The productivity of the U.S. work force is a primary determinant of the standard of living of the U.S. population. Worker productivity is affected by many factors, including the education and skills of the work force. This handbook highlights several measures of productivity and education, and addresses the link between these two sets of measures. The handbook provides data on the following subjects: the trends in worker productivity and the contribution of education; the economic consequences of education for individuals; educational achievement; adult literacy; and the training of labor force participants. The data suggest that American workers are more productive, on average, than workers in any other country; however, worker productivity in several industrialized countries is gradually catching up to that in the U.S. The education of the work force is growing more rapidly in other countries than in the U.S. Although the U.S. leads almost every other industrialized country in college attainment, and the academic achievement of American students has been improving in recent years, U.S. students still tend to lag behind students in other countries with respect to some measures of achievement, particularly in mathematics and science. Finally, when compared with other countries that have tested literacy, the U.S. has a higher concentration of adults who score at the lowest literacy levels. Sixteen figures are included. (LMI)