It's American workers against the world, and they're not doing badly at all.

WASHINGTON -- A year-long study released recently by the McKinsey Global Institute debunks the myth that U.S. factory workers are not as productive as their foreign counterparts.

In fact, the study concludes that U.S. workers are generally more productive than manufacturing workers in Japan and Germany -- the two main industrial powerhouses overseas.

The findings are based on careful measurements of productivity, or output per hour worked, in nine industries: autos, auto parts, metalworking, steel, computers, consumer electronics, soap and detergent, beer, and processed food.

The institute found that in two industries, metalworking and steel, productivity levels in Germany have caught up with the productivity of U.S. workers. But in the remaining seven industries, including autos and auto parts, U.S. workers still lead.

In the case of Japan. the picture is more mixed, but still favorable for the United States in some ways.

U.S. workers lead in computers, soap and detergent, beer, and processed food, while the Japanese are ahead in autos, auto parts, metalworking, steel, and consumer electronics. But overall, the report gives the United States the edge.

That's because researchers found many Japanese workers, particularly in food production, still work in craft-style shops where productivity is especially low. Taking into account the large number of food workers in Japan, the weighted average of Japanese workers' productivity in all nine industries surveyed equaled 83% of U.S. workers' productivity. German workers' productivity was found to be only slightly higher than that of the Japanese.

One interesting sidelight in the report is evidence that in at least one case, that of the U.S. auto industry, protectionism actually helped workers keep their jobs.

Under the voluntary restraint agreement between the United States and Japan, Japanese automakers limit the number of cars exported to the U.S., although Japanese companies may still build plants here.

The McKinsey study concludes that the curbs on Japanese auto imports bought time for Chrysler Corp. and Ford Motor Co. to modernize their plants and become competitive again. But the study finds no other examples of trade restraints helping competitiveness. In fact, it says, Japanese transplants in the United States probably helped spur Detroit's moves to modernize plants.

The McKinsey Global Institute is an independent research group that is part of McKinsey & Co., the international consulting firm.

The institute's findings complement other recent information showing a pickup in U.S. productivity, an essential element in raising living standards.

Moreover, while U.S. companies are stepping up investment in computers and other equipment and hiring at least some workers, companies in Japan and Germany are being forced by falling profits in rocky economies to cut back on capital spending and payrolls.

Other statistics from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics show that factory workers in the United States are paid about the same as their competitors in Japan, over $16 an hour in total compensation, while German workers are getting paid nearly $26.

The bottom line is that there is plenty of reason to cheer about the long-term prospects for U.S. business and workers in a global marketplace.

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