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Offshoring and the Elasticity of Labour Demand

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  • Neil Foster-McGregor

    (The Vienna Institute for International Economic Studies, wiiw)

  • Johannes Pöschl
  • Robert Stehrer

    (The Vienna Institute for International Economic Studies, wiiw)

Abstract

This paper examines the impact of offshoring on labour elasticities for a sample of 40 countries over the period 1995-2009 using the recently compiled World Input-Output Database (WIOD). Including measures of narrow and broad offshoring, as well as indicators of manufacturing and services offshoring, in conditional and unconditional labour demand equations we find that offshoring has an overall neutral or slightly positive effect on employment. This result hides differences across industry types and across employment types however, with additional results indicating a negative effect of services offshoring in many industry types. Positive effects of other offshoring measures are found in high-tech manufacturing and for high-educated employment in particular.

Suggested Citation

  • Neil Foster-McGregor & Johannes Pöschl & Robert Stehrer, 2012. "Offshoring and the Elasticity of Labour Demand," wiiw Working Papers 90, The Vienna Institute for International Economic Studies, wiiw.
    • Handle: RePEc:wii:wpaper:90
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    Cited by:

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    3. Jan Hagemejer & Joanna Tyrowicz, 2017. "Upstreamness of employment and global financial crisis in Poland: the role of position in the global value chains," GRAPE Working Papers 15, GRAPE Group for Research in Applied Economics.
    4. Neil Foster-McGregor & Robert Stehrer & Marcel Timmer, 2013. "International Fragmentation of Production, Trade and Growth: Impacts and Prospects for EU Member States," wiiw Research Reports 387, The Vienna Institute for International Economic Studies, wiiw.
    5. Cresti, Lorenzo & Dosi, Giovanni & Fagiolo, Giorgio, 2023. "Technological interdependencies and employment changes in European industries," Structural Change and Economic Dynamics, Elsevier, vol. 64(C), pages 41-57.
    6. Filippo Bontadini & Rinaldo Evangelista & Valentina Meliciani & Maria Savona, 2021. "Asymmetries in Global Value Chain Integration, Technology and Employment Structures in Europe: Country and Sectoral Evidence," CESifo Working Paper Series 9438, CESifo.
    7. Lorenzo Cresti & Giovanni Dosi & Federico Riccio & Maria Enrica Virgillito, 2023. "Italy and the Trap of GVC Downgrading: Labour Dependence in the European Geography of Production," Italian Economic Journal: A Continuation of Rivista Italiana degli Economisti and Giornale degli Economisti, Springer;Società Italiana degli Economisti (Italian Economic Association), vol. 9(3), pages 869-906, November.
    8. Alessandro Bramucci, 2015. "Offshoring, Employment and Wages Abstract: This paper reviews the debate on the economic effect of the international fragmentation of production also known as ?offshoring? and provides a preliminary i," Working Papers 1506, University of Urbino Carlo Bo, Department of Economics, Society & Politics - Scientific Committee - L. Stefanini & G. Travaglini, revised 2015.
    9. Hildegunn Kyvik Nordås, 2020. "Make or Buy: Offshoring of Services Functions in Manufacturing," Review of Industrial Organization, Springer;The Industrial Organization Society, vol. 57(2), pages 351-378, September.
    10. Aleksandra Parteka & Joanna Wolszczak-Derlacz, 2019. "Global Value Chains and Wages: Multi-Country Evidence from Linked Worker-Industry Data," Open Economies Review, Springer, vol. 30(3), pages 505-539, July.
    11. Neil Foster-McGregor & Mario Holzner & Michael Landesmann & Johannes Pöschl & Robert Stehrer & Roman Stöllinger, 2013. "A ‘Manufacturing Imperative’ in the EU – Europe's Position in Global Manufacturing and the Role of Industrial Policy," wiiw Research Reports 391, The Vienna Institute for International Economic Studies, wiiw.
    12. Federico Riccio & Giovanni Dosi & Maria Enrica Virgillito, 2023. "Smile without a reason why: functional specialisation and income distribution along global value chains," LEM Papers Series 2023/31, Laboratory of Economics and Management (LEM), Sant'Anna School of Advanced Studies, Pisa, Italy.
    13. Michael Landesmann & Sandra M. Leitner, 2023. "Immigration and Offshoring: two forces of globalisation and their impact on employment and the bargaining power of occupational groups," Review of World Economics (Weltwirtschaftliches Archiv), Springer;Institut für Weltwirtschaft (Kiel Institute for the World Economy), vol. 159(2), pages 361-397, May.
    14. Topham, Eva & McMillan, David & Bradley, Stuart & Hart, Edward, 2019. "Recycling offshore wind farms at decommissioning stage," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 129(C), pages 698-709.
    15. Ndubuisi, Gideon & Mensah, Emmanuel & Owusu, Solomon, 2020. "Export Variety and Imported Intermediate Inputs: Industry-Level Evidence from Africa," MPRA Paper 106008, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    16. Bramucci, Alessandro, 2016. "Offshoring, employment and wages," IPE Working Papers 71/2016, Berlin School of Economics and Law, Institute for International Political Economy (IPE).
    17. Bramucci, Alessandro & Cirillo, Valeria & Evangelista, Rinaldo & Guarascio, Dario, 2021. "Offshoring, industry heterogeneity and employment11This paper is the research outcome of two projects: the ISIGrowth project on Innovation-fuelled, Sustainable, Inclusive Growth funded by the European," Structural Change and Economic Dynamics, Elsevier, vol. 56(C), pages 400-411.
    18. Hongbing Li & Hongbo Cai & Suparna Chakraborty, 2019. "Market Access, Labor Mobility, and the Wage Skill Premium: New Evidence from Chinese Cities," Open Economies Review, Springer, vol. 30(5), pages 947-973, November.
    19. Youngho Kang & Unjung Whang, 2018. "To Whom Does Outward FDI Give Jobs?," Open Economies Review, Springer, vol. 29(3), pages 613-639, July.
    20. Farole, Thomas & Hollweg, Claire & Winkler, Deborah, 2018. "Trade in Global Value Chain: An Assessment of Labor Market Implication," Jobs Group Papers, Notes, and Guides 30318036, The World Bank.
    21. Lorenzo Cresti & Maria Enrica Virgillito, 2023. "Weak sectors and weak ties? Labour dependence and asymmetric positioning in GVCs," LEM Papers Series 2023/10, Laboratory of Economics and Management (LEM), Sant'Anna School of Advanced Studies, Pisa, Italy.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    labour demand elasticities; offshoring;

    JEL classification:

    • F16 - International Economics - - Trade - - - Trade and Labor Market Interactions
    • J23 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Labor Demand

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