A review of the theory and measurement techniques of productivity in the construction industry

The rate of growth of productivity in Australia, the United Kingdom, the United States and other major economies in the OECD became an issue in the late 1960s, when declining output per hour worked and output per person employed became the focus of a large research programme that sought to interpret and analyse the causes of what became known as the productivity slowdown. At this time, the construction industry’s low productivity growth also attracted attention. The rate of growth of productivity of the construction industry has been poor since the 1960s, even by comparison with a long-run overall industry average in the order of 2 to 3 per cent a year.