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Productivity, Capital, and Labor in Labor-Managed and Conventional Firms: An Investigation on French Data

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  • Fathi Fakhfakh
  • Virginie Pérotin
  • MÓnica Gago

Abstract

Using two new data sets from France, the authors present the first study of the comparative productivity of labor-managed and conventional firms involving large representative samples of firms in a range of industries including services. Their study offers new stylized facts on labor-managed firms, and disentangles incentive effects from those of differences in input demand behavior on factor elasticities. Contrary to received wisdom, labor-managed firms are not smaller than conventional firms; they grow as fast or faster in all industries. The two groups of firms organize production differently. Labor-managed firms are as productive as conventional firms, or more productive, in all industries, and use their inputs efficiently; but in several industries conventional firms would produce more with their current input levels if they organized production like labor-managed firms. On average overall, firms would produce more using the labor-managed firms' industry-specific technologies. Labor-managed firms do not produce at inefficiently low scales.

Suggested Citation

  • Fathi Fakhfakh & Virginie Pérotin & MÓnica Gago, 2012. "Productivity, Capital, and Labor in Labor-Managed and Conventional Firms: An Investigation on French Data," ILR Review, Cornell University, ILR School, vol. 65(4), pages 847-879, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:ilrrev:v:65:y:2012:i:4:p:847-879
    DOI: 10.1177/001979391206500404
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    2. Mikko MAKINEN & Derek C. JONES, 2015. "Comparative Efficiency Between Cooperative, Savings And Commercial Banks In Europe Using The Frontier Approach," Annals of Public and Cooperative Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 86(3), pages 401-420, September.
    3. Donald A R George & Eddi Fontanari & Ermanno Celeste Tortia, 2019. "Finance, property rights and productivity in Italian cooperatives," Edinburgh School of Economics Discussion Paper Series 293, Edinburgh School of Economics, University of Edinburgh.
    4. Arnaud Chevalier, 2022. "Does employee ownership improve performance?," IZA World of Labor, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA), pages 311-311, May.
    5. Jose Garcia-Louzao & Gabriel Burdin, 2023. "Employee Owned Firms and the Careers of Young Workers," Bank of Lithuania Working Paper Series 113, Bank of Lithuania.
    6. Loek Groot & Daan van der Linde, 2017. "The Labor-Managed Firm: Permanent or Start-Up Subsidies?," Journal of Economic Issues, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 51(4), pages 1074-1093, October.
    7. Zsuzsanna Kispál-Vitai & Yann Regnard & Klara Kövesi & Claude-André Guillotte, 2019. "Cooperative case studies from three countries: Is membership a problem or a solution in the 21st century?," Society and Economy, Akadémiai Kiadó, Hungary, vol. 41(4), pages 467-485, December.
    8. repec:bla:annpce:v:89:y:2018:i:1:p:65-86 is not listed on IDEAS
    9. Virginie Pérotin, 2013. "Worker Cooperatives: Good, Sustainable Jobs in the Community," Journal of Entrepreneurial and Organizational Diversity, European Research Institute on Cooperative and Social Enterprises, vol. 2(2), pages 34-47, May.
    10. Pablo Blanchard & Gabriel Burdín & Andrés Dean, 2023. "Property Rights and Effort Supply," Documentos de Trabajo (working papers) 23-01, Instituto de Economía - IECON.
    11. Sebastián Berazategui & Emilio Landinelli & Daniel Ramírez, 2013. "Una comparación del comportamiento innovador entre Cooperativas de Trabajo y Empresas Capitalistas en Uruguay," Documentos de Investigación Estudiantil (students working papers) 13-02, Instituto de Economía - IECON.
    12. Pencavel, John, 2015. "The labor supply of self-employed workers: The choice of working hours in worker co-ops," Journal of Comparative Economics, Elsevier, vol. 43(3), pages 677-689.
    13. David P. Ellerman & Tej Gonza, 2020. "Coronavirus Crisis: Government Aid That Also Promotes Employee Ownership," Intereconomics: Review of European Economic Policy, Springer;ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics;Centre for European Policy Studies (CEPS), vol. 55(3), pages 175-180, May.
    14. Pablo Cotler, 2020. "Does it pay to cooperate? The case of cooperatives in the Mexican manufacturing sector," Annals of Public and Cooperative Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 91(4), pages 497-517, December.
    15. Nathalie Magne, 2017. "Wage inequality in workers’ cooperatives and conventional firms," European Journal of Comparative Economics, Cattaneo University (LIUC), vol. 14(2), pages 303-329, December.
    16. Correa Mautz, Felipe, 2022. "Productividad comparada de las empresas de la economía social en Chile," Documentos de Proyectos 48386, Naciones Unidas Comisión Económica para América Latina y el Caribe (CEPAL).
    17. Carmen GUZMAN & Francisco J. SANTOS & María de la O BARROSO, 2020. "Cooperative Essence And Entrepreneurial Quality: A Comparative Contextual Analysis," Annals of Public and Cooperative Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 91(1), pages 95-118, March.
    18. Derek C. Jones, 2013. "The Ombudsman: Employee Ownership as a Mechanism to Enhance Corporate Governance and Moderate Executive Pay Levels," Interfaces, INFORMS, vol. 43(6), pages 599-601, December.
    19. Luis R. Luis, 2014. "Cuba's Growth Strategy: Human Capital and Foreign Investment," Annual Proceedings, The Association for the Study of the Cuban Economy, vol. 24.
    20. repec:ulr:tpaper:dtm-02-13 is not listed on IDEAS
    21. Gregory K. DOW, 2018. "The Theory Of The Labor-Managed Firm: Past, Present, And Future," Annals of Public and Cooperative Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 89(1), pages 65-86, March.
    22. Zsuzsanna Kispál-Vitai & Yann Regnard & Klara Kövesi & Claude-André Guillotte, 2019. "Cooperative case studies from three countries: Is membership a problem or a solution in the 21 st century?," Post-Print hal-02351404, HAL.
    23. Estrin, Saul & Uvalic, Milica, 2021. "The life and works of Domenico Mario Nuti, 1937–2020: an appreciation," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 111911, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    24. Dow,Gregory K., 2019. "The Labor-Managed Firm," Cambridge Books, Cambridge University Press, number 9781107589650.

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