Internet: http://www.bls.gov/lpc/ USDL 09-1022 

Technical information: (202) 691-5618 For release: 10:00 a.m. EDT 

Media contact: (202) 691-5902 Friday, August 28, 2009 

PRODUCTIVITY AND COSTS BY INDUSTRY: WHOLESALE TRADE, RETAIL 

TRADE, AND FOOD SERVICES AND DRINKING PLACES INDUSTRIES, 2008

Labor productivity – defined as output per hour – fell in wholesale trade, retail trade, and 

food services and drinking places in 2008 as follows: 

-0.3 percent in wholesale trade 

 -1.8 percent in retail trade and 

 -0.7 percent in food services and drinking places. 

 

Both output and hours declined in each of these sectors in 2008. (See chart 1.) 

Productivity fell in 26 of the 50 detailed industries studied. (See table 1.) Unit labor costs rose 

in 29 of the detailed industries and in all three sectors. 

-0.3

-0.8 -0.5

-1.8

-3.6

-1.8

-0.7 -1.0

-0.2

-5.0

-4.0

-3.0

-2.0

-1.0

0.0

1.0

Output 

per Hour

Output Hours Output 

per Hour

Output Hours Output 

per Hour

Output Hours

% Change 

Chart 1. Percent change in output per hour, output, and hours, 2007-2008

(Wholesale Trade, Retail Trade, and Food Services and Drinking Places)

Wholesale Trade Retail Trade Food Services and 

Drinking Places
Over the longer term, output per hour increased at the following average annual rates

between 1987 and 2008: 

3.0 percent in wholesale trade

 3.0 percent in retail trade and 

 0.6 percent in food services and drinking places. 

 Output and hours grew in all three sectors over the period. (See chart 2.) Productivity 

increased in 46 of the 50 detailed industries. (See table 2.) Unit labor costs rose in 32 of the 50 

industries and in each of the three sectors between 1987 and 2008. 

2007-2008 change 

Wholesale trade: Labor productivity fell 0.3 percent as output declined 0.8 percent and 

hours declined 0.5 percent. Output per hour fell in 10 of the 19 detailed wholesale trade 

industries in 2008. Commercial equipment wholesalers (NAICS 4234) experienced the largest 

labor productivity gain, 9.2 percent, while furniture and home furnishing wholesalers (NAICS 

4232) recorded the largest decline, 15.9 percent. The largest employer in the wholesale trade 

sector, electronic markets and agents and brokers (NAICS 4251), experienced a productivity 

decline of 2.6 percent. (See chart 3.) Unit labor costs rose in 13 of the 19 detailed industries, and 

grew 1.9 percent in the wholesale trade sector overall.

3.0

3.7

0.7

3.0

3.7

0.6 0.6

2.2

1.6

-1.0

0.0

1.0

2.0

3.0

4.0

5.0

Output per 

Hour

Output Hours Output per 

Hour

Output Hours Output per 

Hour

Output Hours

% Change 

Chart 2. Average annual percent change in output per hour, output, and hours, 1987-2008

(Wholesale Trade, Retail Trade, and Food Services and Drinking Places) 

Wholesale Trade Retail Trade Food Servcies and 

Drinking Places
Retail trade: Labor productivity fell 1.8 percent as output declined 3.6 percent and hours 

decreased 1.8 percent. Output per hour fell in 15 of the 27 retail trade industries in 2008. Lawn 

and garden equipment and supplies stores (NAICS 4442) had the largest labor productivity gain, 

20.8 percent, while automotive dealers (NAICS 4411) posted the largest decline, 9.3 percent. 

Grocery stores (NAICS 4451), the largest employer among the retail trade industries, saw a 1.4 

percent decline in productivity in 2008. Unit labor costs rose in 13 of the 27 detailed industries, 

and rose 2.4 percent in the retail trade sector overall.

Food services and drinking places: Labor productivity fell 0.7 percent as output and 

hours fell 1.0 percent and 0.2 percent, respectively. Output per hour grew in three of the four 

detailed industries in 2008 including the largest employer, full-service restaurants (NAICS 

7221). Drinking places (NAICS 7224) experienced the largest labor productivity increase, 4.1 

percent, while limited-service eating places (NAICS 7222) recorded the only decline, -3.1 

percent. Unit labor costs rose in three of the four detailed industries and rose 3.7 percent in the 

food services and drinking places overall. 

