Final answer:
Productivity is calculated by dividing the number of parts produced by the number of hours worked, and it can also be measured in dollar value per hour contributed to the employer's output. This measure gives insight into the efficiency of workers and the economy over time.
Step-by-step explanation:
The statistic called productivity is calculated by dividing the number of parts produced by the number of hours worked. This measure of productivity is often expressed as output per hour worked. In the U.S., this statistic has been used to observe how productivity has changed over time, such as how it rose more quickly in the 1960s and mid-1990s compared with the 1970s and 1980s.
Besides the amount produced per hour of work, productivity can also be measured in other ways. For example, productivity per worker can be expressed in terms of the dollar value contributed to the employer's output per hour. This measure excludes certain sectors like government and farming, where productivity is difficult to measure or represents a small part of the economy.
Productivity measures are important as they give insight into the efficiency and economic health of a country. For instance, an increase in productivity indicates that the average worker is producing more output for every hour worked, showing improvements in technology, processes, or skills.