IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/bla/worlde/v45y2022i12p3679-3714.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

The impact of employment protection on FDI at different stages of economic development

Author

Listed:
  • Sulistiyo K. Ardiyono
  • Arianto A. Patunru

Abstract

There has been much debate on how to design employment protection regulations that balance the need to attract foreign direct investment (FDI) on the one hand and to protect workers' rights on the other hand. This study explores this ‘dilemma’, using a multi‐country dataset from 2003 to 2015 and treating hiring and firing regulation (HFR) and the other explanatory variables as endogenous. The findings indicate that flexible HFR is essential for FDI promotion in the early stages of economic development of a country, but the impact of labour market flexibility on FDI gradually decreases and eventually turns statistically insignificant with economic advancement. In other words, a flexible HFRs are more important for developing countries, but such flexibility does not have to be sustained in a ‘race to the bottom’ manner: once a country reaches higher income levels, it has more room to focus on labour standards to protect workers without compromising on the attractiveness of the country for FDI.

Suggested Citation

  • Sulistiyo K. Ardiyono & Arianto A. Patunru, 2022. "The impact of employment protection on FDI at different stages of economic development," The World Economy, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 45(12), pages 3679-3714, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:worlde:v:45:y:2022:i:12:p:3679-3714
    DOI: 10.1111/twec.13299
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://doi.org/10.1111/twec.13299
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1111/twec.13299?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    Other versions of this item:

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Mr. Romain A Duval & Mr. Prakash Loungani, 2019. "Designing Labor Market Institutions in Emerging and Developing Economies: Evidence and Policy Options," IMF Staff Discussion Notes 2019/004, International Monetary Fund.
    2. Eslava, Marcela & Haltiwanger, John & Kugler, Adriana & Kugler, Maurice, 2004. "The effects of structural reforms on productivity and profitability enhancing reallocation: evidence from Colombia," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 75(2), pages 333-371, December.
    3. Robert C. Feenstra & Robert Inklaar & Marcel P. Timmer, 2015. "The Next Generation of the Penn World Table," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 105(10), pages 3150-3182, October.
    4. Etienne Wasmer, 2006. "General versus Specific Skills in Labor Markets with Search Frictions and Firing Costs," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 96(3), pages 811-831, June.
    5. Head, Keith & Ries, John & Swenson, Deborah, 1995. "Agglomeration benefits and location choice: Evidence from Japanese manufacturing investments in the United States," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 38(3-4), pages 223-247, May.
    6. Agnès Bénassy‐Quéré & Maylis Coupet & Thierry Mayer, 2007. "Institutional Determinants of Foreign Direct Investment," The World Economy, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 30(5), pages 764-782, May.
    7. Luiz R. de Mello Jr., 1997. "Foreign Direct Investment in Developing Countries: A Selective Survey," Studies in Economics 9701, School of Economics, University of Kent.
    8. David Roodman, 2009. "How to do xtabond2: An introduction to difference and system GMM in Stata," Stata Journal, StataCorp LP, vol. 9(1), pages 86-136, March.
    9. Higgins, Matthew, 1998. "Demography, National Savings, and International Capital Flows," International Economic Review, Department of Economics, University of Pennsylvania and Osaka University Institute of Social and Economic Research Association, vol. 39(2), pages 343-369, May.
    10. Mr. Antonio David & Frederic Lambert & Mr. Frederik G Toscani, 2019. "More Work to Do? Taking Stock of Latin American Labor Markets," IMF Working Papers 2019/055, International Monetary Fund.
    11. Bournakis, Ioannis, 2021. "Spillovers and productivity: Revisiting the puzzle with EU firm level data," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 201(C).
    12. Yuko Kinoshita & Nauro F. Campos, 2003. "Why Does Fdi Go Where it Goes? New Evidence From the Transition Economies," IMF Working Papers 2003/228, International Monetary Fund.
    13. Beata Smarzynska Javorcik & Mariana Spatareanu, 2005. "Do Foreign Investors Care about Labor Market Regulations?," Review of World Economics (Weltwirtschaftliches Archiv), Springer;Institut für Weltwirtschaft (Kiel Institute for the World Economy), vol. 141(3), pages 375-403, October.
    14. Davies, Ronald B. & Vadlamannati, Krishna Chaitanya, 2013. "A race to the bottom in labor standards? An empirical investigation," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 103(C), pages 1-14.
    15. Borensztein, E. & De Gregorio, J. & Lee, J-W., 1998. "How does foreign direct investment affect economic growth?1," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 45(1), pages 115-135, June.
    16. Viral V. Acharya & Ramin P. Baghai & Krishnamurthy V. Subramanian, 2013. "Labor Laws and Innovation," Journal of Law and Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 56(4), pages 997-1037.
    17. Gerda Dewit & Holger Görg & Yama Temouri, 2019. "Employment Protection and Firm Relocation: Theory and Evidence," Economica, London School of Economics and Political Science, vol. 86(344), pages 663-688, October.
    18. Adriana Kugler & Maurice Kugler, 2009. "Labor Market Effects of Payroll Taxes in Developing Countries: Evidence from Colombia," Economic Development and Cultural Change, University of Chicago Press, vol. 57(2), pages 335-358, January.
    19. Yuko Kinoshita & Ashoka Mody, 2001. "Private information for foreign investment in emerging economies," Canadian Journal of Economics/Revue canadienne d'économique, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 34(2), pages 448-464, May.
    20. Iršová, Zuzana & Havránek, Tomáš, 2013. "Determinants of Horizontal Spillovers from FDI: Evidence from a Large Meta-Analysis," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 42(C), pages 1-15.
    21. repec:imf:imfsdn:15/8 is not listed on IDEAS
    22. Stephen R. Bond, 2002. "Dynamic panel data models: a guide to micro data methods and practice," Portuguese Economic Journal, Springer;Instituto Superior de Economia e Gestao, vol. 1(2), pages 141-162, August.