-9.3

-6.9

-6.7

-3.9

-3.5

-3.1

-2.9

-2.6

-2.1

-1.4

-0.6

0.4

0.5

1.8

2.4

3.4

6.5

6.9

9.2

15.9

-15 -10 -5 0 5 10 15 20

Automotive Dealers

Miscellaneous Nondurable Goods Wholesalers

Department Stores

Automotive Parts, Accessories, and Tire Stores

Grocery and Related Product Wholesalers

Limited-Service Eating Places

Office Supplies , Stationery, and Gift Stores

Electronic Markets and Agents and Brokers

Building Material and Supplies Dealers

Grocery Stores

Gasoline Stations

Health and Personal Care Stores

Full-Service Restaurants

Special Food Services

Other General Merchandise Stores

Sporting Goods and Musical Instrument Stores

Machinery and Supplies Wholesalers

Clothing Stores

Commercial Equipment Wholesalers

Electronics and Appliance Stores

Chart 3: Percent change in output per hour for the largest (by employment) trade and 

food services and drinking places industries, 2007-2008

Percent Change
Long-term trends

Wholesale trade: Labor productivity rose 3.0 percent per year, on average, between 1987 

and 2008. Output grew 3.7 percent per year and hours increased 0.7 percent per year. Labor 

productivity rose in 16 of the 19 detailed industries. Commercial equipment wholesalers 

(NAICS 4234) and electric goods wholesalers (NAICS 4236) posted the highest average growth 

in output per hour, 14.9 percent and 8.5 percent, respectively. Unit labor costs rose in 17 of the 

19 detailed industries between 1987 and 2008, and grew at an average annual rate of 1.1 percent 

per year overall in the wholesale trade sector.

Retail trade: Labor productivity grew 3.0 percent per year, on average, between 1987 and 

2008, while output and hours increased 3.7 percent and 0.6 percent per year, respectively. Labor 

productivity grew in all but one of the detailed industries in this period. Electronics and 

appliance stores (NAICS 4431) and electronic shopping and mail-order houses (NAICS 4541) 

experienced the fastest labor productivity growth, 13.5 percent and 11.2 percent per year, 

respectively. Unit labor costs fell in 14 of the 27 detailed industries in retail trade, but rose 0.1 

percent per year, on average, in the retail trade sector overall.

Food services and drinking places: Labor productivity increased at an average annual 

rate of 0.6 percent per year between 1987 and 2008, as output and hours increased 2.2 percent 

and 1.6 percent, respectively. Labor productivity rose in the four detailed food services and 

drinking places industries during the period. Unit labor costs rose in all four industries and rose 

3.2 percent per year, on average, in food services and drinking places overall. 
Technical Note

Labor Productivity: The industry labor 

productivity measures describe the relationship 

between industry output and the labor time 

involved in its production. They show the changes 

from period to period in the amount of goods and 

services produced per hour. Although the labor 

productivity measures relate output to hours of 

employees or all persons in an industry, they do 

not measure the specific contribution of labor or 

any other factor of production. Rather, they reflect 

the joint effects of many influences, including 

changes in technology; capital investment; 

utilization of capacity, energy, and materials; the 

use of purchased services inputs, including contract 

employment services; the organization of 

production; managerial skill; and the 

characteristics and effort of the workforce.

Long-term productivity trends tend to be 

more reliable indicators of the performance of an 

industry than are year-to-year changes. The annual 

changes in an industry’s output and use of labor 

may reflect cyclical changes in the economy as 

well as long-term trends. 

Output: Industry output is measured as an annualweighted index of the changes in the various 

products or services (in real terms) provided for 

sale outside the industry. Real industry output is 

usually derived by deflating nominal sales or 

values of production using BLS price indexes, but 

for some industries it is measured by physical 

quantities of output.

Industry output measures are constructed 

primarily using data from the economic censuses 

and annual surveys of the U.S. Census Bureau, 

U.S. Department of Commerce, together with 

information on price changes primarily from BLS. 

