MANUFACTURING PRODUCTIVITY PER EMPLOYEE
* BELGIUM * DENMARK * GERMANY * FRANCE * ITALY * NETHERLANDS * UNITED KINGDOM * COMMUNITY
1960 TO 1980 * 5,3 * 4,5 * 4,2 * 4,7 * 4,6 * 5,3 * 2,4 * 4,0
1980 TO 1982 * 3,8 * 4,4 * 1,0 * 1,5 * 0,6 * 2,7 * 4,7 * 2,2
AS REGARDS THE ADAPTABILITY OF REAL LABOUR COSTS AND LABOUR INCOME SHARES AND THEIR POSITIVE IMPACT ON INVESTMENT AND EMPLOYMENT GROWTH IN THE ENTERPRISE SECTOR , THERE ARE DIFFICULTIES OF MEASUREMENT AND INTERPRETATION . HOWEVER , IT SEEMS , AS REPORTED BELOW , THAT THERE HAS BEEN SOME RELATIVE IMPROVEMENT IN EUROPE IN THE PERIOD FOLLOWING THE SECOND OIL SHOCK COMPARED WITH THE FIRST ONE : REAL WAGES SEEM TO HAVE BEEN LESS RIGID AND THERE HAS BEEN SOME RECOVERY IN PROFITS , ALTHOUGH NOT IN ALL COUNTRIES , AND OVERALL THE CHANGE WOULD NOT YET SEEM TO BE DECISIVE IN RELATION TO THE MORE POSITIVE ENVIRONMENT FOR ENTERPRISE IN THE UNITED STATES AND JAPAN .
IN SUMMARY , THE EUROPEAN ECONOMY HAS SET IN TRAIN A SERIES OF IMPORTANT ECONOMIC ADJUSTMENTS AND IS PROGRESSIVELY MANAGING TO FACE UP TO SERIOUS EXTERNAL CONSTRAINTS . THUS , ONE SHOULD NOT UNDER-ESTIMATE THE RESULTS WHICH HAVE ALREADY BEEN ACHIEVED , NOTABLY ON INFLATION . THESE RESULTS DEMONSTRATE BOTH A COLLECTIVE RECOGNITION OF THE CHANGES TO BE MADE AND A CAPACITY TO IMPLEMENT THE NECESSARY POLICIES . SIMILARLY , THE ENERGY CRISIS HAS SHOWN THAT THE COMMUNITY IS CAPABLE OF ADAPTING TO SUDDEN UPHEAVALS IN PRICES AND SUPPLIES . BUT A RETURN TO LASTING GROWTH REQUIRES THE CONTINUED PURSUIT OF THE ADJUSTMENT EFFORT ALREADY UNDERTAKEN . IT IS ON THIS EFFORT THAT WILL ULTIMATELY DEPEND THE COMMUNITY'S CAPACITY TO ACHIEVE A LASTING SOLUTION TO THE PROBLEM OF UNEMPLOYMENT . THE RESULTS ALREADY ACHIEVED AND THE CONDITIONS WHICH MUST STILL BE FULFILLED SHOW THAT IT IS BOTH INDISPENSABLE AND POSSIBLE FOR THE COMMUNITY ECONOMY TO FOLLOW THROUGH ITS STRUCTURAL ADJUSTMENT EFFORT AND TO ASSURE A PROGRESSIVE INCREASE IN ITS TREND RATE OF GROWTH . IT WOULD , AT ALL EVENTS , BE A MISTAKE TO UNDER-ESTIMATE EITHER THE SIZE OF THE TASK TO BE PERFORMED OR THE CAPACITY WHICH THE COMMUNITY HAS RECENTLY SHOWN FOR COMMITTING ITSELF TO SUCH ACTION AND FOR REACTING TO THE DEVELOPMENTS BEARING ON IT . MOREOVER , THE TIME-SCALE FOR THE REALIZATION OF THIS TASK UNDERLINES THE NEED TO CONTINUE TO PURSUE AN ACTIVE EMPLOYMENT POLICY FOR THE MORE IMMEDIATE ALLEVIATION OF UNEMPLOYMENT , WHICH , AT ITS PRESENT HIGH LEVELS , IMPOSES MAJOR ECONOMIC AND BUDGETARY COSTS AS WELL AS SOCIAL ONES .
3 . POLICY TO STRENGTHEN THE RECOVERY : RECENT INITIATIVES AND THE SCOPE FOR FURTHER ACTION
THE STABILIZATION POLICIES FOLLOWED IN 1982/83 IN THE COMMUNITY ARE NOW GIVING RISE , AS HAS BEEN SHOWN ABOVE , TO A NUMBER OF ENCOURAGING RESULTS : INFLATION IS SLOWING DOWN ; EXTERNAL IMBALANCES ARE BEING RECTIFIED ; THE STABILIZATION