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Human capital costs, firm leverage, and unemployment rates

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  • Akyol, Ali C.
  • Verwijmeren, Patrick

Abstract

Because bankruptcy is costly for employees, theoretical studies argue that firms with higher leverage have to pay their employees higher wages. In this paper we empirically test this prediction. We find that firm leverage is positively related to the wages of employees, both in the United States and in the Netherlands. In the United States, the positive relation between wages and leverage is strongest in the 21st century, which is a period that also shows a positive relation between wages and unemployment rates. We conclude that the human capital costs of bankruptcy are an important disadvantage of debt.

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  • Akyol, Ali C. & Verwijmeren, Patrick, 2013. "Human capital costs, firm leverage, and unemployment rates," Journal of Financial Intermediation, Elsevier, vol. 22(3), pages 464-481.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:jfinin:v:22:y:2013:i:3:p:464-481
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jfi.2013.04.003
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    3. Ine Paeleman & Nadja Guenster & Tom Vanacker & Ana Cristina O. Siqueira, 2024. "The Consequences of Financial Leverage: Certified B Corporations’ Advantages Compared to Common Commercial Firms," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 189(3), pages 507-523, January.
    4. Thi Phuong Vy Le and Xuan Vinh Vo, 2020. "Financing Decision and Labor Cost: Evidence from South Asian Countries," Journal of Economic Development, Chung-Ang Unviersity, Department of Economics, vol. 45(1), pages 185-201, March.
    5. Vega-Gutierrez, Pedro Luis & López-Iturriaga, Félix J. & Rodriguez-Sanz, Juan Antonio, 2021. "Labour market conditions and the corporate financing decision: A European analysis," Research in International Business and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 58(C).
    6. Laetitia Lepetit & Frank Strobel & Laurent Weill, 2024. "Do risky banks pay their employees more?," Working Papers of LaRGE Research Center 2024-09, Laboratoire de Recherche en Gestion et Economie (LaRGE), Université de Strasbourg.
    7. Chino, Atsushi, 2016. "Do labor unions affect firm payout policy?: Operating leverage and rent extraction effects," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 41(C), pages 156-178.

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