The measures in this news release incorporate 

current data from the Census Bureau’s Monthly 

Wholesale Trade Survey (May 2009), Annual 

Wholesale Trade Report (February 2009), Annual 

Revision of the Monthly Retail and Food Services:

Sales and Inventories (April 2009), and the Annual 

Retail Trade Survey (July 2009). 

Labor Hours: The primary source of industry 

employment and hours data is the BLS Current 

Employment Statistics (CES) survey. The CES

provides monthly data on the number of total and 

nonsupervisory worker jobs held by wage and 

salary workers in nonfarm establishments, as well 

as data on the average weekly hours of 

nonsupervisory workers in those establishments.

Data from the Current Population Survey (CPS) 

are also used to supplement the CES data. The 

industry productivity program estimates the 

average weekly hours of supervisory workers for 

each industry using data from the CPS together 

with the CES data. Data from the CPS are also 

used to estimate the employment and hours of selfemployed and unpaid family workers in each 

industry. Hours of all persons in an industry are 

treated as homogeneous and are directly 

aggregated. 

Unit Labor Costs: Unit labor costs represent the 

cost of labor required to produce one unit of 

output. The unit labor cost indexes are computed 

by dividing an index of industry labor 

compensation by an index of real industry output. 

Unit labor costs also describe the relationship 

between compensation per hour and real output per 

hour (labor productivity). Increases in hourly 

compensation increase unit labor costs; increases 

in labor productivity offset compensation increases 

and lower unit labor costs. 

Compensation, defined as payroll plus 

supplemental payments, is a measure of the cost to 

the employer of securing the services of labor. 

Payroll includes salaries, wages, commissions, 

dismissal pay, bonuses, vacation and sick leave 

pay, and compensation in kind. Supplemental 

payments include legally required expenditures and 

payments for voluntary programs. The legally 

required portion consists primarily of Federal old 

age and survivors’ insurance, unemployment 
compensation, and workers’ compensation. 

Payments for voluntary programs include all 

programs not specifically required by legislation, 

such as the employer portion of private health 

insurance and pension plans. 

Revisions: Output measures for wholesale trade 

industries have been revised to include the 

revenues of nonemployer firms as well as those of 

employer firms. Although small, the revision 

reflects a more complete accounting of the total 

sales of each industry, and makes the output 

measures for wholesale trade industries consistent 

with the output series for industries in retail trade 

and food services and drinking places, which 

include nonemployer revenues. 

Additional Information: The measures in this 

news release replace the wholesale trade, retail 

trade, and food services and drinking places series 

published on the BLS website, in the news release 

Productivity and Costs by Industry: Wholesale 

Trade, Retail Trade, and Food and Drinking 

Places, 2007 (released August 21, 2008) and in 

table 50 of the Monthly Labor Review. The 

industries included in this release are classified 

according to the 2007 NAICS. All of the measures 

for 2008 in this release are preliminary and subject 

to revision. 

Industry productivity and related indexes 

and rates of change can be accessed online by 

visiting the Labor Productivity and Costs web site 

at http://www.bls.gov/lpc/. Data on industry 

employment, hours, labor compensation, value of 

production, and the implicit price deflator for 

output for these industries are available upon 

request by calling the Division of Industry 

Productivity Studies (202-691-5618) or by sending 

a request by e-mail to dipsweb@bls.gov. While the 

rates of change reported by BLS in this news 

release are rounded to one decimal place, all 

industry productivity percent changes are 

calculated using index numbers to three decimal 

places.

