On an output per worker basis, UK productivity was also 20% below the average for the rest of the G7 in 2014.
Across the G7 as a whole, productivity as measured by real output per hour and output per worker grew modestly in 2014, said the ONS. “Output per hour in the UK grew a little more slowly, and UK output per worker grew a little faster, than the G7 average.”
It added that output per hour was lower in all G7 countries in 2014 than would have been the case if pre-downturn trends had continued since 2007. The UK’s ‘productivity gap’ of about 18% compares with a gap of about 7% for the rest of the G7.
UK productivity in 2014 was 15% above Japan, but lower than Canada (by 4%), Italy (by 10%), France, and Germany and the US (by 32-33%).
