This paper uses firm-level data from the Business Longitudinal Analysis Data Environment (BLADE) to measure the dispersion in labour productivity for six Australian industries (manufacturing; construction; retail trade; wholesale trade; professional, scientific and technical services; and administrative and support services).

During 2005 the existence of a strong labour market and relatively weak economic growth generated significant interest and debate among economic commentators and policy makers. While there is a general understanding of a lagged relationship between economic growth, as measured by GDP volumes, and growth in the labour market, as measured by employment, the nature...