BLS DAILY REPORT, WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 1997 RELEASED TODAY: The number of major work stoppages rose in 1996, after dropping to a record low in 1995. The number of workers idled by stoppages also increased. Both of these work stoppage measures still were low by historical standards. The days of idleness resulting from major work stoppages declined over the year .... __Productivity in the nonfarm business sector rebounded 2.2 percent at a seasonally adjusted annual rate in the final three months of 1996 and for the year posted the strongest advance since 1992, BLS reports ....(Daily Labor Report, page D-1). __A substantial part of the surge in economic growth in the final three months of last year was generated by gains in work efficiency that reduced inflation pressures ....The productivity gain meant that the cost of labor for each item produced went up at only a 1.4 percent rate during the quarter. Increases in unit labor costs are an important factor in determining the rate of inflation because labor costs account for around two-thirds of all production costs in the U.S. ....(John M. Berry, Washington Post, page C13). __Worker productivity grew at the fastest pace in three years at the end of 1996, reinforcing a picture of a healthy economy with little inflation ....But higher wages and the difficulty some businesses have had in finding skilled labor have raised concerns about rising labor costs fueling inflation ....(Reuters story, New York Times, page D2). __The U.S.'s surprising high-growth, low-inflation economy was made possible at the end of last year by a surge in business productivity ....(Jacob M. Schlesinger, Wall Street Journal, page A2). __The chairman and some members of the Senate Finance Committee express keen interest during a Feb. 11 hearing in the idea of naming an independent advisory commission to decide how to change various cost-of-living formulas that currently escalate federal benefits, including Social Security. Finance Chairman Roth (R-Del) says that testimony "seems to underscore the need of Congress to have expert advice" on how to use the CPI in legislation ....BLS Commissioner Abraham tells the committee that she "does not have an institutional view" about what Congress should do to change the cost-of-living formulas written into various pieces of legislation. She makes the distinction, as she has done in many public forums, that BLS compiles the data and releases them to Congress and others who must decide how to use them ....(Daily Labor Report, pages 1,A-10). Costs have eased for employer-provided benefits such as health care, and workers seem to be getting some of those savings in higher wages, according to a Washington Post graph (page C15) which shows annual percent increases in both benefits and wages, 1990 to the present, using the Employment Cost Index. DUE OUT TOMORROW: Mass Layoffs for October 1996
