According to a report that appeared on CFO.com, a decrease in worker productivity is partly due to U.S. companies being stingy with the “capital” workers need to increase output.

CFO notes in the first quarter of 2014, worker productivity growth turned negative with fewer goods and services being produced per hour than in the previous quarter after averaging less than 1% per year since 2011.

CFO said, according to Bloomberg Businessweek, one of the reasons is U.S. companies aren’t investing in their workers, i.e., helping them do things they “were never able to do before,” by avoiding or delaying spending on things like equipment, software and structures that workers need to increase output.

To view the full CFO.com report click here.