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The distribution of the gains from spillovers through worker mobility between workers and firms

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  • Stoyanov, Andrey
  • Zubanov, Nikolay

Abstract

Knowledge spillovers through worker mobility between firms, found in previous research, imply that knowledge production within firms creates a positive externality to the hiring firms and their workers. We calculate the shares in the gains from spillovers retained by these parties using matched employer–employee data from Danish manufacturing. We find that around two-thirds of the total output gain (0.1% per year) is netted by the firms as extra profit, about a quarter goes to the incumbent workers as extra wages, while the workers who bring spillovers receive no more than 8% of it. This gains distribution, which favors the hiring firms, is similar for different types of moving workers, and is stable over time.

Suggested Citation

  • Stoyanov, Andrey & Zubanov, Nikolay, 2014. "The distribution of the gains from spillovers through worker mobility between workers and firms," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 70(C), pages 17-35.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:eecrev:v:70:y:2014:i:c:p:17-35
    DOI: 10.1016/j.euroecorev.2014.03.011
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    Cited by:

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    2. Bastian Stockinger & Katja Wolf, 2019. "The Productivity Effects of Worker Mobility Between Heterogeneous Firms," German Economic Review, Verein für Socialpolitik, vol. 20(4), pages 492-522, November.
    3. Ioannou, Christos A. & Makris, Miltiadis & Ornaghi, Carmine, 2021. "R&D productivity and the nexus between product substitutability and innovation: Theory and experimental evidence," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 186(C), pages 135-151.
    4. Nimczik, Jan Sebastian, 2017. "Job Mobility Networks and Endogenous Labor Markets," VfS Annual Conference 2017 (Vienna): Alternative Structures for Money and Banking 168147, Verein für Socialpolitik / German Economic Association.
    5. Elena Grinza, 2021. "Worker flows, reallocation dynamics, and firm productivity: new evidence from longitudinal matched employer–employee data [‘Optimal and dysfunctional turnover: toward an organizational level model,," Industrial and Corporate Change, Oxford University Press and the Associazione ICC, vol. 30(1), pages 75-108.
    6. Zsolt Csáfordi & László Lőrincz & Balázs Lengyel & Károly Miklós Kiss, 2020. "Productivity spillovers through labor flows: productivity gap, multinational experience and industry relatedness," The Journal of Technology Transfer, Springer, vol. 45(1), pages 86-121, February.
    7. Köllö, János & Boza, István & Balázsi, László, 2021. "Wage gains from foreign ownership: evidence from linked employer-employee data," Journal for Labour Market Research, Institut für Arbeitsmarkt- und Berufsforschung (IAB), Nürnberg [Institute for Employment Research, Nuremberg, Germany], vol. 55, pages 1-3.
    8. Sajid Anwar & Sizhong Sun, 2023. "Foreign direct investment and product quality in host economies," The World Economy, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 46(5), pages 1290-1318, May.
    9. Zubanov, Nick & Shakina, Elena, 2023. "Performance Costs and Benefits of Collective Turnover: A Theory-Driven Measurement Framework and Applications," IZA Discussion Papers 16413, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    10. Jaana Rahko, 2017. "Knowledge spillovers through inventor mobility: the effect on firm-level patenting," The Journal of Technology Transfer, Springer, vol. 42(3), pages 585-614, June.
    11. Poggi, Ambra & Natale, Piergiovanna, 2020. "Learning by hiring, network centrality and within-firm wage dispersion," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 67(C).
    12. Tamás Lahdelma, 2022. "Localized labor flow networks in knowledge‐intensive industries," Journal of Regional Science, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 62(5), pages 1414-1441, November.
    13. Jacob Rubak Holm & Bram Timmermans & Christian Richter Ostergaard & Alexander Coad & Nicola Grassano & Antonio Vezzani, 2019. "Labor mobility from R&D-intensive multinational companies: Implications for knowledge and technology," JRC Working Papers on Corporate R&D and Innovation 2019-06, Joint Research Centre.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Productivity spillovers; Worker mobility; Wages; Matched employer–employee data;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D24 - Microeconomics - - Production and Organizations - - - Production; Cost; Capital; Capital, Total Factor, and Multifactor Productivity; Capacity
    • J31 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs - - - Wage Level and Structure; Wage Differentials
    • J60 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Mobility, Unemployment, Vacancies, and Immigrant Workers - - - General

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