SILVER SPRING, Md. – U.S. productivity rose at a 10.1% rate in the second quarter as the number of hours worked declined by the largest amount since the government started compiling the data more than 70 years ago.The Labor Department said Thursday that hours worked fell by 42.9%, contributing to a 37.1% decline in output as the coronavirus pandemic ripped through nearly every corner of the U.S.
economy. The decline in output was also the biggest dropoff since the government began tracking the data in 1947.In its second and final estimate for the second quarter, the government said labor costs rose 9%, slightly less than last month's first estimate of 12.2.%.