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Automation and Employment over the Technology Life Cycle: Evidence from European Regions

Author

Listed:
  • Florencia Jaccoud

    (UNU-MERIT, United Nations University)

  • Fabien Petit

    (Centre for Education Policy and Equalising Opportunities, UCL)

  • Tommaso Ciarli

    (United Nations University,UNU-MERIT and University of Sussex, SPRU)

  • Maria Savona

    (University of Sussex, SPRU)

Abstract

This paper examines the labor market implications of investment in automation over the life cycle of ICT and robot technologies from 1995 to 2017 in 163 European regions. We first identify major technological breakthroughs during this period and classify phases of acceleration and deceleration in investment. We then examine how exposure to automation technologies affects employment and wages across these different phases of their life cycle. We find that the negligible long-term impact of automation on employment conceals significant short-term positive and negative effects within phases of the technology life cycle. We also find that the negative impact of ICT investments on employment is driven by the phase of the cycle when investment decelerates (and the technology is more mature). The phases of the technology life cycles are more relevant than differences in regions' structural characteristics, such as productivity and sector specialization in explaining the impact of automation to on regional employment.

Suggested Citation

  • Florencia Jaccoud & Fabien Petit & Tommaso Ciarli & Maria Savona, 2024. "Automation and Employment over the Technology Life Cycle: Evidence from European Regions," CEPEO Working Paper Series 24-02, UCL Centre for Education Policy and Equalising Opportunities, revised Feb 2024.
    • Handle: RePEc:ucl:cepeow:24-02
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    File URL: https://repec-cepeo.ucl.ac.uk/cepeow/cepeowp24-02.pdf
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    Keywords

    Automation; Technology Life Cycle; Employment; Wages; ICT; Robot;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J21 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Labor Force and Employment, Size, and Structure
    • O33 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Innovation; Research and Development; Technological Change; Intellectual Property Rights - - - Technological Change: Choices and Consequences; Diffusion Processes
    • J31 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs - - - Wage Level and Structure; Wage Differentials

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