    23. Lee E. Ohanian & Mark L. J. Wright, 2010. "Capital Flows and Macroeconomic Performance: Lessons from the Golden Era of International Finance," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 100(2), pages 68-72, May.
    24. Noorbakhsh, Farhad & Paloni, Alberto & Youssef, Ali, 2001. "Human Capital and FDI Inflows to Developing Countries: New Empirical Evidence," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 29(9), pages 1593-1610, September.
    25. Blundell, Richard & Bond, Stephen, 1998. "Initial conditions and moment restrictions in dynamic panel data models," Journal of Econometrics, Elsevier, vol. 87(1), pages 115-143, August.
    26. Aleksynska, Mariya., 2014. "Deregulating labour markets : how robust is the analysis of recent IMF working papers?," ILO Working Papers 994849663402676, International Labour Organization.
    27. Feldstein, Martin & Horioka, Charles, 1980. "Domestic Saving and International Capital Flows," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 90(358), pages 314-329, June.
    28. Aleksynska, Mariya. & Cazes, Sandrine., 2014. "Comparing indicators of labour market regulations across databases : a post scriptum to the employing workers debate," ILO Working Papers 994854523402676, International Labour Organization.
    29. Dixit, Avinash K, 1989. "Entry and Exit Decisions under Uncertainty," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 97(3), pages 620-638, June.
    30. Cheng, Leonard K. & Kwan, Yum K., 2000. "What are the determinants of the location of foreign direct investment? The Chinese experience," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 51(2), pages 379-400, August.
    31. Kiviet, Jan F., 2020. "Microeconometric dynamic panel data methods: Model specification and selection issues," Econometrics and Statistics, Elsevier, vol. 13(C), pages 16-45.
    32. David Roodman, 2009. "A Note on the Theme of Too Many Instruments," Oxford Bulletin of Economics and Statistics, Department of Economics, University of Oxford, vol. 71(1), pages 135-158, February.
    33. Kuddo, Arvo, 2018. "Labor Regulations throughout the World - An Overview," Jobs Group Papers, Notes, and Guides 30191606, The World Bank.
    34. Corden, W Max & Neary, J Peter, 1982. "Booming Sector and De-Industrialisation in a Small Open Economy," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 92(368), pages 825-848, December.
    35. Havranek, Tomas & Irsova, Zuzana, 2011. "Estimating vertical spillovers from FDI: Why results vary and what the true effect is," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 85(2), pages 234-244.
    36. Vincent Delbecque & Isabelle Méjean & Lise Patureau, 2014. "Labor market institutions and firms’ location choices," Review of World Economics (Weltwirtschaftliches Archiv), Springer;Institut für Weltwirtschaft (Kiel Institute for the World Economy), vol. 150(1), pages 115-148, February.
    37. Stephen Bond, 2002. "Dynamic panel data models: a guide to microdata methods and practice," CeMMAP working papers CWP09/02, Centre for Microdata Methods and Practice, Institute for Fiscal Studies.
    38. Romain A Duval & Prakash Loungani, 2019. "Designing Labor Market Institutions in Emerging and Developing Economies; Evidence and Policy Options," IMF Staff Discussion Notes SDN/19/04, International Monetary Fund.
    39. Hazel Parcon, 2008. "Labor Market Flexibility as a Determinant of FDI Inflows," Working Papers 200807, University of Hawaii at Manoa, Department of Economics.
    40. Dewit, Gerda & Görg, Holger & Temouri, Yama, 2019. "Employment Protection and Firm Relocation: Theory and Evidence," Open Access Publications from Kiel Institute for the World Economy 265098, Kiel Institute for the World Economy (IfW Kiel).
    41. Jiangyan Yu & Mr. James P Walsh, 2010. "Determinants of Foreign Direct Investment: A Sectoral and Institutional Approach," IMF Working Papers 2010/187, International Monetary Fund.
    42. Eslava, Marcela & Haltiwanger, John & Kugler, Adriana & Kugler, Maurice, 2004. "The effects of structural reforms on productivity and profitabality enhancing reallocation: evidence from Colombia," Discussion Paper Series In Economics And Econometrics 0408, Economics Division, School of Social Sciences, University of Southampton.
    43. Olney, William W., 2013. "A race to the bottom? Employment protection and foreign direct investment," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 91(2), pages 191-203.
    44. Ms. Ratna Sahay & Mr. Martin Cihak & Mr. Papa M N'Diaye & Mr. Adolfo Barajas & Ms. Diana B Ayala Pena & Ran Bi & Miss Yuan Gao & Ms. Annette J Kyobe & Lam Nguyen & Christian Saborowski & Katsiaryna Sv, 2015. "Rethinking Financial Deepening: Stability and Growth in Emerging Markets," IMF Staff Discussion Notes 2015/008, International Monetary Fund.
