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Productivity

Raising the curtain on "productivity theater"

by Kai Ryssdal and Nicholas Guiang
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.
Ina Fassbender/AFP via Getty Images
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Why manufacturing productivity is on the rise

by Justin Ho
Sep 1, 2022
Manufacturers are producing more goods with fewer workers, given the tight labor market. But the sector has been hiring more in recent months.
Revised data from the Labor Department show productivity among manufacturers rose almost 5% in the second quarter.
Morry Gash/Pool/AFP via Getty Images
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Some employers are using software to remotely monitor worker productivity

by David Brancaccio , Alex Schroeder and Jarrett Dang
Aug 30, 2022
Jodi Kantor from The New York Times describes how companies are increasingly using new software tools to evaluate how hard their employees are working.
A new report from The New York Times delves into increasingly common monitoring software used to track employee productivity.
Olivier Douliery/AFP via Getty Images
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"We just can't function in the same way": Extreme heat and worker productivity

by Samantha Fields
Aug 19, 2022
Extreme heat isn't just uncomfortable. It can hurt workers' health and make them prone to errors, one expert says.
The threshold where heat starts to really affect how well people can focus and work is roughly 90 degrees, says Amir Jina at the University of Chicago.
Mark Makela/Getty Images
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American workers are becoming less productive. Blame the pandemic.

by Justin Ho
Aug 8, 2022
It's a volatile indicator, but the trend has been downward.
A worker assembles the interior of a safe. Many small business are looking to boost revenues in anticipation of a potential recession.
George Frey/Getty Images
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What a dip in productivity tells us about the economy

by Savannah Maher
May 5, 2022
For one thing, it's not helpful in the fight against inflation.
"Productivity is an escape hatch for inflation," said Sarah House, an economist at Wells Fargo.
Johannes Eisele/ AFP via Getty Images
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New California law seeks transparency for workplace quotas

by Meghan McCarty Carino
Dec 30, 2021
The law is aimed at large warehouse companies that use algorithms to manage worker productivity.
A new California law will require greater transparency from big warehouse operators, like Amazon, on how they use technology to track productivity. Above, a woman works at an Amazon packing station in 2019.
Johannes Eisele/AFP via Getty Images
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4-day workweek idea picks up steam, but questions remain

by Meghan McCarty Carino
Jun 24, 2021
Kickstarter is the first company to sign on to a new campaign that aims to make the four-day workweek a reality. But would all workers benefit?
Kickstarter and other companies are experimenting with the four-day workweek to gather data on its impact.
Tatomm/iStock/Getty Images Plus
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Back to Business

Businesses that have survived the pandemic are spending. On themselves.

by Justin Ho
Apr 21, 2021
Many businesses are pumping money into much-needed improvements, and that spending is rippling through the economy.
Some changes businesses made during the pandemic, including in the food industry, will improve operations over the long term.
Frederic J. Brown/AFP via Getty Images
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U.S. productivity plummeted in Q4, and reopening the economy might be why

by Kai Ryssdal and Sean McHenry
Mar 4, 2021
The measure fell at the steepest rate in 40 years, but that might not be as ominous as it sounds — if the trend is short term.
Less productive businesses like restaurants have started to reopen, which may be causing national productivity data to decline.
Scott Heins/Getty Images
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