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Productivity in Manufacturing and the Length of the Working Day: Evidence from the 1880 Census of Manufactures

Author

Listed:
  • Jeremy Atack

    (Department of Economics, Vanderbilt University)

  • Fred Bateman
  • Robert A. Margo

    (Department of Economics, Vanderbilt University)

Abstract

We use data from the manuscript census of manufacturing to estimate the effects of the length of the working day on output and wages. We find that the elasticity of output with respect to daily hours was positive but less than one - that is, there were diminishing returns to increases in hours. Holding constant annual days of work, the average annual wage was positively related to daily hours but, again, the elasticity was less than one. At the modal value of daily hours - ten hours per day - it appears that, from the standpoint of employers, the marginal benefits of a shorter working day - a lower wage bill - were approximately offset by the marginal cost - lower output.

Suggested Citation

  • Jeremy Atack & Fred Bateman & Robert A. Margo, 2000. "Productivity in Manufacturing and the Length of the Working Day: Evidence from the 1880 Census of Manufactures," Vanderbilt University Department of Economics Working Papers 0045, Vanderbilt University Department of Economics.
    • Handle: RePEc:van:wpaper:0045
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    Cited by:

    1. Susan Averett & Howard Bodenhorn & Justas Staisiunas, 2003. "Unemployment Risk and Compensating Differential in Late-Nineteenth Century New Jersey Manufacturing," NBER Working Papers 9977, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    2. Joyce Burnette, 2011. "The Emergence of Wage Discrimination in U.S. Manufacturing," Working Papers 11-18, Center for Economic Studies, U.S. Census Bureau.
    3. Robert A. Margo, 2014. "Economies of Scale in Nineteenth-Century American Manufacturing Revisited: A Resolution of the Entrepreneurial Labor Input Problem," NBER Chapters, in: Enterprising America: Businesses, Banks, and Credit Markets in Historical Perspective, pages 215-244, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    4. Jeremy Atack & Robert A. Margo & Paul Rhode, 2020. "‘Mechanization Takes Command’: Inanimate Power and Labor Productivity in Late Nineteenth Century American Manufacturing," NBER Working Papers 27436, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    5. Atack, Jeremy & Bateman, Fred & Margo, Robert A., 2008. "Steam power, establishment size, and labor productivity growth in nineteenth century American manufacturing," Explorations in Economic History, Elsevier, vol. 45(2), pages 185-198, April.
    6. Suresh Naidu & Noam Yuchtman, 2016. "Labor Market Institutions in the Gilded Age of American Economic History," NBER Working Papers 22117, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    7. Lychakov, Nikita, 2024. "Corporations and partnerships: Factory productivity in late Imperial Russia," Explorations in Economic History, Elsevier, vol. 94(C).
    8. Díaz, Antonia & Echevarria, Cristina, 2009. "Why a fixed workweek?," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics (formerly The Journal of Socio-Economics), Elsevier, vol. 38(5), pages 790-798, October.
    9. Kim, Sukkoo, 2005. "Industrialization and urbanization: Did the steam engine contribute to the growth of cities in the United States?," Explorations in Economic History, Elsevier, vol. 42(4), pages 586-598, October.
    10. Atack, Jeremy & Margo, Robert A. & Rhode, Paul W., 2024. "De-skilling: Evidence from late nineteenth century American manufacturing," Explorations in Economic History, Elsevier, vol. 91(C).
    11. Domenech, Jordi, 2007. "Working hours in the European periphery: The length of the working day in Spain, 1885-1920," Explorations in Economic History, Elsevier, vol. 44(3), pages 469-486, July.
    12. Sukkoo Kim, 2005. "Industrialization and Urbanization: Did the Steam Engine Contribute to the Growth of Cities in the United States?," NBER Working Papers 11206, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    13. Joyce Burnette, 2021. "Missing work: absenteeism at Pepperell Manufacturing Co. in 1883," Cliometrica, Springer;Cliometric Society (Association Francaise de Cliométrie), vol. 15(3), pages 755-786, September.
    14. Murray, John E. & Keith, Kristen, 2004. "Male-female earnings differentials in early 20th century Manila," Explorations in Economic History, Elsevier, vol. 41(4), pages 361-376, October.
    15. Jeremy Atack & Fred Bateman & Robert A. Margo, 2005. "Capital deepening and the rise of the factory: the American experience during the nineteenth century," Economic History Review, Economic History Society, vol. 58(3), pages 586-595, August.
    16. Lonnie Golden, 2009. "A Brief History of Long Work Time and the Contemporary Sources of Overwork," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 84(2), pages 217-227, January.
    17. Huberman, Michael & Minns, Chris, 2007. "The times they are not changin': Days and hours of work in Old and New Worlds, 1870-2000," Explorations in Economic History, Elsevier, vol. 44(4), pages 538-567, October.
    18. Russell Smyth & Xiaolei Qian & Ingrid Nielsen & Ines Kaempfer, 2013. "Working Hours in Supply Chain Chinese and Thai Factories: Evidence from the Fair Labor Association's ‘Soccer Project’," British Journal of Industrial Relations, London School of Economics, vol. 51(2), pages 382-408, June.
    19. Toms, Steven, 2014. "‘Cold, Calculating Political Economy’: Fixed costs, the Rate of Profit and the Length of the Working Day in the Factory Act Debates, 1832-1847," MPRA Paper 54408, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    20. Michael Huberman, 2002. "Working Hours of the World Unite? New International Evidence on Worktime, 1870-1900," CIRANO Working Papers 2002s-77, CIRANO.
    21. Kim, Sukkoo, 2004. "Industrialization and Urbanization: Did the Steam Engine Contribute to the Growth of Cities in the United States?," Institute of European Studies, Working Paper Series qt4hd75171, Institute of European Studies, UC Berkeley.

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