Workers giving more at the office; Productivity soars as more companies push lean staffs & shore up bottom line

U.S. worker productivity surged in the 2nd-Q at a 6.4% annualized rate, the best showing in almost 6 yrs, as companies slashed staff & got more production from less people. That showed up in the better-than-expected quarterly earnings reports from many major firms: With companies facing no pressure to raise wages for remaining employees, productivity gains flowed through to the bottom line. The jump in productivity followed a meager 0.3% rise in the 1st-Q & 0.8% in the 4th-Q, reported the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Historically, productivity -- output per hour worked -- advances sharply as the economy is beginning to turn from recession to recovery. The report "is another reassuring sign the economy is indeed doing what it does at or near the ends of recession," Robert Brusca, head of Fact & Opinion Economics said. The question is whether companies will respond to better productivity & better (or at least not-so-bad) earnings, by beginning to rehire even modestly -- to take pressure off beleaguered remaining staff. A better jobs picture obviously is key to a sustainable economic recovery. Ideally, businesses will use productivity gains to stabilize their own financial situations & as the economy rebounds, resume hiring to meet the rising demand, analysts said. "Hopefully, businesses will stop the layoffs & start hiring again so consumers will have the ability to spend, but it