Workers are less productive in key states. What it means for the economy

U.S. worker productivity has dropped significantly, including in key large states, leaving some economists alarmed by the decrease in a measure that could mean trillions of dollars to the economy. Labor productivity — the value of the goods and services produced on average by an hour’s work — ranged from $58.80 in Mississippi to $120.67 in New York last year, according to a Stateline analysis of federal Bureau of Labor Statistics data released in May. Thirty-seven states and the District of Columbia saw worker productivity drop from 2021 to 2022 after adjustment for inflation. So far this year...