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Do economic crises reshape the skill content of Jobs? Evidence from organizational changes in the post-pandemic era

Author

Listed:
  • Benner, Niklas
  • Heuer, Felix
  • Kamb, Rebecca
  • Storm, Eduard

Abstract

How do economic crises reshape firms' skill demand through changes in the organization of work? Using the COVID-19 pandemic as a shock to workplace practices, this paper examines whether short-term disruptions prompt lasting shifts in job requirements. We draw on 11 million German online job vacancies from 2017-2024 and implement an event-study design that exploits pre-pandemic variation in workfrom-home feasibility across occupations. This approach identifies firms' differential exposure to remote-work constraints based on the occupational mix of their job postings. We find that crisis-induced shifts in skill demand were mainly short-lived, but one adjustment persisted: a lasting rise in interactive requirements, reflecting the emergence of hybrid collaboration. This form of organizational change contrasts with the technology-driven automation emphasized in prior crises and was shaped mainly by structural factors - digital infrastructure, firm size, and sectoral exposure - rather than by cyclical variation. Our results show that temporary shocks can trigger selective and enduring shifts in firms' skill demand through evolving workplace organization.

Suggested Citation

  • Benner, Niklas & Heuer, Felix & Kamb, Rebecca & Storm, Eduard, 2025. "Do economic crises reshape the skill content of Jobs? Evidence from organizational changes in the post-pandemic era," Ruhr Economic Papers 1195, RWI - Leibniz-Institut für Wirtschaftsforschung, Ruhr-University Bochum, TU Dortmund University, University of Duisburg-Essen.
    • Handle: RePEc:zbw:rwirep:335905
    DOI: 10.4419/96973380
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    Keywords

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    JEL classification:

    • J23 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Labor Demand
    • J24 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity
    • J63 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Mobility, Unemployment, Vacancies, and Immigrant Workers - - - Turnover; Vacancies; Layoffs
    • 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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