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The Foreign Labor Statistics (FLS) program provides international comparisons of hourly compensation costs; productivity and unit labor costs; labor force, employment and unemployment rates; and consumer prices. The comparisons relate primarily to the major industrial countries, but other countries are included in certain measures.

Because statistical concepts and methods vary from country to country, international comparisons of statistical data can be misleading. The Bureau of Labor Statistics attempts to derive meaningful comparisons by selecting a conceptual framework for comparative purposes; analyzing foreign statistical series and selecting those which most nearly match the desired concepts; and adjusting statistical series, where necessary and feasible, for greater inter-country comparability.

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General Overview:

Data Availability | Technical Description

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Economic News Releases and Special Data Tables:

Consumer Price Indexes--International Comparisons

  • Consumer Price Indexes, Sixteen Countries, unadjusted for comparability, 1950-2006 (TXT) (PDF 35K)
  • Percent Change in Consumer Price Indexes, Nine Countries, unadjusted for comparability, 1995-2008 (TXT) (PDF)
  • Percent Change in Harmonized Index of Consumer Prices, Selected Countries and Areas, 2003-2008 (TXT) (PDF)

GDP per Capita and per Employed Person--International Comparisons

  • Comparative Real Gross Domestic Product per Capita and per Employed Person, Sixteen Countries, 1960-2006 (TXT) (PDF 102K)

Hourly Compensation--International Comparisons


Labor Force, Employment, and Unemployment--International Comparisons


Productivity and Unit Labor Costs--International Comparisons

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Publications and Other Documentation:
  • "Comparative civilian labor force statistics, 10 countries: a visual essay," (PDF 88K) by Jennifer Raynor, Monthly Labor Review, December 2007, pp. 32-37.
  • "International comparisons of Harmonized Indexes of Consumer Prices," (PDF 197K) by Jessica Sincavage, Monthly Labor Review, February 2007, pp. 23-26.
  • Labor Costs of Manufacturing Employees in China: An Update to 2003-04, (PDF 65K) by Erin Lett and Judith Banister, Monthly Labor Review, November 2006, pp. 40-45.
  • Manufacturing Employment and Compensation in China. (PDF 625K) (Revised November 2005) This revised report, prepared by Judith Banister under contract to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, was commissioned by BLS in order to assess the quality and usability of the official data that are available from China on manufacturing employment and compensation. Because of concerns about the quality of the available data, BLS does not plan to include China in its comparative foreign labor statistics program at this time; however, further research is underway. Please note: The opinions, analysis, and conclusions expressed in the report are solely those of the author.
  • A Chartbook of International Labor Comparisons: The Americas, Asia-Pacific, Europe (January 2008)
  • "A Visual Essay: International Labor Market Comparisons," (PDF 65K) by Marie-Claire Guillard, Monthly Labor Review, April 2006, pp. 33-40.
  • "Families and Work in Transition in 12 Countries, 1980-2001," (PDF 331K) by Gary Martin and Vladimir Kats, Monthly Labor Review, September 2003, pp. 3-31.
  • "Providing Comparable International Labor Statistics," (PDF 223K) by Patricia Capdevielle and Mark K. Sherwood, Monthly Labor Review, June 2002, pp. 3-14.
  • "U.S. Labor Market Performance in International Perspective," (PDF 148K) by Constance Sorrentino and Joyanna Moy, Monthly Labor Review, June 2002, pp. 15-35.
  • "A Perspective on U.S. and Foreign Compensation Costs in Manufacturing," (PDF 129K) by Chris Sparks, Theo Bikoi, and Lisa Moglia, Monthly Labor Review, June 2002, pp. 36-50.
  • "Comparing 50 Years of Labor Productivity in U.S. and Foreign Manufacturing," (PDF 130K) by Aaron E. Cobet and Gregory A. Wilson, Monthly Labor Review, June 2002, pp. 51-65.
  • more Monthly Labor Review Articles
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Get Detailed FLS Statistics:
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Related Links:

Other BLS Programs

  • Import/Export Price Indexes--monthly data on changes in the prices of imported and exported nonmilitary goods traded between the U.S. and the rest of the world.
  • International Technical Cooperation--conducts training in labor statistics for international participants and coordinates international requests for BLS services including technical experts and short-term visits to BLS.

Other Sources of International Statistics:
Around the World in Eight Charts: BLS Spotlight on Statistics
People Are Asking...

1. What international data does BLS produce?

2. BLS does not produce the international data I need.  Where could I look for data on other topics?

3. What are other major sources of international labor statistics?

4. Where can I find summary information about the economic variables available from specific countries?

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U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Division of Foreign Labor Statistics
Suite 2150, 2 Massachusetts Avenue, NE Washington, DC 20212-0001
http://www.bls.gov/FLS | Telephone: (202) 691-5654 | Fax: (202) 691-5679
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