Labor share: compensation divided by nominal output. Output per person: output divided by employment. Compensation: wages and salaries of employees plus employers contributions for social insurance and private benefit plans, and all other fringe benefits in current dollars. An estimate of the wages, salaries, and supplemental payments of the self-employed is included. **************************************************************************************** Although the productivity measures contained in this listing relate output to the hours of all persons engaged in each sector, they do not measure the specific contribution of labor, capital, or any other single factor of production. Rather, they reflect the joint effects of many influences, including new technology, capital investment, the level of output, energy use, and managerial skills, as well as the skills and efforts of the work force. **************************************************************************************** For further information, contact the Division of Major Sector Productivity, Office of Productivity and Technology, Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, Washington D.C., 20212, telephone: (202) 691-5606.