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Employment Changes, the Structure of Adjustment Costs, and Plant Size

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Author Info
Oivind A. Nilsen (University of Bergen, IZA-Bonn)
Kjell G. Salvanes (Norwegian School of Economics and Business Administration)
Fabio Schiantarelli () (Boston College, IZA-Bonn)

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Abstract

In this paper we analyze the pattern of employment adjustment using a rich panel of Norwegian plants. The data suggest that the frequency of episodes of zero net employment changes is inversely related to plant size. We develop and estimate a simple "q" model of labor demand, allowing for the presence of fixed, linear and convex components in adjustment costs. The econometric evidence supports the existence of purely fixed components, unrelated to plant size. As a result, the range of inaction is wider for smaller plants. The quadratic components of costs are also important. Finally, in most specifications both fixed and convex costs are higher for employment contractions.

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Publisher Info
Paper provided by Boston College Department of Economics in its series Boston College Working Papers in Economics with number 586.

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Length: 31 pages
Date of creation: 29 Oct 2003
Date of revision:
Handle: RePEc:boc:bocoec:586

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Related research
Keywords: adjustment costs; employment demand; size.;

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Find related papers by JEL classification:
D21 - Microeconomics - - Production and Organizations - - - Firm Behavior
C23 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Single Equation Models; Single Variables - - - Models with Panel Data
E24 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Macroeconomics: Consumption, Saving, Production, Employment, and Investment - - - Employment; Unemployment; Wages; Intergenerational Income Distribution

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References listed on IDEAS
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  1. Bentolila, Samuel & Saint-Paul, Gilles, 1994. "A model of labor demand with linear adjustment costs," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 1(3-4), pages 303-326, September. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  2. John M. Abowd & Patrick Corbel & Francis Kramarz, 1999. "The Entry And Exit Of Workers And The Growth Of Employment: An Analysis Of French Establishments," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 81(2), pages 170-187, May. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  3. Kramarz, Francis & Michaud, Marie-Laure, 2004. "The Shape of Hiring and Separation Costs," IZA Discussion Papers 1170, Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA). [Downloadable!]
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  4. Austan Goolsbee & David B. Gross, 1997. "Estimating Adjustment Costs with Data on Heterogeneous Capital Goods," NBER Working Papers 6342, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  5. Mark E. Doms & Timothy Dunne, 1998. "Capital Adjustment Patterns in Manufacturing Plants," Review of Economic Dynamics, Elsevier for the Society for Economic Dynamics, vol. 1(2), pages 409-429, April. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  6. Salvanes, Kjell G, 1997. " Market Rigidities and Labour Market Flexibility: An International Comparison," Scandinavian Journal of Economics, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 99(2), pages 315-33, June. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  7. Jeffrey R. Campbell & Jonas D. M. Fisher, 2000. "Aggregate Employment Fluctuations with Microeconomic Asymmetries," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 90(5), pages 1323-1345, December. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  8. Arthur Lewbel, 2000. "Endogenous Selection Or Treatment Model Estimation," Boston College Working Papers in Economics 462, Boston College Department of Economics, revised 13 Jun 2007. [Downloadable!]
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  9. Daniel S. Hamermesh & Gerard A. Pfann, 1996. "Adjustment Costs in Factor Demand," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 34(3), pages 1264-1292, September. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  10. Øivind Anti Nilsen & Fabio Schiantarelli, 2003. "Zeros and Lumps in Investment: Empirical Evidence on Irreversibilities and Nonconvexities," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 85(4), pages 1021-1037, December. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  11. Pagan, Adrian, 1984. "Econometric Issues in the Analysis of Regressions with Generated Regressors," International Economic Review, Department of Economics, University of Pennsylvania and Osaka University Institute of Social and Economic Research Association, vol. 25(1), pages 221-47, February. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  12. Abowd, John M. & Kramarz, Francis, 2003. "The costs of hiring and separations," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 10(5), pages 499-530, October. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  13. Daniel S. Hamermesh, 1995. "Labor Demand and the Source of Adjustment Costs," NBER Working Papers 4394, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  14. Abel, Andrew B & Eberly, Janice C, 1994. "A Unified Model of Investment under Uncertainty," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 84(5), pages 1369-84, December. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  15. Hamermesh, Daniel S, 1992. "A General Model of Dynamic Labor Demand," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 74(4), pages 733-37, November. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  16. Abel, Andrew B & Blanchard, Olivier J, 1986. "The Present Value of Profits and Cyclical Movements in Investment," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 54(2), pages 249-73, March. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  17. Goux, Dominique & Maurin, Eric & Pauchet, Marianne, 2001. "Fixed-term contracts and the dynamics of labour demand," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 45(3), pages 533-552, March. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  18. Hamermesh, Daniel S, 1989. "Labor Demand and the Structure of Adjustment Costs," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 79(4), pages 674-89, September. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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Cited by:
(explanations, Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.)

  1. Yu-Fu Chen & Michael Funke, 2007. "Threshold Effects of Dismissal Protection Regulation and the Emergence of Temporary Work Agencies," Discussion Papers 207, University of Dundee, Economic Studies. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  2. Ejarque, Joao & Nilsen, Øivind Anti, 2008. "Identifying Adjustment Costs of Net and Gross Employment Changes," IZA Discussion Papers 3703, Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA). [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  3. Yu-Fu Chen & Michael Funke, 2006. "Threshold Effects of Dismissal Protection Regulations and Employment Dynamics," Discussion Papers 195, University of Dundee, Economic Studies. [Downloadable!]
  4. Øivind A. Nilsen, Arvid Raknerud, Marina Rybalka and Terje Skjerpen, 2005. "Lumpy Investments, Factor Adjustments and Productivity," Discussion Papers 441, Research Department of Statistics Norway. [Downloadable!]
  5. Guiso, Luigi & Pistaferri, Luigi & Schivardi, Fabiano, 2006. "Labour Adjustment: Disentangling Firing and Mobility Costs," CEPR Discussion Papers 5787, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
  6. Giorgio Calcagnini & Germana Giombini, 2009. "Does Employment Protection Legislation Affect Firm Investment? The European Case," Working Papers 0902, University of Urbino Carlo Bo, Department of Economics, revised 2009. [Downloadable!]
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