BLS DAILY REPORT, TUESDAY, MAY 2, 2000
The United States registered a 4.7 percent increase in labor productivity in
manufacturing during 1998, a gain that was the highest among 11 nations
compared in a revised report released by BLS. ... Labor productivity --
output per hour worked -- rose in each of the 11 countries except Japan in
1998. Japan, which was hit hard by recession that year, saw its
productivity decline 0.8 percent, after rising 4.9 percent in 1997. ...
(Daily Labor Report, page D-1).
Growth in the manufacturing sector slowed a little in April, the National
Association of Purchasing Management reports. Prices continued to rise
during the month, but at a less rapid pace, the survey showed. ... Payrolls
continued to increase in April, according to the survey's employment index.
"While growth is still quite strong, the purchasing management index trend
for the last 6 months indicates deceleration in the rate of growth" the
chairman of NAPM's manufacturing business survey says. ... Comments from
purchasing managers this month generally expressed concern about inflation,
rising prices, energy costs, strong dollar, strengthening Asian markets,
higher inventories, and tight labor, the NAPM report said. ... (Daily Labor
Report, page A-2)_____Growth and inflation pressure on manufacturers fell to
54.9 in April from 55.8 in March. Production expanded for the 15th straight
month, but at a slower pace than in the previous month. The "prices paid"
index fell to 76.0 from a 5-year high of 79.8 in March, thanks in part to
lower oil costs. The group said manufacturing remains relatively robust,
but growth is likely to peak in the next few months, reducing pressure on
the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates. ... (Washington Post, page
E1)_____The figures released by the NAPM, along with a separate government
report of a surprising rise in construction spending in March, paint a
picture of such a strong economy that Federal Reserve policymakers might
feel required to raise interest rates more aggressively when they meet later
this month, economists say. The Commerce Department said that construction
spending rose by a surprisingly strong 1.4 percent in March. It was the
third consecutive monthly increase, a result largely of spending on big
government projects. ... (New York Times, page C8)_____Manufacturing
activity slowed slightly in April, while some companies reported feeling
less of a sting from higher industrial commodities costs, offering early
bits of good news for Federal Reserve officials anxious for any signs the
economy may slow before the onset of inflation.... A separate report showed
that construction spending continued to accelerate in March, despite
repeated Fed interest-rate increases. The construction sector historically
is one of the first sectors to feel the sting of higher interest rates,
because rate increases make borrowing more expensive. ... (Wall Street
Journal, page A2).
A taxi driver is far more likely to be slain on the job than any other U.S.
worker, says USA Today (page 3A). ... A USA Today analysis of federal labor
statistics over the past decade shows that cab drivers are far more likely
to be murdered on the job than any other worker. No other occupation --
police officer, security guard, store clerk -- comes close to the perils of
driving a taxi. The review of Department of Labor data shows that, during
the 1990s, the homicide rate for cabbies averaged 30 for every 100,000
workers. That's more than four times the rate for police work, which had a
rate of 6.8 per 100,000. The national average for homicides was 0.6. On
average, 67 cabbies are killed a year or one every 5-1/2 days. Although
they make up only 0.02 percent of the American workforce, taxi drivers
account for 7 percent of workplace homicides. ... Homicide rates,
fatalities per 100,000 workers, in the 1990s for all occupations show
taxicab drivers first with 30 for every 100,000, followed by sales-counter
clerks (6.9), police officer, detective (6.8), security guards (5.3),
managers, food and lodging (4.0), sales, supervisors and proprietors (3.3),
cashiers (2.7), and all occupations (0.6).
Workplace injuries and illnesses causing lost workdays fell in 1998 for the
sixth straight year, to 1.7 million, the Labor Department reported. ...
("Work Week," Wall Street Journal, page A1).
Tight job market or not, 60 percent of 1,218 new and prospective college
grads felt finding a job would be somewhat difficult, a National Association
of Colleges and Employers survey found ("Work Week," Wall Street Journal,
page A1).
Responding to the increasing numbers of workers killed and injured in falls
from communications towers, NIOSH releases investigative reports detailing
eight such cases. ... (Daily Labor Report, page A-5).
Employers' electronic monitoring of employees' communication has doubled
since 1997, according to a survey by the American Management Association.
Nearly three-quarters of major U.S. companies responding to the survey said
they record and review their employees' telephone calls, e-mail messages,
Internet connections, and computer files. Total, active monitoring of
employees' communications and job performance has increased this year to 74
percent of responding employers, the AMA reported in its annual survey. In
contrast, the 1997 AMA survey reported that 35 percent of employers monitor
workers' communications activities. For the 2000 survey, the AMA said it
received 2,133 responses from human resource managers at AMA member and
client companies. ... (Daily Labor Report, page A-3).
Using the Internet for training workers catches on fast, says The Wall
Street Journal's "Work Week" feature (page A1). Job training on Web sites
is "growing like crazy" because courses are cheaper and more adaptable and
workers can be easily trained at home or on the job, says the president of
the National Alliance of Business. ...
Employers continue to move toward using a three-tiered copayment system to
better manage the escalating costs of pharmaceuticals, whose cost increases
are outpacing those of other medical benefits, according to a recent survey
by Watson Wyatt Worldwide, the Washington Business Group on Health, and the
Healthcare Financial Management Association. ... (Daily Labor Report, page
A-6)_____The plans require employees to pay the lowest share of drug
expenses for generic drugs and the highest for expensive brand names. ...
("Work Week," Wall Street Journal, page A1).
DUE OUT TOMORROW: Metropolitan Area Employment and Unemployment: March
2000
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