On August 19, a group of advocates and experts will converge on Canberra for an economic roundtable. “Productivity,” announced Treasurer Jim Chalmers, is to be the event’s “primary focus”.
What does this mean? The term “productivity” can intimidate the outsider, but its basic meaning is simple: the effectiveness of productive effort – the extent to which inputs lead to outputs. Greater productivity means we produce more with less. Rising productivity has been crucial to expanding living standards over time.
How we might increase productivity is more contentious. As the lobbying before the roundtable demonstrates, there is no firm agreement on the best measures to adopt.
