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The Skill Bias Effect of Technological and Organisational Change: Evidence and Policy Implications

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Author Info
Piva, Mariacristina (Catholic University of Piacenza)
Santarelli, Enrico (University of Bologna and Free University of Bozen/Bolzano)
Vivarelli, Marco () (Catholic University of Piacenza, ILO Geneva and IZA Bonn)

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Abstract

Previous empirical literature has shown that technological change can be considered the main cause of the skill bias (increase in the number of highly skilled workers) exhibited by manufacturing employment in developed countries over the last decades. However, recent papers have also introduced the “Skill Biased Organisational Change” hypothesis. We estimate a SUR model for a sample of 400 Italian manufacturing firms, showing that upskilling is more a function of the reorganisational strategy than a consequence of technological change alone. Moreover, some evidence of superadditive effects emerges, consistently with the theoretical hypothesis of a coevolution of technology and organisation.

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Paper provided by Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA) in its series IZA Discussion Papers with number 934.

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Length: 36 pages
Date of creation: Nov 2003
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Handle: RePEc:iza:izadps:dp934

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Related research
Keywords: skill bias; organisational change; manufacturing;

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Find related papers by JEL classification:
O33 - Economic Development, Technological Change, and Growth - - Technological Change - - - Technological Change: Choices and Consequences; Diffusion Processes
J50 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Labor-Management Relations, Trade Unions, and Collective Bargaining - - - General

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Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.:
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Full references

Cited by:
(explanations, Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.)

  1. Antonelli Cristiano & Scellato Giuseppe, 2009. "Localized introduction of biased technological change and productivity growth. The empirical evidence in the Italian manufacturing industry," Dipartimento di Economia "S. Cognetti de Martiis" LEI & BRICK - Laboratorio di economia dell'innovazione "Franco Momigliano", Bureau of Research in Innovation, Complexity and Knowledge, Collegio Carlo 200908, University of Turin. [Downloadable!]
  2. Peter Skott & Frederick Guy, 2005. "Power-Biased Technological Change and the Rise in Earnings Inequality," Working Papers 2005-17, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Department of Economics. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  3. Luca Pieroni & Fabrizio Pompei, 2007. "Evaluating Innovation and Labour Market Relationships: The Case of Italy," Quaderni del Dipartimento di Economia, Finanza e Statistica 28/2007, Università di Perugia, Dipartimento Economia, Finanza e Statistica. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  4. Mariacristina Piva & Enrico Santarelli & Marco Vivarelli, 2004. "Technological and Organizational Changes as Determinants of the Skill Bias: Evidence from a Panel of Italian Firms," Papers on Entrepreneurship, Growth and Public Policy 2004-03, Max Planck Institute of Economics, Entrepreneurship, Growth and Public Policy Group. [Downloadable!]
  5. Luis Angeles & Kyriakos C Neanidis, 2006. "Aid Effectiveness: The Role of the Local Elite," Working Papers 2007_01, Department of Economics, University of Glasgow, revised Dec 2006. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  6. Ines P. Murillo, 2006. "Returns to Education and Human Capital Depreciation in Spain," ERSA conference papers ersa06p60, European Regional Science Association. [Downloadable!]
  7. Mariacristina Piva & Enrico Santarelli & Marco Vivarelli, 2006. "Technological and organizational changes as determinants of the skill bias: evidence from the Italian machinery industry," Managerial and Decision Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 27(1), pages 63-73. [Downloadable!]
  8. Davide Castellani & Ilaria Mariotti & Lucia Piscitello, 2006. "Outward investments and skill upgrading. Evidence from the Italian case," CESPRI Working Papers 185, CESPRI, Centre for Research on Innovation and Internationalisation, Universita' Bocconi, Milano, Italy, revised Nov 2006. [Downloadable!]
  9. Daniele Cerrato & Mariacristina Piva, 2007. "The Internationalization of Small and Medium-sized Enterprises: the Effect of Family Management, Human Capital and Foreign Ownership," DISCE - Quaderni del Dipartimento di Scienze Economiche e Sociali dises0748, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Dipartimenti e Istituti di Scienze Economiche (DISCE). [Downloadable!]
  10. Pellegrino, Gabriele & Piva, Mariacristina & Vivarelli, Marco, 2009. "How Do Young Innovative Companies Innovate?," IZA Discussion Papers 4301, Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA). [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  11. Natália Barbosa & Ana Faria, 2008. "Technology adoption: does labour skill matter? Evidence from Portuguese firm-level data," Empirica, Springer, vol. 35(2), pages 179-194, April. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  12. Audretsch, David B & Sanders, Mark, 2007. "Globalization and the Rise of the Entrepreneurial Economy," CEPR Discussion Papers 6247, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  13. R Harris & Q Li & C Robinson, . "The Productivity Impact of Skills in English Manufacturing, 2001: Evidence from Plant-Level Matched Data," Working Papers 2006_16, Department of Economics, University of Glasgow. [Downloadable!]
  14. David B. Audretsch & Mark Sanders, 2008. "Globalization and the Rise of the Entrepreneurial Economy," Working Papers 08-21, Utrecht School of Economics. [Downloadable!]
  15. Heinz Hollenstein & Tobias Stucki, 2008. "The Impact of ICT Usage, Workplace Organisation and Human Capital on the Provision of Apprenticeship Training : A Firm-level Analysis Based on Swiss Panel Data," KOF Working papers 08-205, KOF Swiss Economic Institute, ETH Zurich. [Downloadable!]
  16. repec:mcr:wpdief:wpaper00038 is not listed on IDEAS
  17. A. Arrighetti & S. Curatolo & A. Lasagni, 2008. "Determinanti della domanda di laureati nell'industria manifatturiera italiana," Economics Department Working Papers 2008-EP02, Department of Economics, Parma University (Italy). [Downloadable!]
  18. Frank Cörvers & Jaanika Meriküll, 2007. "Occupational structures across 25 EU countries: the importance of industry structure and technology in old and new EU countries," Economic Change and Restructuring, Springer, vol. 40(4), pages 327-359, December. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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