Information in this report will be made 

available to sensory-impaired individuals upon 

request. Voice phone: 202-691-5618; TDD message 

referral phone number: 1-800-877-8339.
2008

NAICS Industry Employment Output Labor Unit labor

code (thousands) per hour Output Hours compensation costs

Wholesale Trade

42 Wholesale trade 6166 -0.3 -0.8 -0.5 1.2 1.9

423 Durable goods 3171 0.4 -1.1 -1.5 0.3 1.4

4231 Motor vehicles and parts 351 -7.7 -10.9 -3.5 -4.2 7.6

4232 Furniture and furnishings 122 -15.9 -10.3 6.8 3.7 15.5

4233 Lumber and construction supplies 240 -1.1 -10.3 -9.3 -7.8 2.8

4234 Commercial equipment 665 9.2 8.8 -0.3 -0.5 -8.6

4235 Metals and minerals 136 -8.5 -7.4 1.2 6.0 14.5

4236 Electric goods 362 2.7 3.4 0.7 0.1 -3.3

4237 Hardware and plumbing 258 -7.3 -9.6 -2.5 0.2 10.8

4238 Machinery and supplies 697 6.5 4.7 -1.7 2.6 -1.9

4239 Miscellaneous durable goods 340 2.9 2.6 -0.2 5.4 2.7

424 Nondurable goods 2141 -0.4 -0.5 -0.1 1.1 1.5

4241 Paper and paper products 143 -8.5 -3.1 6.0 -1.1 2.0

4242 Druggists' goods 215 7.0 3.2 -3.6 -2.0 -5.0

4243 Apparel and piece goods 157 4.6 2.2 -2.3 -4.3 -6.3

4244 Grocery and related products 766 -3.5 -1.9 1.6 1.6 3.6

4245 Farm product raw materials 79 1.7 3.3 1.5 17.8 14.0

4246 Chemicals 134 0.8 -3.3 -4.1 -0.7 2.7

4247 Petroleum 104 1.7 4.4 2.6 2.7 -1.6

4248 Alcoholic beverages 164 -4.2 0.6 5.0 8.1 7.5

4249 Miscellaneous nondurable goods 379 -6.9 -10.4 -3.8 1.5 13.3

425 Electronic markets and agents and brokers 854 -2.6 -0.2 2.5 4.5 4.7

4251 Electronic markets and agents and brokers 854 -2.6 -0.2 2.5 4.5 4.7

Retail Trade

44-45 Retail trade 16328 -1.8 -3.6 -1.8 -1.3 2.4

441 Motor vehicle and parts dealers 1931 -8.9 -12.5 -3.9 -6.2 7.1

4411 Automobile dealers 1240 -9.3 -14.2 -5.4 -8.0 7.3

4412 Other motor vehicle dealers 175 1.6 -4.2 -5.7 -8.2 -4.2

4413 Auto parts, accessories, and tire stores 516 -3.9 -3.6 0.4 1.2 4.9

442 Furniture and home furnishings stores 579 0.3 -7.4 -7.6 -10.2 -3.1

4421 Furniture stores 281 -1.3 -6.6 -5.4 -11.0 -4.8

4422 Home furnishings stores 298 1.9 -8.3 -10.0 -9.4 -1.2

443 Electronics and appliance stores 577 15.9 7.8 -7.0 -0.1 -7.3

4431 Electronics and appliance stores 577 15.9 7.8 -7.0 -0.1 -7.3

444 Building material and garden supply stores 1305 0.8 -4.2 -4.9 -2.9 1.3

4441 Building material and supplies dealers 1147 -2.1 -7.1 -5.1 -3.3 4.0

4442 Lawn and garden equipment and supplies stores 158 20.8 16.6 -3.5 1.1 -13.3

445 Food and beverage stores 2978 -1.8 -0.6 1.2 4.5 5.1

4451 Grocery stores 2558 -1.4 -0.6 0.8 4.3 5.0

4452 Specialty food stores 257 -8.1 -7.0 1.2 3.3 11.1

4453 Beer, wine and liquor stores 163 -4.9 2.9 8.2 9.4 6.3

446 Health and personal care stores 1048 0.4 1.9 1.5 3.1 1.2

4461 Health and personal care stores 1048 0.4 1.9 1.5 3.1 1.2

447 Gasoline stations 860 -0.6 -4.4 -3.8 -0.7 3.9

4471 Gasoline stations 860 -0.6 -4.4 -3.8 -0.7 3.9

Table 1. Percent change in output per hour, output, hours, compensation, and unit labor costs, 2007-2008

