OLMIS

by David Cooke
Published Aug-16-2012

The average workweek of Oregon's manufacturing production workers has risen to 40.0 hours on a 12-month average basis. This is a long workweek by historic standards. As far back as 1972 (since comparable records exist) and through late 2005, this metric was always below 40.0 hours per week.

The graph shows that the average manufacturing workweek has risen rapidly for the past three years, as the U.S. and Oregon economies have been recovering from the deep recession of 2008 and 2009.

Recent data over the past two years reflect the general expansion of the economy and Oregon's manufacturing sector. The rapid and substantial rise in the workweek during that time is similar in speed, but larger in magnitude than the gains seen following the recession that ended in 1982 and seen during the rapid economic expansion during the mid-2000s.