Narrator #1
I think, by now, we all get the point. But, what does it mean in real terms?
Narrator #2
So, when I talk about productivity, I know the first reaction is, “Well sure, I’m for that, so what’s new?”But it is real. You know why it’s real? It gets right down to, when you look at it, it gets down to people’s jobs. You know, the reason we have jobs in this country is because of high productivity. The reason we have fewer work hours than we had before is because of higher productivity. Why do we work only a 40-hour week now when we used to work 65?
Because of productivity. Absolutely. That’s the only way. Look at the other countries that don’t have high productivity. They work much longer hours. Productivity got us there where we are.
That’s one point, it’s real. And secondly, it helps fight inflation. Now don’t tell me there isn’t anybody, first line supervisor, up or down, that isn’t hurt by inflation these days.
Controls are not the answer. Government policies, generally speaking, while some of them feed inflation and some of them can help, that isn’t the place to look for the answer. The place to look for the answer is right on the job, every person’s job, and if we do that cumulatively, in a better way, we can beat inflation.
Narrator #1
Job security, shorter workweek, and inflation. Three good reasons to be concerned about productivity. Can you think of others?