Duncan Weldon (Stunted growth: the mystery of the UK’s productivity crisis, 25 April) underestimates the importance of working conditions. As he mentions, productivity has been in decline since before the 2008 crash, and it is clear that there is a link between low productivity and poor working conditions. It is no surprise that in Britain the flexible labour market, or race to the bottom, with zero-hours contracts, enforced self-employment and poor or non-existent pension schemes has led to lower productivity.
According to the ONS, British workers produce up to 37% less per hour than French workers labouring under France’s notoriously inflexible labour laws.
In America the case of Costco and Walmart is even more stark. Costco’s average pay is 72% higher than Walmart’s, it has far more generous health and pension schemes, and yet in 2006 Costco’s workers generated $21,805 operating profit per hourly employee compared with $11,615 at Walmart.
As the government continues to attack trade unions and labour laws, we can expect productivity in Britain to continue to decline.
David Kennedy
Menston, West Yorkshire
• After reading Duncan Weldon on Britain’s productivity crisis and since we are all in it together I’ve resolved to add 5% more words to letters that I write, with a view over time to adding an extra sentence.
Keith Flett
London
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