    45. Mason, Andrew & Kinugasa, Tomoko, 2008. "East Asian economic development: Two demographic dividends," Journal of Asian Economics, Elsevier, vol. 19(5-6), pages 389-399.
    46. Klein, Michael & Aaron, Carl & Hadjimichael, Bita, 2001. "Foreign direct investment and poverty reduction," Policy Research Working Paper Series 2613, The World Bank.
    47. Yuko Kinoshita & Ashoka Mody, 2001. "Private information for foreign investment in emerging economies," Canadian Journal of Economics, Canadian Economics Association, vol. 34(2), pages 448-464, May.
    48. Luiz de Mello, 1997. "Foreign direct investment in developing countries and growth: A selective survey," Journal of Development Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 34(1), pages 1-34.
    49. Hansen, Lars Peter & Heaton, John & Yaron, Amir, 1996. "Finite-Sample Properties of Some Alternative GMM Estimators," Journal of Business & Economic Statistics, American Statistical Association, vol. 14(3), pages 262-280, July.
    50. Callaway, Brantly & Sant’Anna, Pedro H.C., 2021. "Difference-in-Differences with multiple time periods," Journal of Econometrics, Elsevier, vol. 225(2), pages 200-230.
    51. Rachel Griffith & Gareth Macartney, 2014. "Employment Protection Legislation, Multinational Firms, and Innovation," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 96(1), pages 135-150, March.
    52. Faria, Andr & Mauro, Paolo, 2009. "Institutions and the external capital structure of countries," Journal of International Money and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 28(3), pages 367-391, April.
    53. Gerda Dewit & Dermot Leahy & Catia Montagna, 2013. "Employment Protection, Flexibility and Firms' Strategic Location Decisions under Uncertainty," Economica, London School of Economics and Political Science, vol. 80(319), pages 441-474, July.
    54. Wheeler, David & Mody, Ashoka, 1992. "International investment location decisions : The case of U.S. firms," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 33(1-2), pages 57-76, August.
    55. Manuel Arellano & Stephen Bond, 1991. "Some Tests of Specification for Panel Data: Monte Carlo Evidence and an Application to Employment Equations," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 58(2), pages 277-297.
    56. Azizjon Alimov, 2015. "Labor market regulations and cross-border mergers and acquisitions," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 46(8), pages 984-1009, October.
    57. Ratna Sahay & Martin Cihak & Papa M N'Diaye & Adolfo Barajas & Diana B Ayala Pena & Ran Bi & Yuan Gao & Annette J Kyobe & Lam Nguyen & Christian Saborowski & Katsiaryna Svirydzenka & Seyed Reza Yousef, 2015. "Rethinking Financial Deepening; Stability and Growth in Emerging Markets," IMF Staff Discussion Notes 15/08, International Monetary Fund.
    58. Windmeijer, Frank, 2005. "A finite sample correction for the variance of linear efficient two-step GMM estimators," Journal of Econometrics, Elsevier, vol. 126(1), pages 25-51, May.
    59. Bruce E. Hansen & Seojeong Lee, 2021. "Inference for Iterated GMM Under Misspecification," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 89(3), pages 1419-1447, May.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Ardiyono, Sulistiyo K., 2022. "Covid-19 pandemic, firms’ responses, and unemployment in the ASEAN-5," Economic Analysis and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 76(C), pages 337-372.
    2. Ardiyono, Sulistiyo K. & Patunru, Arianto A., 2023. "Firms’ responses to foreign demand shocks: Evidence from Indonesia after the global financial crisis," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 128(C).
    3. Chengde You & Huishan Qiu & Zhuojie Pi & Mengyuan Yu, 2023. "Sustainable Enterprise Development in the Manufacturing Sector: Flexible Employment and Innovation in China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(10), pages 1-30, May.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Tsun Se Cheong & Yanrui Wu, 2013. "Globalization and Regional Inequality," Economics Discussion / Working Papers 13-10, The University of Western Australia, Department of Economics.
    2. Shima’a Hanafy & Marcus Marktanner, 2019. "Sectoral FDI, absorptive capacity and economic growth – empirical evidence from Egyptian governorates," The Journal of International Trade & Economic Development, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 28(1), pages 57-81, January.
    3. Yao, Shujie & Wang, Pan & Zhang, Jing & Ou, Jinghua, 2016. "Dynamic relationship between China's inward and outward foreign direct investments," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 40(C), pages 54-70.
