The United States is faced with two serious economic problems: declining productivity growth and rising unemployment. These problems have become severe in the last decade. Both problems are caused by a number of factors, but experts fail to agree on which factors have most contributed to the problems. This paper examines the relationship between education, the productivity decline, and the unemployment rise. Increasing education is believed to increase productivity and reduce unemployment, but rising educational levels may have contributed to the slowdown in productivity. Research in this area has been unable to explain the decline in productivity. Thirty years ago the educational level of the unemployed was lower than that of the employed, but by 1971 the educational levels of the two groups were no longer different. Increases in educational levels may do little to decrease unemployment. Some observers believe that government and business leaders could improve production through better management and improved working environments rather than increasing economic and capital investments. Existing production techniques could also be modified to employ more labor, better utilize workers' skills and education, and still maintain profitability. Included is a bibliography of references and tables delineating the data presented. (Author/MD)