Percent change, 2007-2008
2008

NAICS Industry Employment Output Labor Unit labor

code (thousands) per hour Output Hours compensation costs

448 Clothing and clothing accessories stores 1577 3.2 -2.4 -5.4 -1.7 0.7

4481 Clothing stores 1179 6.9 -0.8 -7.2 -2.3 -1.5

4482 Shoe stores 197 -1.2 -0.6 0.6 -1.8 -1.2

4483 Jewelry, luggage, and leather goods stores 201 -9.1 -11.8 -2.9 0.4 13.8

451 Sporting goods, hobby, book, and music stores 727 3.2 0.7 -2.4 -2.7 -3.3

4511 Sporting goods and musical instrument stores 532 3.4 2.6 -0.8 -2.1 -4.6

4512 Book, periodical, and music stores 194 2.6 -4.1 -6.5 -4.1 0.0

452 General merchandise stores 3070 -0.8 1.8 2.6 1.1 -0.7

4521 Department stores 1557 -6.7 -4.5 2.4 -3.9 0.6

4529 Other general merchandise stores 1513 2.4 5.3 2.8 6.1 0.8

453 Miscellaneous store retailers 1013 2.2 -1.2 -3.3 -5.2 -4.1

4531 Florists 111 19.0 0.5 -15.5 -8.5 -9.0

4532 Office supplies, stationery and gift stores 389 -2.9 -6.0 -3.1 -7.1 -1.2

4533 Used merchandise stores 172 12.7 5.9 -6.1 -1.1 -6.5

4539 Other miscellaneous store retailers 342 -1.5 0.7 2.2 -4.0 -4.7

454 Nonstore retailers 665 1.5 -0.4 -1.9 1.1 1.6

4541 Electronic shopping and mail-order houses 305 -3.4 3.7 7.5 7.8 3.9

4542 Vending machine operators 58 13.1 -2.2 -13.5 -5.4 -3.2

4543 Direct selling establishments 303 -0.5 -9.8 -9.4 -5.9 4.4

Food Services and Drinking Places 

722 Food services and drinking places 9877 -0.7 -1.0 -0.2 2.7 3.7

7221 Full-service restaurants 4640 0.5 -0.5 -0.9 2.1 2.6

7222 Limited-service eating places 4191 -3.1 -2.6 0.5 3.3 6.1

7223 Special food services 683 1.8 1.8 0.0 3.8 1.9

7224 Drinking places, alcoholic beverages 364 4.1 4.1 -0.1 1.2 -2.7

Table 1. Percent change in output per hour, output, hours, compensation, and unit labor costs, 2007-2008

