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Wages and Ireland’s International Competitiveness

Author

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  • Rory O'Farrell

    (OECD, Paris, France)

Abstract

At the beginning of the crisis in 2008 it was a widely reported view that Ireland had become uncompetitive, leading to calls for wage cuts. Since then wage rates in the private sector have been largely stable. However, Ireland has shown a strong improvement in exports despite a difficult international trading situation. This presents a puzzle. If wages in Ireland were uncompetitive, how could Ireland improve its export position so rapidly, without a general fall in wages? Ireland can best be described as having moved from a position of “super-competitiveness” to “competitiveness”. During the construction boom, exports remained an important driver of growth. Since 2008, the fall in nominal unit labour costs is entirely due to a move away from the labour intensive construction sector. However, while labour costs have been stagnant in Ireland, they have increased amongst our trading partners.

Suggested Citation

  • Rory O'Farrell, 2015. "Wages and Ireland’s International Competitiveness," The Economic and Social Review, Economic and Social Studies, vol. 46(3), pages 429-458.
    • Handle: RePEc:eso:journl:v:46:y:2015:i:3:p:429-458
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Luc Everaert & Céline Allard, 2010. "Lifting Euro Area Growth; Priorities for Structural Reforms and Governance," IMF Staff Position Notes 10/09, International Monetary Fund.
    2. Philip Du Caju & Theodora Kosma & Martina Lawless & Julian Messina & Tairi Rõõm, 2013. "Why firms avoid cutting wages: Survey evidence from European firms," Working Paper Research 251, National Bank of Belgium.
    3. Casey, Eddie, 2012. "Unit Labour Costs in Irish Manufacturing," Research Notes RN2012/2/1, Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI).
    4. Bergin, Adele & Kelly, Elish & McGuinness, Seamus, 2012. "Explaining Changes in Earnings and Labour Costs During the Recession," Papers EC9, Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI).
    5. Philip Du Caju & Theodora Kosma & Martina Lawless & Julián Messina & Tairi Rõõm, 2015. "Why Firms Avoid Cutting Wages," ILR Review, Cornell University, ILR School, vol. 68(4), pages 862-888, August.
    6. FitzGerald, John, 2013. "The Effect on Major National Accounting Aggregates of the Ending of Pharmaceutical Patents," Research Notes RN2013/2/1, Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI).
    7. Zsolt Darvas, 2012. "Compositional effects on productivity, labour cost and export adjustments," Policy Contributions 730, Bruegel.
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    Cited by:

    1. Niamh Hardiman & Spyros Blavoukos & Sebastian Dellepiane-Avellaneda & George Pagoulatos, 2016. "Austerity in the European periphery: the Irish experience," Working Papers 201604, Geary Institute, University College Dublin.

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    Keywords

    wages; competitiveness; Ireland;

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