There is yet another case that does not present the economic justifications that were present in the previous cases. In some economies, the combination of relatively weak labour productivity growth and significant increases in nominal wages and salaries for a sustained period might drive unit labour costs up to levels persistently higher than the average for the euro area.
This risks hampering growth and job creation at the time of the market adjustment to come in particular through the competitiveness channel. 12  6  See Giannone and Reichlin (2006), Benalal et al. (2006) and ECB (2004).