IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/spr/epolin/v52y2025i1d10.1007_s40812-024-00329-w.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Technological innovations and workers’ job insecurity: the moderating role of human resource strategies

Author

Listed:
  • Mauro Caselli

    (University of Trento (Italy))

  • Andrea Fracasso

    (University of Trento (Italy))

  • Arianna Marcolin

    (University of Milan)

  • Sergio Scicchitano

    (John Cabot University
    INAPP
    Global Labor Organization)

Abstract

In this paper, we empirically assess the impact of firms’ technological innovations on the workers’ perceived probability of job loss. We take advantage of a unique dataset based on a large and representative cross-sectional survey covering several characteristics of Italian workers and their firms. We find that a firm’s technological adoption reduces job insecurity among its surviving workers, and the effect is stronger when the innovation makes tasks simpler and their execution more precise. We also find that the relationship between technological innovation and job insecurity is moderated by human resource strategies, such as training programmes, labour-saving automation and dismissal plans adopted after the introduction of the innovation. Thus, workers’ perceptions of job insecurity vary significantly across innovative firms, and firms’ human resource strategies act as a relevant moderating factors.

Suggested Citation

  • Mauro Caselli & Andrea Fracasso & Arianna Marcolin & Sergio Scicchitano, 2025. "Technological innovations and workers’ job insecurity: the moderating role of human resource strategies," Economia e Politica Industriale: Journal of Industrial and Business Economics, Springer;Associazione Amici di Economia e Politica Industriale, vol. 52(1), pages 153-176, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:epolin:v:52:y:2025:i:1:d:10.1007_s40812-024-00329-w
    DOI: 10.1007/s40812-024-00329-w
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://link.springer.com/10.1007/s40812-024-00329-w
    File Function: Abstract
    Download Restriction: Access to the full text of the articles in this series is restricted.
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1007/s40812-024-00329-w?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Tom Coupe, 2019. "Automation, job characteristics and job insecurity," International Journal of Manpower, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 40(7), pages 1288-1304, September.
    2. Jasmine Mondolo, 2022. "The composite link between technological change and employment: A survey of the literature," Journal of Economic Surveys, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 36(4), pages 1027-1068, September.
    3. Piero Esposito & Sergio Scicchitano, 2023. "Drivers of skill mismatch among Italian graduates: the role of personality traits," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 55(40), pages 4642-4663, August.
    4. Thomas Cornelißen, 2009. "The Interaction of Job Satisfaction, Job Search, and Job Changes. An Empirical Investigation with German Panel Data," Journal of Happiness Studies, Springer, vol. 10(3), pages 367-384, June.
    5. Duncan Gallie & Alan Felstead & Francis Green & Hande Inanc, 2017. "The hidden face of job insecurity," Work, Employment & Society, British Sociological Association, vol. 31(1), pages 36-53, February.
    6. Luca Bonacini & Giovanni Gallo & Sergio Scicchitano, 2021. "Working from home and income inequality: risks of a ‘new normal’ with COVID-19," Journal of Population Economics, Springer;European Society for Population Economics, vol. 34(1), pages 303-360, January.
    7. Brougham, David & Haar, Jarrod, 2018. "Smart Technology, Artificial Intelligence, Robotics, and Algorithms (STARA): Employees’ perceptions of our future workplace," Journal of Management & Organization, Cambridge University Press, vol. 24(2), pages 239-257, March.
    8. Florence Lebert & Marieke Voorpostel, 2016. "Turnover as a Strategy to Escape Job Insecurity: The Role of Family Determinants in Dual-Earner Couples," Journal of Family and Economic Issues, Springer, vol. 37(3), pages 407-421, September.
    9. Jeffrey, Karen, 2021. "Automation and the future of work: How rhetoric shapes the response in policy preferences," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 192(C), pages 417-433.
    10. Nicola Cassandro & Marco Centra & Dario Guarascio & Piero Esposito, 2021. "What drives employment–unemployment transitions? Evidence from Italian task-based data," Economia Politica: Journal of Analytical and Institutional Economics, Springer;Fondazione Edison, vol. 38(3), pages 1109-1147, October.
