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Job Polarization, Job Tasks and the Role of Firms

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A large and growing empirical literature has presented evidence of job polarization, i.e. the simultaneous growth of high-wage jobs and low-wage jobs at the expense of middle-wage jobs. Thus far, the focus has been on employment in different occupations, without taking into account the role of firms in the labor demand process. The purpose of this paper is to bridge this knowledge gap by explicitly analyzing how firms influence the current process of job polarization. Using detailed Swedish matched employer-employee data for the 1997–2013 period, we present novel evidence on within-firm job polarization. Applying a decomposition framework, we also find that both within-firm and between-firm components are important for overall job polarization. We also show how the within-firm pattern is related to explanations for job polarization that have been proposed, i.e. the influence of routine-based technological change and the offshorability and automation of jobs. The results indicate that routineness of jobs seems to be the most important factor behind the observed pattern of within-firm job polarization.

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  • Heyman, Fredrik, 2016. "Job Polarization, Job Tasks and the Role of Firms," Working Paper Series 1123, Research Institute of Industrial Economics.
    • Handle: RePEc:hhs:iuiwop:1123
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    Cited by:

    1. Sjöholm, Fredrik, 2023. "The Return of Borders in the World Economy: An EU-Perspective," Working Paper Series 1469, Research Institute of Industrial Economics.
    2. Jacob Rubæk Holm & Christian Richter Østergaard, 2018. "The high importance of de-industrialization and job polarization for regional diversification," Papers in Evolutionary Economic Geography (PEEG) 1821, Utrecht University, Department of Human Geography and Spatial Planning, Group Economic Geography, revised May 2018.
    3. Terhi Maczulskij, 2019. "Occupational Mobility of Routine Workers," Working Papers 327, Työn ja talouden tutkimus LABORE, The Labour Institute for Economic Research LABORE.
    4. Tomas Berglund & Kristina HÃ¥kansson & Tommy Isidorsson, 2022. "Occupational change on the dualised Swedish labour market," Economic and Industrial Democracy, Department of Economic History, Uppsala University, Sweden, vol. 43(2), pages 918-942, May.
    5. László Czaller & Rikard H. Eriksson & Balázs Lengyel, 2021. "Reducing automation risk through career mobility: Where and for whom?," Papers in Regional Science, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 100(6), pages 1545-1569, December.
    6. Jacob Rubak Holm & Bram Timmermans & Christian Richter Ostergaard, 2017. "The impact of multinational R&D spending firms on job polarization and mobility," JRC Research Reports JRC108560, Joint Research Centre.
    7. Gardberg, Malin & Heyman, Fredrik & Norbäck, Pehr-Johan & Persson, Lars, 2020. "Digitization-based automation and occupational dynamics," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 189(C).
    8. Bustos, Emil, 2023. "The Effect of Centrally Bargained Wages on Firm Growth," Working Paper Series 1456, Research Institute of Industrial Economics.
    9. Gustavsson, Magnus, 2017. "Is Job Polarization a Recent Phenomenon? Evidence from Sweden, 1950–2013, and a Comparison to the United States," Working Paper Series 2017:14, Uppsala University, Department of Economics.
    10. Du Yuhong & Wei Xiahai, 2020. "Task content routinisation, technological change and labour turnover: Evidence from China," The Economic and Labour Relations Review, , vol. 31(3), pages 324-346, September.
    11. Merja Kauhanen & Terhi Maczulskij, 2017. "Where do workers from declining routine jobs go and does migration matter?," Working Papers 314, Työn ja talouden tutkimus LABORE, The Labour Institute for Economic Research LABORE.
    12. Harrigan, James & Reshef, Ariell & Toubal, Farid, 2021. "The March of the Techies: Job Polarization Within and Between Firms," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 50(7).
    13. Cortes, Guido Matias & Salvatori, Andrea, 2019. "Delving into the demand side: Changes in workplace specialization and job polarization," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 57(C), pages 164-176.
    14. Fredrik Heyman & Fredrik Sjöholm, 2019. "Globalization, Job Tasks and the Demand for Different Occupations," Travail et Emploi, La DARES, vol. 0(1), pages 67-91.
    15. Carmen-Elena Bănescu & Emilia Țițan & Daniela Manea, 2023. "Long – Term Distribution of the Job Offer in Romania and Job Polarization," Romanian Economic Journal, Department of International Business and Economics from the Academy of Economic Studies Bucharest, vol. 26(85), pages 2-12, June.
    16. Jabłoński Marek, 2019. "Interdependence Among Creativity, Education, and Job Experience: A Municipal Company in Poland," Journal of Management and Business Administration. Central Europe, Sciendo, vol. 27(4), pages 48-70, December.
    17. Holm, Jacob Rubæk & Lorenz, Edward & Nielsen, Peter, 2020. "Work organization and job polarization," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 49(8).

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Keywords: Job polarization; Job tasks; Routinization; Automation; Matched employer-employee data;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J24 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity
    • J31 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs - - - Wage Level and Structure; Wage Differentials
    • O33 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Innovation; Research and Development; Technological Change; Intellectual Property Rights - - - Technological Change: Choices and Consequences; Diffusion Processes

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