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Technical change and automation of routine tasks: Evidence from local labour markets in France, 1999‑2011

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  • Pauline Charnoz
  • Michael Orand

Abstract

[eng] In France as well as in other developed economies, a skill-biased labour demand shift occurred in the past three decades. We test one of the main hypotheses put forward to explain this particular shift : a skill-biased technical change driven by the dissemination of Information and Communication Technologies and the automation of routine tasks, leading to their disappearance in favour of high-skilled and service jobs. Using a theoretical model developed by Autor and Dorn (2013) based on the employment structure of local labour markets to identify national effects of technical change, we find evidence of a link between technical change and the 1990-2011 evolution of the labour force in France. In particular, we find that low-skilled workers switch from routine jobs to service jobs or unemployment. We also find that the shift in labour demand interacts with a spatial functional specialisation. These results are robust when other hypotheses, such as globalisation and the growth of international trade, or demographic change, are taken into account.

Suggested Citation

  • Pauline Charnoz & Michael Orand, 2017. "Technical change and automation of routine tasks: Evidence from local labour markets in France, 1999‑2011," Economie et Statistique / Economics and Statistics, Institut National de la Statistique et des Etudes Economiques (INSEE), issue 497-498, pages 103-122.
    • Handle: RePEc:nse:ecosta:ecostat_2017_497-498_7
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    Cited by:

    1. Philippe Aghion & Céline Antonin & Simon Bunel & Xavier Jaravel, 2020. "What Are the Labor and Product Market Effects of Automation? New Evidence from France," SciencePo Working papers Main hal-03403062, HAL.
    2. repec:hal:spmain:info:hdl:2441/170cd4sul89ddpnfuomvfm0jc0 is not listed on IDEAS
    3. Irene Brunetti & Valerio Intraligi & Andrea Ricci & Valeria Cirillo, 2020. "Low‐skill jobs and routine tasks specialization: New insights from Italian provinces," Papers in Regional Science, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 99(6), pages 1561-1581, December.
    4. repec:hal:spmain:info:hdl:2441/3n1gbsj6rs80ipqv9d42nfd0ge is not listed on IDEAS
    5. Philippe Aghion & Céline Antonin & Simon Bunel & Xavier Jaravel, 2020. "What Are the Labor and Product Market Effects of Automation? New Evidence from France: New Evidence from France," Sciences Po publications 01/2020, Sciences Po.
    6. ARAI Kosuke & FUJIWARA Ippei & SHIROTA Toyoichiro, 2021. "Robot Penetration and Task Changes," Discussion papers 21093, Research Institute of Economy, Trade and Industry (RIETI).

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