Worker productivity up at 2.2 percent rate in 1st quarter

By MARTIN CRUTSINGER AP Economics Writer

WASHINGTON (AP) - Worker productivity rose by a better-than-expected amount in the first three months of the year.

The Labor Department reported Wednesday that productivity, the amount of output per hour of work, increased at an annual rate of 2.2 percent in the first quarter. That was slightly higher than the 1.5 percent increase which had been expected.

In a sign that inflation could be easing, labor cost pressures slowed a bit. Unit labor costs rose at an annual rate of 2.2 percent, down from a 2.8 percent rise in the final three months of last year.