    4. Coletta Frenzel Baudisch, 2018. "Sectoral FDI and the Real Exchange Rate: The Role of Financial Development," MAGKS Papers on Economics 201828, Philipps-Universität Marburg, Faculty of Business Administration and Economics, Department of Economics (Volkswirtschaftliche Abteilung).
    5. Hakan Gungor & Ayla Ogus Binatli, 2010. "The Effect of European Accession Prospects on Foreign Direct Investment Flows," Working Papers 1006, Izmir University of Economics.
    6. Gui-Diby, Steve Loris, 2014. "Impact of foreign direct investments on economic growth in Africa: Evidence from three decades of panel data analyses," Research in Economics, Elsevier, vol. 68(3), pages 248-256.
    7. Akhtaruzzaman, M. & Berg, Nathan & Hajzler, Christopher, 2017. "Expropriation risk and FDI in developing countries: Does return of capital dominate return on capital?," European Journal of Political Economy, Elsevier, vol. 49(C), pages 84-107.
    8. Farla, Kristine & de Crombrugghe, Denis & Verspagen, Bart, 2016. "Institutions, Foreign Direct Investment, and Domestic Investment: Crowding Out or Crowding In?," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 88(C), pages 1-9.
    9. Ünal Töngür & Adem Yavuz Elveren, 2017. "The nexus of economic growth, military expenditures, and income inequality," Quality & Quantity: International Journal of Methodology, Springer, vol. 51(4), pages 1821-1842, July.
    10. Rodriguez-Palenzuela, Diego & Dées, Stéphane & Andersson, Malin & Bijsterbosch, Martin & Forster, Katrin & Zorell, Nico & Audoly, Richard & Buelens, Christian & Compeyron, Guillaume & Ferrando, Annali, 2016. "Savings and investment behaviour in the euro area," Occasional Paper Series 167, European Central Bank.
    11. Nguyen Thi Tuong Anh & Hung Quang Doan & Tuan Anh Bui & Nam Hoang Vu & Duong Thuy Thanh Le, 2022. "A Revisit of Motives for Chinese Outward Foreign Direct Investment: The Role of the Institution in Host Countries," SAGE Open, , vol. 12(4), pages 21582440221, December.
    12. Gnangnon, Sèna Kimm, 2022. "Effect of the utilization of non-reciprocal trade preferences offered by the QUAD countries on beneficiary countries' economic complexity," Journal of the Japanese and International Economies, Elsevier, vol. 65(C).
    13. Gaies, Brahim & Goutte, Stéphane & Guesmi, Khaled, 2020. "Does financial globalization still spur growth in emerging and developing countries? Considering exchange rates," Research in International Business and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 52(C).
    14. Brahim Gaies & Stéphane Goutte & Khaled Guesmi, 2019. "Does Financial Globalization Still Spur Growth In Developing Countries? Considering Exchange Rate Volatility," Working Papers halshs-02175361, HAL.
    15. Andreas Freytag & Sebastian Voll, 2013. "Institutions and savings in developing and emerging economies," Public Choice, Springer, vol. 157(3), pages 475-509, December.
    16. Piccoli, Luca & Tiezzi, Silvia, 2021. "Rational addiction and time-consistency: An empirical test," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 80(C).
    17. Fendel Tanja, 2016. "Migration and Regional Wage Disparities in Germany," Journal of Economics and Statistics (Jahrbuecher fuer Nationaloekonomie und Statistik), De Gruyter, vol. 236(1), pages 3-35, February.
    18. Morakinyo O. Adetutu, Anthony J. Glass, and Thomas G. Weyman-Jones, 2016. "Economy-wide Estimates of Rebound Effects: Evidence from Panel Data," The Energy Journal, International Association for Energy Economics, vol. 0(Number 3).
    19. Scott, K. Rebecca, 2015. "Demand and price uncertainty: Rational habits in international gasoline demand," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 79(C), pages 40-49.
    20. Heid, Benedikt & Langer, Julian & Larch, Mario, 2012. "Income and democracy: Evidence from system GMM estimates," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 116(2), pages 166-169.

    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • F21 - International Economics - - International Factor Movements and International Business - - - International Investment; Long-Term Capital Movements
    • J58 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Labor-Management Relations, Trade Unions, and Collective Bargaining - - - Public Policy
    • O24 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Development Planning and Policy - - - Trade Policy; Factor Movement; Foreign Exchange Policy
    • O25 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Development Planning and Policy - - - Industrial Policy

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:bla:worlde:v:45:y:2022:i:12:p:3679-3714. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Wiley Content Delivery (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.blackwellpublishing.com/journal.asp?ref=0378-5920 .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.