Marked Deterioration in Austria's International Labor Cost Position
While the labor cost position of Austria's manufacturing sector improved in the 1980s, it deteriorated considerably in the 1990s. Since 1990 productivity advances were no longer sufficient to compensate for above-average wage increases and a further appreciation of the schilling. Unit labor costs relative to competitors rose by more than ½ percent p.a. During 1994 and 1995, in particularly, the rise in relative labor costs accelerated. Austria's labor cost position deteriorated by 1.8 percent vis-à-vis the major trading partners and by 1.5 percent vis-à-vis the EU.
Links