    11. Hans De Witte & Nele De Cuyper & Yasmin Handaja & Magnus Sverke & Katharina Näswall & Johnny Hellgren, 2010. "Associations Between Quantitative and Qualitative Job Insecurity and Well-Being," International Studies of Management & Organization, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 40(1), pages 40-56, January.
    12. David Campbell & Alan Carruth & Andrew Dickerson & Francis Green, 2007. "Job insecurity and wages," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 117(518), pages 544-566, March.
    13. Tahira M Probst & Jasmina Tomas & Lara Roll & Darja Maslić Seršić & Lixin Jiang & Melissa R Jenkins, 2024. "Attenuating the relationship between job insecurity and job satisfaction: An examination of the role of organizational learning climate in three countries," Economic and Industrial Democracy, Department of Economic History, Uppsala University, Sweden, vol. 45(2), pages 304-334, May.
    14. Valentina Meliciani & Debora Radicchia, 2011. "The informal recruitment channel and the quality of job-worker matches: an analysis on Italian survey data," Industrial and Corporate Change, Oxford University Press and the Associazione ICC, vol. 20(2), pages 511-554, April.
    15. Silvia Vannutelli & Sergio Scicchitano & Marco Biagetti, 2022. "Routine-biased technological change and wage inequality: do workers’ perceptions matter?," Eurasian Business Review, Springer;Eurasia Business and Economics Society, vol. 12(3), pages 409-450, September.
    16. Belloc, Filippo & Burdin, Gabriel & Cattani, Luca & Ellis, William & Landini, Fabio, 2022. "Coevolution of job automation risk and workplace governance," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 51(3).
    17. Michele Battisti & Christian Dustmann & Uta Schönberg, 2023. "Technological and Organizational Change and the Careers of Workers," Journal of the European Economic Association, European Economic Association, vol. 21(4), pages 1551-1594.
    18. Flavio Calvino & Maria Enrica Virgillito, 2018. "The Innovation†Employment Nexus: A Critical Survey Of Theory And Empirics," Journal of Economic Surveys, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 32(1), pages 83-117, February.
    19. Lixin Jiang & Tahira M Probst, 2019. "The moderating effect of trust in management on consequences of job insecurity," Economic and Industrial Democracy, Department of Economic History, Uppsala University, Sweden, vol. 40(2), pages 409-433, May.
    20. Iammarino, Simona & Guy, Frederick & Filippetti, Andrea, 2019. "Regional disparities in the effect of training on employment," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 87466, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    21. Lingmont, Derek N.J. & Alexiou, Andreas, 2020. "The contingent effect of job automating technology awareness on perceived job insecurity: Exploring the moderating role of organizational culture," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 161(C).
    22. Nelson P. Repenning, 2000. "Drive out Fear (Unless You Can Drive It in): The Role of Agency and Job Security in Process Improvement," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 46(11), pages 1385-1396, November.
    23. Fabio Clementi & Michele Giammatteo, 2014. "The labour market and the distribution of earnings: an empirical analysis for Italy," International Review of Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 28(2), pages 154-180, March.
    24. Joel Mokyr & Chris Vickers & Nicolas L. Ziebarth, 2015. "The History of Technological Anxiety and the Future of Economic Growth: Is This Time Different?," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 29(3), pages 31-50, Summer.
    25. Kohlrausch, Bettina & Rasner, Anika, 2014. "Workplace Training in Germany and Its Impact on Subjective Job Security: Short- or Long-Term Returns?," EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, vol. 24(4), pages 337-350.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Mauro Caselli & Andrea Fracasso & Arianna Marcolin & Sergio Scicchitano, 2023. "Technological Innovations and Workers’ Job Insecurity: The Moderating Role of Firm Strategies," CESifo Working Paper Series 10673, CESifo.
    2. Mauro Caselli & Andrea Fracasso & Arianna Marcolin & Sergio Scicchitano, 2023. "The reassuring effect of firms' technological innovations on workers' job insecurity," International Journal of Manpower, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 45(4), pages 754-778, October.
