The Workplace Productivity Challenge

What Is Productivity?

Productivity is a measure of how efficiently inputs are being used within the economy to produce outputs.

Labour productivity is a measure of output divided by labour inputs. For example, this could be GDP (Gross Domestic Product) divided by hours worked.

Multifactor productivity is output divided by total inputs.

'Total inputs' includes labour, materials, capital, intangibles such as managerial expertise and information, and so on. There are many factors that can influence this equation. For example, productivity can rise by increasing output with the same number of inputs (do more with the same amount of resources), or by achieving the same outputs with fewer resources (do the same with less). We can work harder (intensification of work) or we can work smarter to achieve these changes.

Why Is Productivity Important?

Improving productivity has been identified as a key factor for New Zealand's long term, sustainable economic growth and prosperity. Productivity levels affect our living standards, our ability to create jobs and our ability to afford education, health and other services.

Workers in New Zealand already work long hours, so it is important to find smarter ways to work to improve our productivity levels, rather than work even longer hours each week. Unions want a high wage, high skill economy and high performance work places that deliver for workers. That means we will campaign for a "fair share". We also want high productivity on a sustainable basis. This means investment in education, science, skills and infrastructure. But it also means productive workplaces.

Click here to read former CTU President Ross Wilson's article "The Great Workplace Productivity Challenge" as published in Employment Today April/May 2006.