Percent change, 2007-2008
NAICS Industry Output Labor Unit labor

code per hour Output Hours compensation costs

Wholesale Trade

42 Wholesale trade 3.0 3.7 0.7 4.9 1.1

423 Durable goods 4.9 5.4 0.5 4.8 -0.6

4231 Motor vehicles and parts 3.1 2.9 -0.2 3.9 0.9

4232 Furniture and furnishings 1.2 1.7 0.6 4.9 3.1

4233 Lumber and construction supplies 0.7 1.9 1.2 3.8 1.9

4234 Commercial equipment 14.9 15.5 0.5 5.1 -9.0

4235 Metals and minerals -0.9 -0.3 0.6 4.8 5.2

4236 Electric goods 8.5 8.5 0.0 5.1 -3.2

4237 Hardware and plumbing 0.5 1.6 1.1 5.1 3.4

4238 Machinery and supplies 2.5 2.6 0.2 4.6 1.9

4239 Miscellaneous durable goods 1.4 2.7 1.3 5.7 2.9

424 Nondurable goods 0.9 1.3 0.4 4.9 3.5

4241 Paper and paper products 2.1 1.5 -0.6 3.7 2.2

4242 Druggists' goods 2.1 4.3 2.2 9.8 5.2

4243 Apparel and piece goods 2.5 2.4 -0.1 4.0 1.5

4244 Grocery and related products 0.7 1.7 1.0 4.8 3.0

4245 Farm product raw materials 1.8 -0.7 -2.5 4.0 4.7

4246 Chemicals -0.4 0.3 0.7 4.7 4.5

4247 Petroleum 2.6 0.3 -2.3 3.2 2.9

4248 Alcoholic beverages 0.2 2.0 1.8 5.2 3.2

4249 Miscellaneous nondurable goods -0.2 -0.1 0.1 3.7 3.8

425 Electronic markets and agents and brokers 2.0 4.7 2.6 4.9 0.2

4251 Electronic markets and agents and brokers 2.0 4.7 2.6 4.9 0.2

Retail Trade

44-45 Retail trade 3.0 3.7 0.6 3.8 0.1

441 Motor vehicle and parts dealers 2.0 2.8 0.8 3.8 0.9

4411 Automobile dealers 1.8 2.7 0.8 3.7 1.1

4412 Other motor vehicle dealers 3.3 5.3 2.0 5.7 0.3

4413 Auto parts, accessories, and tire stores 2.0 2.6 0.5 3.4 0.8

442 Furniture and home furnishings stores 3.8 4.3 0.4 3.5 -0.8

4421 Furniture stores 3.3 3.7 0.4 3.0 -0.6

4422 Home furnishings stores 4.6 5.1 0.5 4.0 -1.0

443 Electronics and appliance stores 13.5 15.0 1.3 4.8 -8.9

4431 Electronics and appliance stores 13.5 15.0 1.3 4.8 -8.9

444 Building material and garden supply stores 3.0 4.4 1.3 4.1 -0.3

4441 Building material and supplies dealers 2.7 4.4 1.6 4.4 0.0

4442 Lawn and garden equipment and supplies stores 5.2 4.7 -0.5 2.6 -2.0

445 Food and beverage stores 0.4 0.3 -0.1 3.3 3.0

4451 Grocery stores 0.3 0.3 0.0 3.5 3.2

4452 Specialty food stores -0.1 -0.4 -0.3 2.1 2.6

4453 Beer, wine and liquor stores 2.2 1.0 -1.2 2.6 1.6

446 Health and personal care stores 2.4 3.8 1.4 5.4 1.5

4461 Health and personal care stores 2.4 3.8 1.4 5.4 1.5

447 Gasoline stations 2.0 1.2 -0.7 2.5 1.3

4471 Gasoline stations 2.0 1.2 -0.7 2.5 1.3

Table 2. Average annual percent change in output per hour, output, hours, compensation, and unit labor costs, 1987-2008

Average annual percent change, 1987-2008
NAICS Industry Output Labor Unit labor

code per hour Output Hours compensation costs

448 Clothing and clothing accessories stores 4.9 4.5 -0.3 3.2 -1.3

4481 Clothing stores 5.2 5.2 -0.1 3.5 -1.6

4482 Shoe stores 3.7 2.6 -1.1 1.8 -0.8

4483 Jewelry, luggage, and leather goods stores 3.9 3.5 -0.4 3.1 -0.4

451 Sporting goods, hobby, book, and music stores 4.1 4.7 0.6 3.8 -0.8

4511 Sporting goods and musical instrument stores 4.7 5.5 0.7 4.1 -1.3

4512 Book, periodical, and music stores 2.6 2.9 0.3 3.2 0.3

452 General merchandise stores 3.4 5.3 1.8 4.0 -1.2

4521 Department stores 0.6 2.1 1.4 2.7 0.6

4529 Other general merchandise stores 6.9 9.2 2.2 5.7 -3.2

453 Miscellaneous store retailers 4.5 4.6 0.1 2.6 -1.9

4531 Florists 3.5 1.0 -2.5 0.7 -0.3

4532 Office supplies, stationery and gift stores 6.0 5.8 -0.2 2.8 -2.8

4533 Used merchandise stores 5.8 6.6 0.7 3.5 -2.9

4539 Other miscellaneous store retailers 2.5 3.9 1.3 2.6 -1.3

454 Nonstore retailers 8.5 8.7 0.2 3.9 -4.5

4541 Electronic shopping and mail-order houses 11.2 15.2 3.6 7.8 -6.4

4542 Vending machine operators 2.1 -0.7 -2.7 1.5 2.2

4543 Direct selling establishments 3.1 1.5 -1.6 1.5 0.0

Food Services and Drinking Places 

722 Food services and drinking places 0.6 2.2 1.6 5.5 3.2

7221 Full-service restaurants 0.6 2.3 1.7 6.4 4.0

7222 Limited-service eating places 0.4 2.3 1.8 5.3 3.0

7223 Special food services 1.5 2.6 1.1 4.1 1.4

7224 Drinking places, alcoholic beverages 0.2 0.1 -0.1 2.4 2.2

Table 2. Average annual percent change in output per hour, output, hours, compensation, and unit labor costs, 1987-2008

Average annual percent change, 1987-2008