    3. Gianluca Busilacchi & Giovanni Gallo & Matteo Luppi, 2022. "I would like to but I cannot. The determinants of involuntary part-time employment: Evidence from Italy," Center for the Analysis of Public Policies (CAPP) 0177, Universita di Modena e Reggio Emilia, Dipartimento di Economia "Marco Biagi".
    4. Caselli, Mauro & Fracasso, Andrea & Traverso, Silvio, 2021. "Robots and risk of COVID-19 workplace contagion: Evidence from Italy," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 173(C).
    5. Nazareno, Luísa & Schiff, Daniel S., 2021. "The impact of automation and artificial intelligence on worker well-being," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 67(C).
    6. Bonacini, Luca & Gallo, Giovanni & Scicchitano, Sergio, 2020. "All that glitters is not gold. Effects of working from home on income inequality at the time of COVID-19," GLO Discussion Paper Series 541, Global Labor Organization (GLO).
    7. Bonacini, Luca & Gallo, Giovanni & Scicchitano, Sergio, 2021. "Sometimes you cannot make it on your own. How household background influences chances of success in Italy," GLO Discussion Paper Series 832, Global Labor Organization (GLO).
    8. Arntz, Melanie & Blesse, Sebastian & Doerrenberg, Philipp, 2022. "The end of work is near, isn't it? Survey evidence on automation angst," ZEW Discussion Papers 22-036, ZEW - Leibniz Centre for European Economic Research.
    9. Luca Bonacini & Giovanni Gallo & Sergio Scicchitano, 2021. "Working from home and income inequality: risks of a ‘new normal’ with COVID-19," Journal of Population Economics, Springer;European Society for Population Economics, vol. 34(1), pages 303-360, January.
    10. Caselli, Mauro & Fracasso, Andrea & Scicchitano, Sergio & Traverso, Silvio & Tundis, Enrico, 2021. "Stop worrying and love the robot: An activity-based approach to assess the impact of robotization on employment dynamics," GLO Discussion Paper Series 802, Global Labor Organization (GLO).
    11. Silvia Vannutelli & Sergio Scicchitano & Marco Biagetti, 2022. "Routine-biased technological change and wage inequality: do workers’ perceptions matter?," Eurasian Business Review, Springer;Eurasia Business and Economics Society, vol. 12(3), pages 409-450, September.
    12. Guanglu Xu & Ming Xue & Jidi Zhao, 2023. "The Association between Artificial Intelligence Awareness and Employee Depression: The Mediating Role of Emotional Exhaustion and the Moderating Role of Perceived Organizational Support," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(6), pages 1-16, March.
    13. Giorgio Gnecco & Sara Landi & Massimo Riccaboni, 2024. "The emergence of social soft skill needs in the post COVID-19 era," Quality & Quantity: International Journal of Methodology, Springer, vol. 58(1), pages 647-680, February.
    14. Sergio Scicchitano & Marco Biagetti & Antonio Chirumbolo, 2020. "More insecure and less paid? The effect of perceived job insecurity on wage distribution," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 52(18), pages 1998-2013, April.
    15. Taymaz, Erol & Voyvoda, Ebru & Yilmaz, Kamil, 2024. "Is there a virtuous cycle between wages and productivity? Turkish experience after the transition to democracy," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 175(C).
    16. Cirillo, Valeria & Mina, Andrea & Ricci, Andrea, 2024. "Digital technologies, labor market flows and training: Evidence from Italian employer-employee data," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 209(C).
    17. A. Cetrulo & D. Guarascio & M. E. Virgillito, 2022. "Working from home and the explosion of enduring divides: income, employment and safety risks," Economia Politica: Journal of Analytical and Institutional Economics, Springer;Fondazione Edison, vol. 39(2), pages 345-402, July.
    18. Arias-Pérez, José & Vélez-Jaramillo, Juan, 2022. "Ignoring the three-way interaction of digital orientation, Not-invented-here syndrome and employee's artificial intelligence awareness in digital innovation performance: A recipe for failure," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 174(C).
    19. Huang, Yuhong, 2024. "Digital transformation of enterprises: Job creation or job destruction?," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 208(C).
    20. Jasmine Mondolo, 2022. "The composite link between technological change and employment: A survey of the literature," Journal of Economic Surveys, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 36(4), pages 1027-1068, September.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:spr:epolin:v:52:y:2025:i:1:d:10.1007_s40812-024-00329-w. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.springer.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.