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The Innovation Premium to Soft Skills in Low-Skilled Occupations

Author

Listed:
  • Philippe Aghion
  • Antonin Bergeaud
  • Richard Blundell
  • Rachel Griffith

Abstract

Matched employee-employer data from the UK are used to analyze the wage premium to working in an innovative firm. We find that firms that are more R&D intensive pay higher wages on average, and this is particularly true for workers in some low-skilled occupations. We propose a model in which a firm's innovativeness is reflected in the degree of complementarity between workers in low-skill and high-skilled occupations, and in which non-verifiable soft skills are an important determinant of the wages of workers in low-skilled occupations. The model yields additional predictions on training, tenure and outsourcing which we also find support for in data.

Suggested Citation

  • Philippe Aghion & Antonin Bergeaud & Richard Blundell & Rachel Griffith, 2019. "The Innovation Premium to Soft Skills in Low-Skilled Occupations," Working papers 739, Banque de France.
    • Handle: RePEc:bfr:banfra:739
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    1. Do, Hang & Duong, Kiet Tuan & Huynh, Luu Duc Toan & Vu, Nam T., 2025. "The Real effects of Brexit on labor demand: Evidence from firm-level data," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 157(C).
    2. Ioramashvili, Carolin, 2024. "Technological invention and local labour markets: Evidence from France, Germany and the UK," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 53(7).
    3. Lee, Neil, 2023. "Inclusive innovation in cities: from buzzword to policy," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 117818, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    4. Antonin Bergeaud & Clement Malgouyres & Clement Mazet-Sonilhac & Sara Signorelli, 2021. "Technological change and domestic outsourcing," CEP Discussion Papers dp1784, Centre for Economic Performance, LSE.
    5. Moser, Christian & Saidi, Farzad & Wirth, Benjamin & Wolter, Stefanie, 2020. "Credit Supply, Firms, and Earnings Inequality," MPRA Paper 100371, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    6. Kenta IKEUCHI & Kyoji FUKAO & Cristiano PERUGINI, 2021. "Establishment Size, Workforce Composition and the College Wage Gap in Japan," Discussion papers 21022, Research Institute of Economy, Trade and Industry (RIETI).
    7. Michela Vecchi & Catherine Robinson & Maja Savic & Marina Romiti, 2023. "Vertical and Horizontal Mismatch in the UK: Are Graduates' Skills a Good Fit for Their Jobs?," National Institute of Economic and Social Research (NIESR) Discussion Papers 548, National Institute of Economic and Social Research.
    8. Antonin Bergeaud & Clément Mazet-Sonilhac, 2022. "Health crisis: French companies maintained their repayment capacity in 2020 [Changement technologique et externalisation : illustration par l’accès à l’Internet haut débit en France]," Bulletin de la Banque de France, Banque de France, issue 239.
    9. Domini, Giacomo & Grazzi, Marco & Moschella, Daniele & Treibich, Tania, 2021. "Threats and opportunities in the digital era: Automation spikes and employment dynamics," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 50(7).
    10. Cirera, Xavier & Martins-Neto, Antonio Soares, 2023. "Do innovative firms pay higher wages? Micro-level evidence from Brazil," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 52(1).
    11. Michela Vecchi & Maja Savic & Marina Romiti, 2021. "Skill mismatch among UK graduates," Economic Statistics Centre of Excellence (ESCoE) Discussion Papers ESCoE DP-2021-11, Economic Statistics Centre of Excellence (ESCoE).
    12. Rachel Griffith & John Van Reenen, 2021. "Product market competition, creative destruction and innovation," IFS Working Papers W21/43, Institute for Fiscal Studies.
    13. Jaan Masso & Priit Vahter, 2023. "Innovation as a firm-level factor of the gender wage gap," International Journal of Manpower, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 45(3), pages 449-465, August.
    14. Guimarães, Luís & Mazeda Gil, Pedro, 2022. "Looking ahead at the effects of automation in an economy with matching frictions," Journal of Economic Dynamics and Control, Elsevier, vol. 144(C).
    15. Ivy Hawah Taana & Valliappan Raju, 2020. "Determinants of project management methodologies and its effects on project success in Ghana–A conceptual paper," Journal of Administrative and Business Studies, Professor Dr. Usman Raja, vol. 6(3), pages 84-94.
    16. Love, James H. & Roper, Stephen & Vahter, Priit, 2023. "The dynamics of abandoned innovation activities: Learning from failure or learning to prevent failure?," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 52(8).
    17. James H. Love & Stephen Roper & Priit Vahter, 2020. "Do Firms Really Learn From Failure? The Dynamics Of Abandoned Innovation," University of Tartu - Faculty of Economics and Business Administration Working Paper Series 124, Faculty of Economics and Business Administration, University of Tartu (Estonia).
    18. Kong, Dongmin & Wang, Yanan & Zhang, Jian, 2020. "Efficiency wages as gift exchange: Evidence from corporate innovation in China," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 65(C).
    19. Chakraborty, Pavel & Chakrabarti, Anindya S. & Chatterjee, Chirantan, 2023. "Cross-border environmental regulation and firm labor demand," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 117(C).
    20. Ioramashvili, Carolin, 2024. "Technological invention and local labour markets: evidence from France, Germany and the UK," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 123630, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    21. Minniti, Antonio & Prettner, Klaus & Venturini, Francesco, 2025. "AI innovation and the labor share in European regions," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 177(C).
    22. Catherine Laffineur & Charlie Joyez & Raja Kali, 2023. "Occupational Coherence and the Geography of Unemployment," GREDEG Working Papers 2023-20, Groupe de REcherche en Droit, Economie, Gestion (GREDEG CNRS), Université Côte d'Azur, France, revised Jul 2025.
    23. Kerstin Hötte & Angelos Theodorakopoulos & Pantelis Koutroumpis, 2024. "Automation and taxation," Oxford Economic Papers, Oxford University Press, vol. 76(4), pages 945-969.
    24. Anastasiia Pustovalova & Priit Vahter, 2024. "Automation-Skill Complementarity: The Changing Returns To Soft Skills In Different Stages Of Technology Adoption," University of Tartu - Faculty of Economics and Business Administration Working Paper Series 146, Faculty of Economics and Business Administration, University of Tartu (Estonia).
    25. Mary O’Mahony & Michela Vecchi & Francesco Venturini, 2021. "Capital Heterogeneity and the Decline of the Labour Share," Economica, London School of Economics and Political Science, vol. 88(350), pages 271-296, April.

    More about this item

    Keywords

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    JEL classification:

    • O33 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Innovation; Research and Development; Technological Change; Intellectual Property Rights - - - Technological Change: Choices and Consequences; Diffusion Processes
    • L23 - Industrial Organization - - Firm Objectives, Organization, and Behavior - - - Organization of Production
    • J31 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs - - - Wage Level and Structure; Wage Differentials

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